automatic checkout

[1961nyyankees]

Who else thinks the automatic checkout stinks.  It is a slap in the face that you have to enter payment information just to bid or make an offer.  It double stinks that once you enter the info it is not only for the item you want to bid on they save the info for any other items in the future you want to bid on.  I have not used the "buy it now" method since they changed the checkout to see if you can still opt out of saving the info.  IF SELLERS ARE READING THIS THIS POLICY IT COSTING YOU MONEY!  I am a buyer that buys higher priced cards and I will no longer bid or make an offer under this policy.

[cyber_akuma]

I can't say I agree. You act as if it's common and that most auctions end in non-payment. This poorly thought-out forced auto-pay system is something most sellers didn't even want implemented in this way (They wanted something to be done about non-payers, but not like this, at least from the posts from sellers themselves I have seen on this forum over the past months) and causes far more problems than it fixes, even causing people to leave eBay.

It's also somewhat selfish to go "But what if someone doesn't pay the auction?" while ignoring all the other issues this causes both buyers and sellers, and is an issue that doesn't happen tot he majority of listings. This is coming from someone who has had people not pay for triple-digit auctions before mind you, and I am STILL against this.

[siliconalleyelectronics]

I ran a trial of selling some of my inventory in auction format and approx. 80% ended with non payment. Typically these would be low or no feedback accounts located in foreign countries, most of which would then be stuck in 96 hour limbo. I'm not really a fan of the payment up front though to be honest, I prefer as little friction between a customer and a purchase as possible. I would like to see eBay do away with upfront payments but reduce the payment window to 24 hours. If the customer contacts me within that period asking to hold until a certain time then I have no problem doing so, as long as it is reasonable of course. If I don't have any communication from them after 24 hours, and they don't reply to a message from me regarding when they will pay then there is typically no reason to assume they will be purchasing anything. There is therefore no reason to waste my time, or the time of someone else who does want to purchase the product.

[kathiec]

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@siliconalleyelectronics wrote:

I ran a trial of selling some of my inventory in auction format and approx. 80% ended with non payment. Typically these would be low or no feedback accounts located in foreign countries, most of which would then be stuck in 96 hour limbo. I'm not really a fan of the payment up front though to be honest, I prefer as little friction between a customer and a purchase as possible. I would like to see eBay do away with upfront payments but reduce the payment window to 24 hours. If the customer contacts me within that period asking to hold until a certain time then I have no problem doing so, as long as it is reasonable of course. If I don't have any communication from them after 24 hours, and they don't reply to a message from me regarding when they will pay then there is typically no reason to assume they will be purchasing anything. There is therefore no reason to waste my time, or the time of someone else who does want to purchase the product.

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To me this seems like a very workable compromise. Buyers still get to take advantage of the current checkout options, combined shipping can be invoiced, and sellers aren't held up for four days waiting to be paid. Because I think you'll find that the vast majority of buyers objecting to prepayment aren't the low-life, sport-bidding cretins some sellers accuse them of being. They're long-term members who always pay within a few hours, but who don't like being slotted into "solutions" that remove options available in the current checkout process.

[house*of*paws]

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@ryanrobyn wrote:

sadly some off us are stuck this experiment unwillingly and cannot change it

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Hi @ryanrobyn 

Sellers aren't 'stuck'.  They are able to opt out of requiring prepayment information (if they wish) by going to their Buyer Requirements and changing the option.

[reallynicestamps]

@megafo_8472 

I actually contact the sellers and let them know that requiring payment before the offer is even accepted just cost them a sale.

I agree.

But you may want to put it to the seller that they may not know that Auto-Pay was added to their listings by eBay without their permission and without telling them.

Many auctions sellers are seeing a drop in the already small number of active bidders because buyers are loathe to leave their financial information with strangers, when they may not even win the bid.

[reallynicestamps]

@cyber_akuma 

What is the sales tax fee in your state?

Would that explain the $2.50 difference?

[cyber_akuma]

80% is utterly absurd. I have had ONE non-payment in everything I have ever sold on eBay. I have no problem with the window being reduced to 24 hours either, in fact, most sellers seem to agree this would have been a better idea than this forced immediate payment nonsense. Especially if you have the option of contacting the seller if you need more time like you suggested. But this current new system of forcing immediate payment without the buyer being able to do anything about it and not even letting the buyer know how much the total ended up of all things is insane... if not possibly illegal with some state laws.

[cyber_akuma]

Sales taxes in my state, and especially in my city, are stupidly high.

[downunder-61]

How do you think someone should  feel?

I think you should feel that this is an eBay decision, not a seller decision and going off at me is pointless.

When this was introduced, eBay in it's infinite wisdom, made it a feature automatically - we seller's had no idea that option was there until we got buyers messages - the seller who now knows this can decide for themselves whether or not they leave it or turn it off.

And yes, assuming a seller is to blame for this and pointing out a LOST sale is small minded and petty - a lot of those sellers you message will not even know what you are on about.

On the other side of the coin, seller's have had to pay FVF on shipping since 2011 because the unscrupulous sellers were inflating shipping cost on low priced items to avoid fee's - do you think seller's are happy with this?

[kathiec]

I think it's absolutely pointless to turn this into a "who's more put-upon, buyers or sellers?" contest. As the old adage says, two wrongs don't make a right. 

[cyber_akuma]

Exactly! There is a term for this: whatabolulism. Someone having a problem doesn't suddenly make other's problems invalid, nor do you invalidate that first person's problem by bringing up one of your problems. The topic of this thread is about the problems people are having with this poorly thought out forced auto-pay system, going "Oh yeah? Well what about (other problem) sellers have?" is just engaging in the logical fallacy of whatabolulism, you are trying to ignore and deflect the problem by bringing up one of your problems.