eBay is a total scam

[sbaschn]

I don't understand how people sell items and still make any money. eBay is the biggest scam out there. I have been on eBay since the start, way back when. It was simple, small insertion fee, small final value fee. It's been a long time since I needed to earn some money selling things. Every now and then, I like to sell my old cell phones etc. I listed 3 items on eBay recently. Since I wanted to sell them, I priced them competitively. One item sold, guy paid etc. eBay is withholding my funds till I give them my SSN and bank account. In the past they would pay out to PayPal and did not require any of this info. I understand now that if you sell over $600 the IRS now requires a 1099, thanks to our new administration even a small sale like an iPhone is taxable. Anyway...so they won't release my money...I am not shipping until I get paid. Guy canceled the transaction (rightfully so) and they won't refund him neither. I approved the refund, but they said I have to pay eBay $650 first so they can refund b/c they froze the payment from the guy? Makes no sense. I spoke with eBay and told them to just give the guy his money back. So...they are holding his money, holding my money and earning interest on that cash. They say in a few weeks they will refund. So..scam part 1....they freeze your money while earning interest on it, they freeze the buyer's refund..earning interest on it. The final value fee is outrageous..for an item that sold for $630 plus $20 shipping, they want close to $100 in fees. WOW! Yet another scam. I also have a credit of $300 some odd in the account that I cannot get b/c I refuse to give them by bank account number and my SSN. I asked for them to give me a gift card, fund my PayPal, mail me a check, etc..but no...they want my back account. Needless to say, you can imagine my response. Once I saw those outrageous seller fees, I cancelled my other 2 auctions. One of them was a galaxy note that was up to $900 or so....once I ended the auction, eBay charged me $112 in seller fees! **bleep**? What if I drop the phone and break it before the auction ends and the phone is no longer sellable....they still charge you a fee to NOT sell an item? What is that nonsense? eBay is a total scam, they are not getting a penny from me, I am not giving them my SSN or my back account. The can kiss my you know what. I don't understand how people can sell on eBay??? They rip you off so much in seller fees, it's totally nuts. Anyway....if you took the time to read this rant..thanks...LOL....good luck on eBay..but after 22 years..I'm out and they can kiss my.......

[soh.maryl]

When a seller returns to selling here after an absence, it's a good idea for him to read the various announcements and new information before he starts listing again.

eBay sellers have been gradually switched over to Managed Payments over the course of several years. This requires a checking account for your payments from buyers to be deposited.  Many sellers just opened a separate checking account dedicated to their eBay earnings.

The fees have not changed much.  When it was Paypal, the fee was almost 13% in total depending on the category.  With MP, it's now something like 12.55%.

However, since you are leaving, I won't bore you with explaining the other changes.  And, yes, it would appear that millions of sellers are still making money here while following the rules.

Best of luck wherever you go.

[jda05121]

Mostly we sell because we actually know what we are doing. It's called a risk benefit analysis.

[mtgraves7984]

I took the time to read the rant. Your honesty is appreciated... sometime sellers can't admit that they didn't read the TOS.

With that being said, if today's eBay is not for you... then it's not for you. Lesson learned and good luck to you.

[reallynicestamps]

You need a checking account with a bank in your own country.

You need to provide acceptable identification. I used my passport, DH his driving license, but we Canadians are told not to provide our Social Insurance Number willy-nilly.

We also opened dedicated online checking accounts unattached to our normal household accounts.

You have always been required to report online selling income to the IRS, the difference is that the IRSnow requires payment processors (including Managed Payments and Paypal) to report if one of their clients runs more than $600 through them. It used to be $20,000.

Both eBay and Paypal have said they do not earn money through interest. They charge fees instead. This may actually be a legal restriction on them. I'd be interested in hearing from a CPA about this.

[g00dies4saleonline]

If you consider the onerous fees involved here (especially given the lackluster service provided), the convoluted regulations, and the high likelihood you won't be protected if defrauded, even if you net less money on a free platform, you'll likely come out just as good as if you sold on eBay and will be far less frustrated in the end. Sometimes you have to ask, 'what's your sanity worth?'

[janet9988]

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@sbaschn wrote:

I don't understand how people sell items and still make any money. eBay is the biggest scam out there. I have been on eBay since the start, way back when. It was simple, small insertion fee, small final value fee. It's been a long time since I needed to earn some money selling things. Every now and then, I like to sell my old cell phones etc. I listed 3 items on eBay recently. Since I wanted to sell them, I priced them competitively. One item sold, guy paid etc. eBay is withholding my funds till I give them my SSN and bank account. In the past they would pay out to PayPal and did not require any of this info. I understand now that if you sell over $600 the IRS now requires a 1099, thanks to our new administration even a small sale like an iPhone is taxable. Anyway...so they won't release my money...I am not shipping until I get paid. Guy canceled the transaction (rightfully so) and they won't refund him neither. I approved the refund, but they said I have to pay eBay $650 first so they can refund b/c they froze the payment from the guy? Makes no sense. I spoke with eBay and told them to just give the guy his money back. So...they are holding his money, holding my money and earning interest on that cash. They say in a few weeks they will refund. So..scam part 1....they freeze your money while earning interest on it, they freeze the buyer's refund..earning interest on it. The final value fee is outrageous..for an item that sold for $630 plus $20 shipping, they want close to $100 in fees. WOW! Yet another scam. I also have a credit of $300 some odd in the account that I cannot get b/c I refuse to give them by bank account number and my SSN. I asked for them to give me a gift card, fund my PayPal, mail me a check, etc..but no...they want my back account. Needless to say, you can imagine my response. Once I saw those outrageous seller fees, I cancelled my other 2 auctions. One of them was a galaxy note that was up to $900 or so....once I ended the auction, eBay charged me $112 in seller fees! **bleep**? What if I drop the phone and break it before the auction ends and the phone is no longer sellable....they still charge you a fee to NOT sell an item? What is that nonsense? eBay is a total scam, they are not getting a penny from me, I am not giving them my SSN or my back account. The can kiss my you know what. I don't understand how people can sell on eBay??? They rip you off so much in seller fees, it's totally nuts. Anyway....if you took the time to read this rant..thanks...LOL....good luck on eBay..but after 22 years..I'm out and they can kiss my.......

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You are just proof off how many members of ebay refuse to read and take ANY responsibility for their own actions when they list items on ebay...or any other thing in life they deal with.

I would back you IF you followed ALL of ebay polices.BUT when you blindly choose to list here and NOT read the rules  and  ignore several  of them then it falls on YOU only.

[divwido]

OK dokie then.  So long, good bye, don't let the door hit on the ....

[mr_lincoln]

@sbaschn   Unfortunately, enough has changed that you did not keep up with that the issue sits squarely in your corner.  A low activity account or new account can have their funds held.  eBay started their Managed Payments program over 2 years ago, yes over 2 years ago, because their contract with PayPal is ending so a new Payment Processor is being used.  Payments now go to your bank account not PayPal ... so yes, they need bank info and then SSN info for the 1099K ..

We have seen many Sellers complain about the lower 1099K threshold ... obviously, some have NOT been reporting their income from sales on their annual tax return ... well, that just changed.

So the best advice members here will give you is to update your account so you can get paid and refund the Buyer and if your sales for this year exceed $ 600 then report it on your income tax ...

I know that's not what you wanted to hear but that's the way eBay AND other online sales venues operate ... the new norm so to speak.

Regards,

Mr. L

[albertabrightalberta]

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@mtgraves7984 wrote:

I took the time to read the rant. Your honesty is appreciated... sometime sellers can't admit that they didn't read the TOS.

With that being said, if today's eBay is not for you... then it's not for you. Lesson learned and good luck to you.

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@mtgraves7984 

You are so tactful in expressing yourself! I don't think I'd say it as nicely. 

[mrdutch1001]

A rant based on falsehoods serves no purpose. It is your responsibility to know the facts  and to know about any changes to a site on which you sell. It's been 4 years since eBay announced  PayPal would be gone and that eBay's Managed Payment system(requiring a bank account) would be the only way for sellers to continue selling on eBay.

This is eBay's site, eBay's rules & policies...and it is up to the seller to stay abreast of all changes, additions, deletions, amendments,etc.etc.

If you returned to selling on eBay after a length of time, everything changes because of that absence...you are under scrutiny just as any new seller is> limits/restrictions/payment holds(and as with the high risk electronics categories), your situation is no different.

For those of us who understand how this all works, we accept, adjust, adapt and carry on...

For those who can't accept, adjust, adapt and carry on ...it's BYE BYE !!

[sbaschn]

Well I think all of you are right. It is my fault for not reading. In all honesty, I’m an infectious disease doctor, I’ve been busy. My issue is the high fees.   Ending an auction early if item is no longer available also charges you. I feel it’s outrageous. To the one person who said they will send me to collections, I have a credit of almost $300 in my account that eBay can keep. I don’t care. I think the platform is a total scam and you’re right….if I don’t like it, I can leave…and I am leaving.  My opinion is that eBay charges outrageous fees and it’s not worth it for a casual seller such as myself, for you high volume folks…it may be worth it.  I believe they are ripping all of us off and their days are likely numbered as more and more people find other venues and platforms to sell items.  How come they won’t refund the buyer? I don’t have the money..eBay has the money…they can just send it back. I will never, ever, ever…..ever…ever ever….ever give eBay my SSN and bank account. Are you kidding? So they can get hacked and have my info all over the net….going through all the hassle of opening a new account for 1-3 sales a year…no way.  Like I said…I have been with eBay since they opened….it’s time to say bye bye….so bye bye….I appreciate everyone’s comments…even the douchy ones…

[mrdutch1001]

I have sold on various online selling venues over the years and any site worth listing on has changed over the years, increased fees and/or has become a PAY to PLAY site... While I admit eBay has gotten a bit crazy with some things, their fees are not really any worse than the other big selling sites. However, in the end, it is the seller's choice to stay or to leave, no matter what selling venue...

[mr_lincoln]

@sbaschn   The fees are relative when it comes to selling, folks just emptying a closet sell for what they can get.  Those who Re-sell simply include the venue fees (eBay-Etsy-Amazon-Bonanza-Mercari-Etc) in their pricing structure.  As long as the fees are covered in the sale price they are a non-issue.  The big outcry here of course happened when accounts started going in to eBay's Managed Payments and for the very first time Sellers saw ALL their fees in one place instead of being split between eBay and PayPal like in the past. 

The other thing Managed Payments did was eliminate eBay from getting stiffed by Sellers who would spend the money they earned before their eBay invoice was due ... yep, there were posts about Sellers not having the money to pay their eBay fees ... well, that issue has been resolved.

In any event, if I read between the lines eBay has not been an additional cash stream for you, just a convenient place to move items from time to time and get "something" for them instead of giving them away or throwing them out ... I think in that regard, the venue is no longer as user friendly as it once was and a lot of those casual Sellers will simply stop selling or go elsewhere ...

Regards,

Mr. L

[albertabrightalberta]

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@sbaschn wrote:

 Ending an auction early if item is no longer available also charges you. I feel it’s outrageous. 

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Why would you have an auction for an item that's no longer available? 

The reason ebay charges fees on ended items that had bids is because they assume you took the same off-site, thereby cheating them out of the fees they rightly earned with the exposure they gave you.