For many sellers and especially buyers, the mandatory IPR is the final nail in the coffin. As I read through this thread and realize how long this has been going on, it explains a lot about why sales have tanked and tanked again, never to recover over the last three years.
I am most appalled at the number of comments regarding the number of customer service reps that are oblivious, totally unaware about the expanded implementation of mandatory IPR and how they've been telling buyers that it's a glitch and eBay is working on it. Especially, since eBay reps are now reporting on these IPR related posts that we buyers and sellers were initially informed that the implementation of mandatory IPR was first announced in the Spring 2013. Most sellers were under the impression that eBay bagged the IPR back in 2013 because of the uproar it caused.
Apparently, according to many of the posts I've been reading, eBay has been implementing it slowly but surely over the last three years. But eBay customer service reps are still in the dark? It's a glitch? eBay is working on it? Three years later?
Would love to know what criteria a seller had to meet or didn't meet to be lucky enough to bypass the IPR over the last three years ...until now?
The fact that eBay has been sending buyers a message via the 'Request total from seller" button WITHOUT MY KNOWLEDGE stating I do not offer combined shipping' or, "You can't request total on 'immediate payment required' items" INFURIATES me. Especially since I have no knowledge that a purchase was even attempted. I have no idea how many sales I have lost. I know if it were me trying to buy several items and I tried to request combined shipping and was immediately informed it's not going to happen, I would feel I had been face slapped and say the hell with it. I would resentfluly leave the item for the next sucker. I'd be angry with the seller because the message doesn't state the truth "In an attempt to appease Wall St and suck a few more bucks out of sellers and buyers, we at eBay are enforcing a new policy, without this seller's knowledge, of pay a shipping cost on every item you purchase from them, because in reality, we really do not care about your 'Buyer Experience' we just care about our bottom line whether our practices are ethical or not. Oh, and if you decide to purchase the items and message the seller to request reimbursement of your extra shipping costs, we don't care because we already made our additional Final Value Fee on your extra shipping costs and PayPal has made their additional 30 cents per transaction and no, we will not reimburse the seller one red cent of those additional shipping costs".
Oh eBay, you are such scandalous SNEAKY dirty dogs. Industry standard? Grotesque! Next, you'll be telling us "Per eBay surveys conducted, the buyers were begging to pay extra to enhance their overall buyer experience". Just as far fetched as Bob's Blog "Industry Standard" comments.
