eBay

brittanie@ebay · ‎02-17-2021

Hi everyone! Thanks for joining us for the Weekly Chat with eBay Staff. We don't have a specific topic this week, so feel free to share any general buying or selling questions you may have.

The chat thread will remain open until 2 PM PT at which point we'll close it from additional responses. After that time, we'll continue to work on responding to any queries that might still be unanswered.

To post your question, click Reply in the lower right corner of this post, type your question, and hit submit between 1-2 PM Pacific Time. The format of our chat mirrors the format of our Community Discussion Boards, where each post will appear in the thread chronologically. The Community Team will review each question as it comes in, and will quote the original question in our reply. This quote and the reply will appear later in the thread, so just keep scrolling down to see our answers.

Missed the chat? Send your questions to the podcast by calling 888-723-4630 or email us at podcast@ebay.com and maybe your questions will make it on the air! Or listen to past episodes while you wait for next Wednesday!

Brittanie,
Community Team

valueaddedresource · ‎02-17-2021

@valueaddedresource wrote:
brian@ebay wrote:
@valueaddedresource wrote:
tyler@ebay brian@ebay payments_team@ebay

There were many reports yesterday of delayed/missing payouts. There was no response or announcement and no updates to the system status page.

I understand Monday was a holiday, so I was not expecting a payout that day. However, in the past, payments continued to be processed over the weekend and on Monday so that most of the money was available for payout on Tuesday. That did not happen this week. Instead, those orders did not move to "available funds" until after the payout on Tuesday and were finally paid out today.

Some sellers on weekly payouts were reporting it skipped the payout this week entirely and is now showing them next payout for next Tuesday.

Was this a "one off" scenario with processing or has there been a change to how eBay is processing payments over weekend/holidays?

Here are a few threads for example:
https://community.ebay.com/t5/Payments/No-Payment-Processing-on-2-14/m-p/31618078/highlight/true#M10...

https://community.ebay.com/t5/Payments/Managed-Payments-withholding-83/m-p/31621537/highlight/true#M...
@valueaddedresource the information I've found is that funds will appear as available for payout within 1 business day from payment confirmation. Since weekends and holidays aren't considered business days, funds from transactions on those days will show available for payout on the next business day. In this weeks case that would be Tuesday since Monday was a holiday.
Thank you brian@ebay but that does not answer or address my actual question.

I understand when payouts are initiated.

The issue here is in the past, eBay has still be *processing* payments over the weekends and holiday Mondays. That is to say that orders from Thursday-Friday typically move from "processing" to "completed" status sometime Sunday night (or possibly Monday night in the case of holiday weekends.

This is important because that means completed funds from those Thursday-Friday orders are usually included in the payout process on Monday (or Tuesday in case of a holiday).

This week was completely different. Orders from Thursday-Friday were still showing as "processing" Tuesday morning and were not changed to "completed" until after the payout on Tuesday, which then pushed them to the Wednesday payout for daily sellers or next Tuesday's payout for weekly sellers.

Again, just to be absolutely clear - the issue was a delay in processing the payments and moving them to "completed" status.

The question is - was that because of "one off" system issues/delays or is this a change in how eBay processes payments that we can expect to see consistently from here forward?

brian@ebay - after looking at that link again, I now have to ask, is this yet another unannounced changed to Managed Payments?!

Previously eBay was still "processing" payments over the weekend as I described so that most of them moved to "completed" in time to be paid out on Monday (or Tuesday in case of holiday).

That link seems to be saying now eBay is only processing payments on business days.

If so, when did that change and why was there no announcement?

valueaddedresource · ‎02-17-2021

tyler@ebay

We are fast approaching the 60 day mark on the issue with overcharging taxes on batteries.

I was hopeful two weeks ago when you said you were making progress, but then in last week's chat we were back to "we don't have any updates."

There can be some serious legal implications for companies that profit from overcharging sales tax (even unintentionally) and you yourself have acknowledged the apparent "systemic nature" of the problem.

What does Marie Oh Huber, SVP of Legal Affairs and Lead Council have to say about this?

postcardcountry · ‎02-17-2021

Seller Hub / Orders / Paid and Shipped / Print packing slip and more

This unannounced new feature is still not working.

In fact the more I try to use it, the more I find it does not work.

Can't print two orders at a time -- the PDF does not generate (well, after 2 minutes I gave up).

When I get done testing the software and finding all the pieces of this "improved" software....where do I send my independent contractor quality assurance analyst invoice to?

This incomplete/untested/nonfunctioning software can cost me an hour a day....

Please help improve my seller experience.

_____
Edit: A reply to your post can be found here

brian@ebay · ‎02-17-2021

@nuclearomen wrote:

brian@ebay wrote:

@nuclearomen wrote:

brian@ebay
Last week I talked about issue where not getting receipts for purchases of shipping labels for Media Mail. That is still happening. It’s now a month and tech support hasn’t fixed the issue. What did you find out about this problem?

@nuclearomen I don't have any new information yet.

😲that's not a good sign for a issue that needs attention.

brian@ebay one more question, in regards to the new simplified fees coming into effect next quarter, I understand and am happy to see ebay take the fees for promoted listings from the payout in managed payments, however, in concern to the monthly store fee... how will ebay run this? Will they still allow the period of a week to actually make a payment on store subscription fee (through "make a one time payment") or will they just automatically every 15th-17th (or end of the month for others) just take from you pending/processing funds in Managed Payments - or if at that time have none, just take it from your bank on file? Confusing so need bit a clarity. Thanks

@nuclearomen I'm not an expert on payments, but the way you've described it working is my understanding, ie. it'll be charged once a month based on invoice date. However, I'm not certain on the specifics of how that'll work. This question can be better addressed by a managed payments teammate.

Brian,
Community Team

gwzcomps · ‎02-17-2021

brittanie@ebay wrote:
@gwzcomps wrote:
eBay always claims a change is "simplified" but how are you going to make it so we can do our accounting easier with this new "simplified fees" nonsense? I really wish the higher ups have worked an honest day in their life. Maybe then they would understand how many problems they create for us small/medium sellers with these supposed positive changes.

Also I am guessing this concept is over eBay's head as the years have demonstrated, but giving us an actually useful accounting tool for "free" would make eBay more money. I waste a month's worth of working hours every year trying to work out the convoluted mess of numbers eBay provides for accounting purposes. Sure would be nice if eBay provided usable numbers for accounting purposes like most competent businesses do.
Hi @gwzcomps - Thank you for sharing your input. I know this on the payments teams radar as this is something we report out on every week. I don't have any specifics I can share at this time on updates, but wanted you to know that it's something that's being reviewed.

MP has been around for a while now and we don't even have usable spreadsheets though! The MP spreadsheets are a convoluted mess. I can't even download reports than break down fees and payouts like I can with PayPal. Maybe eBay should just admit defeat and admit they aren't smart enough to be a payment processor. You can't even get rudimentary phone support setup...

brittanie@ebay · ‎02-17-2021

@wooden_flower wrote:

Easy one today -

It is my understanding that if an item is advertised as shipping from a US location, the seller must provide a US address for a return.

I wanted to quote policy on this, and could no longer figure out where it was. Anyone know?

Thanks!

Hi @wooden_flower - Thank you for getting me an easy one 😋

The information you're looking for is on this page, under 'Seller obligations' it says:

The seller is required to accept the return at the same location specified in the listing or at an address that does not result in a materially different return cost for the buyer

Hope that helps!

Brittanie,
Community Team

tyler@ebay · ‎02-17-2021

@sodelight wrote:

Hello Ebay Staff,

Something needs to be done regarding Sellers cancelling Buyer orders and placing the blame on them! I've had more orders cancelled than I can count, by Sellers falsely stating 'Buyer requested cancellation', when I absolutely did not! The cancellation is due to seller not having the item for whatever reason. Ebay used to send the buyer an email a]to confirm they requested the cancellation. This is no longer being done. Sellers are putting the blame on buyer in order to avoid defects on their selling account, which they deserve. Instead the buyer then receives an ebay strike and it makes it look they constantly cancel purchases! On top of this ebay hides the ability for the buyer to leave feedback. This seriously needs to be addressed. Thank you.

Hi @sodelight - I'm sorry to hear that you've had so many purchases cancelled recently, it's always frustrating to find out you won't be getting an item you were looking forward to receiving.

When it comes to the cancellation process, a seller is allowed to cancel without asking for your permission. We expect them to properly represent the reason for such cancellations, and should they fail to do so you can report them here. Use the pathway: Report an Issue with a Seller> The Seller has violated one of eBay's Policies> Seller doesn't want to complete the sale.

I also want to clear up that you are not penalized when a seller cancels a transaction using the 'Buyer requested or there is a problem with the buyer's address' reason. Thanks!

Tyler,

gwzcomps · ‎02-17-2021

@valueaddedresource wrote:
@valueaddedresource wrote:
brian@ebay wrote:
@valueaddedresource wrote:
tyler@ebay brian@ebay payments_team@ebay

There were many reports yesterday of delayed/missing payouts. There was no response or announcement and no updates to the system status page.

I understand Monday was a holiday, so I was not expecting a payout that day. However, in the past, payments continued to be processed over the weekend and on Monday so that most of the money was available for payout on Tuesday. That did not happen this week. Instead, those orders did not move to "available funds" until after the payout on Tuesday and were finally paid out today.

Some sellers on weekly payouts were reporting it skipped the payout this week entirely and is now showing them next payout for next Tuesday.

Was this a "one off" scenario with processing or has there been a change to how eBay is processing payments over weekend/holidays?

Here are a few threads for example:
https://community.ebay.com/t5/Payments/No-Payment-Processing-on-2-14/m-p/31618078/highlight/true#M10...

https://community.ebay.com/t5/Payments/Managed-Payments-withholding-83/m-p/31621537/highlight/true#M...
@valueaddedresource the information I've found is that funds will appear as available for payout within 1 business day from payment confirmation. Since weekends and holidays aren't considered business days, funds from transactions on those days will show available for payout on the next business day. In this weeks case that would be Tuesday since Monday was a holiday.
Thank you brian@ebay but that does not answer or address my actual question.

I understand when payouts are initiated.

The issue here is in the past, eBay has still be *processing* payments over the weekends and holiday Mondays. That is to say that orders from Thursday-Friday typically move from "processing" to "completed" status sometime Sunday night (or possibly Monday night in the case of holiday weekends.

This is important because that means completed funds from those Thursday-Friday orders are usually included in the payout process on Monday (or Tuesday in case of a holiday).

This week was completely different. Orders from Thursday-Friday were still showing as "processing" Tuesday morning and were not changed to "completed" until after the payout on Tuesday, which then pushed them to the Wednesday payout for daily sellers or next Tuesday's payout for weekly sellers.

Again, just to be absolutely clear - the issue was a delay in processing the payments and moving them to "completed" status.

The question is - was that because of "one off" system issues/delays or is this a change in how eBay processes payments that we can expect to see consistently from here forward?
brian@ebay - after looking at that link again, I now have to ask, is this yet another unannounced changed to Managed Payments?!

Previously eBay was still "processing" payments over the weekend as I described so that most of them moved to "completed" in time to be paid out on Monday (or Tuesday in case of holiday).

That link seems to be saying now eBay is only processing payments on business days.

If so, when did that change and why was there no announcement?

They don't want to keep us in the loop. Duh 💩 It is annoying they suddenly decided to take weekends and holidays off. It sure was nice getting payouts on Dec 24 & 25 🎅

nuclearomen · ‎02-17-2021

@gwzcomps wrote:
brittanie@ebay wrote:
@gwzcomps wrote:
eBay always claims a change is "simplified" but how are you going to make it so we can do our accounting easier with this new "simplified fees" nonsense? I really wish the higher ups have worked an honest day in their life. Maybe then they would understand how many problems they create for us small/medium sellers with these supposed positive changes.

Also I am guessing this concept is over eBay's head as the years have demonstrated, but giving us an actually useful accounting tool for "free" would make eBay more money. I waste a month's worth of working hours every year trying to work out the convoluted mess of numbers eBay provides for accounting purposes. Sure would be nice if eBay provided usable numbers for accounting purposes like most competent businesses do.
Hi @gwzcomps - Thank you for sharing your input. I know this on the payments teams radar as this is something we report out on every week. I don't have any specifics I can share at this time on updates, but wanted you to know that it's something that's being reviewed.
MP has been around for a while now and we don't even have usable spreadsheets though! The MP spreadsheets are a convoluted mess. I can't even download reports than break down fees and payouts like I can with PayPal. Maybe eBay should just admit defeat and admit they aren't smart enough to be a payment processor. You can't even get rudimentary phone support setup...

Just to add, the reports are so mixed with some have some info, some info missing, the need for ONE report with ALL fees etc... is really needed. I do my own spreadsheet for all sales that record all fees, taxes, shipping, promoted listing fees, price I paid for item, and profit... but there are many many sellers who don't have access to their own excel or even know how to do spreadsheet etc...

The great truth is there isn't one
And it only gets worse since that conclusion...
...There is something about the rigid posture of a proper, authentic blind
As if extended arms reached to pass his blindness onto others.

sodelight · ‎02-17-2021

@comics-scifi-collectibles wrote:
@sodelight wrote:
Hello Ebay Staff,

Something needs to be done regarding Sellers cancelling Buyer orders and placing the blame on them! I've had more orders cancelled than I can count, by Sellers falsely stating 'Buyer requested cancellation', when I absolutely did not! The cancellation is due to seller not having the item for whatever reason. Ebay used to send the buyer an email a]to confirm they requested the cancellation. This is no longer being done. Sellers are putting the blame on buyer in order to avoid defects on their selling account, which they deserve. Instead the buyer then receives an ebay strike and it makes it look they constantly cancel purchases! On top of this ebay hides the ability for the buyer to leave feedback. This seriously needs to be addressed. Thank you.
You can use the report seller form. Violated one of eBay's policies> other

Then in the box state that the seller lied about the cancelation reason and you do NOT request to cancel the sale.

Report seller>
https://www.ebay.com/help/action?topicid=4022

Thank you, that's very helpful. Don't understand why that option fails to appear in any relationship of the transaction. Not even in the drop down, it only shows 'Appeal', as if I'm at fault somehow (possibly due to seller's lie in cancellation), when I click on that, it leads to a page that no longer exists!

gwzcomps · ‎02-17-2021

On a side note I find it interesting we never see any of the MP staff here on these chats. I wonder why?

mtgraves7984 · ‎02-17-2021

@gwzcomps wrote:
On a side note I find it interesting we never see any of the MP staff here on these chats. I wonder why?

@gwzcomps

I'm still staring at the elephant (#28) in the room. Dang.

brian@ebay ??

nuclearomen · ‎02-17-2021

brian@ebay wrote:
@nuclearomen wrote:
brian@ebay wrote:
@nuclearomen wrote:
brian@ebay
Last week I talked about issue where not getting receipts for purchases of shipping labels for Media Mail. That is still happening. It’s now a month and tech support hasn’t fixed the issue. What did you find out about this problem?
@nuclearomen I don't have any new information yet.
😲that's not a good sign for a issue that needs attention.

brian@ebay one more question, in regards to the new simplified fees coming into effect next quarter, I understand and am happy to see ebay take the fees for promoted listings from the payout in managed payments, however, in concern to the monthly store fee... how will ebay run this? Will they still allow the period of a week to actually make a payment on store subscription fee (through "make a one time payment") or will they just automatically every 15th-17th (or end of the month for others) just take from you pending/processing funds in Managed Payments - or if at that time have none, just take it from your bank on file? Confusing so need bit a clarity. Thanks
@nuclearomen I'm not an expert on payments, but the way you've described it working is my understanding, ie. it'll be charged once a month based on invoice date. However, I'm not certain on the specifics of how that'll work. This question can be better addressed by a managed payments teammate.

brian@ebay that would makes sense if a "managed payments teammate" was ever available on the community, and when they are, they don't answer anything just ignore any real questions.

The great truth is there isn't one
And it only gets worse since that conclusion...
...There is something about the rigid posture of a proper, authentic blind
As if extended arms reached to pass his blindness onto others.

wooden_flower · ‎02-17-2021

brittanie@ebay wrote:

@wooden_flower wrote:

Easy one today -

It is my understanding that if an item is advertised as shipping from a US location, the seller must provide a US address for a return.

I wanted to quote policy on this, and could no longer figure out where it was. Anyone know?

Thanks!

Hi @wooden_flower - Thank you for getting me an easy one 😋

The information you're looking for is on this page, under 'Seller obligations' it says:

The seller is required to accept the return at the same location specified in the listing or at an address that does not result in a materially different return cost for the buyer

Hope that helps!

brittanie@ebay

Thank you! I knew it was there somewhere 😁

_____
Edit: A reply to your post can be found here

wooden_flower Volunteer Community Mentor.
eBay member since 2001.

go-bad-chicken · ‎02-17-2021

@treasureeverywhere wrote:
Hello,

eBay's rules state that a watermark that identifies the seller and also protects the photo from being used by others is prohibited. Is there any other method that a seller can use to brand photos? Hoping there is a solution.

Thank you,

Shirley

_____
Edit: A reply to your post can be found here

Speaking only for myself I like using this.......😉