Join the Community team here at 1 PM PT on September 11th for our Weekly Chat with eBay Staff. We don't have a set topic this week, so please bring any general questions you may have on buying or selling.
The chat will be open for questions from 1-2 pm PT, at which point we'll close thread. While no additional questions can be submitted after this time, we'll continue to work on responding to any queries that may still be unanswered.
If you're new to the chat, welcome! Simply Reply to this post with your question from 1-2 PM Pacific Time and we'll be happy to look into it for you 
1 BEST ANSWER
Accepted Solutions
eBay Stores
Q: There is a huge gap between premium and anchor. Is there a reason ebay has this huge gap?
A: We've received similar feedback from other sellers ever since we added the new Store tiers in 2018. While the Stores team is aware of the desire to have a Store tier between Premium and Anchor, we do not currently have any new information on if a new tier may be added.
Q: Members of eBay Canada were told they would receive the new store tiers in the fall of 2018 which never happened. We were then told to expect them late January or early spring which also never happened. Will we ever get the new store tiers announced last year?
A: We don't have an update on the store tier-rollouts that were announced in 2018. Currently there have been no retractions or announcements that these store levels are not coming to the platform, so we’re hopeful to see them in the future!
Seller Protections
Q: I have a question about the new Seller Protections for Top Rated Sellers in regards to the $6.00 shipping label refund on damaged/not in original condition items. Is this just for damaged/not in original condition items?
A: The recently announced protection for Top Rated sellers and return shipping subsidies covers the exact situation you describe (a buyer falsely claims an item is not as described to avoid paying return shipping).
Q: CS has had me go into PayPal and deduct the return label cost from the item refund when a case has been decided in my favor. Will that continue?
A: When it comes to specific case handling we cannot tell you if certain practices will continue. We suggest reaching out to CS if you have a return that is unusual!
Q: Why is it so difficult to protect sellers in obvious cases of buyer abuse? Who can I talk to and get these resolved?
A: It is understandably frustrating when you feel your buyer has abused our return process, and we do offer protection in some situations based on the details of the transaction and the history of the accounts involved. Often times additional documentation cannot be taken into consideration as there are challenges with verifying the documents or knowing definitively that the documentation provided is related to the item that was sold, or that the issue you are reporting was because of your customer.
We put our trust in our sellers to describe what they shipped accurately in the listing, and we put the same trust in our buyers to describe what they received accurately. If there is a discrepancy between these two descriptions, a return would be expected. Each member has an opportunity to provide their description of the item and additional information is rarely able to be taken into consideration.
Contacting Customer Service is the appropriate route to take to pursue protection, this simply won't always be an option. Every business has to deal with loss/shrink, factoring the cost into their business model. We know this is not the answer you may have been hoping for, but if Customer Service has reviewed your appeal and found that we are unable to provide compensation, then this would be our final decision unless a mistake was made in the original case decision (ie. the buyer admitted in messaging to altering/damaging the item, sending back a different item, or taking some action that would disqualify them for protection).
Q: The following is the response I received from the eBay Community Team about a neutral feedback removed by Customer Service after posting in a recent Community Chat.
RESPONSE from the eBay Community Team:
- The feedback that was removed should not have been removed as it did not violate any eBay policies. The buyer is entitled to their opinion, which includes any exaggeration or hyperbole that they wish to express. The Feedback forum is an opinion based forum, and outside of limited protection options for specific situations, we do not investigate for factual accuracy.
- A feedback revision would be your best option to pursue if a buyer is open to revising the feedback in question.
- Appropriate coaching has been sent to the agent that removed this feedback for you so this mistake is not repeated in the future.
- Even though the feedback was removed in error, we do not reinstate feedback under any circumstances, so the removal will remain in place.
We wanted to address this topic with you so you had clear expectations for any removal requests in the future.
NOW MY COMMENTS:
Can there be a standard statement that we can send the buyer that encourages them to at least retrace their steps or else?
In my situation, I wrote to the buyer and she agreed that it should be modified, only because I appealed to the fact that she too is a seller. Is that all it takes? To write the buyer even if they don’t respond?
Finally, how does all this tie into the coming protections? I watched the workshop video from the conference and it appears that submitting a report is supposed to result in the removal of abusive feedback. But does that now fold facts into the decision making process?
Are future protections for sellers going to incorporate “facts” as the basis for removing feedback, especially when they line up so effortlessly?
A: Reaching out to a buyer is not enough to have a feedback removed. A feedback revision request would need to be sent to the buyer, at which point they would have to accept it and revise the feedback. Working with a buyer to get a feedback revised is optional, of course. If there is a reasonable solution to their issue then it may be worth going this route. This is something each seller will need to determine on a case by case basis.
The new Seller Protections and how they will cover feedback are outlined here (and in the below screenshot). Feedback will only be removed if the seller reports that their buyer falsely claims the item is not as described or if the buyer returns a used/damaged item.
Q: Regarding the new seller protection that is set to roll in October. Are there limitations for sellers that use the new protections? For example, if a seller reports a buyer and gets the $6.00 shipping credit, is that credit limited to a certain number per quarter or year?
A: While there is not a specific limit set for the number of credits that can be applied to a seller's account, as with all account activity, we will monitor the use of this protection option and may inform a seller they are no longer eligible for the credit if we have reason to believe that it is being abused. This determination would be made based on a variety of factors, such as transaction count, buyer account history, and the rate of credits requested by other sellers.
Q: When the seller reports a buyer, does the buyer get any notification or "strike" Is it possible for a buyer to appeal or get that report off their record?
A: These reports would not create a "strike" in the way you are describing it; it would flag the buyer's account for review, and we would take action based upon that review. Though a history of seller reports is a part of that investigation and could be enough reason to support a history of abuse, the reporting process for a buyer's account does not function like the defect process for a seller. In short, a buyer could be reported numerous times and no action would be taken on their account if we do not find indications of abuse, or a buyer could be reported one time and we would take action if we find reason to believe they are abusing our protections/sellers.
Q: Will sellers be penalized for false reports in any way? For example, too many cases, buyer appeals, bad metrics?
A: Sellers should report concerns they have anytime they come up, as this is something that could be used to substantiate action on a buyer's account. There is no risk of corrective action being taken on a seller's account for reporting concerns they have, we simply may not apply protection if there is no indication of abusive behavior on the buyer's account and instead it seems the seller is abusing the protections we offer.
Q: I might be wrong, but I fear that some of even many sellers will file this for every case or claim that arises, which has the possibility of ruining a good thing for sellers. Then what happens to seller metrics standards? Would it skew the peer averages if some sellers get every case removed?
A: If we find evidence of abusive behavior on the buyer's account, all sellers they have interacted with would receive appropriate protections. Our Seller Protection team is aware of the concerns raised by our Community regarding seller metric calculations and will monitor the impact of these protections to ensure no seller is unfairly impacted.
This all being said, we've offered similar protections to those who offer Free Returns for quite some time and have not identified concerns. Again, we will monitor for abuse and take appropriate action when necessary, but we are confident that the upcoming expansion of protections will have a positive impact for our Community.
Q: Seller protection. It is a shame that to get this protection we must open ourselves up to more abuse by "offering 30 day returns" to be covered. With that comes more possible remorse returns on which we lose the initial "free shipping" cost.
A: when a seller goes the extra mile to create positive experiences for their customers, eBay will go the extra mile to offer them support and protection. We have found that sellers who offer 30 day returns do not experience a significant increase in returns, but do see a lift in sales. To qualify for the protections rolling out next month, a seller does not need to offer free returns; the 30 day return policy they provide can be seller or buyer paid.
Of course, returns for a not as described reason would still require the seller to cover the cost of return shipping, but this is already the case - by offering 30 day returns, attaining Top Rated Seller status, and listing to eBay.com, sellers located in the United States would also qualify for up to a $6 credit towards return shipping cost for returns where they have reason to believe the buyer falsely claimed a not as described reason. The option to report this to us would prompt us to investigate the buyer's account for appropriate action and the $6 credit would be applied to the seller's invoice.
Links Policy
Q: eBay has suddenly decided that five of my listings have external links. These same listings have been posted many times, with NO changes and have never had a problem before.
Could you please pass along to the PTB:
- if a link is suspected, tell the seller what it is
- be willing to acknowledge that it is NOT a link when proof is provided
A: We’re happy to review in detail if provided more information. In general, however, you can use this tool to quickly scan your listings and get you in-depth detail about any active content or links present in your listings.
Managed Payments
Q: Is there a way to ask a member of the managed payment team some specific questions?
A: If you've received an invite email you should be able to contact a managed payments teammate directly by phone and ask that question to an expert. Their phone number is (800) 456-3229.
eBay Messages
Q: When I click to reply to a message, it takes me to it, but the page won't load to the point that you can type your response.
A: Thanks for the screenshot! We haven't seen any reports of an issues like this. At a glance it looks like it could be a browser related issue. If you haven't already, try clearing your cache and cookies. If that doesn't resolve the issue, try using another browser to see if the same issue occurs in it as well. If it doesn't, then it may be related to the browser you are using. If it does happen in both browsers then this is something we can get reported. Feel free to start a new thread to let us know!
Cancelling Transactions
Q: Is there a reason why we can't cancel a transaction after ebay "thinks" we have shipped? I had a situation where the buyer requested to cancel their order after I had printed a label, but the site would not let me process a cancellation.
A: Based on the information you've shared here, you should have been able to cancel the transaction. This sounds like a strange one-off situation, but we can definitely review the transaction to see what may have stopped the cancellation process from working, we'd just need an order number from you.
Shipping Surcharges
Q: Can Ebay add Guam to the list along with Hawaii, Alaska and P.R. for a surcharge when listing? I have to keep cancelling deals with people of Guam because they are not part of the surcharge list and it is much more expensive to ship there.
A: We'll be happy to look into this for necessary enhancements, no problem!
Item Specifics
Q: In the sports cards categories, why was "autograph" removed from the choices for "card attributes"? It seems like something people would want to search by.
A: We'll be certain to look into this to ensure that this attribute was not removed in error. We do remove options that are not regularly utilized and you may be surprised by which attributes are/are not used by buyer. Either way, we will double check on this example, no problem!
Unpaid Item Cases
Q: Why do returned items show up as eligible for an Unpaid Item Case in Seller Hub after the return has been processed? It will drop off in 30+ days, but why does the program do this in the first place?
A: This is a known issue that has been reported to the Seller Hub team - if a return and refund has been processed through eBay, it should not be advising you to open an Unpaid Item (UPI) case. You're right that it will disappear after the window for a UPI has closed, but we understand that this creates a pain point for you and can confirm that the appropriate teams have been made aware.
@forgottenape wrote:
Stores are a great asset of ebay they follow a natrual progression for sellers to get started and when you hit one level you go to the next once you know you can maintain that sales mark. They go from beginner to mega store. However there is a huge gap between premium and anchor. Is there a reason ebay has this huge gap?
You build your buisness your doing well youve been working on your sales to keep that premium store and if you do well your stuck. 80-300 for the next level. The only other option is to open a new account and run 2-3 at a time. This has huge drawl backs and dangers.
So why the huge gap I assume ebay wants sellers to continue to grow and sell more but this gap tells me there is something else going on here. Is there a reason?
Hi @forgottenape, we've received similar feedback from other sellers ever since we added the new Store tiers in 2018. While the Stores team is aware of the desire to have a Store tier between Premium and Anchor, we do not currently have any new information on if a new tier may be added.
@rosevelyn wrote:
Hi, Trinton,
I have a question about the new Seller Protections for Top Rated Sellers in regards to the $6.00 shipping label refund on damaged/not in original condition items. Is this just for damaged/not in original condition items?
This actually has never been in my experience—a damaged item. My situations to date have involved an item being returned under a false claim so that the buyer does not need to pay for a return shipping label, as I do not offer free shipping on any items to begin with.
Recently, CS has had me go into Paypal and deduct the return label cost from the item refund when a case has been decided in my favor. Will that continue, by the way?
Hi @rosevelyn - the recently announced protection for Top Rated sellers and return shipping subsidies covers the exact situation you describe (a buyer falsely claims an item is not as described to avoid paying return shipping).
When it comes to specific case handling I can't tell you for certain whether or not certain practices will continue, but I always suggest reaching out to CS if you have a return that is unusual!
