Ebay needs to change Buyer policy

[cyber-fred]

It appears to me that it is a big issue, many of us have buyers that do not pay.  I just had a buyer send me a best offer then refused to pay (changed their mind is all).   I really think eBay needs to stop being so lenient with these people and do something about it.  But what?   I've had 3 buyers dis me this month alone.  Now I am not a seller that makes their living here, I am just downsizing my 'stuff'.   But when 1/3  or more of your buyers are not sincere that is a problem!

[inhawaii]

There is a system in place to deal with non-paying bidders.

Are you aware of it?

Are you using it?

[ebooksdiva · Accepted solution]

eBay has already don’t something about that. There’s a system in place for sellers to require buyers to provide a method of payment when making offers it’s in your buyer management .

[slippinjimmy]

You can eliminate the non-payer situation by dumping the Auction format and not doing offers.

Almost all of your Auctions are ending with one bidder, you would sell more and have fewer problems if you switched to Fixed Price (with or without Immediate Payment Required).

Not sure where you get the idea eBay is lenient on non-payers, if you use the tools they provide to report non-payers and use the available blocks that would prevent anyone with two non-payment strikes from bidding/buying your listings.

eBay has in fact instituted changes that require some/most users who bid or make an offer to provide a payment method prior to submitting a bid or making an offer. At this time it does not apply to all listings but it is a significant step forward on this issue.

Personally I gave up on Auctions many years ago, too many non-payers being the primary reason. As a result not only did my sales increase but I have had only one non-payment situation in the past 10 years and I don't even use Immediate Payment Required.

[cyber-fred]

OK, is this a test?  or will you tell me what that is?  I suppose its a test.

As I said, its not my living.  I dont 'camp out' on ebay like some folks do on fb.

Just tire of the deadbeats - how do you stop them?

[cyber-fred]

Does this mean it forces them to pay?   Pretty sure I did set up require to provide payment method before they make an offer.  It obviously did no good.   This does not appear to eliminate the behaviour.

[cyber-fred]

Did that on best offer - it did not change the behaviour.

I'm referencing accountability (I know - unpopular)  with ebay users.

[cyber-fred]

What tool are you referring to?  I cancel order after 4 days - and report it was for NON PAYING buyer.   I do not see any recourse there but at least I get my fees back.   If you mean 'dont use auction' - that will not work with antiques & collectibles.  Sometimes I list for $9.95 and wind up with $50 due to current interest.    And yes I block bidders but really, millions of bidders and they are all catching on that nobody will kick them off the site when they do this.

[glorybells]

Do you have your buyer requirements set to block buyers with 2 or more unpaid item strikes in the previous 12 months?

[ebooksdiva]

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@cyber-fred wrote:

What tool are you referring to?  I cancel order after 4 days - and report it was for NON PAYING buyer.   I do not see any recourse there but at least I get my fees back.   If you mean 'dont use auction' - that will not work with antiques & collectibles.  Sometimes I list for $9.95 and wind up with $50 due to current interest.    And yes I block bidders but really, millions of bidders and they are all catching on that nobody will kick them off the site when they do this.

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The buyer gets an unpaid item strike when sellers cancel transactions for nonpayment. 2 nonpayment strikes in 12 months gets the buyer blocked from bidding and buying. 
You don’t see any recourse because eBay isn’t going to share that with you due to maintaining the privacy of its members.

[gdiesel70]

Super annoying!

ebay’s unpaid buyer fail-safes are failing. 

Buyer asked me for a sizable discount on a heavy item because shipping 🙄

Sent them an offer for  40% off. They accepted. 

4 lb item from Fl to NJ using USPS ground advantage. “No way to send it cheaper than $14, even if slower?”

And all I could think was “$14 is actually pretty CHEAP nowadays considering weight and distance.” 

Anywho, the buyer abandoned the cart over shipping. That item was held up for 5 days. Buyers do see shipping cost when they accept the offer so not like it’s a total surprise. Just bill their card and be done with it, eBay!  This isn’t a general store where buyers get a week so they can shovel walkways to earn extra cash to pay for the item.

How about if items sold through offers remain listed, but “pending sale” for 24 hours until the payment is made? That way other shoppers can still bookmark the item and get notified if the original sale falls through with an offer to purchase it at offer price or purchase it NOW at full price.

This also creates a sense of urgency for the original buyer to complete checkout and finds a potential backup buyer if the sale falls through.

Just an idea because whatever eBay is doing isn’t helping much with unpaid buyers.  

[slippinjimmy]

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@cyber-fred wrote:

What tool are you referring to?  I cancel order after 4 days - and report it was for NON PAYING buyer.   I do not see any recourse there but at least I get my fees back.   If you mean 'dont use auction' - that will not work with antiques & collectibles.  Sometimes I list for $9.95 and wind up with $50 due to current interest.    And yes I block bidders but really, millions of bidders and they are all catching on that nobody will kick them off the site when they do this.

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One of the tools I referred to  was b locking buyers with 2 non-payment strikes in the past 12 months won't get rid of them  all but it will get rid of the serial non-payers.

As far as your Auctions, it's clear from  your history that the vast majority of your Auctions end with one bidder, only a couple had multiple bidders and of those only a few went up a little bit from the opening price.

Convert your listings to fixed price, maybe increase the price by a couple of Dollars and in  the end you'll have more money, make more sales and have even more money.

Since you don't get many multiple bidders it means that either your start prices are about all you can expect (a good thing) or that their isn't enough interest to attract multiple bidders.

While there are buyers that like the Auction format the majority of buyers dislike them and won't even consider bidding especially if there is an alternate listing at fixed price (even if it a slightly higher price).

The ONLY time I as a buyer will attempt to win an Auction  listing is if it's something I've been trying to find for a long time.

If I have a choice between bidding on a $20 listing or buying the same thing instantly for $22 I will always pay the $22, know I will be getting it and possibly sooner than I'll even find out if I won the Auction (or not).