My Offer Was Accepted. Before I Pay, I Have LOTS of Questions [that the listing already addressed].

[mesodude]

Howdy folks! So my offer for a pricey item was auto accepted early this morning. I'm SO excited! I WON! Yay!  But before I pay, I NOW have questions about the listing that are already fully addressed in the listing I didn't read. LOTS of questions. BOY, do I have questions (and a few random opinions, too)! And I bet YOU have questions for me too. Like, you're wondering why on earth did I make an offer for an expensive item if I had questions about it, right? And you're also probably wondering why I have questions that are clearly answered (multiple times, in some cases) in the listing. Come to think of it, you're probably wondering why I didn't even read the listing, aren't you?

But seriously, are buyers now allowed to place "holds" on items (as if a winning bid or offer is the equivalent of a virtual shopping cart) by first making a winning bid/offer and then making payment contingent upon replies to questions the seller has already thoroughly addressed in the listing? Is this now a thing? This is the second time in less than a month that I've had a buyer making up his own arbitrary transaction rules. Incidentally, I gamely answered all the buyer's questions again several hours ago.

[evelyb30]

One possibility is the buyer couldn't even see the description.  He or she bid from a phone, and the link to the full listing can be difficult to find.  It they're used to items listed from a phone too, it may not even BE there to find most of the time.  It's happened to me before, when bidding from a tablet, and I've been on Ebay as a seller since 2004.  What chance does some poor noob have? 

[luckythewinner]

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@mesodude wrote:

But seriously, are buyers now allowed to place "holds" on items (as if a winning bid or offer is the equivalent of a virtual shopping cart) by first making a winning bid/offer and then making payment contingent upon replies to questions the seller has already thoroughly addressed in the listing? Is this now a thing?

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Payment does not even have to be contingent on replies ... they can simply refuse to pay without asking questions, just as they can also refuse to pay when they win an auction.

This is not now a thing - it has always been a thing. Never in eBay's history have they required buyers to make immediate payment for either offers or for auctions.

[mesodude]

Thanks. Another poster felt the need to give an eBay boot-licking reply. I don't know why someone would bid on an expensive item if they couldn't read the description. I don't begrudge buyers their right to pay within their allotted time but I hope rational people can agree that buyers shouldn't be able to place items on virtual hold while they wait for the seller to respond to questions that are already clearly answered in their listing. If they have questions, they should be asking them before placing a winning bid or offer.

[gearhead445x]

From my experience once you make an offer and its accepted it is yours??? By making an offer you agree to pay them for it once accepted.  IDK why some ppl think its OK to disregard the eBay policy on that and try to negotiate or back out or ask 100- questions once the binding offer is made.   Ebay should have a big flashing sign at checkout that you will own this once your offer is accepted so be sure you have read the item description lol

[luckythewinner]

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Why does it seem like your answers are often snippy, officious

What you call snippy and officious is what I call short, factual and to the point. And a quick look at the "most helpful authors" list suggests that perhaps not everyone feels the same way you do.

borderline eBay-slobbering?

By a hefty margin, the two most common posts I make on this board are:

a) eBay is heavily biased toward buyers and does not care whether individual sellers lose money or leave; and

b) on eBay, any buyer can steal any item from any seller at any time by filing a fraudulent dispute

I sincerely doubt eBay is flattered by me regularly posting those unflattering truths.

Buyers should not be allowed to place items on hold by buying them FIRST and asking questions later and you well know this.

I agree with you 100%. But I also recognize that eBay has always allowed this to happen in certain cases, and is never going to change that.

[the*dog*ate*my*tablecloth]

I suggest you go back and reread lucky’s comment. There was nothing in there remotely positive to eBay. If we had to decide, both comments are anti-EBay.

to call that post boot-licking is ridiculous.

[evelyb30]

AND hotlink the word Description to make it obvious there is one to read. 

[southern*sweet*tea]

It's not that hard to find if you're even remotely paying attention. READ MORE is quite noticeable in blue caps. (at least on Android, I can't speak for iOS.)

[southern*sweet*tea]

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@mesodude wrote:

Is this now a thing? This is the second time in less than a month that I've had a buyer making up his own arbitrary transaction rules. Incidentally, I gamely answered all the buyer's questions again several hours ago.

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It's not a new thing by any means, but it is happening more and more as more and more people think they're entitled to have what they want, how they want it and to hell with anyone else.

[mesodude]

Another poster suggested the buyer could have been on a device that prevented them from reading the description. Fine. But why are you bidding on an item if you have a list of questions about it? If you went into a new car dealership and found your dream car but could only read part of the price tag, would you agree to buy it, sign on the dotted line and then afterward ask, "oh by the way, how much does this cost?" LOL

[mesodude]

"It's not a new thing by any means, but it is happening more and more as more and more people think they're entitled to have what they want, how they want it and to hell with anyone else."

I get buyer's remorse and I would never want a buyer to feel pressured to pay. I just think it's borderline abusive to deliberately make a winning bid and then brazenly state that the reason you're not ready to pay is that you have questions that you should have asked before bidding.

[hillbillymedia]

In reality, the deal isn`t finalized until the payment processor says so. In the case of paypal, it`s 180 days until the money is actually yours.

[mesodude]

"In reality, the deal isn`t finalized until the payment processor says so. In the case of paypal, it`s 180 days until the money is actually yours."

In reality I care less about the length of time it takes to be paid than I care that someone's waiting until after they bought an expensive item to ask for answers to questions I carefully include in my listings and possibly forcing me to re-list the item.

[jame234]

You ask questions before you bid or buy.  Once you made the offer and it was accepted, you have commit to buy and pay for the item and have aqreed to everything on the listing.  This is not new.  This is eBay policy ever since it's conception.  Bids are binding.  If you did not read the whole description, that was your mistake and if it has happened before, you are doing it all wrong or are under the wrong impression.  If you don't pay, per eBay policy, he can open an Unpaid Item Case and you will earn an Unpaid Item Strike.  If you have two strikes on your account, you will not be able to bid on items for one year.  You will be restricted to Buy It Now items requiring immediate payment.  Going forward, I suggest you read the listing carefully before you commit to buy.