POLICE PATCHES

[hunterb78]

Over a period of time I have had a number of patches removed, last time was 4 patches from 40 years ago and marked old and obsolete, so asked an agent what could be listed, first told me you cant list Australian Military patches and could not get through these were'nt. next agent I asked if I could list FBI patches as are not worn on uniform, he went away and checked, said yes that's okay, so just in case I listed two, next morning one was taken down, my ex wife has had it even worse got a three day suspension then during the three day suspension, because she tried to get clarification it was changed to thirty days suspension, what a great way to run a business, even though there are over 50 categories for police patches no one at ebay can or will tell you what you can or cannot list

POLICY: 

The following items can't be listed for sale on eBay:

• Law enforcement and other government-issued uniforms, badges, or accessories, such as hats, jackets, and shirts, or replicas of these items
• Official emergency lighting systems or sirens, including lenses or LEDs for these systems

[femmefan1946]

The phone clerks work for a sub-contractor in Utah.

They are notoriously poorly trained and mostly want to get you off the phone and meet their hourly quota.

If you want accurate information, use the social media.

Those are covered by actual employees, paid directly by eBay, well-trained and with some authority.



https://www.facebook.com/eBayForBusiness/ — Message button in upper right on landing page.
https://twitter.com/askebay?lang=en
https://community.ebay.com/t5/Selling/How-do-I-contact-Customer-Support/m-p/32016431#M1783851 -> Automated Assistant, type AGENT -> enter. You will then get more options.



Also you get a transcript of the Chat, which gives you something to review and see if what you were told matches what you think you were told.

Police patches and other paraphenalia is a tricky subject. We Canadians are a bit paranoid about this since 2020 when a denturist and wifebeater dressed up as a Mountie and murdered 22 people in Nova Scotia.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2020_Nova_Scotia_attacks

He bought a lot of the equipment he used on eBay.

[coolections]

Stop calling and listening to CS reps as they do not know the policy as well as you do, just read it yourselrf. No police items. Sorry you should have already known after the 4rth time. Do it again and you will be banned permanently.

[hunterb78]

yes agreed we followed that in Australia, I was a police officer over 25 years so understand, I only sell patches none of the other stuff you see on ebay even though it is banned 1000's of fake badges and other stuff

[albertabrightalberta]

@hunterb78 

if you've already had listings for various police patches removed, you really shouldn't trust that the bots will know whether those you currently have listed are allowed or not. 

Personally, I wouldn't list them at all. 

[inhawaii]

It's a crap shoot. 

I know tons of them are for sale on ebay at any given time.

Some times you get caught and sometimes you slip through the cracks.

But since you're already on ebay's "radar" I would just stop selling them.

Don't risk a permanent suspension.

[hunterb78]

yes only listing non police at moment

[inhawaii]

BTW thank you for your service. 

Retired from LE here.

[dbfolks166mt]

     There is no logic to what the bots tag, flag and remove. Some get caught in the process and some do not, some items even make it all the way through the gauntlet and sell. It's just high risk to list these types of items and risk suspension. There are over 4,800 police badges currently posted a lot of which are listed as vintage, antique and/or obsolete, there are over 110,000 police patches current posted. Who knows how or why they are slipping through. 

     There are a lot of other venues that may be better suited for selling this type of item. There are a LOT of states with individual laws pertaining to the sale of police and other state/government issued badges, patches and clothing which further complicate the puzzle. 

[coolections]

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@hunterb78 wrote:

oh dear you do need to take a chill pill save your stupid comments for someone interested,

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@hunterb78   You will need a chill pill if after 4rth removal and you do not listen to the warning. It's up to you though.

[maxine*j]

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@hunterb78 wrote:

oh dear you do need to take a chill pill save your stupid comments for someone interested,

---

Actually, his advice was spot on. 

Fact:  The CSRs are poorly trained, shockingly so, and have scarcely any understanding of he ins and outs of eBay policies.  They work from scripts, not knowledge, and the scripts are inadequate.  There is an emphasis on agreeableness, which they take to mean to agree with callers and get them off the line. 

Fact:  AI is still primitive, and so the bots take down good listings along with the bad ones.  No matter which kind your listings were, you are now on the bot-radar and all your listings will be scanned.  Another "violation" or two, and you will be permanently banned from selling on eBay.  It stinks, but that's the reality.

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[chribe5555]

you did not read I am not listing any police patches

[coolections]

@chribe5555   Using your other I.D. I see. It does not matter police patches are used for criminal activity also. Ebay does not allow criminal activity so do not list any more or your police patches that would alloow criminals to fake being a real officer.

[fashunu4eeuh]

Hi @hunterb78 and welcome. 

Sorry for your trouble. Hate to add to it—it appears some of your patches may be in violation of eBay’s stated rules. The first paragraph in the police items policy reads as follows:

”Police and emergency response uniforms, equipment, or accessories can't be sold on eBay.”

https://www.ebay.com/help/policies/prohibited-restricted-items/policerelated-items-policy?id=4319#:~....

That is a pretty clear statement. Accessories would include patches from entities like fire fighters, police, EMT, and prison guards.

It used to be okay to list vintage, obsolete or defunct police items, but the policy has changed, becoming much stricter. So it would be risky for you to continue to list such patches, especially because you are on the “violation” radar now. Your listings will be scrutinized to a higher degree.

eBay policy also stipulates that US military items (such as the Navy or Coast Guard patches) cannot be listed or sold outside of the USA. Since you are in Australia, it would be difficult, if not impossible, for you to meet the Military Items policy guidelines for listing such items, see policy link below.

 
Some of the eBay rules to list restricted items requires that the item, buyer snd seller to all be in the USA, the buyer is a US citizen or permanent resident, the package will be shipped domestically only, etc etc.

https://www.ebay.com/help/policies/prohibited-restricted-items/military-items-policy?id=4342

In general, because there are US laws that govern the use of military and NASA insignias, including patches, it further complicates the matter of selling these items. (For an example, see link below.) So if it were me, i wouldn't take the risk of listing them.

On eBay, penalties are cumulative. This can quickly put a seller on the chopping block when there have been multiple violations handed out. So whatever you do, proceed cautiously, and I wish you the best of luck.

“The manufacture and commercial sale of the NASA Insignia as a separate and distinct device in the form of an emblem, patch, insignia, badge, decal, vinylcal, cloth, metal, or other material which would preclude NASA's control over its use or application is prohibited…”.

https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-14/chapter-V/part-1221/subpart-1221.1/section-1221.110

[chribe5555]

thanks