Police Badges

[lklong1215]

I have an old police badge, around 50 to 60 years old.....i started an auction and right away Ebay took it down...I checked and there are hundreds if not thousands of similar badges on ebay. I found one that was the same age just a different department and the auction lasted 5 days. When I asked ebay why this one is allowed and mine isn't, they said they can't find them all, so I sent the link to the one similar to mine with already 18 bids on it thinking they would tell me why it is allowed and mine wasn't....No intelligible reply...and the other badge went on with over 20 bids with nothing happening but a hefty sale...any ideas?

[1tuna]

I woud not relist it.................thats asking for trouble

some sellers insist on doing it because of others doing it

there is all kinds of stuff sold on ebay to impersonate officials like uniforms hats and so forth

ebay does not want folks posing as a utility worker and trying to enter houses with a  knock to check water pressure

the same goes for fake cops that want to pull folks over on the road

[dirk12955]

I have never collected these badges,  But I do know that it's a huge hobby.

Possibly what separates our OP's badge from the rest.......Maybe his is a current "In  use" badge and 

others are obsolete,   Not being used anymore badges.

Like I said,    not my area of expertise,    But that popped into my head.    

[eunster1313]

Police-related items policy

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

[maxine*j]

Actually, it is a mess.

The eBay Policy clearly and simply states: "Police and emergency response uniforms, equipment, or accessories can't be sold on eBay. To help prevent impersonation, we don't allow certain police or emergency service-related items to be listed for sale... 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."

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

And yet, as you say, many thousands of badges are being sold under Collectibles > Historical Memorabilia > Police > Badges: Obsolete > U.S. and many more thousands also under Collectibles > Historical Memorabilia > Police > Badges: Novelty & Replica

So, on the one hand eBay prohibits the sale of an item.  On the other, it provides categories for the sale of the item, with thousands of listings in each.

It beats me what a seller is to do. 

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[johnrj1226]

Here is what eBay says what police items can't & can be listed

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

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

To help prevent impersonation, we don't allow certain police or emergency service-related items to be listed for sale.

What is the 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

Activity that doesn't follow eBay policy could result in a range of actions including for example: administratively ending or canceling listings, hiding or demoting all listings from search results, lowering seller rating, buying or selling restrictions, and account suspension. All fees paid or payable in relation to listings or accounts on which we take any action will not be refunded or otherwise credited to your account.

next time  try using  the eBay Help & Contact (kinda' like a Goggle Search)  and save you the headache of trying to contact & communicate with eBays CSRs.  Took me  less than 30 seconds to find this policy.

[maxine*j]

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@johnrj1226 wrote:

..  next time  try using  the eBay Help & Contact (kinda' like a Goggle Search)  and save you the headache of trying to contact & communicate with eBays CSRs.  Took me  less than 30 seconds to find this policy.

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Then take another 30 seconds to look at the many thousands of listings under the eBay categories Collectibles > Historical Memorabilia > Police > Badges: Obsolete > U.S. and  Collectibles > Historical Memorabilia > Police > Badges: Novelty & Replica. 

Tell me how having those categories, and allowing thousands of listings under each of those categories, fits with the stated 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."

It still beats me, and if I had badges to sell I would not have a clue as to whether I could sell them on eBay or not. 

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[lklong1215]

Yeah, I read the policy, did you also see that there are categories listed buy eBay for police badges?

On my second try to list I thought the word obsolete may be the trick as most of the others used this word in the title, but they still took it down....My badge is no longer in use as many of the other sellers state in their description....

Besides, if someone is going to impersonate an officer they can do it with any type badge....

[inhawaii]

I got pulled over and ticketed for speeding the other day ... i checked and there were hundreds if not thousands of other vehicles speeding. Why are they allowed to speed and i wasn't?

The answer is ... they aren't allowed to speed. You got caught and they didn't. Some of them will eventually. Some wont.

[maxine*j]

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@inhawaii wrote:

I got pulled over and ticketed for speeding the other day ... i checked and there were hundreds if not thousands of other vehicles speeding. Why are they allowed to speed and i wasn't?

The answer is ... they aren't allowed to speed. You got caught and they didn't. Some of them will eventually. Some wont.

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I normally agree with this analogy, and find it apt.  But in this case, I am not sure -- because of those two categories for police badges and for replica badges with listings that number, together, at least 60,000.  

In your analogy it would be as though there was were lanes on the highway with signs saying, "These Two Lanes:  No Speed Limit."  And then a cop pulled you over for speeding when you drove over 50 mph in one of them.

As I've already admitted, though, I am baffled.  (Not a first for me with eBay.)  How can there be a policy that states no law enforcement badges or replicas may be sold, and then specific categories for each with thousands for sale?  I just can't make it work, no matter from what angle I look at it.

I know I'm repeating myself, but this one is puzzling.   🙁 

Collectibles > Historical Memorabilia > Police > Badges: Obsolete > U.S.

Collectibles > Historical Memorabilia > Police > Badges: Novelty & Replica

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[lklong1215]

Remedial reading is the key to understanding this,  "inhawaii".....

 The question is not why can others do it and I can't, but instead why does eBay even have the categories ....Collectibles > Historical Memorabilia > Police > Badges: Obsolete > U.S. and  Collectibles > Historical Memorabilia > Police > Badges: Novelty & Replica..... in the first place if such items are against the policy?

Makes no sense, even with your flawed analogy.....  

[pikabo-icu]

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@lklong1215 wrote:

Remedial reading is the key to understanding this,  "inhawaii".....

 The question is not why can others do it and I can't, but instead why does eBay even have the categories ....Collectibles > Historical Memorabilia > Police > Badges: Obsolete > U.S. and  Collectibles > Historical Memorabilia > Police > Badges: Novelty & Replica..... in the first place if such items are against the policy?

Makes no sense, even with your flawed analogy.....  

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If I recall correctly @sin-n-dex recently had an issue with buttons from defunct police uniforms..

I hope twas her..

Anyway, I think it's possible the policy changed recently and they haven't edited the category choices yet..

That's all I got.. /shrugs

[sin-n-dex]

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@lklong1215 wrote:

I have an old police badge, around 50 to 60 years old.....i started an auction and right away Ebay took it down...I checked and there are hundreds if not thousands of similar badges on ebay. I found one that was the same age just a different department and the auction lasted 5 days. When I asked ebay why this one is allowed and mine isn't, they said they can't find them all, so I sent the link to the one similar to mine with already 18 bids on it thinking they would tell me why it is allowed and mine wasn't....No intelligible reply...and the other badge went on with over 20 bids with nothing happening but a hefty sale...any ideas?

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I had two RCMP pins taken down that were from 1960. eBay said if it looks like something in use today it will be taken down (when they catch it). I wouldn't recommend relisting any that have been taken down. Verify what you have is no longer in use and make sure you state the era it was used and that it's obsolete in the listing.

RCMP gets special treatment and anything of any time period will come down (as per their request). I don't have any USA police items (I'm thinking listing USA ones would be a problem). I've got some British ones that aren't listed right now. I'm thinking of finding a different place to sell them.

C.

[sin-n-dex]

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@dirk12955 wrote:

I have never collected these badges,  But I do know that it's a huge hobby.

Possibly what separates our OP's badge from the rest.......Maybe his is a current "In  use" badge and 

others are obsolete,   Not being used anymore badges.

Like I said,    not my area of expertise,    But that popped into my head.    

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It doesn't matter of it's in use or not, it matters if:

a) it looks like something in use in any juristiction

b) the police department has made a special request for anything of theirs to be removed (like RCMP).

My RCMP pins were listed for over a year before they were removed.

C.

[sin-n-dex]

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@eunster1313 wrote:

Police-related items policy

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

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There's a category for obsolete badges but they can't look like anything currently in use. (so changing the font does not qualify for making it different).

C.