Price Gouging Auction

[holsteinatlanta]

I have a question about price gouging.  I have an item that I listed as a 3 day auction.  I think the retail price is say $29.99 before covid.  I listed it at $39.99 three day auction.  Well it got bid up to $81!  So there are losing bids of $80, $75, $70.  Now I wouldn't ordinary list this item at 80 and never expected it to go this high or get bids at all.  So what is price gouging?  The bidder ran the price up 

Now it turns out I have 12  more of the item.  I offered it to the winning bidder for $81 each, then told him that the next lowest bid is $75 so he can have 12 more at $75 each.  (Is that gouging) btw my item is a package of 12 other sellers have just one for $20  and getting it. That may  be gouging. 

Please tell me how to proceed.  Do you thing the ebay support reps can answer the question or will the lange barrier be a problem

[muttlymob]

---

@holsteinatlanta wrote:

Thank you for your very helpful answer.  I was going to call ebay and now just emailed them and will hold tight until I hear back.

---

eBay cannot protect you from your own state laws.  Look up the definition of price gouging per your governor's state emergency declaration.  That is all you need to know. 

[janet9988]

In a nutshell... ANYTHING that goes much beyond the retail price can be considered price gouging on ebay if the item is still actively produced....OR if someone complains.

Ebay does pull those type of listings and you will get suspended.

[sg51]

Now it turns out I have 12  more of the item.  I offered it to the winning bidder for $81 each, then told him that the next lowest bid is $75 so he can have 12 more at $75 each.  

I'd say you are on very thin ice with this whole operation.  I'd absolutely not press it looking for a quick $900 sale.

Take the $81 if it comes, don't be shocked if it doesn't.

Tread very lightly.  Not sure what that means, but there are threats all around.

[mtgraves7984]

Another fly in the ointment... if you're in Managed Payments it's a whole new topic.

There's a thread running now about an MP seller who sold disinfectant, sales ending just before  the eBay notification. That seller has over $6K long since tied up in 'Pending Payments' and can't get eBay to help release those. The product is delivered. The seller hopes eBay will address the issue next week, but is assuming a six week 'worst case' scenario. 

[eamille]

$10 over retail price is not unreasonable, considering Ebay & Paypal fees.   People can't get these things in stores, and are happy to pay what THEY want.    With this policy, they get nothing!

[luckythewinner]

---

---

$10 over retail price is not unreasonable

People can't get these things in stores

$10 over retail is a pretty optimistic opening bid for something the OP "did not expect them to even get a bid" (that is what the OP said in his original post). 

Now we find out that not only does the OP know they are currently getting bids on eBay, he has a stockpile of them. 

I was calling bull on his feigned ignorance, not his pricing. 

[kensgiftshop]

---

@eamille wrote:

People can't get these things in stores,

---

They could if you would leave them on the store shelves and not buy them to sell here for a hefty profit.

[reallynicestamps]

I'd take it as a given that every bidder over double the normal market price is a vigilante out to mess you up.

If you have a dozen of these things, just list them at a reasonable price as Fixed Price/Immediate Payment Required.

While the market may decide, part of the market is jokers and thrill bidders.

And another part is "government" oversight, which in this case is eBay backed by the actual laws against profiteering.

And remember , Ayn Rand ended her days taking welfare.

[simba6]

Yea but, with an auction, you have to blame the other bidders not the seller. Not sure how that's going to work.  It's getting out of hand.

[mesodude]

“The bidder ran the price up”

LOL. It’s all the bidders’ fault you’re making 160% more than you would have made at normal retail price. Your  selling  to the highest bidder had nothing to do with the end result, huh?  And because you were supposedly shocked it sold for such a high price, how could anyone dare accuse you of price gouging, right? 😃

[cynthealee2]

The Attorney Generals in the various states don't care WHO ran the price up simply what the end price was...  Texas went after the Auctioneer, NY went after the seller, TN went after the mass buyer for resale, the other states are doing the same thing... And the whole "well the buyer ran the price up not me" isn't flying anywhere right now.

[divinspiration]

Your question is very fair. I didn't expect to see rudeness, accusations, and name-calling on eBay. The problem is, eBay does not define price gouging with an exact amount. That is left up to interpretation.

If the market drives up Lysol to $900 a can, then it doesn't appear to be the seller's fault. How is this unreasonable or excessive if someone will pay that? The problem becomes that if everyone knows they can get close to $1,000 a can for Lysol, then they will stockpile it in order to make a profit. Not only is that taking advantage of desperate people panicking in a crisis, it also provides incentive to strip the shelves and make it difficult for anybody to get it. 

The answer to your question is this: in California, where I live, price gouging is selling anything for over 10% more than the regular retail price. If your auction sold over this price, I would not want to risk eBay taking action against my account by selling any more. (I couldn't find the screenshot I took of the $900 can of Lysol, so I just searched it up and found a recently-sold similar item at a still-ridiculous price.)

[per50nl_5]

I don't know how anyone can figure an auction as price gouging.

Side note: A lot of those bidders are shills

[coolections]

@per50nl_5People are scared so and many are willing to pay anything for it. What if food got so scarce that only people with money could afford it ? There is serious pandemic going on right now. It is definitely gouging and very unethical.

[per50nl_5 · Accepted solution]

Here's the bottom line. I wanna buy something with my money it's my decision - not yours. My money...not yours. My money...My decision. If I'm scarred or crazy that the end of times is coming....It's still my money. If I wanna go buy all the doilies on eBay at crazy inflated prices next...it's my money I'm going to do it with....Regardless if all the golden girls are frightened by my action.