Replying vs. Leaving Feedback + Selling out users to the IRS

[rushandtriumph]

Hello Friends on eBay,   It used to be that I could "Leave Feedback" for a Buyer.  Now eBay throws a screen at you which says "Reply to Buyer."  I have emailed eBay asking what the difference here is.  Is "Replying to buyer" just an email?  Or, is it leaving reciprocal feedback to the buyer.  Of course, I've asked this question to eBay directly.  But its ignorant, homogenous, uneducated staff will not (probably cannot) answer the question.

Allow me to add that eBay has done a terrible job helping users and sellers with the new taxes we're all going to have to pay.  eBay's lack of direction, explanation and specificity leaves seller having to pay tax accounts and lawyers to disentangle the whole new tax mess.   eBay is selling out it's sellers to the IRS, while providing little to no help to its sellers and users.

[fern*wood]

There is no new tax.  There is some new reporting, since I guess some sellers had been ignoring the fact that sales were supposed to be reported on their taxes.  

[laperlalady]

What new taxes?

Report your income as you have been doing. Nothing has changed. 

[dbfolks166mt]

     I have not notice any difference in the ability to leave buyer feedback. The screens I get are the same ones I have been getting for quite some time. 

    I will agree that the call in customer support has become abysmal but if you utilize the Facebook connection and support those individuals know what they are doing, how eBay actually works and in some cases are empowered to take action.

     As for the taxes it's not actually eBay the new reporting laws pertain to ALL third party financial processors including PayPal, Google Pay, Venmo, Stripe...... As fern*wood  noted this is NOT a new tax it is a change in the 1099 reporting thresholds. Blame the elected officials that passed the legislation. I am sure the third party financial services are no more thrilled about having to create and distribute millions of 1099's anymore than you are about receiving them.  As for help with the taxes everybody's tax preparation is different and based on too many variables for eBay to provide canned guidance on your individual tax preparation. They are an ecommerce company not a tax preparation company like H&R Block. The thing eBay, an most other third party financial processors, does provide is some excellent reports that you can pull that contain information that is key to filling out your schedule C or other tax forms. I have found eBay's reports to be one of the better ones I pull. Far better and more detailed than the information I pull from PayPal, Venmo and a number of other third party financial processors I deal with. All of them could simply leave the record keeping and tracking in your hands and not provide the reports. 

     Saying eBay has sold out to the IRS because of the new 1099 reporting requirements is like saying banks have sold out to the IRS because they have to issue 1099-INT or businesses have sold out to the IRS because they have to issue W-2's to their employees. 

[dhbookds]

I'm guessing you are talking about replying to buyer feedback which is replying to the feedback that buyer has left and shows on the feedback page under the buyer feedback........you did it on the feedback you got 6 months ago.......

As to mistreating sellers..........ebay is just following the law that requires them to report sales to the IRS.........they can't figure out your taxes.......anymore than an employer who gives a W2 to an employee can.....

[soh.maryl]

"Selling out users to the IRS"? Do you mean "following the laws of the United States of America in regard to income taxes"? 

[kensgiftshop]

@rushandtriumph 

What new taxes?

You've always been required to report your income.

[deltilogical]

Ebay is no longer a yard sale.  It is a kiosk at the mall.

[luckythewinner]

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Selling out users to the IRS

Congress "sold you out" to the IRS. Blaming eBay for following the law is not really fair. 

Allow me to add that eBay has done a terrible job helping users and sellers

eBay told you what they will do to comply with the law - i.e. that they will report gross payments (less sales tax) on a 1099-K as the law requires. That is all they should do, because you should not get your tax advice from eBay.  

with the new taxes we're all going to have to pay. 

There are no "new taxes", there is only a change to the dollar amount that triggers a reporting requirement.

 eBay's lack of direction, explanation and specificity leaves seller having to pay tax accounts and lawyers 

It is not eBay's job to tell you how to file your taxes. When I buy gas, it is not the gas station's job to tell me how to drive my car or how to pay my credit card bill or whether my gas purchase is tax-deductible. 

Similarly, eBay should not be trying tell sellers how to account for a 1099-K, whether to use a Schedule C or capital gain, whether they are a business, how to classify income, what expenses are allowed, and which deductions to take.  That is the IRS's job.

[collectfest]

I DONT NEED EBAY to explain to me I have to pay my taxes and my responsibility to get them completed. If anything, eBay has made it easier to pay my taxes by providing me the data to complete them.

A bit of a pain to find the data but there.

No one has SOLD me out, I've been paying tax on eBay sales since 1999, I am already on the IRS so called, radar. Hate to tell you every American, for the most part is on IRS radar. If folks really quit selling on eBay due to this tax thing, good reddens. Get a good accountant, for the most part, us antique dealers are taking losses.

[gosimus]

@rushandtriumph 

< eBay is selling out it's sellers to the IRS >    

Just so you know, eBay does not do this voluntarily.  eBay is compelled by law to comply.  If you have a beef, take it up with your legislators who passed the law.  It's more money for the government ... did you think any Connecticut legislator would pass up a chance to reach into your pocket? 

[soh.maryl]

Good riddance.  

[collectfest]

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@soh.maryl wrote:

Good riddance.  

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lol, my learning disability shinning through, lol. I'll blame spell correct...

[calntom]

"Allow me to add that eBay has done a terrible job helping users and sellers with the new taxes we're all going to have to pay.  eBay's lack of direction, explanation and specificity leaves seller having to pay tax accounts and lawyers to disentangle the whole new tax mess.   eBay is selling out it's sellers to the IRS, while providing little to no help to its sellers and users."

I have never depended on eBay to file or help with my taxes as it is not their place nor would I need them to help.  Nothing has changed for my taxes. I claim what I make and list the appropriate deductions. No rocket science involved. It is just numbers.

[rushandtriumph]

eBay is not only going directly into our bank accounts, they're  branding tax ID numbers onto personal bank transactions.  Don't forget that time is money.  Now they're enforcing the quarterly filings for eBay sellers.  With the fees and the work piling up while the profit margin for sellers seems to become even slimmer, I might just take all the valuables and brand new items for sale and huck it all in a dumpster.  It may be my most cost-effective option.