Reported Counterfeit Item, eBay Didn’t Find Violation of Policy?

[kt*boundary]

I confirmed with a manufacturer that the product I purchased is a counterfeit.

reported it to eBay. 

“We looked into your report and didn’t find the listing to be in violation of our policy.  This determination was made by a customer service agent.”

Obviously eBay customer service made a mistake in that decision. 

How can this be fixed?

[mam98031]

Maybe yes, maybe no.  Keep in mind that one report doesn't always give us the response we desire.  But it is a bot that initially reviews these reports and they are only as good as the information that programmed them.  So if you feel strongly about this, report it directly to Ebay.

On each Ebay page there is a link to contact Customer Service at the top of the page and again at the bottom of the page.

I would suggest that you contact Ebay for Business on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter for the better trained CSRs.

Here are your options for contacting Ebay Customer Service. Please be aware that for social media CS, you send them a Private Message and briefly explain what your problem or issue is. Feel free to leave your Name, address, phone number and/or your email address in this message. It is private and secure and it may help to speed up the response for you.

https://twitter.com/askebay

https://www.facebook.com/ebay

https://www.instagram.com/ebayforsellers/

Your options will be on the left. If you use the link below you can only get to the Automated Assistant or Chat box type AGENT in the box and hit enter. You will then get more options. Not all options are available 24/7. It will depend on staffing available. So sometimes you can request a call back and sometimes you can't. Sometimes you have the Chat option available and other times it won't me. If it is important to you to use one of those options, just try back later.

If you use a cell phone or other mobile device, you may need to turn off your Spam filter so that Ebay can call you.

If you are a seller outside of the US or Canada, you will need to use the Chat Option.

https://www.ebay.com/help/eua?id=5275&mkevt=1&mkpid

https://www.ebay.com/help/home

[tinsoldierunderground]

Ebay has no one on staff to determine any item's authenticity - what gets their attention is when enough INAD (item not as described) cases are brought against a single seller.  Beyond that they'll accept no one's word that an item isn't authentic.  They simply can't hire an expert for each of the millions of sale categories on this site.  Caveat Emptor.

[slippinjimmy]

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@kt*boundary wrote:

I confirmed with a manufacturer that the product I purchased is a counterfeit.

reported it to eBay. 

“We looked into your report and didn’t find the listing to be in violation of our policy.  This determination was made by a customer service agent.”

Obviously eBay customer service made a mistake in that decision. 

How can this be fixed?

---

If you notified the manufacturer and they actually agreed then it's up to them to send eBay an infringement notice which will result in a near instant removal and a black mark added to the sellers account.

You have no standing in the matter, if you truly think you were sold a counterfeit then you must have filed a Not As Described return request....did you?

[frankenhobbit · Accepted solution]

You've let the manufacturer know. Let them deal with the seller/eBay.

[mam98031]

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@tinsoldierunderground wrote:

Ebay has no one on staff to determine any item's authenticity - what gets their attention is when enough INAD (item not as described) cases are brought against a single seller.  Beyond that they'll accept no one's word that an item isn't authentic.  They simply can't hire an expert for each of the millions of sale categories on this site.  Caveat Emptor.

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It is a high volume type of complaints levied at other sellers.  It is initially reviewed by a bot.  That makes good business sense on Ebay's part.  If the complainer is a competitor, that is taken into consideration too.  The more complaints about any given listings raises that listing in the priority of needing review as well.

I will look into if there is any special department we can request a review from instead of the online version of reporting a listing, or at least when it doesn't work and the reporter firmly believes there is something wrong.  I'll let you know if I get any additional information.

[mam98031]

That is a burden that I don't think is the responsibility of the person reporting the listing.  But just my opinion.

[tobaccocardyahoo]

If you bought it, the appropriate procedure is to request a return because it may not be authentic under the Ebay Money Back Guarantee and follow Ebay procedure.

You will get a return label and a refund or just a refund depending upon the seller.

Any further action relative to the counterfeit will be determined by Ebay without your involvement. You will not be notified of any action by Ebay. Ebay tracked the returns by actual purchasers who use the system. It ignores other complaints which cannot be verified.

This site is too large to waste money on unverifiable reports.

[kt*boundary]

Thank you for the replies

[kt*boundary]

Yes they refunded it. 

[ande_73092]

The appropriate response is to be grateful that a CSR actually looked at it. The message I got said "This determination was made using automation or artificial intelligence."  The artwork I reported was dated 1900, when the artist it claimed to be from hadn't even been born yet. In an email conversation I had with the artist, he said that he used to complain to eBay about counterfeits of his work being sold, and they would take it down if he complained about one, but there were just too many of them and eBay wanted HIM to do THEIR job of curation.

The takeaway here is that Ebay is not at all serious about preventing counterfeit items from being sold on the platform.  So it is a great tool for sellers, scammers in particular. For buyers...not so much.  

Until such time as a major class action lawsuit is undertaken, you should just assume that if a thing can be counterfeited, fakes will be widely...and openly...sold on eBay. 

[dhbookds]

return the item

[ande_73092]

A good answer, assuming the legitimate manufacturer is still an existing entity.  Counterfeit art, for example, is a HUGE problem on eBay. 

[mam98031]

OLD thread.  The OP would have resolved their issue months ago.