Perhaps the problem here is that Ebay USED to be known for its eclectic merchandise, much of it collector's stuff, antique, one of a kind, vintage items sold by small sellers. Today, Ebay has morphed into an online venue of everything under the sun, including new, universally available items. I think Ebay has failed its primary star quality, which was its uniqueness in offering uniqueitems. If the venue now offers competitive items to those available on other venues, then, they HAVE to offer free returns or those items are far less likely to sell on Ebay than on those venues that do offer the security of free returns, all other things being equal.
Walmart, etc., can easily afford those free returns - they can absorb that loss. Small businesses cannot. That is the crux of the problem. Ebay used to be primarily, maybe solely, a small business venue, but their emphasis is no longer on that client. It started when Ebay went public and stock holders wanted different things (growth of stock) than the originators of Ebay wanted. It also went downhill when sellers started playing the system - remember when computer sellers were selling on ebay, and never delivering? Then the buyers got wind of the game, and started scamming from the other end. Again - a big company can afford that kind of loss - a small company cannot.
