Using Unpaid Item Assistant

[jaell1973]

Hi all!

I just ran some auctions and had 5 of them sell. Two buyers paid instantly, three haven't. I have the Unpaid Item Assistant set for 48 hours and one case has already been automatically opened on the first auction that sold. 

What I need to know is whether I need to do anything else. I assume the buyers were notified by eBay when they won the auction, and now one of them has been notified that they only have 96 hours to pay. Is that correct? Do I have to also invoice them or contact them to try and get them to pay? 

In the event that the buyers either pay or don't pay, will I get notification from eBay on how to proceed? This is new to me. I've always paid instantly when I've won an auction or bought a BIN listing, and this is the first time I've run into non-paying buyers (I'm not what anyone would call a power seller  )

Thanks for any info!

[a_c_green · Accepted solution]

You don't need to make any further contact with them once the Unpaid Item dispute is opened. They either pay or they don't, and if they don't, the UPI Assistant will automatically close the case for you within about an hour after their 96-hour payment window closes.

You might want to also add their IDs to your Blocked Bidder List (here) to prevent any future difficulties.

[nobody*s_perfect]

The Unpaid Item Assistant will do everything for you. It will notify the buyers with a message that strongly encourages then to pay within 4 days, and will close the case for you if they don't.  

There's no  need for messages or invoices; indeed, sending an invoice locks in the shipping price and thus introduces the risk that the buyer will change their address and you'll be stuck with additional shipping costs.

[jaell1973]

Thank you! I had forgotten to ask about blocking them from further purchases. I assume I need to wait until the Unpaid Item dispute is closed before I can do that, but will jump on it after it closes. 

[nobody*s_perfect]

You don't have to wait.  Putting a member on your BBL just blocks them from bidding/buying. It has no effect on active transactions.

[jaell1973]

Oh, thanks again! I don't have any active listings right now, but will block all of the non-payers as the UIA notifies them.

[buyselljack2016]

@jaell1973

I do not use the "automatic unpaid assistant".

My reasoning for that is as a small seller I can keep track of my listingas to know when someone did not pay quickly. I seldom use auctions.  My fixed price, for the most part, are IPR.

The thing with the eBay automatic reminder is that last I knew it seems that it comes across as sort of a rude reminder that the buyer has not paid. (yes SOME need to be reminded, but gently)

When an auction ends, and someone wins, I am pretty certain that the are told by eBay that they won. For whatever reason, many bid on auctions long before they end. They may not be home to make that payment when it ends. Some do not like to pay on their mobile devices. Some do not care to log in on someone elses device.

So now they are getting the notice to pay a second time in 48 hours. 

As I said, being a small seller,  I do not use the auto, but after a while, generally 5-7 days I will then manually open the UPI.

I also do not immediately block a buyer just because they did not pay as quickly as I think they should. Eventually  maybe, but not right then. May be a repeat buyer. Sales can be slow enough without blocking buyers.

[nobody*s_perfect]

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@buyselljack2016 wrote:

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 ... ,  I do not use the auto, but after a while, generally 5-7 days I will then manually open the UPI.....

But the tone of the message sent to buyers is the same whether the case is filed automatically by the UIA or manually by the seller. The buyer wouldn't see any difference.  You can set the UIA to open cases at longer  intervals, it doesn't have to be 48 hours.