@foster9
Here are the settings that eBay placed on your account over a year ago:
https://www.ebay.com/bmgt/buyerrequirements
Buyer Rules:
*Require buyers to provide a payment method before they place a bid.
*Require buyers to provide a payment method before they make an offer.
Click submit or save.
Generally, keeping in the default set to yes or on, initiates the "auto-pay" feature, but they only work if eBay has enrolled the BUYER ID into forced compliance for sellers that retain these. All buyer IDs are supposedly included for making offers, and eBay has been on a roll enrolling more and more into forced compliance for bidding.
The result for the buyer begins with their payment options being limited. Then the opportunity for invoicing/combined shipping is removed. So, if you accept ten offers from a buyer, they will be billed auto-matically for ten separate transactions at full shipping cost "automatically". You, as a seller will be paying ten forty cent non-refundable transaction fees instead of one forty cent fee for a combined order. Same for auctions (there is now a test rolling out explained below). If someone wins ten of your auctions, they were auto-billed separately for each one. No combined shipping, no invoicing, and really no incentive to deal with you when the buyer could go to a seller with similar products that turned the BUYER RULES off, and get a much better deal. Sellers that have turned these settings to "off" report an increase in offers/bids/sales. Buyers are not stupid, and as soon as they see the requirement for putting up a payment source in order to make an offer or bid, simply back out and go someplace else. Though these settings were supposed to cut back on non-paying buyers, they were likely more effective in getting rid of PAYING buyers instead, so now the new test.
Some buyers (who put up that payment source for auctions) are now allowed to delay payment for 7 days before the "auto-billing" kicks in. I would surmise eBay hopes to get buyers who left to return and bid with these sellers again. Sellers can turn off these "Buyer Rules" and make their own number of days for paying. They can then invoice for combined shipping, and buyers are able to pay with the payment source of their choice. Even with that 7 day delay option, I as a buyer will not participate. If the seller refuses to answer to a combined shipping request for the ten pieces of jewelry I won at auction that had $6 shipping charge each, I will be autobilled for ten listings with $60 shipping for a package that weighs less than 7 ounces and the seller is free to keep the overage.
If you SEND offers or accept COUNTER OFFERS from buyers, these all must be paid for separately at full shipping cost. There is no invoicing/combined shipping allowed. This has nothing to do with your settings or "Buyer Rules" linked above. This is for everyone.
