Why do we have to wait 4-5 days for UNPAID buyers?

[vintageshaz]

Hi all..I'm an old Ebayer (buyer) but just recently opened my store and love it.  However currently I have this issue with a buyer (no address or buys under their account) and was disappointed to learn I have to wait 4-5 days to cancel or receive payment. My concern here as sellers is that many of us are listing on multiple platforms..if we were nice enough to accept a lower offer than what we are selling an item at, common courtesy would be to complete the order..Why accept the offer if you're not ready to pay? I can't walk into ANY store and expect to not pay immediately so I found this to be odd. If I remove this same item from other platforms and the person ends up not paying, I am still impacted by relisting fees etc.  4-5 days is a LONG time. I understand customer satisfaction but I would say 2 days max. I love ebay and would love to see some updates on this policy.

[slippinjimmy · Accepted solution]

4 - 5 days is HALF the time that the process used to take and the process is now much more simple than it was a few years ago.

I see that all your listings are Fixed Price, by simply adding Immediate Payment Required (and dump the Best Offer) you will never have a non-payer again.

https://www.ebay.com/help/selling/listings/creating-managing-listings/immediate-payment-works?id=415...

[luckythewinner]

---

@vintageshaz wrote:

I can't walk into ANY store and expect to not pay immediately so I found this to be odd.

---

The whole point of online selling is that the customer does not have to walk into a store.  🙄

[online_components]

Check out the Immediate Payment options, you'll still have to wait if an offer is sent, but it saves waiting for payments.

[mtgraves7984]

@vintageshaz... I agree that listing BIN with Immediate Payment Required is the way to go. 

A couple of things you posted make me want to point out a 'nuance' that you might not be aware of.
- "... if we were nice enough to accept a lower offer than what we are selling an item at, common courtesy would be to complete the order..Why accept the offer if you're not ready to pay?"

^^^ One sentence makes me think you accepted  a buyer's offer, yet the other sentence makes me think you sent  an offer that the buyer accepted. Each scenario has different methods of playing out on today's eBay.

The scenarios are different in that if you sent  an offer, your prospective buyer hasn't been vetted at all... not by anyone. If you accepted  an offer that was sent from a prospect, that buyer has possibly been required (before being allowed to offer) to give eBay the method of payment that they'll use to pay immediately, should the offer be accepted by you.

I don't know if the feature is still in beta testing or if it applies to all users yet, but of the few I've accepted offers from lately (only a percentage of my listings), I've been paid immediately. Maybe eBay, maybe dumb luck... I dunno.

One more tidbit... don't send invoices while you're waiting to cancel. Each one resets the 96-hour payment window. 

[buyselljack2016]

For as long as I can remember eBay has allowed 96 hours for payment. 

That fact is not hidden.

As others posted. Immediate payment required (IPR) can be helpful.

Pre authorizing payment for offers is in a test program, but in the meantime, instead of accepting an offer , reduce the BIN asking price to the offer amount. (can not be done when there are open offers, but you can message the buyer to let them know that you will decline, and then reduce the price)

[12345jamesstamps]

I sometimes bid on stuff rather high (auctions) so I don't have to keep returning to it. I usually like my weekends free of eBay after Friday 5PM and returning Monday in afternoon. Some of us have busy schedules. I have a wine club meet every weekend. Got to remember upsetting a buyer means they will never return. My business plan is repeat buyers. That way I don't have to promote items. I have no problem with buyers putting something in a "cart" and paying later. 4 days sound good to me still.

[onefootflipper]

I sell full time and this doesn't bother me at all. I'll have people message me and ask "If I accept the offer can I pay in 11 days when I get paid?" and I will say yes every single time.  Those people pay about 80 percent of the time, and they can and will turn into repeat customers.

The ones who just accept and never pay with no communication? Who cares. It takes seconds to relist the item later and it creates a sale comp for that item at that price, which helps it sell later if it is unique.

[nobody*s_perfect]

---

@buyselljack2016 wrote:

For as long as I can remember eBay has allowed 96 hours for payment. ...

---

I guess you weren't around back when the process took 14 days: 7 before you could file an unpaid item claim, and 7 more to close it.

[inhawaii]

Why do we have to wait 4-5 days for UNPAID buyers?

Because that's what ebay decided.

They own the website.

They make the rules.

[buyselljack2016]

---

@nobody*s_perfect wrote:

---

@buyselljack2016 wrote:

For as long as I can remember eBay has allowed 96 hours for payment. ...

---

I guess you weren't around back when the process took 14 days: 7 before you could file an unpaid item claim, and 7 more to close it.

---

Probably more like I don't remember 🙂

Was thinking more along the lines of the 4 days to pay, and not so much on how long to get to whole process over with for not paying................  🙂

[vintageshaz]

Thank you so much for this reminder. I need to make adjustments to some that are still listed this way.

[vintageshaz]

You're missing the point of this..regardless you still have to PAY.

[vintageshaz]

Well this particular instance this person went on to do the exact same thing to 2-3 other buyers. She didn't pay for anyone's items she bid on nor did she have any intention of doing so. 

[vintageshaz]

You're correct. I actually accepted her counteroffer (and didn't realize I had that on!). However she didn't have any intention of paying anyway. She went on to do this to 2-3 other sellers who simply left "BEWARE NON PAYING BUYER" under positive feedback as they didn't wait the 4-5 days. I had to reach out to customer service because even after waiting the 5 days and then reporting her as non paying, it didn't do anything..she was still making bids..however now that I reached out about it, they handled it.

"One more tidbit... don't send invoices while you're waiting to cancel. Each one resets the 96-hour payment window." 

Oh dear SO glad you mentioned this! Thank you I didn't know!