eBay

madden-12-freak · ‎01-28-2021

Hey everyone. I recently sold my first item on eBay for $400. eBay is "holding" the payment until delivery is confirmed. Shipping is on me, not the buyer, so since I spent a day trying to figure out the "hold" on the money, I decided to pay for the fastest shipping available on here - which included signature confirmation.

I've read some posts on here from like 2014 and some say to not do that so now I'm confused. The buyers account was also made a week ago and has zero feedback, so I figured it was in my best interest to use SigCon too.

I plan on selling more stuff in the future, for similar amounts. Should I avoid using SigCon under $750? And in this current situation, what should I do? I did a fair bit of research and one article said that SigCon was the best way to avoid being "scammed" as a seller, but now I feel like I was misled a little.

candd205 · ‎01-28-2021

Just fyi, since you are new to eBay and a brand new seller and it is a high price item, it is likely your payment will be held for 21 days.

As far as the signature confirmation, it is required over $750. You can do it for under $750 sales too, just make sure you "warn" the buyer by mentioning in the listing that signature confirmation will be required.

Signature confirmation won't protect you from a "not as described" case filed against you. They can just mail you back a blank card.

kensgiftshop · ‎01-28-2021

@madden-12-freak

If you didn't mention Signature Confirmation in your listing, buyer might be a little ticked if they have to make special arrangements to sign for the package.

Have a great day.

madden-12-freak · ‎01-28-2021

Ah okay thanks this is what I am worried about. Didn't want to make the man go out of his way, but I did a quick Google search of avoiding eBay scams and it said to do SigCon which is why I left it selected with the shipping option.

Hopefully I didn't cause him too much trouble. I paid an extra $25 for shipping so he could get it this week instead of next, but I didn't realize this would cause such an issue.

Thank you again for the advice, I'll be sure to leave SigCon out in the future.

madden-12-freak · ‎01-28-2021

I read about that 21 day thing, which is totally fine. At first I thought it was held up because of the buyer. On eBay it says "Wait for payment before shipping" yet it has been paid and on PayPal it says eBay is holding it for up to 21 days because I am a new seller basically. It was quite confusing, but I spoke with eBay and they said delivery confirmation may speed that process up as well.

In terms of avoiding scams, is there any way to avoid what you have mentioned? I have a few cards I'd like to sell in the near future and I don't see any way to avoid that unless I fully video record the entire packaging and delivering to the post office process without pausing.

In the future I will warn about SigCon in the description, I did not realize that was a major issue. I feel really bad about it now. I paid extra for the shipping so hopefully the man is understanding about the whole thing.

Thanks for the help!

lamber9347 · ‎01-28-2021

@madden-12-freak wrote:
Hey everyone. I recently sold my first item on eBay for $400. eBay is "holding" the payment until delivery is confirmed. Shipping is on me, not the buyer, so since I spent a day trying to figure out the "hold" on the money, I decided to pay for the fastest shipping available on here - which included signature confirmation.

I've read some posts on here from like 2014 and some say to not do that so now I'm confused. The buyers account was also made a week ago and has zero feedback, so I figured it was in my best interest to use SigCon too.

I plan on selling more stuff in the future, for similar amounts. Should I avoid using SigCon under $750? And in this current situation, what should I do? I did a fair bit of research and one article said that SigCon was the best way to avoid being "scammed" as a seller, but now I feel like I was misled a little.

Hello- I just wanted to clarify one part for you. You can use sig con moving forward. The point is that you MUST post this in your original listing. Some people are working from home these days so for them it's not an issue, but you don't know about this particular buyer. It becomes an issue when it wasn't specified in advance before the buyer paid for the item.

I suggest you shoot a message to your buyer and give them a heads up that you paid for the sig con. Just say that due to the larger amount of the sale you did this for THEIR protection and to insure that THEY get the item. Word the message as you looking out for them only. Don't mention anything about not having told them in advance. If they are working from home they will respond as such and no problems. Best of luck to you....

nobody*s_perfect · ‎01-28-2021

"I did a quick Google search of avoiding eBay scams and it said to do SigCon"

Next time you want advice, come here instead of randomly searching. Most of the sellers here concur that adding Signature Confirmation for transactions below $750 does not confer any additional protection against scams, fake claims, etc.

And as noted, if you are going to require Signature Confirmation you should mention that in your listing. Some buyers might choose to avoid the transaction, or ship the item to a different address where somebody will be available to sign for it.

no_zero369 · ‎01-28-2021

@madden-12-freak wrote:
I read about that 21 day thing, which is totally fine. At first I thought it was held up because of the buyer. On eBay it says "Wait for payment before shipping" yet it has been paid and on PayPal it says eBay is holding it for up to 21 days because I am a new seller basically. It was quite confusing, but I spoke with eBay and they said delivery confirmation may speed that process up as well.

In terms of avoiding scams, is there any way to avoid what you have mentioned? I have a few cards I'd like to sell in the near future and I don't see any way to avoid that unless I fully video record the entire packaging and delivering to the post office process without pausing.

In the future I will warn about SigCon in the description, I did not realize that was a major issue. I feel really bad about it now. I paid extra for the shipping so hopefully the man is understanding about the whole thing.

Thanks for the help!

@madden-12-freak

OK the above in blue is key for a new seller. Yes, you can video tape anything you wish, but eBay will not take that video as proof of anything! It might be of use in a formal police investigation but you need to cross your fingers you never need it.

How to avoid scams?

1. Don't look like a newbie - get your FB score up! When I started selling I went out an "invested" $100 in FB by buying a bunch of inexpensive stuff I could use in my selling. Got about 90% return in FB and was able to boost the number. Scammers look for inexperienced sellers selling certain stuff. Also, before selling high ticket items might make sense to sell a few (~10) low priced items to get a swing of things.

2. Don't sell in categories known for scams until you have been a seller for a while - have 10 DSRs

3. Make sure your listings are DETAILED and complete - photograph like there is no text and describe like there are no photos. Use max number of photos - even a coin has 3 sides!

4. Understand that returns are part of retail selling

5. Have plans in place for how you will handle returns - avoid the fantasy "no returns" policy.

6. Have plans in place if it looks like a scam is being perpetuated

7. Know what to do if scammed - when a buyer returns a box of rocks, not your item.

Look, I was a bit like you when I was new. I was selling items that needed signature confirmation. I read these threads and was so scared that I almost quit selling. Then I learned a few things and was able to calm into selling. So ask away and don't quit till you get answers that make sense to you.

Stay off of Google - too many disgruntled folk with garbage advice. You gots real eBay buyers & sellers here, with a forum that is moderated and pretty much self policed. Not much if anything gets past the posters here, so glad that you found us!

Good luck going forward with your selling!