The Guardian - sellers beware listing on Ebay

techspec

We've all been there - getting scammed and then the buyer gloats knowing there is nothing we can do.


But nice to see the press finaly reporting it. I thought they must have all been paid off by Ebay


http://www.theguardian.com/money/2013/dec/09/seller-beware-listing-ebay


"Once, the pre-Christmas ritual of decluttering produced bulging bin liners destined for the local charity shop. Now, thanks to online auction sites, household rejects can raise enough to fund the festivities – and thousands will be flogging unwanted possessions on Ebay to do just that.

But if one of these people is you, be cautious. Most savvy cyber-surfers realise the potential pitfalls of buying online from strangers; far fewer seem aware that buyers can also be unscrupulous and that, if they choose to pocket your wares without paying, eBay's system appears weighted in their favour........."

Contains_Mild_Peril

It's good to see these issues covered in the mainstream press, though she does get a bit wrong:

if a seller's rating is affected by detrimental comments, they are not allowed to know which buyer left these and are therefore unable to contest them.

I presume she is confusing feedback comments (where sellers can see who wrote what) with the potentially catastrophic Detailed Seller Ratings (stars) which are left anonymously and can get small sellers banned for only a few bad ratings while the rogue buyers are usually allowed to carry on as before.

RFW

Interesting that skimming through the comments the majority are from people complaining that they didn't follow any guidelines and expected Ebay to fork out for them being stupid.

Someone sold an expensive book to UK only, buyer bought from Holland, complained post was too expensive so seller sent cheapest possible then buyer claimed non receipt and he had to refund. Never sent tracked to keep costs down. Several things about that, settings for non UK buyers was incorrect, should have sent tracked if expensive, also how does he know the buyer is lying?

Some people will lie for financial gain but some items do get lost in post, often due to bad labelling and/or packaging.

In most cases the question "What would you do if you were Ebay?" would get the same answer as what Ebay actually do.

The problem Ebay have is that most people that have problems get them from their own mistakes yet they often have an inability to see the genuine hard done to folk.

techspec

Contains_Mild_Peril wrote: »

It's good to see these issues covered in the mainstream press, though she does get a bit wrong: I presume she is confusing feedback comments (where sellers can see who wrote what) with the potentially catastrophic Detailed Seller Ratings (stars) which are left anonymously and can get small sellers banned for only a few bad ratings while the rogue buyers are usually allowed to carry on as before.

She said ratings.


I took that to mean Detailed Seller RATINGS - so she was right.

Contains_Mild_Peril

I wouldn't describe a score as a "comment": I suppose in a sense it is, but the journalist has failed to make the message clear to those not already familiar with the workings eBay's feedback system.

Stoke

I'm glad the press is finally reporting this. All we can hope for is eBay takes note and alters their policy.

RFW

Stoke wrote: »

I'm glad the press is finally reporting this. All we can hope for is eBay takes note and alters their policy.

Which policy?

soolin

RFW wrote: »

Which policy?

I assume the UK laws that give buyers all sorts of rights...hmm, can ebay force legal changes in the UK I wonder.

southerly

I received a survey email from ebay today asking whether I would recommend them to others to use for selling, and if I had any bad experiences as a seller, wonder if it is related to this bad publicity?

soolin

southerly wrote: »

I received a survey email from ebay today asking whether I would recommend them to others to use for selling, and if I had any bad experiences as a seller, wonder if it is related to this bad publicity?

No, they are the common surveys. I get about one a month- How I respond tends to depend on how good my ebay 'day' has been.

techspec

I dont hold back on Ebay surveys - surprised they havent tracked me down and banned me.

I love surveys that ask how would you rate them from 1- 10.

You put 1 - and the next question is , you only gave us a 1 - why was that?

Because Zero wasn't available