Private seller or Business?

single_lonely

I will be selling new items (identical) which i already own and second hand computers and GPU cards etc.
I have just registered and have 0 feedback.
Would a private seller or business be better. business have lower fees, private have free inserts.

mrcol1000

If you are selling your own items then private. If you are selling items you have brought to sell then you need to be a business.

If you register as a business, Ebay will pass your details on to HMRC so you need to make sure you are declaring your sales.

Private account has more offers and you won't need to accept returns (unless the buyer claims the item is not as described)

19lottie82

mrcol1000 wrote: »

If you register as a business, Ebay will pass your details on to HMRC

Not true.....

soolin

19lottie82 wrote: »

Not true.....

Partly true although it is based on a metrics of turnover etc which none of us can work out but tends to be for higher turnovers.

OP business sellers don't really pay less fees, from 1st August the VAT element means our fees are going up anyway.

Pun

Start as a private seller - you can always become a business seller at a later date if your sales take off.

theonlywayisup

Pun wrote: »

Start as a private seller - you can always become a business seller at a later date if your sales take off.

Why not start as you should. If you are private then register as such. But if you are buying/making to sell then you need to register as a business seller. You need to comply with the relevant legislations.

It isn't a choice.

RFW

soolin wrote: »

Partly true although it is based on a metrics of turnover etc which none of us can work out but tends to be for higher turnovers.

OP business sellers don't really pay less fees, from 1st August the VAT element means our fees are going up anyway.

It used to be that a private seller who should have been registered as a business seller was the most likely to be reported. I can't see it being much different.
As far as reporting goes, HMRC use bots, they trawl for regular businesses and then check against their registered names and addresses. If you are a business and aren't registered then you'll get a letter suggesting you register as a business or tell them a good reason why you aren't.
If you are a business (and the stuff about second hand computers would suggest you are) and register as a private seller that doesn't absolve of any legal responsibilities a business should have.
If I see a business seller that is pretending to be private then I tend to walk away from what they are selling. If they're prepared to lie to save a few pounds a month then they're possibly going to lie about something they're selling too.

As far as registering with HMRC goes it can be personally beneficial, always worth checking with HMRC or an accountant to find out your options.

Tealblue

theonlywayisup wrote: »

Why not start as you should. If you are private then register as such. But if you are buying/making to sell then you need to register as a business seller. You need to comply with the relevant legislations.

It isn't a choice.

Of course it's a choice. Someone starting off by selling a few items isn't going to be viewed as a business in the eyes of ebay or HMRC.

soolin

Tealblue wrote: »

Of course it's a choice. Someone starting off by selling a few items isn't going to be viewed as a business in the eyes of ebay or HMRC.

Not quite correct, someone selling a few things as a business would be viewed as a business by HMRC and eBay it's another matter of course as to whether they get caught. Don't mistake ' not getting caught' with a lack of legal responsibility.

I did some voluntary work which partly involved me dealing with issues around income and benefits, you would be surprised how many people are caught each year 'selling a few bits and bobs'. Strangely and probably more to do with the nature of my work my people were all caught by DWP and many had been turned in by family and friends.

RFW

Tealblue wrote: »

Of course it's a choice. Someone starting off by selling a few items isn't going to be viewed as a business in the eyes of ebay or HMRC.

In a way you're correct, in that everything illegal is a choice. It's quite clear how to legally define a business, there are very few grey areas, I can't think of any offhand.

theonlywayisup

Tealblue wrote: »

Of course it's a choice. Someone starting off by selling a few items isn't going to be viewed as a business in the eyes of ebay or HMRC.

If you are buying or making to sell, you are a business. The only choice you make is to whether you are buying or making to sell, not whether you are a business or not.