unregistered business seller rant.

soolin

I am wondering why anyone bothers properly registering as a business when some sellers seem to get away with running mini empires on ebay all under the guise of a private seller. It's been years since I bothered reporting any as ebay just don't seem bothered , but I'm irritated this evening as I've been casually browsing and making impulse purchases and have come across one seller with 1554 items of new jewellery for sale, it's Ali Express type quality so not a fortune, but anyone selling jewellery ends up caught in with all these listings.

I do understand the argument that I've seen people make that it's eBay's fault for giving out so many free private listings and it is human nature to take advantage of them, but this seller also shows 'The seller won't accept returns for this item.' which means not only is she cheating ebay she is potentially cheating customers as well. Once a customer has a bad experience with a seller like this they may be put off using ebay at all, and that harms all of us who earn money from the site.

sorry rant over.

elsien

While we're on a rant, can I add a lazy seller rant.
I've been looking for a few items of clothing from brands I don't usually buy so have no idea what the sizing/fit is like.
So far I've not found a single private seller who has bothered to get a tape measure out and put up the measurements. They all say no returns which begs the question of how I'm meant to know if there's half a chance if it fitting if they CBA telling me. Do any of these people actually want to sell their stuff?

And breathe.

epm-84

Not that long ago I bought an item from eBay which seemed to be the same product available from Amazon but for a cheaper price. When it arrived it turned up in an Amazon box and wasn't the item I was expecting - the description was misleading and what sounded like noise cancelling headphones were in fact ordinary headphones with a noise cancelling microphone built in. I did manage to return the item and get a full refund. I left feedback saying something like "Description misleading and item arrived directly from Amazon" but somehow the seller got the feedback removed. I also noticed at that stage they were listed as a private seller. I imagine they were just as bothered that HMRC would see the feedback as a potential buyer seeing it.

ballisticbrian

I imagine they were just as bothered that HMRC would see the feedback as a potential buyer seeing it.

eBay are not "bothered" by anything. Somewhere along the line, your feedback met the criteria for removal as simple as that.

epm-84

elsien wrote: »

While we're on a rant, can I add a lazy seller rant.
I've been looking for a few items of clothing from brands I don't usually buy so have no idea what the sizing/fit is like.
So far I've not found a single private seller who has bothered to get a tape measure out and put up the measurements. They all say no returns which begs the question of how I'm meant to know if there's half a chance if it fitting if they CBA telling me. Do any of these people actually want to sell their stuff?

And breathe.

If I'm selling unwanted clothes I don't normally get a tape measure out if I believe the measurements shown on the label are correct but do at least give them in the description. On one occasion when I was selling some jeans which had got a bit tight around the waist for me I checked the measurements (as other jeans with the same waist size were still fitting fine) and found they were half an inch smaller than the label said so on that occasion I gave the actual size not the label size.

alykatz

elsien wrote: »

While we're on a rant, can I add a lazy seller rant.
I've been looking for a few items of clothing from brands I don't usually buy so have no idea what the sizing/fit is like.
So far I've not found a single private seller who has bothered to get a tape measure out and put up the measurements. They all say no returns which begs the question of how I'm meant to know if there's half a chance if it fitting if they CBA telling me. Do any of these people actually want to sell their stuff?

And breathe.

You could always message and ask them for measurements.

epm-84

ballisticbrian wrote: »

eBay are not "bothered" by anything. Somewhere along the line, your feedback met the criteria for removal as simple as that.

I was meaning why the seller was bothered not why eBay were bothered. Although, I suppose a reference to Amazon might not be liked by eBay as they don't lose out by a seller ordering items from Amazon and sending them directly to buyers but would lose out if the buyers bought the items directly from Amazon.

LadyDee

alykatz wrote: »

You could always message and ask them for measurements.

If the seller can't be bothered to give measurements then how do I know she'll be bothered to respond to an email enquiry. I simply move on to buy from a decent seller who at least gives the impression that they care by getting out a tape measure!

lindens

soolin wrote: »

I am wondering why anyone bothers properly registering as a business when some sellers seem to get away with running mini empires on ebay all under the guise of a private seller. It's been years since I bothered reporting any as ebay just don't seem bothered , but I'm irritated this evening as I've been casually browsing and making impulse purchases and have come across one seller with 1554 items of new jewellery for sale, it's Ali Express type quality so not a fortune, but anyone selling jewellery ends up caught in with all these listings.

I do understand the argument that I've seen people make that it's eBay's fault for giving out so many free private listings and it is human nature to take advantage of them, but this seller also shows 'The seller won't accept returns for this item.' which means not only is she cheating ebay she is potentially cheating customers as well. Once a customer has a bad experience with a seller like this they may be put off using ebay at all, and that harms all of us who earn money from the site.

sorry rant over.

I am a part time seller with an Ebay shop and i buy to make a profit so I am registered. It annoys me too when people are doing this full time and getting away without paying tax and NI, and also cheating the buyer with no business address or refunds. I would often like to report them but is there any point doing it through Ebay? How else would we do it?

alykatz

LadyDee wrote: »

If the seller can't be bothered to give measurements then how do I know she'll be bothered to respond to an email enquiry. I simply move on to buy from a decent seller who at least gives the impression that they care by getting out a tape measure!

I have to be honest in instances like this where i have had to email a seller to get measurements its very unusual not to get a reply.

RFW

Amazon's system seems to be set up better in this regard, they have non-professional sellers and professional sellers. There's a different pay structure for both.


The big problem with Ebay, apart from cost structure and freebies, is the name, those who aren't businesses or don't identify themselves as such don't register that way. Maybe they could introduce a third way for non-business multiple sellers. It might not address the businesses not declaring taxes but it could stop other things. It can't be beyond Ebay's ability to cap someone's listings. A private seller selling their own stuff shouldn't need more than half a dozen listings per week, if they do they can become a "hyperactive private seller", "semi-pro seller" or something along those lines.