Why do eBay keep allowing seller to list counterfeit items?

burnleymik

I recently purchased one of these and it is an awful, cheap, nasty, copy.


https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Genuine-Samsung-Wireless-Charger-Charging-Station-for-Galaxy-S6-S7-Edge-S8-S9-QI/163309306475?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649


The Samsung Logo is nothing like, the sticker on the back is clearly fake and the build is very poor. Comes in a small brown cardboard box and pigeon English instructions on a small piece of paper (despite the image showing a genuine Samsung Box and Charger).


I spoke to eBay customer service last week, who said they would pass it on to the trust and safety team (I think that was the name they gave) and I also reported the item manually, but a week later the same seller is still selling these items and listing them as "genuine".


Do they not have some kind of duty of care to their customers to remove these items?

theonlywayisup

You have the seller's details - report them to trading standards.

https://www.which.co.uk/consumer-rights/advice/how-to-report-fake-or-counterfeit-products

the_lunatic_is_in_my_head

There are many answers to this but eBay is a marketplace and if they were responsible for everything sold on their site they'd be sued every time something went wrong.

That said if you ran a car boot full of stalls selling counterfeit goods I'm sure you'd eventually be prosecuted.

Guess that's one of the differences between a corporate conglomerate and some bloke with a field.

The biggest problem is people buy this stuff, the seller has bad feedback stating items are fake and there are lots of product reviews complaining items are fake or don't work.

I'm guessing it's very cheap (seems to be £25 on Amazon but might be a different model).

We run a business and have to compete against fakes, there's not really much point selling certain products if there is cheap listings for fakes available as getting a sale for say £40 when a fake is £6 is very difficult, I'm sure most people know what they are getting and don't care.

For something like a charger I'd only buy from a known retailer, whether it be Amazon, Tesco, Samsung directly, as the risk of burning the house down just isn't worth saving money.

hollydays

I bought something counterfeit a few years ago. I had a suspicion it may be counterfeit, but I knew I'd be covered by eBay if it was, and frankly it was the sort of thing, that as fake, was useless to me.

The seller, under pressure admitted in so many words it was fake and tried to trick and bribe me.
I reported them to eBay but they didn't remove her for several months again untilI kicked up a fuss, and I even had the sellers admission.
The other thing however, is that anyone can say something is fake, there has to be proof from the buyer, not just " I say it's fake" otherwise it would allow spiteful traders to get competitors listings removed for no reason.
I have issue myself with reporting listings that are clearly untruthful and eBay still do nothing, apart from the fact that negotiating the reporting menu can be extremely hard.

pikachoiioo

Why do eBay keep allowing seller to list counterfeit items? $$$$$$$$

As long as items continue to make ebay lots of money, they will continue to turn a blind eye. I can spot at least 20 different counterfeit items on their site right now, feedback usually illustrates which ones the counterfeit items are.

The samsung charger in the op for example has 15 negatives, many stating it is a knock off.

the_lunatic_is_in_my_head

pikachoiioo wrote: »

Why do eBay keep allowing seller to list counterfeit items? $$$$$$$$

As long as items continue to make ebay lots of money, they will continue to turn a blind eye. I can spot at least 20 different counterfeit items on their site right now, feedback usually illustrates which ones the counterfeit items are.

The samsung charger in the op for example has 15 negatives, many stating it is a knock off.

eBay is losing money, the buyers who want the genuine article aren't shopping there.

They'd take higher fees on a genuine £25 than they do on the £6 plus have more customers.

Unfortunately eBay's view is very short term and they won't invest in longevity.

pikachoiioo

the_lunatic_is_in_my_head wrote: »

eBay is losing money, the buyers who want the genuine article aren't shopping there.

They'd take higher fees on a genuine £25 than they do on the £6 plus have more customers.

Unfortunately eBay's view is very short term and they won't invest in longevity.

Ebay has many fake items as well as genuine items. It is possible to buy the real stuff but you have to do your research in terms of feedback etc.

The fake samsung chargers the op mentions is doing very well, the person has sold over 3,000, some of the buyers will be unaware they are fakes and then there are those that don't rally care as long as it is cheap.

RFW

One possibility is that Trading Standards and/or the police tell them to keep sellers selling so they can build a case and prosecute. One item sold they can brush off as a mistake, if they sell lots of them then they can be more easily prosecuted.
Obviously I don't know if that is happening here but there have been reports of prosecutions in the past where that has been the cause.


As for it being some kind of cash cow for Ebay, it really isn't, as said above. Returns and refunds cost them money, dealing with complaints costs them money, that's without negative publicity on sites like this.

burnleymik

hollydays wrote: »

The other thing however, is that anyone can say something is fake, there has to be proof from the buyer, not just " I say it's fake" otherwise it would allow spiteful traders to get competitors listings removed for no reason.
I have issue myself with reporting listings that are clearly untruthful and eBay still do nothing, apart from the fact that negotiating the reporting menu can be extremely hard.

When I spoke to customer services they suggested I contact Samsung myself to get evidence that the item is counterfeit, but there wasn't an awful lot on the Samsung website about how to report those kinds of items.


I have taken photos and it's quite clear it's not genuine, as listed, but eBay have suggested I just return the item for a refund, meanwhile the trader, who they know is doing this, continues to do so, competing and taking business away from genuine, honest, traders and conning buyers into buying something that looks like it could be made for £1!

theonlywayisup

burnleymik wrote: »

When I spoke to customer services they suggested I contact Samsung myself to get evidence that the item is counterfeit, but there wasn't an awful lot on the Samsung website about how to report those kinds of items.


I have taken photos and it's quite clear it's not genuine, as listed, but eBay have suggested I just return the item for a refund, meanwhile the trader, who they know is doing this, continues to do so, competing and taking business away from genuine, honest, traders and conning buyers into buying something that looks like it could be made for £1!

Or you could report it to TS.....

burnleymik

theonlywayisup wrote: »

Or you could report it to TS.....

Would they actually do something about an individual eBay seller?