What is a proper way to sell a bicycle on eBay now?

Emily_Joy

I bought and sold 4 bikes on eBay in the past, the last time was in early 2020, just before Covid lockdowns started. I am assuming that nobody sane is likely to buy a bicycle without trying, so it has to be collection in person only. In old days the buyer would come up to the door, tried the bike on the street for a bit, then gave me some cash and leave with the bike. I would then mark it as payment received and that was it. 

I need to sell two bikes I have had for some years now. What is the correct process? I do not use any eBay apps and have no device where they can be installed. 

km1500

List it in sporting goods - cycling - bikes as collection only.

choose a weekend when you get 80% off frees if you can

Emily_Joy

km1500 said:

List it in sporting goods - cycling - bikes as collection only.  Choose a weekend when you get 80% off frees if you can.

eBay keeps sending me offers for 1GBP selling fees, so I am not that worried about the fees. I am more concerned about the fact that, based on a few threads here, there should be some QR code for me/the buyer to scan and I honestly have no idea about this.

soolin

Emily_Joy said:

km1500 said:

List it in sporting goods - cycling - bikes as collection only.  Choose a weekend when you get 80% off frees if you can.

eBay keeps sending me offers for 1GBP selling fees, so I am not that worried about the fees. I am more concerned about the fact that, based on a few threads here, there should be some QR code for me/the buyer to scan and I honestly have no idea about this.

You have never been allowed to send a potential buyer your address details before they buy, it’s just it is more strictly enforced now. All you can do is state collection only and make sure you set your postage correctly , then if someone is interested they will need to buy the bike and at that point , and not before, you can send your address. If they pay using managed payments they bring a Qr code supplied by eBay and if they want the bike you accept the code and mark it as collected. If they refuse the bike you cancel the sale .

if they choose to bring cash then they either pay or not and if they don’t pay, you just cancel the sale and relist exactly as above.

You must cancel the sale in either case though if buyer doesn’t go ahead , but read the cancellation options carefully as you don’t want to look like you are avoiding fees. In both cases the cancellation will return your FVFs all apart from 30p that eBay will retain .

Although managed payments were in place in 2020 so it shouldn’t be any different.

Emily_Joy

soolin said:

 If they pay using managed payments they bring a Qr code supplied by eBay and if they want the bike you accept the code and mark it as collected.

Thank you for your help.  How exactly do I accept the code?

I have a related question. I spot a large item of furniture being sold on eBay locally.  We are in a very small town - so it would be like 20 minutes walk from our place. I am wondering if there is any way the seller can send me the address so that I can drop by to take a look? Based on your reply I am guessing this would be against the rules

soolin

Emily_Joy said:

soolin said:

 If they pay using managed payments they bring a Qr code supplied by eBay and if they want the bike you accept the code and mark it as collected.

Thank you for your help.  How exactly do I accept the code?

I have a related question. I spot a large item of furniture being sold on eBay locally.  We are in a very small town - so it would be like 20 minutes walk from our place. I am wondering if there is any way the seller can send me the address so that I can drop by to take a look? Based on your reply I am guessing this would be against the rules

There is no safe way to share an address at all now , you risk a warning if you try. 

Spoonie_Turtle

Re: accepting the code, from posts I've read on here it seems there's a QR code to be scanned but also the option of a numerical code to type in if you can't scan the QR code.

Nebbit

Emily_Joy said:

I bought and sold 4 bikes on eBay in the past, the last time was in early 2020, just before Covid lockdowns started. I am assuming that nobody sane is likely to buy a bicycle without trying, so it has to be collection in person only. In old days the buyer would come up to the door, tried the bike on the street for a bit, then gave me some cash and leave with the bike. I would then mark it as payment received and that was it. 

I need to sell two bikes I have had for some years now. What is the correct process? I do not use any eBay apps and have no device where they can be installed. 

A few years ago I wanted to buy a bicycle on eBay from a seller about 100 miles from my home. The price was £500 approx but the seller could not understand why I would not pay up front. In the end I never bought it!

soolin

Nebbit said:

Emily_Joy said:

I bought and sold 4 bikes on eBay in the past, the last time was in early 2020, just before Covid lockdowns started. I am assuming that nobody sane is likely to buy a bicycle without trying, so it has to be collection in person only. In old days the buyer would come up to the door, tried the bike on the street for a bit, then gave me some cash and leave with the bike. I would then mark it as payment received and that was it. 

I need to sell two bikes I have had for some years now. What is the correct process? I do not use any eBay apps and have no device where they can be installed. 

A few years ago I wanted to buy a bicycle on eBay from a seller about 100 miles from my home. The price was £500 approx but the seller could not understand why I would not pay up front. In the end I never bought it!

Unfortunately that’s how eBay works if you want to view items before paying you need to look at sites like Gumtree of FB marketplace. 

‘A few years ago’ the seller might have got away with sending their address to you, now they can’t, so the seller couldn’t have allowed you to view it before you bought it anyway without endangering their account. 

mkGlasgow

I am selling a bicycle on a collection only ad, not auction. He's seen a video of it and is happy. Are the fees 12.8%? That's a lot isn't it on a 4k bike?  

soolin

mkGlasgow said:

I am selling a bicycle on a collection only ad, not auction. He's seen a video of it and is happy. Are the fees 12.8%? That's a lot isn't it on a 4k bike?  

When you say collection only ad , do you mean a BIN or a classified advert? If it’s a BIN then you pay the fees for the category you have listed it in , with any cap on that category , if it’s a classified ad (and I’m not sure a bike can be listed in classified ads) then there’s no FVFs to pay at all. The actual fees you pay depend on whether your account is a business or a private one.