eBay "Buyer Protection Fees" (New charges for buyers from private sellers) - Details just recieved

vacheron

Just got my details from eBay.  Long story short, putting up private sellers items by 4% of the item price, plus £0.75 and taking it iff the top themselves. Hardly unexpected!  

We recently changed our fee structure, so it's now free for private sellers to sell, and there are no barriers for you to list the items buyers will love. As part of this change, we're launching Buyer Protection to give buyers more confidence and security when shopping.

We wanted to share what this means for you and your buyers. From 4 Feb, a fee will be included in the item price when purchasing from private sellers, but buyers will only ever pay what they see, so there are no surprises at checkout.

What's great about Buyer Protection

We've added benefits to give buyers more peace of mind when shopping:

•24/7 customer support: Buyers can connect with a real person by phone at any time of day, or start a chat to get quick answers.

•Seller paid after delivery: When buying from private sellers, funds will only be sent once their item has been delivered.

We've also still got buyers covered with other great free services like eBay Money Back Guarantee and Authenticity Guarantee.*

How the Buyer Protection fee works

•The fee will be included in the item price from private sellers, so there are no surprises at checkout.

•Buyers will pay up to 4% of the item price, plus £0.75.** For example, when they see an item for £20, the fee of £1.49 will already be part of the price.

•The fee is lower on higher-priced items over £300, and there's a cap on the total amount they'll pay.

•For items from business sellers, they'll get the Buyer Protection benefits at no extra cost.

Learn more about the Buyer Protection fee

How we're improving things for private sellers

As part of our ongoing mission to be the best marketplace for buyers and sellers, we recently announced:

•It's free to sell (excl. Vehicles) so you can bring buyers more of the things they love.

•It's simpler to list so you can get your items out faster.

•It's easier to get your items to buyers with the launch of Simple Delivery.

Now, to give your buyers even more confidence when shopping, UK-based private sellers will be paid after item delivery, from 4 Feb. Your funds will be available in your eBay balance two days after delivery confirmation.*** We know it's important to get your money fast, so we recommend using a tracked delivery service either through Simple Delivery, or arranging for local collection.

Learn more about what's changing for sellers

We're also updating our User Agreement to reflect the Buyer Protection service. If you have any questions or concerns, just get in touch—we're here to help.

Thanks for being part of the eBay community.

Alanb

Forcing you to use their postal services too 'Seller paid after delivery: When buying from private sellers, funds will only be sent once their item has been delivered.'

It all seemed to good to be true

HonestJohn

So they have moved selling fees onto buyers in the disguise of protection

Debbie9009

I’ve just got that email too, that’s me done with eBay, I refuse to pay a fee just to buy something, I wouldn’t do that in a shop, so why should I do it for eBay !!

Be interesting to see if this backfires on them.

vacheron

HonestJohn said:

So they have moved selling fees onto buyers in the disguise of protection

Exactly, couldn't see much that buyers don't already have access to though other than delayed payment acheived by passing the risk to the sellers, and as @Alanb said, "encouraging" sellers onto their postal services sugesting this is the most likely way to actually get paid in a reasonable timeframe.   

Alanb

My problem is some of the international ones going to the likes of Brazil and Israel, if standard airmail is the postal service it's never shown as delivered on the Ebay listing - going to have to rehash all my auctions now.

Checking back on my sales barely any item sent by Royal Mail even in the UK (using Ebay labels) show as delivered

thisisntmeatall

So the seller now pays 4% + £0.75 and only recieves the money two days after the delivery confirmation? 

penny22

Sorry I don't understand, so if I sell something for £20, the buyer won't see it for £20 Ebay add on the 1.49,  so buyer see 21.49? Or does seller only receive 18.51?
As a private seller I will not carry on selling on Ebay if they withhold funds until item is delivered,

Alanb

Just a further note:

• For untracked deliveries, or tracked deliveries with no delivery confirmation signal, funds will be available 14 days from the order date. 

I don't mind waiting but would lose an awful lot of money sending all my large letter items tracked

vacheron

thisisntmeatall said:

So the seller now pays 4% + £0.75 and only recieves the money two days after the delivery confirmation? 

penny22 said:

Sorry I don't understand, so if I sell something for £20, the buyer won't see it for £20 Ebay add on the 1.49,  so buyer see 21.49? Or does seller only receive 18.51?
As a private seller I will not carry on selling on Ebay if they withhold funds until item is delivered,

If a seller lists an item for £20, eBay will bump the price up by 4% + 75p and that becomes the price the buyer sees. So the BUYER pays the new higher amount, but eBay only gives the seller the original £20 and keeps the rest. 

So basically it makes a private sellers items look more expensive to buyers, thereby possibly the item's appeal / chance of selling.

Solution: Provate sellers reduce their prices to make the item again show in listings as £20 after the eBay fees are added, so effectively the private sellers are paying seller fees* again! 🤷‍♂️




*  AKA - "Special Military eBay Buyer Protection Fees"   

Stupots

I've never understood why eBay don't implement a process where leaving positive feedback automatically confirms an item as delivered. It would certainly help with this new policy and the random nature of even tracked items never being marked as delivered.