Ebay gone to far with new policy change from 4th Feb 2025!

RFW · 28 January at 3:39PM

noitsnotme said:

RFW said:

with lots of external ads on there.

Yes, it’s particularly bad if you use a mobile browser. I kept getting lots of pop up google ads I had to close to be able see the actual page content. It’s not a very positive experience for potential buyers, many of whom won’t stick around when bombarded with irrelevant ads.

I'm guessing that's what's been happening anyway so they might as well cash in on it. So previously they've had lots of views when threads like this start talking about it but the views don't turn into sales. So thinking they get traffic but no sales they've probably just made it ad heavy to get some revenue.

bittyboy101 · 29 January at 10:06AM

RFW said:

noitsnotme said:

RFW said:

with lots of external ads on there.

Yes, it’s particularly bad if you use a mobile browser. I kept getting lots of pop up google ads I had to close to be able see the actual page content. It’s not a very positive experience for potential buyers, many of whom won’t stick around when bombarded with irrelevant ads.

I'm guessing that's what's been happening anyway so they might as well cash in on it. So previously they've had lots of views when threads like this start talking about it but the views don't turn into sales. So thinking they get traffic but no sales they've probably just made it ad heavy to get some revenue.

I just hate browsing the Internet with any sort of Smartphone and prefer my Windows 10 laptop as things look so much better through a big 19 inch screen !

Here's another screenshot of Ebid's price plans...

They are still saying that full platinum no fees for life membership is £139.98, or £69.99 if done within 24 hours after any upgrade... I am wondering as I am on their completely Free membership at the moment, if I upgrade to their silver membership (free, just a card verification needed) would this count as an "upgrade" for me to get their full platinum no fees for life membership for half price ???

Back to eBay, I was thinking of listing a couple of items and ending them before 4 Feb if they don't sell, are they now doing payment holds until 48 hours after confirmed delivery or has this not started yet ? - Thanks for your help guys

Here's that screenshot of Ebid's price plans below:-

soolin · 29 January at 10:29AM

The payment hold on ebay doesn't start until the 4th February, so you've got a few days to make a sale. personally if you are adamant that you can't wait for your payments, I'd remove all listings by the 3rd to make sure.

I did wonder if taking out a small upgrade on ebid would then qualify you for the full upgrade at half price to lifetime membership. You might try asking on their dedicated forums. If so you could look at silver (although that gives just 5 allowed listings) as that is free if you register a card with them .

SILVER
For casual sellers. Verify your credit/debit card details when registering or upgrade via "My eBid" > "My Subscriptions" at a later date. Your card will only be tested for validity and not charged at all.
Upgrade Fee : £0.00

Gold is £9.99 for 30 days so approximately £129 per year , note they sneakily use 30 days and not a month and even at £9.99 that is steep if you aren't going to sell anything. I think even the hardened enthusiasts would suggest it takes longer than 30 days to get noticed and with only 100 listings I think it's throwing money away just to avoid ebay holding your funds for a few days.

I would really really consider your options carefully before you throw money at this in a bid to avoid ebay holding funds for a few days. I keep asking you, as an idea of how popular ebid is- how many items have you bought on it as opposed to buying on ebay? Personally I buy a lot on ebay (considerably more on Amazon but my reasons for not selling there have been stated) and absolutely nothing on ebid. It doesn't even cross my radar when searching for items .

I mentioned earlier I took out lifetime membership probably a couple of decades ago , I ran stores for years, I dipped in and out every few years- and my total takings from ebid have not even yet equalled the cost of that membership. I have no idea what I paid, probably around the £50=£60 mark (I got a free t shirt as well).

bittyboy101 · 29 January at 10:59AM

soolin said:

The payment hold on ebay doesn't start until the 4th February, so you've got a few days to make a sale. personally if you are adamant that you can't wait for your payments, I'd remove all listings by the 3rd to make sure.

I did wonder if taking out a small upgrade on ebid would then qualify you for the full upgrade at half price to lifetime membership. You might try asking on their dedicated forums. If so you could look at silver (although that gives just 5 allowed listings) as that is free if you register a card with them .

SILVER
For casual sellers. Verify your credit/debit card details when registering or upgrade via "My eBid" > "My Subscriptions" at a later date. Your card will only be tested for validity and not charged at all.
Upgrade Fee : £0.00

Gold is £9.99 for 30 days so approximately £129 per year , note they sneakily use 30 days and not a month and even at £9.99 that is steep if you aren't going to sell anything. I think even the hardened enthusiasts would suggest it takes longer than 30 days to get noticed and with only 100 listings I think it's throwing money away just to avoid ebay holding your funds for a few days.

I would really really consider your options carefully before you throw money at this in a bid to avoid ebay holding funds for a few days. I keep asking you, as an idea of how popular ebid is- how many items have you bought on it as opposed to buying on ebay? Personally I buy a lot on ebay (considerably more on Amazon but my reasons for not selling there have been stated) and absolutely nothing on ebid. It doesn't even cross my radar when searching for items .

I mentioned earlier I took out lifetime membership probably a couple of decades ago , I ran stores for years, I dipped in and out every few years- and my total takings from ebid have not even yet equalled the cost of that membership. I have no idea what I paid, probably around the £50=£60 mark (I got a free t shirt as well).

Thanks very much mate for the info - Very much appreciated. 👍

catprofit · 1 February at 3:29AM

Does anybody know when the year runs for selling and paying tax?
Is it January to December, or April to May h

soolin · 1 February at 9:17AM

catprofit said:

Does anybody know when the year runs for selling and paying tax?
Is it January to December, or April to May h

Traders can choose their own accounts year end , but the actual tax year runs from 6th April to 5th April. For sole traders the easiest way to keep records to prepare accounts is on a cash basis April to April.

soolin · 1 February at 11:44AM

A quick look through various groups and even the community boards still shows a lot of misunderstandings and over reactions. In fact I would go as far as to suggest that for many sellers this might be a good time to list as other sellers may be taking themselves out of the selling pool So many people are just not reading the announcement, or if they have, they have totally misunderstood it.

My reasoning being that

1 - there are still business sellers threatening to remove all their listings on the 3rd in protest of the buyer premium being added to all their sales.
2 - sellers adding the extra fees onto their listing prices so they achieve the same sale price
3- sellers adding huge amounts onto postage costs to ensure all their items are fully tracked and guaranteed next day, so using special delivery at around £10 for even £3 items. Interestingly a few sellers are encouraging them to do this to basically price themselves out of the market.

My only real concern is actually from a buyers perspective. It did occur to me that most buyers who don’t sell at all will be completely unaware of the new buyers premium until they see it added on the 4th. I suspect that many sellers are going to be faced with questions from buyers asking what it’s all about. As a buyer myself it was only a few days ago I realised I ought to get some intended purchases in quickly on things I buy regularly to avoid the premium .

It will be interesting to see how quickly the furore over this all dies down. I’ll be away so my holiday settings will be on so I won’t be around to see it first hand either as a buyer or a seller.

Gorgie_G · 2 February at 11:17AM

@Tracy39 Vinted has this system in place, but once delivered, the buyer has 2 days in which to raise a complaint or the funds are automatically paid to the seller (sooner if the buyer confirms immediately) after this has been done the buyer has no right to make a complaint.

It is not clear if the eBay policy is going to work this way too, but I actually prefer it, two days isn't long to wait for funds that are then fully cleared.

If you are concerned about bad buyer practices, you could take photos of your items that include garments inside out, but not put them in your listing, and take pics of the item on the day it's sent out.

I'd also suggest investing in a tag gun, tag and label 'do not remove until happy with your purchase' in places that mean the item cannot be used unless the tag is removed.