Warnings and things to watch for

kenb_2

I sell on ebay and also buy sometimes as well,it is VERY important to read carefully the description and if you have any doubts don't bid.There are many genuine and trustworthy sellers but unfortuneately it's success has also attracted the fraudster's so take care.I always provide my address and any good seller will without you asking for it,if you don't have an address don't pay as you will have nowhere to go in case of complaint.

System

I bought an anti virus on ebay ,paid using paypal and then the seller asked for an extra 4% for using paypal .
I refused as he hadnt stated the charge up front .

Also if you live in Northern Ireland watch out for increased delivery charges , can be a rip off .

And for you sellers Northern Ireland is still in Uk ( you may not like it ) we use sterling the same as the rest of you . I bought an 2 tickets from ebay recently .The seller wanted to charge international postage to Northern Ireland ( the seller actual bought the tickets from tickermaster Ireland who didnt charge him international postage ). He also wanted to charge extra for an " Irish " cheque . My cheque was from Abbey National and was was sterling .
Please dont rip us off with deliverys to Northern Ireland .

soolin

I agree about the strange way that some sellers treat Northern Ireland or even the Channel Islands. I once had a buyer from Jersey who was surprised that I was charging UK postage rates as although he knew he was in the uK it appeared that most of the sellers he had bought from previously had charged him for Europe!

As for dodgy deals, it doesn't matter how many programmes there are on the tV or radio, or articles in magazines, the main Ebay newsgroups still get daily questions from people moaning that they got ripped off for a top of the range phone they thought they were getting for £20.

Remember that ebay is policed by its users so dodgy auctions will continue to be listed unless people report listing violations through the correct channels in the ebay contact pages.

Having said all that I love ebay, I've been a 'hobby' seller for over 2 years and make a little pocket money which is quite useful.

Soo

robsonr

I can share with you my experiences with Ebay and PayPal complaints.
I bought a laptop from guy in UK (I’m in Ireland). I didn’t get the item as we agreed and seller ignored my email so I decided for action.
First I contacted Paypal and I was surprised with the speed. I filled the complaint form where I wrote about my suspicion for the fraud. I got that official email how important I’m to them and bla bla. They claimed that to investigate the complaint can take up to 30 days. But apparently in the background they were very fast. I can only guess it from the pieces of the puzzle I had, but I believe they reverted transaction about two days after I complained. Very good. Then I put a negative feedback on the sellers account. Next day I had completely untruth feedback from the seller. I asked Ebay for help in this case and I can say what I got back was complete rubbish. Eventually I gave it up. Ebays handles complaints very badly. You are just a single transaction from million and they simply don’t care.

Things I’d like to emphasize.
- You have only 30 days from end of auction to place a complain with Paypal
- You are protected only when you buying or selling on Ebay. Other auction sites have no agreement with Paypal
- You are protected up to USD500 (if I remember an amount well)

Bear all these things on your mind when you trading on Ebay.

System

Signed Autographs

I was had - admitedly not for much - by an auction selling a original signed autograph of David Attenborough.

It turned out what I recieved was a poor ink jet print of a scan of an original autograph.

When I complained to the seller he said he would refund the money but only if I left good feedback. When I re-read the sellers feedback there were lots of "positive" feedbacks with negative comments in them.

Mine: Buyer beware !!

Safe Ebay shopping,

Nik.

System

In reply to "paying straight into your bank" - no problem. As long as you don't give away your bank passwords/PIN numbers etc. just give your sort code and account number.
What to watch for............... any email that purports to come from Ebay including having an ebay logo telling you that unless you confirm your password/personal details etc. your account will be closed.If you give the info. requested your Ebay profile is cloned by some scumbag in a faraway place who then uses your i.d./ profile to 'sell' items and con other people.
On a similar note high value items are often a con, particularly Harley Davidson motorbikes(my thing).The give away signs are short duration auctions, offers to post the bike 'free' anywhere in the world ???, very poor grammar/spelling,rubbish description (which they have probably 'cut and pasted'from somebody else's advert and the absolute classic, photo's of the bike which is supposed to be in London with V.Sunny typical U.S.A houses/streets/cars, in fact the only thing missing is George - "Bin Laden is Saddam Hussein in drag so let's bomb the Bstard" - Bush sat astride the bike ! ;D
And whilst I'm on a roll, watch out for Muppets offering to buy your goods with a cheque which is far in excess of the value.The idea is you send the goods and try and cash the cheque and get turned over.
All in all Ebay is v.good but I feel the Company is failing in it's duty to it's million of customers = Dollars/Pounds income, by protecting, acting or compensating against these frauds which they are fully aware of.
Enjoy ;D

Laurie_2

I used to use Paypal on Ebay but as most of my sales were low value, I did find the charges a bit unfriendly.
I much prefer to ask for a cheque and post goods after clearance, unless the buyer has the sort of feedback which I feel happy about.
There is also cash by registered post, or the old postal order.
I do like the idea of bank transfer as I use online banking and verification would be easy.
Does anyone know how long the banks take to transfer funds.
PS Thanks Martin for all you are doing for me, and everyone else.

lisyloo

Does anyone know how long the banks take to transfer funds.

Usually 3 working days so it's quicker than waiting for a cheque by post + clearance time.
If you are lucky and bank with the same organisation as the buyer then it should be instant or overnight at the very least.
With Nat West it is instant.

System

I have just read in one of the magazines I subscribe to, a letter about a bad paypal transaction. The writer of the letter had purchased something from ebay in germany and paid using paypal. The seller failed to send out the goods. This is the reply from them as stated in the magazine in respnse to refunding the buyer.

"if the seller has withdrawn the funds and does not fund account further by the time the case is resolved, the case is closed with no recovery paypal does not have the legal right (without an order from the court) to take funds from a sellers bank or credit card account"

It seems that the seller can transfer the money to their bank and there it is safe!

Starcross

I use paypal to sell golfing equipment. This was the stuff that did not sell in the closing down sale so the owner was happy to just get anything for the stuff as it sat in his garage for 2 years since the shop closed.

So buyers were getting a bargain. Waterproofs at 20% of original price etc etc.

Now I sold over 300 lots most without any problems. Anything over £15 went by recorded delivery. I was amazed at home many people tried to rip me off saying they never received the goods, or the goods were used someone even tried to tell me i sent 2 leeft hand shoes and wanted his money back. I photographed all items the photo was clear 1 left and 1 right shoe.

I still have quite a bit left to sell but just gave up due to ebay fees getting higher and higher and paypal very expensive as well, as for cheques and people forget and dont bother. I was just trying to help a mates dad out and take a small cut for my effort, but the only winner was ebay.

If you have branded goods ebay is great, i could sell a damanged NIKE shirt for £6 but a swilken st andrews one you are lucky to get £2, well ebay will take 40p of that and paypal another 40p

i ended up with 256 positive feedbacks but idiots just ruin it for every one else. I went way above service people expect, always shipped within 24 hours of paypal funds etc etc, but in the end just 2 much grief.

I guess the stuff will rot in a garage again.....