Ebay no longer charging private sellers

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welsh dragon

Thanks but no thanks. I think I'll pass.
So, changes from Feb, all untracked shipments will require waiting 14 days from the order date to get paid! That is a joke really.
I sell untracked items and the payments are withheld. I don't mind. I know they will not be released so that's it.
 

Chris S

Legendary Member
Location
Birmingham
Ebay may no longer being charging private sellers but from February they will be including a 'buyer protection fee' in the sale price. Presumably ebay will be getting their cut this way.

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.​
  • •​
    You’ll pay up to 4% of the item price, plus £0.75. For example, when you 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 you'll pay.​
  • •​
    For items from business sellers, you’ll get the Buyer Protection benefits at no extra cost.​
 

DCLane

Found in the Yorkshire hills ...
So, changes from Feb, all untracked shipments will require waiting 14 days from the order date to get paid! That is a joke really.

The potential risk is buyers putting in lots of claims. Almost everything I sell is untracked, but to date I've had only a few claims. This may change.

However, the Royal Mail now have the option of adding tracking for 20p extra on a parcel. Although not everyone at the Post Office appears to know this yet. I may simply add the cost onto the postage.

It almost appears like eBay are trying to copy Amazon sellers. However, the business model is different with Amazon sellers mostly selling new stock. As a second-hand book seller on Amazon I've found in recent years it's become a much more challenging process.
 

chris-suffolk

Über Member
Ebay may no longer being charging private sellers but from February they will be including a 'buyer protection fee' in the sale price. Presumably ebay will be getting their cut this way.

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.​


  • •​

    You’ll pay up to 4% of the item price, plus £0.75. For example, when you 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 you'll pay.​


  • •​

    For items from business sellers, you’ll get the Buyer Protection benefits at no extra cost.​

It's not quite so clear how the fees will show for auction bids.
 
I'll have to read the emails they sent me again, I saw the buyer protection update but didn't see the news about withholding payments for untracked items.

If that's true I'll be adjusting all my postage to tracked only and charging accordingly.
 

chris-suffolk

Über Member
I'll have to read the emails they sent me again, I saw the buyer protection update but didn't see the news about withholding payments for untracked items.

If that's true I'll be adjusting all my postage to tracked only and charging accordingly.

The email I got said they will withhold funds until it's been delivered, and they encourage you to use tracked to speed up the process. I always use tracked to avoid issues where the buyer trys to claim a refund saying it was never received.
 

Gunk

Guru
Location
Oxford
The email I got said they will withhold funds until it's been delivered, and they encourage you to use tracked to speed up the process. I always use tracked to avoid issues where the buyer trys to claim a refund saying it was never received.

This might speed up dispatch times, I’ve had some painfully slow deliveries recently, really cheeses me off.
 
This might speed up dispatch times, I’ve had some painfully slow deliveries recently, really cheeses me off.

I've noticed if I buy the label through ebay, it marks the item as dispatched. This is really annoying as I might have bought the label, but I haven't been to the PO yet.
 

rogerzilla

Legendary Member
In an efficient market, which only really applies to new mass-produced (and therefore fungible) goods, the latest changes have put us back where we were a few months ago. If the buyer won't pay more than £20 for an item, as that's its market price, and the fee is £2, the seller has to price it at £18, so is effectively paying the £2 fee by taking a hit on the price.

For used or bespoke items, sellers are less impacted as the item is unique and the price depends far more on how much an individual might want it.
 
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