Ebay discouraging new 'non-business' sellers

[cuppa500]

Recently I had a one off item I wanted to sell on ebay. First time I have sold anything on ebay for several years. First up I had to register a bank account with ebay, something I did but was not 100% comfortable about. I much preferred the old Paypal system. But what I am less unhappy about is the fact that ebay were not forthcoming about the entire process. To set up the bank account, they failed to tell me the timelines & the whole process to set up a single ebay ad was more time consuming than it was worth bothering with for a small one off sale. But that was only the beginning. The requirement for them to check my bank account by placing two micro deposits in it I reasonably assumed would occur once I set up the ad, but no, it didn't happen until the sale had completed & took several days. In addition to this I am then told, for the first time, that ebay would hold onto the payment made by the buyer for more than two weeks! Initially the way I read the info I found (had to go searching, it wasn't just provided in a message prior to me 'signing up as a seller as it should have been)  that ebay would hold onto my money until the buyer indicated they had received the item & were happy with it - ie provided positive feedback. "Ah well" I thought "that's fair enough provided the buyer leaves feedback - but not all do" & I wondered what would happen to my money if no feedback were left. As it was the buyer received the item promptly & left prompt positive feedback saying they were 'very happy' with the item & with my service as a seller. So where is my money? More searching revealed that ebay were going to hold onto my money for a further week (two weeks after the sale, & one week after the feedback received). Somewhere I read that ebay don't profit from holding on to my money - yeah right! So who does? And why was this whole holding onto my money business not made clear to me before I even signed up as a seller in their new system?  The amount of my time wasted with all of this was worth more than the circa $80 after postage that I received for the item. I really don't think I'll be wasting my time selling anything else on ebay any time soon. It seems that what was once a service for individuals to sell items no longer needed, that ebay is now only interested in 'business sellers', & that's not me. 

[eol-products]

Did you upload tracking info for the parcel.

[sandypebbles · Accepted solution]

Not much point in answering is there?

Something that is in place for over two years, posted about widely etc etc etc is news and should not apply to you

Things that have been clearly outlined over and over were not up front

You don't believe eBay do not make a profit on holding funds

Or that the holds that apply to ALL sellers who have not sold in a while should also not apply (even though the same holds applied under PayPal) are new or should not apply....no searching involved and has been the case for many years 

Then indeed, eBay is not the place for you

[gutterpunkz05]

You should have checked out all the changes, prior to signing on to managed payments.  All info was readily available to you.

The hold on funds is a security measure that has existed for approx 4yrs.

Managed payments  has existed for 2yrs

Bank accounts  ID  etc, now all legal requirements to sell.  2yrs

Money on hold is not interest bearing, and can not be used for any purpose,  again this is a legal requirement

and I strongly doubt ebay would  ever consider breaching this, firstly due to the monetary penalty they could expect to receive, but also due to the damage it would do to their shares, plus opening legal avenues for shareholders, and then there is the damage to their world wide reputation.

So basicly  rather than shooting yourself in the foot, It would be more akin to blowing of both your legs.

[jellybirddesigns]

The topic has been done to death in these forums over the last 2 years. It literally doesn't matter if you have one thing to sell, or several million. It's the same requirement for everyone.

On other big platforms such Amazon and Etsy, you have to jump through all these ID and bank hoops BEFORE you can even open an account, so in that regard, Ebay is actually late to the party.

The release of your funds is not contingent on positive feedback. Only the fact that you ship on time, with a tracked service (and upload the tracking number) and that there is no dispute opened for several days/weeks after delivery. 

The item was $110.50 plus $20 postage, so Ebay would  have taken approx 13.4% in fees from the total figure. They should be sending you approx $113, not $80 unless you paid to promote/upgrade the listing or it cost you more in postage than you advertised.

Please use paragraphs next time - it is very hard to read a single wall of text.

The onus is on you to be up to date with all the current requirements on Ebay before selling. The information is literally available in the Sellers guide and there is no excuse for complaining that "nobody told you".

Lastly, have you gone to the Seller Hub and actually change your payout frequency? Make sure you are not set to a monthly schedule. You can change the payout frequency to daily, so as soon as the Ebay releases the funds, they will be sent to your account (which can take a few extra days, depending on your bank).

[cuppa500]

Yes tracking was uploaded on 30 minutes after posting.

[cuppa500]

I did not mean to mark your reply as 'helpful'. A slip of the finger.  When you say 'not much point in answering you had plenty to say.  However I think your defence of Ebay is unwarranted, It wouldn't be hard for ebay to send a new seller a message with an outline of exactly what to expect, Before they continue to put up their first ad. Of course they won't, because the chances are that if they were upfront about the various delays & holds fewer still would bother to try selling. I"m sure you are correct that the info is out there to be found, but finding it all is not straightforward for someone who is a first time seller in the new system, which, by the way is nowhere near 2 years old in Australia.  A few months I believe. As for ebay not being the place for me, I am proud of my 100% feedback score which I have had since joining ebay over two decades ago. If your idea of providing support in a forum is to make statements like that then perhaps it is you who has no place in the forum. 

[cuppa500]

No, it was not info that was all readily available. Example: There was mention of the two micro deposits to my bank account, but there was zero mention that this would not occur until after the sale, creating the first delay in payment. I thought it was a reasonable process, but expected it to happen when I signed the agreement for it to go ahead. At no time was I told WHEN it would happen, instead I was left in the dark, until after the sale was completed when lo & behold the micro deposits showed up. 

Yes, perhaps I should have spent a longer period looking for ALL the info that is available, but for a one-off relatively low value sale that is a lot of unnecessary work for someone unfamiliar with the selling system. Ebay could have made that process far simpler & much more transparent. Managed payments may have existed for two years where you live, but it certainly hasn't here in Australia, nothing like it. 

[sandypebbles]

People responding here ARE in Australia 

Being the forum for eBay Australia and all

And it most certainly HAS been in place for more than two years here

In Australia 

And was announced as coming in for two years before it came in

Again, you just want to argue when presented with factual information

Maybe take it up with eBay , their cs are instructed to tell people what they want to hear and even have pre-written scripts to help them do it

The info the cs give you will not be correct, but clearly correct information  is not what you are seeking

[cuppa500]

Another reply from someone who thinks what happens where they live applies worldwide! Sheesh!

Sounds like what you say about Amazon & Etsy probably means that they have a better process. Sellers know where they stand as regards the process BEFORE selling. How sensible! Allowing folk to sell without that process being first completed is silly, particularly when that process is not fully explained upfront, & leaves the new seller to search for info that they don't know whether exists or not. 

Take the $20 postage I had to pay after receiving payment leaves approx $90 , not $80. Very sorry for that poor approximation, but it's only relevant in regard to the amount of work I had to do to even make the sale. I knew the fees - not complaining about that.  The 'onus' should not simply be up to the seller, this is my basic gripe, which you clearly don't agree with, I think there should be some responsibility on the part of ebay to provide the info in a timely & more accessible manner. Prior to wanting to make this one off sale I was unaware of the Sellers guide. At the very least ebay could/should have provided me with a sale process/timeline & pointed me to the relevant sections of the Sellers guide. I still cannot find a timeline for the establishment of seller status. Can you?  I have not changed the payout frequency as I have no intention of selling on ebay again as a result of the experience this time around. In the past , a number of years ago I sold a number of items which were surplus to my requirements & had no quibble with the process which I recall as both simpler & more transparent. Overall it is the lack of transparency which irks me & I don't appreciate being told that the onus is on me any more than I appreciate being told how to write my forum posts.