topic Re: fees in Selling

fees

frasehemingway-ihl0 — Thu, 09 May 2019 05:18:13 GMT

I had an item listed for auction and received a bid on it, however before the payment could go through, ebay removed the item (a ww2 german helmet) for violating their hateful items policy and deleted the listing. I have since been charged an insertion fee of $100.

This seems utterly ridiculous for me to be charged by ebay for an item that sold and they then removed before I could finalise the sale.

Do I have reasonable grounds to not pay this fee? I understand the item was "sold" on their system but they were also the ones who removed it and blocked the sale..................

Re: fees

lyndal1838 — Thu, 09 May 2019 05:38:19 GMT

If you had received the buyer's details you could have gone through with the sale if the buyer was agreeable.

If you refuse to pay the fees ebay will only send in the debt collectors eventually.

Re: fees

frasehemingway-ihl0 — Thu, 09 May 2019 05:47:30 GMT

I know the buyers name but I couldnt open a dispute or report the item as not paid for as ebay removed the listing immediately after the auction ended. The buyer also appears to have been the one who reported the listing.....it seems they bid on it to keep it from actually being sold and then reported it and ignored all communication with me.

Re: fees

Anonymous — Thu, 09 May 2019 05:51:50 GMT

how could they pay if eBay removed it? and as such, why would you report the buyer for not paying?

*Edit, since you edited whilst I was typing

How do you know the buyer is the one who reported it? (other than just your opinion they did not want it to be sold)?

Re: fees

frasehemingway-ihl0 — Thu, 09 May 2019 06:19:50 GMT

I dont know for certain, a small assumption on my part. I looked at the bidders profile and it is a woman whose only purchases on ebay were makeup items and she ignored every friendly message I sent her regarding the item. I figured it was a bit odd and it seemed surprising she would be interested in ww2 german collectibles, so I thought it was possible she reported the item, as there are certainly people who actively try and stop potentially offensive historical items being sold. My guess was this could be one of those situations, however it could have just been an ebay moderator that removed it.

I understand ebays policy for potentially offensive items, I am definitely not arguing about the removal of the item as third reich militaria are sensitive and potentially offensive to some. However I hope ebay will remove the $100 insertion fee which certainly seems unreasonable for the circumstances.

Thanks for your reply

Re: fees

Anonymous — Thu, 09 May 2019 06:37:22 GMT

You might need to contact eBay about the fee, but I would be speaking to someone higher up than just calling the call center (mostly they just tell people what they want to hear to get rid of the caller as fast as possible) so the 'have us call you option might be best

I don't know about these days, but several years ago when there were water restrictions in my state, I had listed a Tap King drinks dispenser

I got a notice from eBay they had removed it because it violated some policy or another for water usage in a time of water restriction

After a pause for a what the ??? moment, I got onto eBay who had said because the word 'tap' in the listing it was removed

The item did not use water,or connect to water but the word tap tripped the eBay key word bots

So it is possible this person (buyer) may have reported it (although odd anyone would bid,especially that much) and then report it, when anyone can report anything without bidding. Certainly risky for them if eBay don't remove it and they either have to pay up or cop a non payment strike

Or it is possible the eBay key word bots are still alive and well

Re: fees

imastawka — Thu, 09 May 2019 07:12:35 GMT

I don't get it.

OP already sold a Geman WW2 helmet.

Why was this one removed?

Policy -

Nazi and Nazi-related

We recognise the historical significance of World War II and that there are many militaria collectors around the world. We allow some related historical items, but ban others, particularly those that amount to Nazi propaganda, or that may be disrespectful to victims.

Allowed

Stamps, letters, and envelopes displaying Nazi postmarks
Currency issued by the Nazi government
Historically accurate WWII military model kits that have Nazi symbols
Historical and religious items that bear a swastika if they're made before 1933 and are not related to Nazism

Not allowed

Items that are not permitted include, but are not limited to:

Holocaust-related items, including reproductions such as:
- Uniforms and personal belongings of concentration camp prisoners
- Jewish identification (armbands, Star of David)
- Holocaust photos that depict dead bodies, executions, or other violent or degrading scenes
- Nazi-issued documents (passports, travel papers)
Nazi-related items, including reproductions such as:
- Uniforms, uniform components, weapons, or other items that bear Nazi symbols, whether visible or covered
- Listings and products in which images are edited or cropped to try and hide Nazi symbols
- De-Nazified items (items that originally had Nazi symbols that have been removed)
- Any items that were owned by or affiliated with, including books written by, Nazi leaders such as:
  - Joseph Goebbels
  - Hermann Goering
  - Rudolf Hess
  - Reinhard Heydrich
  - Heinrich Himmler
  - Adolf Hitler
Any item made after 1933 that bears a swastika (e.g. jewellery, clothing, rugs, fabrics), unless listed in the allowed section above. We are sensitive that the swastika is commonly and legitimately used in religions, including Hinduism and Buddhism. However, given the highly offensive nature of the Nazi swastika, we have decided not to allow any non-historic items bearing a swastika.
Media identified as Nazi propaganda, or that otherwise promote hatred or racial supremacy, including historic or current items

https://www.ebay.com.au/help/policies/prohibited-restricted-items/offensive-material-policy?id=4324&st=3&pos=1&query=Offensive%20material%20policy&intent=offensive%20listings&context=9053_BUYER&lucenceai=lucenceai

Re: fees

davewil1964 — Thu, 09 May 2019 08:37:01 GMT

I imagine a helmet would come under -

Uniforms, uniform components, weapons, or other items that bear Nazi symbols, whether visible or covered

Re: fees

brerrabbit585 — Thu, 09 May 2019 08:52:26 GMT

Insertion fees? Or final value fees (selling fees)?

Many husbands and wives (partners) use the same ebay account. Hubby could be a collector of miliary items while wife buys make-up so absolutely nothing suspicious there. If the listing disappeared just after it ended, the buyer was probably suspicious of you, not knowing what happened to the listing.

Re: fees

brerrabbit585 — Thu, 09 May 2019 08:58:14 GMT

Is there a link somewhere to cancel the sale?

Re: fees

bimberiretrosystems — Thu, 09 May 2019 22:00:45 GMT

There are tons of mein kampf books for sale it seems that some sellers are more equal than others.

Ebay macht frei.

Re: fees

pancaket52 — Thu, 09 May 2019 22:11:21 GMT

Did you have Best Offer activated on your Listing?

Ebay have been activating Best Offer on listings - sometimes without a Sellers knowledge.

The fact that the item is in your sold list looks like the 'offer ' has been accepted and that it has been bought by the bidder.

Ebay would automatically remove it from sale if the offer met your threshold.

If the buyer is not responding - try opening a Non Paid Item case ( Drop Dowwn Box on Right of Page) to get your fees back.

Re: fees

padi*0409 — Thu, 09 May 2019 23:18:11 GMT

@pancaket52 wrote:
Did you have Best Offer activated on your Listing?
Ebay have been activating Best Offer on listings - sometimes without a Sellers knowledge.

The fact that the item is in your sold list looks like the 'offer ' has been accepted and that it has been bought by the bidder.

Ebay would automatically remove it from sale if the offer met your threshold.

If the buyer is not responding - try opening a Non Paid Item case ( Drop Dowwn Box on Right of Page) to get your fees back.

The helmet you're seeing pancake was an auction back in March, so I'd say that's not the helmet the OP is referring to.

If it is the item in question the the time period for a UPI dispute has well and truely past.

Re: fees

anotherpancake52 — Fri, 10 May 2019 02:57:14 GMT

You're right Padi - that listing had already been removed once by ebay - (written in description) - and he'd obviously relisted.

Thought he may have just got his April account for the Fees.

I can't see any other listings for this item - removed, sold or otherwise.

Re: fees

countessalmirena — Fri, 10 May 2019 10:10:53 GMT

@frasehemingway-ihl0,

You have of course violated eBay's policy in listing the helmet. (Ours not to reason why; I don't consider that uniforms etc. are so hateful that their possession or sale is a matter for outrage, but on the other hand I could certainly understand that someone who has been through imprisonment, degradation, punishment, deprivation, and/or loss of family/friends under the hands of any particular group or military unit, etc., would feel the bitter after-effects on seeing some items and uniforms which would remind them of that trauma. It is a vexed question as there is historical value and insight in the paraphernalia of any such group, while we acknowledge the possibility of a traumatic flashback or other negative mental and emotional response to those items by people who lived through the times associated with those paraphernalia.)

Anyway, the point is that you haven't sold the item, and should therefore not have to pay a final value fee. If you're being charged an insertion fee of $100, that is another thing altogether. I cannot find any reference to an arbitrary after-the-fact insertion fee being charged if someone lists what is classed as "offensive material". eBay have the right to remove your listing, and of course to charge you the usual insertion fee for the category in which the item was listed, but unless eBay have specifically informed users that listing "offensive material" will result in an insertion fee of $100 being charged, as well as the item being removed, they have no right to charge you the fee.

Are you sure it's an insertion fee? It's not a final value fee?

At any rate, were I you, I'd contact eBay directly to clarify and seek a reference to where in eBay's policies or UA it states that such a fee will be charged. Be ultra-polite and courteous, and don't lose your cool. Be prepared to repeat your position over and over again, without any hint of exasperation. Don't hang up until it's resolved to your satisfaction. eBay's "Have us call you" option is by far the best way to get in touch with eBay. (Emails are useless, for a number of reasons, but primarily because the responses, when they are finally sent, are bot-generated. eBay chat is also not what I'd recommend for any tricky issue, as the responders are low-level CS reps without the power to make decisions.)

eBay say: We'll call you at the phone number registered to your account, or you can enter a different number.

We’re available from 8am to 10pm AET, 7 days a week.