EBAY SCANDAL: TRYING TO TAX US ON POSTAGE, A SERVICE THEY DONT PROVIDE, WE DO!!!!!

[phantomchris1984]

IN A RECENT ANNOUNCEMENT, EBAY AUSTRALIA HAS ANNOUNCED THAT FROM MAY 6, THEY WILL CHARGE A FINAL VALUE FEE ON POSTAGE, A SERVICE THE EBAY COMMUNITY PAY FOR WITH THEIR OWN POCKETS AND SOMEHOW EBAY THINKS THEY CAN TAX US FOR THAT SERVICE THAT THEY DO NOT PROVIDE, WHICH HAS SPARKED PETITIONS AND SHOCK AMONG THE EBAY COMMUNITY.

EBAY HAS SPRUIKED THE IDEA OF OFFERING CUSTOMERS FREE POSTAGE TO SAVE EBAYERS PAYING THE TAX FEE, BUT THIS IS MISLEADING BECAUSE IT MEANS THEY WILL PAY MORE FINAL VALUE FEE ON THE ITEM IF THEY LIST IT AT A HIGHER PRICE TO COVER POSTAGE.

IN WHAT IS BEING CALLED A CALCULATED MOVE SEEN ONLY IN THE LIKES OF A MONOPOLY OR CARTEL, EBAY IS NOT THE ONLY ONE TO BENIFET, EBAY'S SISTER COMPANY PAYPAL BENEFITS GREATLY FROM THIS NEWS. CURENTLY EBAYERS PAY NO FEES FOR POSTAGE THRU PAYPAL WHEN RECEIVING PAYMENT, AKNOWLEDGING THE FACT THAT NO FEE SHOULD BE PAYED ON SOMETHING THAT GOES DIRECTLY TO AUSTRLIA POST TO COVER POSTAGE COSTS. EBAY A SISTER COMPANY TO PAYPAL, BOTH BENEFIT IF PEOPLE USE FREE POSTAGE BECAUSE NOW EBAY WILL GET HIGER FEES BACK BUT ALSO TOO PAYPAL WILL GET A HIGHER FEES ON RECEIVING PAYMENTS WITH THE POSTAGE COST INCLUDED IN ITEM SALE PRICE, NO SEPERATE POSTAGE PRICE THAT IS NORMALLY EXEMPT FROM PAYPAL FEES.

THIS NEWS COMES AT A TERRIBLE TIME FOR THE STRUGLING EBAY COMMUNITY AS AUSTRALIA POST HAD RECENTLY RISEN THE PRICE OF STAMPS TO 70c FROM 60c, A RISE OF 10c UNSEEN IN AUSTRALIA POST HISTORY WITH 5c BEING THE NORMAL RISE. PARCEL COSTS TOO ALSO HAVE RISEN AND NOW THIS NEW EBAY SCANDAL IS SPELLING THE DEATH OF EBAY FROM ITS FORMER GLORY.

THE RUMOUR MILLS ARE ASKING IF THIS IS THE START OF EBAY BECOMMING THE NEXT MYSPACE OR YAHOO, WITH PEOPLE FLOCKING TO OTHER ONLINE SERVICES WITH BETTER CUSTOMER SERVICE AND CHEAPER FEES LIKE QUICKSALES.COM.AU, BIDMATE OR GUMTREE.

THE BIG QUESTION IS, IS THIS LEGAL, WE PROVIDE THE POSTAGE SERVICE SO HOW CAN THEY CHARGE US FOR SOMETHING WE PROVIDE, OR AUSTRALIA POST TO BE CORRECT, IS THIS LEGAL UNDER CONSUMER LAW, MOST LIKELY NOT, ITS LIKE A SUPERMARKET CHARGING US 10C FOR USING OUR OWN SHOPPING BAGS, THEY ARE OUR BAGS WE PROVIDED NOT SOME SERVICE THEY OFFERED TO US..........................

ALSO EBAY IS MISLEADING EBAYERS BY STATEING THAT IF YOU LIST FOR FREE YOU WILL AVOID THE FEES, BUT NOT SO WHEN THEY WILL HAVE TO INCREASE THE ITEM PRICE TO INCLUDE POSTAGE AND PAY A HIGHER FINAL VALUE FEE.

Page 35 of the advertising and selling document from The ACCC document states that:

"A business cannot make a free offer and at the same time try and fund it from the pockets of consumers.

  To do so is to mislead the consumers, who may not expect (unless they are explicitly told) that "free" does not really mean free"

EBAY IS FORCING US TO BREAK THE LAW, WE OFFER FREE POSTAGE BUT EBAYERS MUST RISE THE COST OF ITEMS TO RECOUP COSTS FOR POSTAGE, AGAINST ACCC CONSUMER LAW, ALSO EBAY IS OFFERING US THE SELLERS THE BENIFETS OF USING FREE POSTAGE TO AVOID FEES BUT AT THE SAME TIME RECOUPING THOSE FEES IN THE FINAL VALUE FEES WHEN EBAYERS ARE FORCED TO INCREASE THE SELL PRICE OF ITEMS. PAYPAL TOO THE MONOPOLY CARTEL SISTER OF EBAY WILL ALSO RECOUP BEIFETS FROM INCREASED FEES WITH MORE AND MORE OFFERING FREE POSTAGE AND NOW BEING FORCED TO PAY FEES ON POSTAGE WHICH IS NOW INCLUDED IN ITEM SALE PRICE, NORMALLY POSTAGE COSTS ARE EXEMPT FROM PAYPAL FEES BECAUSE THEY ARE LISTED SEPERATELY FROM THE ITEM PRICE.

TIME IS TICKING FOR EBAY AUSTRALIA TO CHANGE ITS THOUGHTS ON THESE CHANGES IN THE MEANTIME SIGN THIS PETITION AND HAVE A VOICE.

https://www.change.org/en-AU/petitions/ebay-com-au-review-exorbitant-fvf-on-items-and-postage-as-you...

[harley_babes_hoard]

turn the caps lock off for starters sheesh. Go up to the top of the forums page and read the 50 or so threads on the same deal. we don't need any more new threads

http://community.ebay.com.au/t5/Australia-Seller-Release-14-1/bd-p/SR14-1

http://community.ebay.com.au/t5/Response-to-your-FAQs-about/bd-p/faqsr14-1

That ought to keep you busy for a while.

[*crikey*mate*]

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@ajarnjenny wrote:

Lol! You know, it always sounds to me like an old very deaf man using shouting as his normal speaking voice.

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I get images of Elmer Fudd running along tooting his horn yelling "Out of my way, Sonny!"

[phantomchris1984]

IF PAYPAL DOES CHARGE A FEE ON POSTAGE AS IT IS THEN IT IS WORSER THAN WHAT I THOUGHT, EBAY WILL BE DOUBLE DIPPING, WITH FINAL VALUATION FEES ON POSTAGE PLUS ON PAYPAL WHICH IS OWNED BY EBAY, WHICH THEY AQUIRED IN 2002, MAKING MORE MONEY OFF POSTAGE IN THEIR FEES. PRETTY BAD.

[*crikey*mate*]

by your interpretation they also double dip on the product as well.

Guess you didn't read my earlier post where I explained that they were two separate charges for two separate services, eh?

[waddingtonfirstaid]

Well it seems I've been duped into doing free postage for my listings thinking it was going to save me from additional fees but they still get more cream out of the increased FVF opportunity!

I feel blackmailed into giving free postage because eBay and sellers here were saying the search results will only favour listings with free postage and most buyers avoid items without free postage. So, here I give a concrete example.

Before free postage, one of my FIRST AID KIT TRAVEL SPORTS cost $44.95 or $59.95 BIN with postage added via the eBay built-in calculation according to the buyer's delivery address. To give free postage, I had to raise the starting cost to $64.95 and the BIN had to be mandatorily set way higher as eBay will not allow it to be sold under 30% of the starting price - $84.95 BIN ! To be honest, the built in postage should have been more than $10.00. It is has to go to WA, NT, FNQ or TAS, then I'll lose. I have a Business parcel Contract with Australia Post because I send over 1000 articles a year and have done so for over 25 years so I know a reasonable amount of what is involved e.g.if it goes to Sydney the postage will be $8.68 + .83c per KG and $1.62 for the Receipted Delivery barcode tracking, without even taking into account the cost of packaging. if it goes to Perth, it will be $1.66 per KG. It doesn't take an Einstein to work out I'm subsidizing the postage.

So eBay and Paypal come out major winners with their cleverly spun policy that makes no mention of the fact that the prices which are forced upon me (forced upon me to either stay in business or sell at a loss) is totally inequitable and skating close to or actually breaking the law. This big company should be marketing the truth in an honorable way - that is - separately calculated postage is the more honest and equitable way to sell. BUT NO - THEY MARKET WHAT IS IN THEIR BOTTOM-LINE INTEREST AND NOT WHAT IS IN THEIR BEST SOCIAL, BEST COMMUNITY AND MOST PROPER, MOST LAWFUL INTEREST.

A truly apalling company to deal with. I hope the ACCC see this as a concrete example of how sellers and buyers are really being screwed! I've now listed where it is cheaper, more honorable and kinder, and above all, thoroughly honest to buyers and sellers.

[phantomchris1984]

OWNED BY THE SAME COMPANY....................................................................

[waddingtonfirstaid]

If it goes to NT, TAS, WA country then the cost exceeds the $20.00 built in for postage based on cubic measure, cost of packaging, pick up and insurance. Mind you, $20.00 has to also account for the fees so it's not just going to cover the postage!

[*crikey*mate*]

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@phantomchris1984 wrote:

OWNED BY THE SAME COMPANY....................................................................

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I do get your point.

If this bothers you, eBay provides choices other than PayPal. I'm pretty sure that they don't own Merchant Credit Cards thingy or PayMate.

These are both alternate safe payment methods available for sellers to choose, and both of them operate exactly the same was with respect to the handling and distributions of and collection of money.

They all apply their fees to the total amount of money they handle on behalf of their customers.

Your bank and other financial institutions are exactly the same too.

These financial institutions/entities, don't differentiate what the money is for, only the amount that they are handling.

[morestuffiwant]

It's double-dipping greed by eBay! GREEDY Greedy greedy eBay.

Being charged a fee for a service cost that goes to a 3rd party is unconscionable, and trying to get sellers to build it into the cost of the item so eBay still gets more fees or the seller just pays the postage out of their own pocket is just unfathomable.

eBay's BS "sales and marketing" spin is just a very very poor attempt to endeavour to manipulate sellers to accepting their new "Money for nothing" FVF. 

And OMG! The verbal rubbish I got from eBay telephone customer service was astonishing, not just in rudeness but arrogance and ignorance to-boot.  They even tried to tell me the only price increase Australia Post is making is to the 500gm satchels.  In actual fact, the price of Australia Post's domestic pre-paid satchels is the one thing that's NOT increasing in price.

UNBELIEVABLE!!!!!!!!  Makes me just want to scream in utter frustration and fury.

I really hope eBay is paying attention, but I highly doubt it.

[knewdoors]

Ever thought about setting up your own e commerce store??Volusion & Shopify look really ,really attractive..when one considers all the fees and charges then compare them against an attractive e commerce site with reliable meta tagging & search engine support..it looks like a great alternative....we are going to move to that option if these grubby fvf pn postage fees fly..had enough of where Ebay has been heading with increased charges, the sinister double dipping greed of the Payapl/Ebay partneship and the mindless feedback system which gives hard working sellers no leg to stand on..