why does Ebay take a fee on postage?

[lauren.skye001-7]

Why does Ebay charge a fee on postage costs? We do not profit from this. I charge the exact fee it costs to send an item domestically, this is to be fair to the buyer. And this is also automated by Ebay as it makes uploading process easier. Ive just discovered that on the final postage fee of $8.50 (for example) Ebay take 93 cents? What purpose does this serve other than ripping off the seller? With both paypal and ebay fees on top of this i am out of pocket. Its already a struggle to sell on ebay. Literally ill sell my items somwhere else. 

[padi*0409]

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@k1ooo-slr-sales wrote:

says the CEO

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Darn SLR........................sprung.

Spoiler

                                                            

[lyndal1838]

*sigh*  Another new poster to the boards jumping to conclusions.

[digital*ghost]

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@justind71 wrote:

How does it benefit you defending them? When they forced people to use PayPal was just the start, was that fair? I don't understand ppl like you getting all defensive unless you work for eBay.

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That's just as logical as someone (possibly me  ) else asking - how does it benefit you to be critical of eBay? Do you work for one of their competitors?

You don't have to love everything eBay / PayPal do in order to find selling here acceptable. You can be critical of eBay / PayPal, you can strongly dislike many things about both, and still find it more practical to focus on the advantages of selling here, and sometimes you can even point out to others that there is that benefit, and even multiple advantages gained compared to other options available. (Just not without being accused of being an eBay-loving sockpuppet, I guess). 

[davewil1964]

I don't work for eBay, neither did I defend them. I simply pointed out that there are other avenues available to you, or anybody else, to sell your goods.

They might not be economical, but that's up to you to determine.

And whinging about things that have been in place for many years, with no likelihood of disappearing, is not productive. Maybe try something productive.

[pandoralives]

It's because sneaky sellers were charging $0 for the item and then charging the item cost as postage to avoid paying seller fees. Ebay then changed their policy as a result

[denswear]

lol, this forum has been like this for years.

A core group who will defend ebay regardless of the issue or opinions of others.

This place is a mere shadow of the vibrant platform it once was.

They have wringed the guts out of every cent and bit of profit a seller stood to make.

I wouldnt be srprised if some posters here had ebay shares.

[davewil1964]

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@denswear wrote:

lol, this forum has been like this for years.

A core group who will defend ebay regardless of the issue or opinions of others.

This place is a mere shadow of the vibrant platform it once was.

They have wringed the guts out of every cent and bit of profit a seller stood to make.

I wouldnt be srprised if some posters here had ebay shares.

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I don't have shares, but I learned long ago not to sweat the small stuff. And to differentiate between opinion and fact.

If I wasn't happy with the platform I would move elsewhere. eBay remains price-competitive for me and many other sellers.

[11dustyattic]

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@denswear wrote:

lol, this forum has been like this for years.

A core group who will defend ebay regardless of the issue or opinions of others.

This place is a mere shadow of the vibrant platform it once was.

They have wringed the guts out of every cent and bit of profit a seller stood to make.

I wouldnt be srprised if some posters here had ebay shares.

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Never has a truer word been spoken. Bang on my friend

[love_of_cars]

Yeah, someone did post (or boast) about having having eBay shares recently due to the sharp rise from all the home buying during the pandemic.

However, perhaps it could be said that many sellers here have a love-hate relationship with the place.

There is the belief by many that eBay have some kind of random "light switch" system which comes on for a seller when you least expect it, then it goes dark again for a longer time. When it comes on, the flood of sales feels wonderful.  When it stops, we are left confused and depressed.

It feels like they do it just to keep us hanging around.

[davewil1964]

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@love_of_cars wrote:

Yeah, someone did post (or boast) about having having eBay shares recently due to the sharp rise from all the home buying during the pandemic.

However, perhaps it could be said that many sellers here have a love-hate relationship with the place.

There is the belief by many that eBay have some kind of random "light switch" system which comes on for a seller when you least expect it, then it goes dark again for a longer time. When it comes on, the flood of sales feels wonderful.  When it stops, we are left confused and depressed.

It feels like they do it just to keep us hanging around.

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It is not a belief, it is an admitted by eBay fact.