Payment funds are on hold until item delivered but I can't post as I don't have any money!

[sebtheo]

Hi,

Can anyone advise what I should do in this situation please?

I have sold an item which is all packaged up and ready to go but I don't currently have the funds to pay for the postage... should I cancel the order?

I have tried to use ebay postage believing that it would be possible to use the funds on hold to cover the postage but it is only possible to pay by card or PayPal.

Many thanks

[douglaspuglas]

You can only use available funds to buy evri, yodel or DPD labels on eBay through packlink at the moment.

Looking at your listings you state you send by Royal Mail.

If that's who you were trying to buy from you'd have to pay by PayPal.

If you cancel the order there's a chance the buyer could leave you negative feedback and eBay could keep the selling fees.

[rjwilmsi]

eBay doesn't yet allow using pending sale funds to pay for postage. Therefore you need another way to pay. If you cannot pay for postage by another means then I think you would have to cancel the sale - though bear in mind eBay may not refund their fees for a cancellation.

You should probably hold off selling any items on eBay until you first have some funds available to cover postage / any other costs.

[tressygirl]

Nooo,   you must not cancel the order for this reason,  it would be very bad selling and as a  new seller this could bring you damaging defects and negative feedback which your new account cannot afford.

You need to take the item to your local Post Office and pay for over the counter postage.

Keep the proof of posting safe for at least 6 months.

Mark the item then dispatched and enter any tracking number.

[papso22]

Anyone who is so strapped for cash that they can't afford the postage for an item from their own funds, needs to think very, very seriously about selling on here.

While not high, there is always a chance that you can lose both the item you have sold, and the money you got for it, or even more money than you got for it if you do something that means ebay still charge their fees.

If you can't afford to lose both item and money, i.e you need the money to live on, then ebay is a risky place to sell.

[sebtheo]

Thanks to everyone for their advice... much appreciated!

[1956glyn]

Hi

Can you not borrow the postage money from family or a close friend and pay them back when your funds are released?

[myriad*seller]

You should be aware that your funds from this sale will be held for up to 21 days too

Payment will not be immediate, can you not borrow the money to post the item until the end of the month when your sales funds will be released? 

Also, as others have said, the buyer could ask for a refund for up to 180 days after payment. eBay guarantee their refund, there is no option to refuse to refund them. If you have spent the money, how will you do this? 

[myriad*seller]

You also need to register as a business seller too, as you are selling multiple brand new items

eBay will give HMRC your sales data once you sell 30 items or have a gross turnover of £1700 in sales (inc P&P).

HMRC will require you to complete a Self Assessment to ensure you are paying any taxes due.