Bladed items
Summary: turkmiles raised a concern about the age verification process for selling bladed items. They noted the inconsistency in selling items like screwdrivers, which do not require verification, compared to other bladed items like letter openers. The challenge lies in the inability to list certain items due to a lack of age verification options from carriers, which is restricting sales.
Hi
Ebay is throttling sellers with this policy which is just crazy. es I understand that knives, axes etc should be restricted BUT scissors even round nose craft scissors, tweezers, nearly all garden products like trimmers, nail clippers, wire cutters etc I could go on forever but you get the point. The majority of these things will not be used as weapons and children will not be spending their money on hedge trimmers to commit crime or harm anyone. Ebay is losing more and more sellers in the UK due to this strange policy. Age verification delivery costs more and not all couriers do this which means sellers are again losing profit. You need to relax this policy on products that aren't weapons and make life a little easier for us instead of the constant warnings of breach of policy as pretty soon there will be nothing we can sell.
turkmiles
·1 month agoThe whole age verification for bladed items needs looking at you can't sell a letter opener so why can you sell a screwdriver on ebay Age verification is should be carried out on the purchaser and if that person satisfies the age verification then the item can be sent. As it is I can't sell a mower or hedge trimmer my listing page has no carriers offering age verification visible so I can't list any bladed item and plenty on sellers are finding this restricts them from selling any item which has a blade mentioned in the lising
afrikanart
·2 months agoHow do I add my comments to this discussion. I have sold African Art on ebay for 13 years, 7,400 items sold so ebay tells me. Now I have had 2 bronze pendants taken down as bladed items in the last 3 days. I know this is the fault of AI slop but today ebay rejected my appeal and told me to remove it or list it as a bladed item....which it categorically is not. In their laughable response they said I could take it to a court or other official tribunal (such as?) if I wished....
Mike @ Afrikanart
bobjackson1000
·2 months agoBeat this - is just had a walking stick removed for being a 'knife'....🤡🤡🤡
fixingsplus
·2 months agoAbsolute madness, they're killing sellers
bizzy-lizzy99
·2 months agoAnd yet there are 1500 + Pyramid Rings (knuckle dusters) for sale. The police have seized Pyramid Rings at Appleby Horse Fair. Can't sell harmless pickle forks but you can sell Pyramid Rings.
fixingsplus
·2 months agoSo many flaws in this. I have had over 300 listings removed, I have appealed all with little success. I have had Diamond core bits, plastering trowels, Slotted Screwdriver bits, Holesaw arbors, drill bits and much more removed. I have literally given up now and ended the listings. Some of the items that they include are crazy. It's hard to fight the eBay bots. I am no longer going to list anymore of these items once my stock has sold out.
wheretheloveb
·2 months agoThat's a perfect illustration of how insane this bladed items policy is.
I sell tools aswell and it's a total nightmare trying to navigate your way around it, not to mention lost revenue. The buyers are annoyed too, lots have told me they're going elsewhere.
I reckon this is just the early days of how big this problem really is. Ebay surely will have to do something. Maybe they'll use Ai to sort out the problems caused by Ai
fribblecollectables
·2 months agoOooh, three in one day!
Number two is a nicely engraved bread fork with mother of pearl handle.
Number three is a mother of pearl handled pair of tweezers. Hmm, they got me there, having had a look at their 'Knives and bladed items policy' manicure kits fall under that category . . but its not really a kit, it's a pair of tweezers. Hey ho.
If you see anyone in the street with a pair of tweezers . . . run! Think of yourself only and run away from danger.
cobwebcottage
·2 months agoOne consolation, I don't know if you do any fairs but if you do, they are helping to put the prices up on these items as they are now 'hard to find'.
spacemop
·2 months agoSo yesterday I had a message from ebay saying 'There's an issue with your listings that requires your attention, so we've hidden them until you fix the issue. ' it didn't even have the word knife in the description and I have many of these in various styles like many hundreds being sold on here... so I altered the listing and 15 minutes later, same message... tried to contact ebay and request a call back... round and round in circles on the bot despite asking for a call back from an agent together with plenty of frustration, sent a message to ebay... still waiting for a response!
So this is the said item: Dolls House Cutlery 4 Place Set Gold Colour Dining Miniature 1:12th Scale (DH)
Yes a miniature set of cutlery for a dolls house... Seriously! Maybe the miniature dolls are planning to go on the rampage!
So not just the seller mentioned below with the action figure items suitable for 4 years plus.
Feel your frustration.... what is next?
fribblecollectables
·2 months agoToday's removal 🙄
I've contested it and asked them to point out to me clearly where the knife is (they won't do that obviously, but it made me feel a bit better!)
Artificial Intelligence poorly trained by poorly trained operatives really needs to be abandoned now.
cobwebcottage
·2 months agoThis is getting worrying!
We will soon have nothing to sell on Ebay.
cad1720
·2 months agomaarsy
·2 months agothe problem is all the stabbings , government is probably on ebay's neck so they can say they are doing something . even though i had letter openers and fish knives removed that would be a hard press to assault any one with ... might as well use a screwdriver . its a uk problem as a society that you can't trust any one with a kitchen knife so they have to ruin it for everyone . i already seen nonsense like 3000 £ silver cutlery sets having its carving knife removed for sale which detracts a significant amount from the value as a set ... but lets face it your average robber is not going to use a 200 £ silver knife to assault someone .
roedoeblue
·2 months agoI've had forks and spoons removed now. This is getting really silly.
wheretheloveb
·2 months agoCan't think of a strong enough word to describe how absolutely insane this bladed items policy is. I'm losing customers trying to buy tools because they don't have a credit card to verify. Tools / DIY is a huge and popular category and many people are saying they will simply stop using this site because of the hurdles.
Ebay seems to be doing everything it can lately to make life impossible for sellers (and buyers)
... age verification
... a search engine that's worst than useless
... Low visibility / promoted listings
... high fees
... robots for customer service
All this on top of a cost of living crisis which is curbing peoples spending
Promoted listings and high selling fees are probably how they're trying to recuperate lost revenue from sellers and buyers not using the site, or leaving altogether
action-figure-supplies-uk
·2 months agoI've had a lot of my listings for 1.5 inch plastic toy swords for action figures removed recently. All suitable for children ages 4 and over.
I managed to appeal 3 of them and get them re-instated, the others can't be appealed for some reason. All in the same category (toys and games > action figures), same make, same size. Madness.
dademon_87
·2 months agoAnd buyers , I’m 66 yrs old and cant buy table cutlery because I don’t have a credit card . Debit card has been fine for me for 20+ yrs of buying on eBay but not anymore , it’s ludicrous.
jonatjonatjonat
·2 months agoCutlery knives will be age restricted (or should be) both for sale online and in store. Not ebays rules this - UK rules.
A high street store can obviously do a challenge 25 style check but online has to do some form of age check.
A debit card ownership does not show proof of age. A credit card does. While ebay should ideally offer more forms of age check - they currently don't.
sheba-knows-best
·3 months agoI was able to buy sabre saw replacement blades (pretty lethal) branded SabreSaw without age ID - but not the same ones branded Saxton. (Both business sellers)
cad1720
·3 months agoI had a pair of dressmakers pinking scissors remove recently and today a pair of engineers Tin Snips. Lost both appeals. AI is taking over the world of eBay
stortvalley
·3 months agoShould be called Artificial Idiocy
pjdj89
·4 months agoI see where you’re coming from—this policy does feel very broad in how it’s being applied. Most sellers understand and support restrictions on genuinely dangerous items, but including everyday tools like scissors, tweezers, or basic garden equipment does seem a bit overreaching.
The main issue, like you’ve said, is the knock-on effect. Age verification delivery adds extra cost, limits courier choices, and ultimately eats into already tight margins. For lower-value items especially, it can make them almost impossible to sell competitively.
I think the frustration is less about the intention (which is clearly safety) and more about how widely the rules are being applied. A more refined approach—where genuinely high-risk items are treated differently from common household tools—would make a lot more sense for both sellers and buyers.
At the moment, it does feel like sellers are having to constantly second-guess listings to avoid policy breaches, which isn’t ideal for running a business.
Hopefully, eBay reviews this over time and introduces a bit more balance, because as it stands, it’s definitely pushing some sellers to look at alternative platforms.
Would be good to hear how others are adapting—are people just absorbing the extra cost, or moving certain products elsewhere?
bizzy-lizzy99
·4 months agoI had another look at the scheduled Stubai axe they blocked and it actually has got Age Verification postage in the listing. It was still blocked. I've been touch with eBay and am waiting to hear how they will resolve it.
Collection only isn't allowed either for bladed items so I don't know how they're getting away with that.
bizzy-lizzy99
·4 months agoWe had several items removed from SCHEDULED listings, grape scissors, fish slice and a vintage Stubai ice axe.
I won the appeal on the ice axe but the listing remained frozen and I was unable to either re-schedule it or put age check postage in.
I did sell similar, added one letter to the title and re-scheduled it, deleting the original listing.
Despite winning the appeal the first time the thing was removed AGAIN and I now have the same problem.
Two problems: I am unable to amend the postage without the red banner blocking it and there are multiple Stubai ice axes listed WITHOUT age checked postage.
This whole thing is an absolute mess.
honeymonster007
·4 months agoHad the same problem with a wet tile cutter, listed it for collection only as it weighs just over 82lb but ebay said nope. Its now just sitting there under a red banner and can't amend the listing or end it.
Did have a look to see what others are doing and they seem to be adding postage at a high cost but saying collection only on their listings and some have added their phone number!
eBay's search for the same item only came up with 80 odd listings but another site had nearly 500. Came away with the impression that people are going elsewhere after that.
at-ardingly
·4 months agoWe've had a fragile wooden letter opener removed, butter knives which have no cutting edge whatsoever. The logic is sadly lacking, especially when the news reports a terrorist walking into a store a purchasing a set of very sharp kitchen knives.
stortvalley
·4 months agoI have had Floor standing Circular table saws, and Floor standing Band saws fall under the bladed items rule.
Not exactly the muggers standard equipment. and diificult to put in your pocket
lamppostelectrical
·4 months agoYep, we've had lots removed this week. It won't allow an appeal on items that are not in the bladed items policy.
Worse is that it won't allow me to change the postage policy. I have a business postage policy with age verification but the system won't allow me to change these items to this policy.
It's all very strange.
cobwebcottage
·4 months agoYou have to start the listing from scratch once it has been removed and add the appropriate postage to the new listing.
Pain in the arm for me as I have to re take the photo's.