Weekly Chat with the eBay Community Team - 18.02.26 @2pm
Hi everybody!
The Community Chat will open at 2pm and will remain open until 3pm on Wednesday. After that it will be closed for further questions. Of course, we will continue to take care of answering any questions that may still be unanswered—We’ll get to everything as quickly as possible.
Please ask your questions in the thread below. In order to be able to answer your questions as quickly as possible, we ask you to have one question per post. Of course, you can make as many posts as you like in the Chat- the more the merrier!
Our eBay Community Team is made up of kat@ebay, marco@ebay and dave@ebay. Between us, we have knowledge in Buying, Selling, Fulfilment, Payments, and the Community itself. Anything we aren’t sure on we’ll know the people who will be! Please ask us any questions you may have and we’ll do all we can to support. We understand that certain topics, such as concerns about businesses possibly using private accounts, can be frustrating and important to you. Please refrain from asking the same question repeatedly in our weekly live chats. We assure you that we carefully review all posts in the forum and ensure that your concerns are communicated to the relevant teams for appropriate action.
To maintain a constructive and community environment, posts that repeatedly breach this guideline may be removed. Continued violations could result in further action against your community account. We appreciate your cooperation and understanding in helping us keep our community focused and respectful.
To ask your question, click Reply in the lower-right corner of this post, type your question, and click Reply between 2pm and 3pm. The community team will answer each incoming question in chronological order and will quote the original question in each answer.
Please note that any reply without a question to the community team or discussion replies may be removed from the chat. We want to keep on track to get through as many questions as possible. We welcome all discussion to be moved to the discussion boards.
If you missed the weekly chat time, please ask your question in the community boards and tag us or we will be back next week with another chat!
Many thanks,
Your eBay Community Team

lord_and_lady_m
·5 months agoConsidering the long delays for royal mail letters, what are ebay doing to support seller and encourage buyers to upgrade
dave@ebay
Hi @lord_and_lady_m
It is the seller who selects the service they want to ship items with, if you feel the service you are using isn't performing to the standards set out I would encourage you to review other options to ship your items.
It is good to see that you offer your buyers multiple shipping options but, we are not in a position to sway a buyer's shipping option on an order. If buyers are happy with the primary service and timeframe they will select that and if they want to get an item faster or via a tracked service, they will have the option to upgrade.
Thanks,
Dave
icecarmedia
·5 months agoQ on shipping policy 06-07-2022 message-22
Over 3 years ago I questioned the efficacy of the unenforced shipping policy
Has there been any changes since?
Is ebay finally going to enforce their policy?
My latest gripe/inconvenience;
-Seller changes advertised delivery method without asking
-Result, I have to make arrangements to accomodate a less than reliable(in my locale) courier
Why am I the one thats inconvenienced?
All I want is the item I ordered to be delivered by the advertised and chosen method
Surely at the very least, the seller should ask if the change of delivery method is agreeable
kat@ebay
Hi @icecarmedia ,
There hasn't been any changes to enforce a policy against sellers for not using the selected delivery service during eBay checkout. Yes sellers should follow through on their advertised courier as that is always the best experience for buyers. However there can be circumstances outside of sellers control where a different service needs to be used so it is not enforced at this time. I understand where your coming on this and will share this point as feedback for a possible future change.
Thank you,
Kat
retroshirtstore
·5 months agoI am a eBay business seller of genuine vintage football shirts (all original from the years 1990s, 1980's etc.) on eBay, and have been for 8 years whilst maintaining 100% positive feedback.
I have around 300 listings and recently they have been getting removed for 'counterfeits' by your AI / Automated detection (which of course is incorrect). 30 have been removed already, and it continues to happen on a daily basis, and I have now been done with a 3-day suspension because of it. My account will be reinstated in 3 days, but it’s quite easy to predict that my listings will continue to be detected by the flawed AI systems and I will eventually be banned permanently.
I have tried:
Appealing each listing but they have been denied (I don’t have receipts - these are pre owned vintage items from 30-40 years ago) and they are often purchased from collectors on eBay selling their old shirts at auction!
Chatting to your agents - pointless, they can’t help
Changing my listings - photos of labels, detailed pictures of crests, sponsors, stitching; to prove authenticity - my listings have so much information already and are so accurate but they still are getting wrongly detected as counterfeits.
Please, someone review this AI detection, it is getting it WRONG. And please look at my eBay store, look at my listings, I am a seller of ORIGINAL PRE OWNED football shirts; nothing is counterfeit. I am a registered LTD in the UK.
I’m hoping someone here can stop this because it is destroying my store I worked so hard on in the last 8 years.
PS. This is also the EXACT same issue as @between_the_7nes - we discussed this on communities and have both posted on here.
Thanks
James
marco@ebay
Hi @retroshirtstore, thanks for your input.
I see where you are coming from, and I understand your query. However, as advised above, we are unable to action these cases over this channel, I'm afraid. You'd need to contact our customer service team to flag this with them, and they will take a further look. However, to set up the right expectation, if they can't see anything wrong from their end, they might not take further actions, but it is definitely worth contacting them to flag this with them. You can contact them from here, if you wish.
Thank you,
Marco
retroshirtstore
·5 months agoTried already. They have no authority to do such a thing, which is why I came here to speak to someone who knows what they’re talking about. But you are hanging us out to dry…
marco@ebay
Thanks for your reply, @retroshirtstore.
I am guessing they didn't find any malfunction, if that's the case, then they wouldn't take further actions. You can try contacting them again, since we are unable to action these cases over here, but that'd be the only way.
Thank you,
Marco
ducatimondo
·5 months agoGood afternoon team,
We have an item that was sold on our other account that the tracking shows as delivered.
The buyer opened an INR and we assisted them as best we can through that, with the usual, please double check the address is the correct one, please check with everyone else in your household, etc.
The buyer has then escalated the INR and eBay decided against us as - "We didn't receive valid proof of delivery from you."
But the tracking shows as being delivered??
It has Case ID 53738824605373882460 and was for a cam chain for a Yamaha
Am I missing something here?
I mean, genuinely, is this some new joke that I don't get the punchline or what?
The INR stayed as an open case for a good while, so wasn't fast like they often are. That suggests someone at eBay has actually looked at it, rather than the AI quick decisions we often see.
Please explain to me how we loose an INR with tracking showing it is delivered and it appears that someone at eBay has actually looked at it?
I could mess around opening an appeal or I could try and deal with someone on live chat and maybe they will reverse it or correct it.
Ultimately, I just want to know what is going on though and also raise awareness to other members that something is blatantly not right with case outcomes!!
If an item shows as delivered in the tracking, that should be it, no?
Thank you
Russ
dave@ebay
Hi @ducatimondo
From what you are saying it does seem that the case should have closed as item delivered. As you know, we can't view case details to see what happened so I can't say for certain.
Based on what you are saying though, you should definitely appeal the decision. You can do it directly thought the case but this time it would probably be better to speak to CS directly and they can review the details and tell you what happened.
Thanks,
Dave
hatsford
·5 months agoSame issue here, 3 different phone calls to eBay CS to get it sorted out finally today.
It seems eBay tracking is not picking up from Royal Mail
the_brick_lodge
·5 months agoWhen buying postage labels why can't the field for safe place remember the input for next time, typing the word "porch" over and over is tedious.
Why are the postage options displayed by price and not by most regularly used? Given it's a list not in a grid it's hard to digest, I don't need to see 72 options, I need to see the 2 I use every time.
marco@ebay
Hi @the_brick_lodge, thanks for your question.
This is all for security reasons since they can vary/change from time to time, in this way instructions are clear for safe places, and get the safe place right for secure deliveries.
That is the way the postage options are designed, if you are not happy with them, I'll pass on your feedback no problem.
Thanks,
Marco
the_brick_lodge
·5 months agoThanks Marco but I'm talking about the safe place for collection from my address?
marco@ebay
Yes, I understand @the_brick_lodge. It works the same way for both, sellers might need to change this every now and then, this is why you need to manually enter your safe place.
Thanks,
Marco
the_brick_lodge
·5 months agoI asked eBay's AI to write a seller description for 1 listing and this is what it provided:
"The product is a set of two red and grey LEGO containers with a door and slot, specifically the 4345 and 4346 elements. Made from plastic and part of the LEGO CITY theme, these containers are designed for children aged 5 and above. With a Danish origin, this set allows kids to engage in imaginative play and construction with the iconic LEGO brand."
ChatGPT was asked "please write seller description for this listing" and provided this:
"Up for sale is a lot of 16 LEGO® containers (2×2×2) with door slots in attractive red and grey colours. These are perfect for builders, LEGO® collectors, MOC creators, or anyone needing extra storage/parts for custom builds.
🔹 Includes:
16 x LEGO® 2×2×2 container bricks
With integrated door slot pieces
Part numbers included: 4345 & 4346
Genuine LEGO® parts in used but good condition
📌 Condition:
Used – these pieces have been previously played with but are in great, clean condition with no cracks or major damage. They’re ready to be added to your collection or build!
🚚 Postage & Handling:
• Sent via eBay’s Global Shipping Programme (International Tracking & customs handling included)
• Carefully packed to ensure safe delivery
• Dispatches promptly once payment is received
❌ Returns:
Returns not accepted — please review all photos carefully before purchasing.
🏷️ Why Buy From Us?
• Honest and accurate description – what you see in the photos is exactly what you’ll receive
• Trusted seller with excellent feedback
• Items packed securely for shipment
Grab this great value LEGO® parts bundle today!"
I buy a lot on eBay and the AI descriptions eBay generate mean nothing, it's just slop to fill a gap, a gap that used to contain useful information about the condition of the thing for sale.
Why is everything eBay does miles behind the competition?
williabaxte7
·5 months agoHi . Good afternoon . Is there a way to turn off eBay live . ?
dave@ebay
Hi @williabaxte7
Do you mean you mean stop it showing to you on the site?
Thanks,
Dave
the_brick_lodge
·5 months agoWhy does eBay think it is acceptable to send me this spam every single day?
kat@ebay
Hi @the_brick_lodge ,
Thanks for the feedback on the order delivered notice. I'll share with the relevant team for review.
Thank you,
Kat
the_brick_lodge
·5 months agoSorry I thought we was talking to eBay employees, are these replies AI?
I didn't provide you with any feedback, I asked a question?
kat@ebay
Hi @the_brick_lodge ,
It's a notice to give an option to sell items. You shared your thoughts on it being spam so we take that as feedback to be shared with the team for these emails.
Thank you,
Kat
between_the_7ines
·5 months agoHi Community Team,
Apologies for the length of the post.
In the last two to three weeks I have had 43 items (all football shirts) removed by eBay, with ‘AI automated detection’ identifying these as ‘counterfeit’ being cited as the reason in communications from eBay. More listings are being removed every day. I have previously had items removed on the basis of ‘VERO’, but this is not what is being cited in these recent examples.
I am an experienced seller, with excellent feedback, and no cases raised against me by buyers (for anything, let alone counterfeit items). Nevertheless, I recognise that eBay has a legal obligation to take steps to identify and prevent the sale of counterfeit goods, and so needs to make determinations on a listing by listing basis. However, I am confident in my cases, and likely in the cases of fellow sellers I have engaged with on this matter, that the AI is flawed, leading to a very large number of false positives. I believe this because:
-In all of my listings I provide clear photos of product details, care labels, and internal and external tags.
-Where manufacturers have a product authentication process - usually product codes, QR codes and holograms these have been checked by me as being correct, and included as both a photograph and detailed in the product title and/or description.
-The listings which have been removed (so far), vary in terms of condition (new with tags/used), age (some vintage as far back as from 1980, some current season), time of site (some have been live for months, others a few days), manufacturer, team/club.
-Following discussion with a CS Agent, I tested relisting some shirts with different Title, Description and Photos in event something specific in any of these criteria was triggering the AI -this has had no effect.
-Several other experienced and trusted sellers (both private and business accounts) have had the same experience.
While I am confident that each of the listings are for genuine shirts, I accept that it’s possible I could make mistakes in some instances. However, the range, variety and volume of shirts being removed (across the different users’ accounts that I know of) does not make this likely.
Based upon the above, I can’t see any logic to how the AI is determining these as being counterfeit and I have concluded that any shirt I list will inevitably be identified as ‘counterfeit’ and taken down sooner or later.
I have attempted to appeal a number of the cases, but this seems to be a somewhat flawed process whereby you cannot amend the listing in question, and the same AI is reviewing the exact same listing based upon the same criteria. This is a closed feedback loop, whereby there is no opportunity for a false positive to be flagged, and the AI model to ‘learn’.
I would be really grateful if this could be looked at by eBay (I am extremely confident that anyone with knowledge of authenticating football shirts would look at my listings and come to a different conclusion to the AI). The effect this is having is that it has made selling football shirts on the platform non-viable for legitimate and trusted sellers, which I am sure would not be eBay’s intention - ? As I have said, this isn’t just affecting me, and seems to point to a wider issue.
I have already received a three-day restriction on my account. I have stopped making any new listings, and have so far de-listed c.150 shirts (all of which I am confident are genuine). As it stands, unless I de-list every single shirt, it feels inevitable that more will be flagged by the AI and ultimately my account will be entirely blocked.
An effective AI that removes actual counterfeit shirts and improves trust in the platform would be entirely welcomed, but this is not what is happening currently. Hopefully this can be looked into.
Thanks.
marco@ebay
Hi , thanks for your question.
Unfortunately, we are unable to action these kind of cases over this channel. If you believe your item removals and restrictions are wrong, you need to continue contacting our customer service team to appeal these decisions, so it can be looked into.
Thank you,
Marco
between_the_7ines
·5 months agoHi Marco,
Thanks for your response. The general advice I've received from the community is that CS Agents wouldn't be able to deal with this sort of issue, beyond advising to appeal a decision via the existing process (which isn't really an option, as outlined in my post). Is it definitely the case that Customer Support will be able to action this at the level required, if I am to contact them again? I'm happy to direct this to the most appropriate channel, but I'm also wary of going round in circles somewhat.
Thanks!
marco@ebay
Thanks for your reply, @between_the_7ines.
Yes, if you contact them and you ask them to manually review this for you, they will, we have teams that take care of this kind of issues. However, if the appeal was put through already, and an outcome for the appeal was given, then they won't be able to take further actions as you cannot put multiple appeals through.
Thank you,
Marco
between_the_7ines
·5 months agoThanks - I'll recontact them. However, I think I need to be clear in that I'm not asking for a review of individual cases as such, but for someone to review whether the current AI is working properly - it isn't just a case of reviewing items which have already been taken down (although I do want this also), but ensuring that the AI is accurate to avoid ongoing and future take-downs of legitimate listings. Again, to reiterate, it isn't just me being affected, but multiple sellers, and so it's a broader issue about eBay's operating practices, which at the moment seem damaging to the platform.
Is there a direct line to CS, or do I need to request a call back via Chat?
Thank you.
marco@ebay
Thanks for your reply, @between_the_7ines.
Yes, that's fair, you can still flag with them and they will take a look. However, please note that if they spot that the system is working ok, they might not take further actions, but definitely worth talking to them and flagging this with them, so they can look into it for you.
You can contact them from here.
Thank you,
Marco