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Report of policy violations on an item rejected
Summary: basicallyjames reported a seller on eBay for using a misleading listing tactic, with a 99p option labeled "Thank you - not for sale" to manipulate search results, violating multiple eBay policies. Despite providing detailed explanations and screenshots, their report was dismissed by a customer service agent, leading to frustration and loss of trust in eBay's review process. tommystrezures and john1297576 expressed skepticism about the effectiveness of AI and agents in handling these issues, and red_magpie agreed, stating the violations were obvious. basicallyjames is seeking advice on how to escalate the complaint.
I reported a listing where the seller has added a 99p variation called "Thank you - not for sale". The actual items are all significantly more expensive. The sole purpose of this variation is to make the listing appear cheap in search results and when sorting by lowest price.
This violates at least three eBay policies:
Search and Browse Manipulation Policy - manipulating search results to gain unfair visibility is not allowed, and offering a choice of different products in a single listing is not allowed.
No Item Listings Policy - all listings must be a legitimate, sincere offer of goods or services. It also prohibits any attempt to mislead buyers or circumvent other eBay policies. A 99p option labelled "not for sale" is a placeholder, not a sincere offer.
Variation listing rules - variations are for attributes like size and colour of the same product, not for adding fake low-price options.
I reported this and it was automatically rejected. I re-raised it with screenshots and a clear explanation. The response: "We looked into your report and didn't find the listing to be in violation of our policy. This determination was made by a customer service agent."
Why are these reports not getting properly reviewed? It's frustrating to take the time to flag genuine policy violations and have them dismissed without explanation. I have lost some respect for ebay.
red_magpie
Mentor1 week ago · EditedI have looked at listings by the seller who is doing this. It is patently obvious that their phoney, not-for-sale 99p "colour option" contravene all three of eBay's policies regarding fake, low priced options.
It's hard to see how any customer service agent could fail to recognise this. Not for the first time, there appear to be some policy violations to which eBay turns a blind eye.
basicallyjames
OP1 week agoIt irritates me. Most of the time, the cheap item is something vaguely related like a just USB lead or a screw.
But this takes it to another level, an option that isn't for sale.
This kind of thing really makes searching for items difficult.
Re: the rejection "This determination was made by a customer service agent" - I wanted to complain about this, but I couldn't find a complaint email address or form to fill in, which is what led me here. Any suggestions?
john1297576
Mentor1 week agoTypical response, AI and Agents have no commonsense, making a report seems pointless, as what is the point of having rules if they just get ignored.
basicallyjames
OP1 week agoThe 2nd report was rejected by a person, supposedly - "This determination was made by a customer service agent"
What is the point?!
tommystrezures
Mentor1 week agoit may be if AI is involved, that eBay's AI isn't very good.