Business seller with Private account eBay doing nothing

[red_apple_av]

I'm fed up with eBay, I pay in excess of £2500 amonth in FVFs and have to compete with this seller who has a professional looking template selling product on a Private account but is clearly a Business seller

I have pulled them up to eBay several times but nothing is being done. This is one reason out of many that is pushing me to Amazon more

eBay if you are reading this, sort it out

[securepack]

Hi,  I recently changed my Ebay private account to business one, as many other users suggested to me on this forum and now I must admit it was the most stupid move I ever made.  My selling fees jumped from below 10% to 28%, as a private seller I could list 300 auctions per month, now my allowance is only 100 auctions per month even that I pay subscription for the shop.  Ebay doesn't care, as I can see hundreds of business sellers trading from private accounts, for HMRC it doesn't make a difference (as long as you account for all sales), so if you actually using private account instead of business your profit will increase by almost 20% (or I should rather say your costs will go down by almost 20%).  I know it sounds wrong, but that's the facts.

[moldosgifts]

But now you completely legal and following the law of the land.

The penalties for misrepresenting yourself as a private seller are very harsh including prison time, so well done for switching.

Your listings are fine. Just have look at others and how they price.

The sales will come just need to experiment a bit.

I've added you to my fav sellers as i sometimes use hard back envelopes so when i run out.

[securepack]

Thanks for your kind words, greatly appreciated, planning to keep my prices very low in hope to gain few new customers.  Thank you 👍

[zed1015]

Private and Business accounts are Ebay constructs and bear no legal weight in or outside of the platform and operating as a business on a private account isn't illegal it's just one of Ebays so called rules and it's absolute cobblers that you can go to prison for it..

In reality both Business and private sellers can operate how they like and as long as they correctly report their earnings for tax purposes there is nothing illegal.

However a private seller is limited to 30 sales or £1740 so pose no real competition to a business seller anyway so i don't get what all the whining is about.

Anyone trying to run a business on a "private " account really isn't going to get very far with those restrictions are they..

[jonatjonatjonat]

Private and Business accounts are Ebay constructs and bear no legal weight in or outside of the platform and operating as a businees on a private account isn't illegal it's just one of Ebays so called rules.

Incorrect

In reality both Business and private sellers can operate how they like and as long as they correctly report their earnings for tax purposes there is nothing illegal.

Also incorrect

However a private seller is limited to 30 sales or £1740 so pose no real competition to a business seller anyway so i don't get what all the whining is about.

Also also incorrect

[zed1015]

To sell in volume the private seller must have registered their Nino and declaring their taxable earnings so although they are not following the "rules" they are not actually operating illegally in the real world.

If Ebay are not enforcing their own rules then why not join the club and open a private account to sell from.

What's the worse that can happen ?

You get told off by Ebay for depriving them of the cut of your profits (FVF) . 

Big deal ! 🙄

And then you can migrate over to Amazon anyway so win win and you follow the hoards of all the other sellers who are jumping ship from this rapidly declining site.

[therenewalworkshopltd]

If you are trading under that assumption, then be advised, you haven't got a clue.

I suggest that go and study consumer law.  It really won't take you long to find out what laws you are breaking by using a private account.

Yes, the different accounts are eBay's constructs.  But why on earth do you think that Ebay and all of the other marketplaces have separate accounts for private and business?  Why would they bother spending the time and effort to do something that is not required?  Especially when you consider that other countries don't have these separate accounts!

One of the things that you should do when starting a business is your due diligence.  Which you clearly have not even paid lip service to!

[jonatjonatjonat]

Going off the one listing they are running, I don't think they are in the slightest bit bothered about rules. All I would say is Amazon tend to take a much stronger view on such activities.

[krafty-kreations]

I bid on something of yours this morning, I would not of bid if you were a private seller, it is my biggest bug bear on eBay!! 

I hope you manage to gain more new customers! 

[krafty-kreations]

If Ebay are not enforcing their own rules then why not join the club and open a private account to sell from.

How quickly do you think eBay would shut down the free 300 free listings every month and charge fees if everyone started running their businesses on private accounts.

[therenewalworkshopltd]

I didn't even look, but that is just taking the xxxx!

Reported!

[zed1015]

300 free listings is a gimmick for private sellers.

How many private sellers actually have 300 items a month to sell.

It's contradictory to the premise of a private account and only encourages business activity .

There should be one type of selling account, NINO registered and flat fees/FVF for selling so everyone is on a level playing field and there would be non of the recent HMRC confusion etc.

[therenewalworkshopltd]

Seriously, you haven't got a clue what your talking about.

That or you are just being a wind up merchant.

[securepack]

Thank you very much. Truly appreciated 👍

[bojangled]

@red_apple_av it’s something that has frustrated me for years, but I’m done reporting and being bothered by it. Moved to other platforms and obviously the same ‘private’ sellers are there.
Just like there were/are hooky market stalls, things falling off lorries, or a ‘bloke down the pub’ in the past.
It’s just so blatant on eBay. 
I’m not saying it’s right, but it’s always going to happen. 
Jo

[orange_ox]

" have to compete with this seller who has a professional looking template selling product on a Private account but is clearly a Business seller"

Surely the fundamental problem with ebay is it's a platform with 1000's upon thousands of listings for the exact same thing.

Imagine if you went to the supermarket and every single shelf in every single isle was the same loaf of bread sold by a thousand different sellers. AMZ does it better by having a single listings page for said item.

[messier44000]

---

@zed1015 wrote:

"300 free listings is a gimmick for private sellers.

How many private sellers actually have 300 items a month to sell."

Regarding a lady I am a care worker for.

Hopefully not for several years. But when the time comes, I could 

easily individually sell her hoarded knitting and art work accessories in original 

new packaging with 300 listings a month for some time.

If I opened a private account to help with a house clearance selling the 

above and posted here for advice, I would no doubt be chased of the 

forum with pitch forks.

---

[eyewear247]

If I opened a private account to help with a house clearance selling the 

above and posted here for advice, I would no doubt be chased of the 

forum with pitch forks.

In the scenario you mention, unfortunately the shear volume of business sellers abusing the system and are gaining a financial advantage that eBay are seeming turning a blind eye to are spoiling it for few private sellers and that are honest. 

[jonatjonatjonat]

The issue is always going to be the new terminology but no one should argue that doing a house clearance like that (unless of course you purchased the contents) would be a business.

Something that has sat in someones house, possibly for years, irregardless of if it is still in the original packaging is not new. They purchased it at some point - it is now not new - it is second hand. Used, Like New or even just Like New or Unopened would be a better term to use. But they aren't New or Brand New.