Private sellers to have sales funds held

[wyattharrisx]

Changes from now for new private sellers and from next year for existing private sellers means their funds from a sale won't be available until after delivery but no change to business sellers availability next day.  Seperate to this eBay are also mandating UK Private Sellers will all have to use eBay Managed Shipping

I wonder if this will encourage more private sellers who should be a business to convert..

[vintique*violet]

Thank you - 

Good luck to everyone as I am out of this nonsense come Feb!  

[vintique*violet]

It seems to me if, as a private seller, I want to sell on ebay I won't be using the site for my benefit, I'll be agreeing to let ebay use me in its interests and falling into the trap that many businesses fell for.  Reliance on ebay at every step of the way to making a sale and ebay controlling the after-sale experience as well.

Exactly! 

Worker Bees! 

[mawels_87]

I'm a buyer that often buy items with Click and Collect, so I think it great for sellers to have use a QR code. I say this because sellers that write their own labels often leave out the ecp code. Items posted without it get rejected by the collection point shop, so items are then sent back to the seller. I had this happen to me on two of my purchases in just a 3 week period. I did receive both items  in the end after  lots of messaging with the sellers, and waiting for them to arrive back with the sellers for them to post out again with the eco codes.

Also as a regular buyer here if fees are introduced for buyers on orders I'm very likely to stop buying as eBay Item are often to expensive, or over price already. I refuse to pay more.

[kath3735_wxmjn]

You are correct, i will be using the end listing button and closing account one if and when this comes into effect.

[johnwash1]

The day this comes in I'll be bulk editing all my listings to make them local collect only.  Of course I realise I'll then get even fewer sales.

Then I'll be looking for where else to list (all ideas welcome, there seem to be fewer and fewer viable options).  FB Marketplace seems like one, but there's no way I'll ever sign up for social media.

[theelench]

That thought had occurred to me as well.  There are more alternatives, but only if private sellers are willing to be increasingly controlled by corporations telling them how to sell and deliver or are run as giant phishing projects.

Any idea that internet selling is somewhere that individuals can use their own brains to develop their own ideas or make themselves, rather than the corporation, a fortune seems to have been lost or discarded somewhere along the way.

[johnwash1]

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@theelench wrote:

That thought had occurred to me as well.  There are more alternatives, but only if private sellers are willing to be increasingly controlled by corporations telling them how to sell and deliver or are run as giant phishing projects.

Any idea that internet selling is somewhere that individuals can use their own brains to develop their own ideas or make themselves, rather than the corporation, a fortune seems to have been lost or discarded somewhere along the way.

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Well, look at how ebid have lost a potential fortune, instead of remaining a nice little earner for a couple of guys.  And that despite entering the arena 20+ years ago, when it was much easier.

Is Gumtree still worth a look?  I need some site that isn't just focussed on clothes or craft work.

If I change my listings to local collect, it's inevitable that I'll get some sales from pigeons trained by Skinner to hit the blue button as a reflex.  Obviously cancellation is an option.  But perhaps I could also list "postage option for 3.25" in some miscellaneous category and direct them to purchase that.

Or maybe I just take the easy route.  For several years my wife has been asking for a skip for her birthday.

[sharoholma7]

Having reread the parameters of this new mandate. There are 2 things that are not very clear.

1. It does not seem to apply to Overseas shipments, so still seems ok to use Royal Mail and the Post Office.

2.It only specifically mentions parcel deliveries not letters. This one certainly needs clarifying. I cant see Ebay making too many pence out of a second class letter delivery that has to be sent to one of their hubs first.

I am certain this is just the Guinea Pig stage and that after 9 months, a year, this will be rolled out across all business accounts too. That will be where Ebay will make bigger profits from shipments.

[bojangled]

This bit confuses me 

‘We’ll take into account the buyer’s location, the item location, your distance to a convenient drop off point, the appropriate delivery service for the item you're posting, and whether the buyer has selected a standard or express delivery service at checkout, amongst a number of other factors.’

Who is to say what is convenient to the seller? My options in a small rural coastal town are limited. What if the seller doesn’t have access to transport? 

Jo

[robs-trains]

Unfortunately Ebay never learn, Nearly every major decision they have made has been negative and has lost sellers and buyers. I am a private seller and am trying to sell off all my items from my old hobbies as I am disabled and now unable to get into the loft room. But I also buy hundreds of items on Ebay for my kids and my new hobby. If this is the case I will be totally quitting Ebay sick and tired of the dictatorship of the site.  They just keep moving the goal posts and making it hassle and not fun like it used to be.

[valueaddedresource]

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@sharoholma7 wrote:

Having reread the parameters of this new mandate. There are 2 things that are not very clear.

1. It does not seem to apply to Overseas shipments, so still seems ok to use Royal Mail and the Post Office.

2.It only specifically mentions parcel deliveries not letters. This one certainly needs clarifying. I cant see Ebay making too many pence out of a second class letter delivery that has to be sent to one of their hubs first.

I am certain this is just the Guinea Pig stage and that after 9 months, a year, this will be rolled out across all business accounts too. That will be where Ebay will make bigger profits from shipments.

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@sharoholma7 on your point number 2, just to clarify - with Simple Delivery the parcel is not going to one of eBay's hubs.

The actual shipping journey from drop off to delivery will be exactly as it usually is with whatever carrier is involved, the only difference is where the money paid for postage by the buyer goes - with Simple Delivery, it goes to eBay and then eBay provides a pre-paid label for the appropriate carrier to the seller.

The profit for eBay comes from the fact that they will get to pocket any difference between the rate paid by the buyer and the discounted rate eBay has negotiated with the carrier, but other than that, eBay will not actually be handling the domestic packages that will be included in this program.

[vintique*violet]

They have taken no considerations for any sellers personal circumstances.

We do have a life outside of eBay - don't we? 

I manage my above standard private account for nearly 17yrs to suit me and my requirements - this has worked, however judging by what eBay now want, I now cannot act on how I see fit to not only assist buyers but for myself. 

I wonder if eBay have taken into account those who have disabilities etc? 

[theelench]

That, to me reads suspiciously like ebays window dressing around it's "calculation" of FDDs.

Taking into account all manner of vague imponderables.  As you say a 'convenient' drop-off point, what is ebay's definition of convenient ?

I'd also query "We'll take into account......the appropriate delivery service for the item you're posting"  --  appropriate to whom?  The buyer, the seller or to ebay who hope to make a profit from whichever the buyer chooses.

Just as FDDs are "working correctly" by bullying nudging sellers towards "Next day delivery services" which bring-in more fees for ebay, will 'appropriate' soon be recognised by sellers as the one that makes ebay most profit, appropriate to anyone else or not.   While the buyer thinks again about their purchase because of the delivery cost?

[carrotdrusus2]

OK, but again on point 2 you reference parcels, not letters. 

I am more interested in what will happen with letters, and again as I said, no specific mention, only parcels.

[valueaddedresource]

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@carrotdrusus2 wrote:

OK, but again on point 2 you reference parcels, not letters. 

I am more interested in what will happen with letters, and again as I said, no specific mention, only parcels.

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@carrotdrusus2 as the previous poster noted, eBay is not likely to be able to make money from letters and since the CEO has not been shy at all in presenting this program to investors as primarily a revenue generating endeavor to "remonetize" private sales that no longer have FVF applied, odds are the eligibility criteria has and will continue to be carefully crafted around what suits eBay's revenue goals as a primary purpose.

You can already see that reflected on the opposite end of the spectrum where eBay has excluded bulky items and items over certain price thresholds, presumably because the extra costs for large/oversize postage and/or insurance and signature requirements on higher value items would not be favorable to eBay's revenue goals for this program.

I expect the same will be true for small inexpensive items that can go letter service which also would not be favorable to eBay's revenue goals for this program.

But of course that is only an educated guess, all anyone can really say for sure officially is that currently eBay does not include letters in Simple Delivery and there is no indication that will change when using Simple Delivery for eligible items becomes mandatory for private sellers in Q1 2025.

[bittyboy101]

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@wyattharrisx wrote:

Changes from now for new private sellers and from next year for existing private sellers means their funds from a sale won't be available until after delivery but no change to business sellers availability next day.  Seperate to this eBay are also mandating UK Private Sellers will all have to use eBay Managed Shipping

I wonder if this will encourage more private sellers who should be a business to convert..

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Nah, It will just drive 1000's of genuine private sellers (and buyers) away from using eBay.

This in NOT a very good or smart move by eBay...

[pcmp_caravan_hire]

This will make no difference to the private sellers with large accounts , there are many, i have found ones in minutes with 5 - 33k transactions , they are not true private accounts and ebay do nothing to stop them, they are smiling all the way to the bank now they dont pay fees, they are killing genuine business sellers, on low margin items they cant be competed with , the only way to sort this is set a flat fee same  for all business and private sellers, then its up the the tax man if they want to trawl through all the private sellers, i am sure that will bring in more revenue for ebay , not charging buyers , holding money etc, just make it a level playing field for all.

Before anyone points it out this message is posted from a private account that ebay have restricted because i have 1400 transactions and 10 years on it, they linked it as i have a business account with over 50k transaction, i sell family items on this account, but they say its business !!!, if i was trying to hide anything the accounts would be the other way round

[exponential_developments]

Simple Delivery....................Not using it, i've never known a company do so much in such a short space of time to destroy itself ( other than Ratners ) than ebay this last two years.

I won't be paying a buyer fee.

I won't be using Simple Delivery.

I don't need ebay, ebay needs sellers and buyers, hard lesson about to be learnt the hard way.

[vintique*violet]

I agree with all you have said... and already decided (even though I am only a small private account,  how genuine business sellers feel must be tenfold)   that I cannot continue with a company showing moral laxity and using  "dictatorial " tactics towards their customers   ( we are not members - members are usually listened to and shown respect ) ... Actually I think it is bordering on discrimination, and think some of their "agendas"  may fall fowl. 

[pcmp_caravan_hire]

As i have said before i can not see the problem of a flat fee for all, private sellers paid it before, and i am sure genuine private sellers wont mind it, i think as others have said charging buyers is a joke, yes hold money for a week ive no problem with that, we all need buyers charging them will put some off, let the tax man weed out the people who are dodging it buy having large private accounts, make it a level playing field for all sellers, all ebay are doing is killing small business