eBay

I have discovered what I think is a serious issue with new or nearly new top-end phones being sold on Ebay. I have been looking for a Samsung S21 Ultra, their newest model I think. It has an amazing camera but I didn't like the look of the £1150 price tag, so always go on ebay to see what you can get them for.   The first thing I discovered is that there are quite a lot being sold that are fakes, copies of the real thing. They look exactly the same and all boxed etc the same so it is very hard to tell that they are in fact not genuine Samsung phones. I was pleased when one seller (who had been conned) pointed out to me the tiny differences to watch out for so as to not make the same mistake.   Anyway, let's go back to the genuine ones. I was surprised at just how many there were for sale that were generally described as ' new - opened - but unused' together with some saying brand new and unopened.   At that point I decided that if I was going to spend £600-800 ish on a mobile phone I wanted to be sure it was all legit. But I discovered was quite worrying. At least 90% of the phones for sale were what can be described as 'unwanted upgrades'. Some sellers stated this in the listing, most didn't but confirmed it to be the case when questioned.    But my take on it is this: the mobile companies contact customers to say they are due for an 'upgrade', so as they are still just paying the same monthly payment they say ok. But when they get the phone they decide to stick with their old phone and as the new one is rather valuable, sell it on ebay and make a nice little profit. But what they may or may not realise is that the company will be extending their contract by another 18/24 months (to pay for the phone) - it's not a freebie! There's no such thing! You are buying it over the next few years. So I believe that the phone is not theirs to sell! It still belongs to the mobile provider until enough payments have been made.   And now the part that should be a warning to potential buyers, if after selling the phone the seller loses their job or has some other life crisis and decides to stop paying their mobile contract then the company would want the phone back. And when that was not forthcoming they would block it at their end rendering the phone useless.   I would be very interested to hear from anyone who has had any experience with this sort of thing, or who can perhaps prove or disprove the above statement! ... View more

I accepted the promo but the counter at the bottom of the page isn't decreasing as I list, is this just a glitch and will I get the offer. Thanks for any help ... View more

Hello all,   I'm currently doing my return for last tax year. I only started as a small eBay business in February (the rest of the year was on furlough!) so there isn't much to sort. But I'm really just trying to get my head round the account side of things, especially as this years tax return will be alot bigger! So I want to be as organised as I can.   First question.. When I purchase an item for the purpose of resale - do I count this as an expense? Or is it only tax deductable when it sells? (As a cost of sale?)   Thank you in advance!       ... View more

Can someone please provide me with a telephone number for customer services or accounts at ebay that is actually a human being   Thanks ... View more

Why when I pay with a debit card it takes ages for the payment to reach the seller? It is already a week after my payment and still nothing.   What is wrong and why is this happening?   I should pay only with PayPal?   Thank you ... View more

Not sold on ebay for a couple of months. Went to sell something today but it states my deadline to register for eBay to manage your payments has passed. Tried to register today but it wont accept my DOB, just states enter a valid date in red even though its been input correctly. Can anyone help please? ... View more

Can anyone pleae tell me the way to find the number for ebay customer service or have them ring me? I have done so in the past but now it just takes you through menus that always end in a dead end with still no actual contact details. I have written to the seller numerous times so no  point in doing that again, I just need to speak to someone for advice about what to do next. ... View more

I purchased an Item that was listed as new from a seller. Not only is the item not new but it has also clearly been opened by the seller which viods any garantee the item would of been protected by as the original security seal has been removed & replaced with the one from the box/packaging. Two different friends have sent me pictures of the same item which they own confirming the item has been tampered with. I have requested to return the item several times & been refused several times with different excuses, now the item is outside the returns policy the seller has told me to return the item knowing I am likely no longer entitled to a refund. The seller has sold me a item that doesn't match the description & has been tampered with, there is also a white label that has been stuck to the back of the item pretty much stating that it has been tampered with. I have pictures that prove what I have stated I just haven't added them as I'm not having the seller copy them.     ... View more

I have been having problems with sellers who would misrepresent items and when it comes to returning, they refuse to pay return postage and would simply send the buyer their typed address as a return label as opposed to a pre-paid tracked label. I bought a hat that was described as "one size, regular" and received a hat with XL label inside. I bought jeans sold as 32" waist, but received jeans with 28 label inside. I repeatedly asked for pre-paid label but was refused. This in essence means that I will have to pay for return postage even though Ebay claims in their Money Back Guarantee that it is and shoud be the seller that pays for return postage when item is not as described . However it does not work. Once the label is sent, the buyer is required to send the item back, the system does not differentiate between labels, there is no other option, there is no help available for the buyer, it is impossible to contact ebay and tell them about the problem. I tried and tried. So I lose £4 having to pay for tracked return postage myself. This is not a money back guarantee at all.  This is a major flaw in the system. Ebay says sellers have to pay for return costs in cases like this but  in reality they do not make them. So the buyer ends up paying. This is totally unfair and will be the end of my ebaying for sure.  Can any clever Ebayers help with some advice or suggestions on the subject, please? Many thanks Maria ... View more

How to report a rude and aggressive seller ... View more

How do i open a second return? I closed it by accident and i dont know how to open another one. I bought something and need my money back. Please help! ... View more

Hi. Please can someone tell me how to list different colour options for an item on one listing please. I have several tops (all the same in a size Large) but available in 7 different colours.  I have played with it using "creat variants' but can't find a way to do it. Thanks ... View more

I am dismayed to find out that increasing numbers of my Ebay purchases are now chanelled through a bank account in Luxembourg and also Switzerland. This is so they can join the tax evaders like Suckerberg/Facebook and others. As usual our Government under the incompetent BJ promises changes which are never implemented.     ... View more

Hello again everyone   This is a similar message to the previous one, and once again, I am not sure whether I can ask these questions in this forum. If I am doing this in error please ignore and let me know. I will immediately delete this query. This is another object for wich I cannot identify the signature. I would like to know if anyone else knows this signature. It is a 'hairy' and a little naive looking Apollo bust which, I must admit, brings a smile to my face every time I look at it . Many thanks in anticipation.    Best wishes. Nathalie ... View more