MC011 & Permanent Ban - A Warning to Sellers About eBay's AI Nightmare

[only_genuine_items]

I need to share my recent experience with eBay's "verification" process, which has been nothing short of a farce. This is a warning to all sellers who think their good standing will protect them.

It started when my backup account received an MC011 restriction email out of the blue. The requests were bizarre and escalated rapidly:

1. First, they asked for tracking numbers for all items, which I was providing within minutes of a sale anyways.

2. Then, they demanded my ID and bank statements. I complied.

3. Finally, they asked for invoices and proof of purchase for nearly 30 items. I spent an entire day compiling this extensive documentation, covering every single item they questioned.

The result? Within minutes of sending this complete package of proof, I received an email stating my backup account was permanently blocked.

But it didn't stop there. The real kicker came next. Within minutes of that ban, my main account was also hit with an MC011 asking same things and got permanently banned. This is an account with over 1,000 sales, nearly 1,000 100% positive feedback, and an "Above Standard" rating.

Let me be clear: I provided everything they asked for but seems that desigion to permanently block those accounts was already made in a background. The speed of the subsequent bans—immediately after submitting proof—proves this was not a human review. This was an automated, unthinking AI algorithm on a rampage.

On top of that £700 got stuck on my eBay accounts. eBay is saying I might get them only after 190 days or more. Or more?! This is a joke.

A message to eBay if you're reading: This treatment of sellers is unacceptable. You are alienating your most reliable partners. An AI that bans good-faith sellers after they jump through impossible hoops is not protecting your platform; it's killing it.

This experience has been the final push I needed. There are other platforms out there that value their sellers. I, for one, will be taking my sales elsewhere, and I suspect many others will follow if this continues.

Buyers beware: the sellers you love are being systematically driven off this site by a broken, automated system.

[plpmr]

perhaps it was felt that you were a business seller trading on a private account?

[*vyolla*]

I agree with @plpmr  here, I think that trading on a private account flagged you up (a private seller is one who is just selling off their own personal items such clothes from their wardrobe, bits from their loft/garage etc.). 

It's possible that eBay wanted a list of your suppliers because one of those brand owners has contacted them and queried the authenticity of the perfume, or maybe there was an issue when they checked the supplier out. Must say, I though that the Vivienne Westwood Boudoir Jouy was discontinued ages ago.

Whatever the reason, the action taken was very abrupt. I don't think that there's an appeal route there. It's a shame because you have great feedback and a good business going there.