eBay

dman3472 · ‎14-05-2026

I had an Ebay agent from the USA tell me Ebay might not be the best platform to do my selling after asking what backup I had from Ebay as a seller, the answer is none. I have had nothing but worry, frustration, time-wasting. I have been on the phone numerous times trying to communicate my concerns to Ebay about my bad experiences as a seller. I have asked for malicious feedback to be removed without success. I have been round and round the Ebay AI assistants and Help pages without success. I have twice been assured by Ebay agents things that have later proven not to be true. I have asked for humans to review my specific concerns and act on them. Is it only me, or is anyone else getting this? I don't really want to get into the specifics of what I am talking about, but I can if anyone has the time. Frankly I have lost faith in this platform and will only list low value items where dishonest buyers will be less likely to rip me off by abusing the returns process, and costing me a considerable amount of time and money.

papso22 · ‎14-05-2026

There are a few examples of seller protection amongst the various policies, such as protection from an item not received claim when you have tracking showing delivery, but even when clearly set out by ebay a seller sometimes has to fight to get ebay to provide the protection.

There are other more woolly 'protections' such as for feedback, where it seems to be a total lottery what gets removed and what stays. In your case, the buyer mentioning Ebay's involvement used to mean guaranteed removal, that no longer seems to apply.

Many of Ebay's actions/inactions seem totally unfair to a seller, and they often are, but ebay does not promise to be fair. The money back guarantee, for example, is very heavily biased towards the buyer. There is absolutely no point trying to argue against an item not as described claim. You should simply issue a return label.

There are some things a seller can do to protect themselves, for example if a buyer sends back a different item under the money back guarantee, but sellers may only find these out after coming to the community boards.

Essentially, sellers have to accept they risk losing the item and the money when they sell on ebay.

dman3472 · ‎14-05-2026

Papso, Thanks for taking the time for your lenghty reply, with helpful information. "Essentially, sellers have to accept they risk losing the item and the money when they sell on ebay." Yes, a grim prospect indeed.

To give a bit more context I will quote from the help pages-

"If you don't respond to the return request, we may refund the buyer and seek reimbursement from you, without requiring the buyer to send the item back." So the buyer gets to keep my brand new £600 lens which he claimed had dust specks in it, and I am left with nothing. (So I had to accept the return, but On return of the lens I cannot see dust in it) This is ike me going to a camera shop, buying a new lens, claiming it has dust in, which the staff in the shop are unable to see, and demanding a full refund and to keep the new lens.

"If we're asked to step in at any stage, you'll no longer be able to deduct an amount from the buyer's refund, even if you qualify under our seller protections." So my fully workng £190 camera lens is returned to me broken because key spare parts have been harvested from it and I am left with a junk lens. This is like me asking a policeman for help because I have been robbed and me being punished for daring to ask him for help. I have asked Ebay agents to talk me through how this works in any generally accepted framework of what constitutes right and wrong, fairness, decency and honesty in this world, without receiving answers that give me any reassurance.
(I had to accept and am waiting on the return of this. It is clear from the buyer's own listings that he modifies camera lenses for video use. This is hypothetical at the moment)

"Here are some guidelines to help you determine how much to deduct from the buyer's refund.
Missing parts - 15%–30% deduction
Missing essential parts,Item is damaged, scratched, defective, or requires service or repair 35%–50% deduction"
So once again I am out of pocket.

tressygirl · ‎14-05-2026

eBay will only refund a buyer fully when they open a case for item not as described, if you the seller do not either refund or send a tracked return label within 3 days only then will eBay step in and refund the buyer.

Those partial reductions for a return are for Business sellers so won't affect you.

@dman3472

dman3472 · ‎21-05-2026

In the end the lens came back broken. I had close up photos of the tiny screws in different positions so the lens had been opened up. In the end, and only on appeal , Ebay gave me a full refund. But I believe the buyer also got his full refund too. The Ebay customer service person also deleted a negative feedback which had previously been denied. For once I am satisfied. However it has left me wary of what I sell on here, especially high value items, in particular camera lenses which can be harvested for parts and then returned as 'not as described', and I as the seller do not have the benefit of the doubt.