Why are eBay charging fees on postage and packaging?

[mi546018]

So I've sold a few low value items lately( £1 to £125) and I've noticed that eBay are changing final value fees on the postage and packaging cost. For example, the higher value item I sold had a total cost of £130.32 inclusive of postage & packaging. I was charged a final value fee of 10.67% on the £130.32 NOT the £125 that was actually bid. I think this is theft! That postage and packaging cost doesn't go to us, especially if the service used is eBay's own. As sellers we're essentially paying them the actual cost of the p&p paid AS WELL AS extra from the cost of the item. Absolutely disgusted. I don't think I'll be selling things on here again. I will be looking to sell elsewhere. Anybody have any recommendations? Feel free to message me with replies privately. 

[nockdown2u]

That’s only giving Ebay more money. I found out today that they take a percentage of import tax when you sell overseas that is ontop of international selling fee. Ebay would like you to put up your prices that way they get mor of your money

[nockdown2u]

Today I sold an item for £20.00 plus £11.00 postage to Australia total £31.00 Ebay took £5.63 in fees I make that 18.16% Is it worth selling one Ebay. Import Tax was £3.10 which the buyer is charged BUT ebay still charge me a Percentage of that which to me is totally wrong. If they feel the need the charge for taking the Tax the they should charge the buyer a collection charge not make me pay for the collection.
I honestly think Ebay employ someone to sit and find way to screw more money out of us sellers. We try to make our goods as attractive as possible to buyer only to be screwed by Ebay by the cost of sending it. Taking a percentage of very thing possible.
.
I have been selling on EBAY for twenty years and it is getting less and less attractive, I am seriously looking for an alternative way to sell .

Nockdown2u

[philgra_9731]

Indeed, I won't use them anymore either

[hotrodasaurus]

Your answer to this question is very evasive, instead of explaining why they charge the fee you opted to insult the poster with a non commital answer.

          I read the terms and updates but these fees are getting more and more, if this keeps happening there are other sites we can sell things on such as Vinted etc. Yes other sites have there own problems but the more sellers eBay loose due to the fees, more fees will probably go higher and higher to compensate for loss of buisiness.

Typical American attitudes equel greed and money, if someone has money to spend 🇺🇲WE WANT IT🇺🇲.

[geeksy]

If they moved the fees to the buyer then the buyer can make an informed decision as to whether they accept the fee structure when they make the purchase.  The seller on the other hand gets a portion that depends on the auction outcome.   If you sell at fixed price, it's not a deal breaker because you can assess whether you accept the fee structure in advance.  I think it depends on your motivation for selling.  With many items I'm not trying to make money, and don't have the time to research what something is worth.  I'm trying to find a good home for stuff, but OTOH if something is actually valuable and I realise this then I want to get something for it.  An auction on a bulky item starting at 50p would allow me to discover that something is valuable because people would bid it up.  It's now impossible for me to put this kind of item on Ebay, it has to either go on Freecycle or some other channel.  Freecycle doesn't have anything like the reach of Ebay, so everyone is losing.  Ebay are not getting the fees, I'm not getting the reach.

[philgra_9731]

Yes crazy isn't it?!

[tse66]

I've just sold an item for £60 plus buyer paid for postage too at £5.09 and yet when I go to get the postage label I'm charged again for it. This is theft and pure greed from eBay. So buyer paid £65.09, I received only £52.40 after fees plus out of that I paid a further postage cost of £4.00. So I'm well out of pocket. So much so I've deleted all my other items and will never sell again on eBay. Pure greed.

[tse66]

Doesn't make it right though does it. Sellers get nothing from the postage. Pure greed at its finest. No wonder so many people stopped selling. And you can't get a good deal anymore because sellers are getting stitched up 

[philgra_9731]

Absolutely right, that's exactly what happened to me!

[bhpartsupply]

Can't say I sell often on eBay (buy a lot), but really stings when you try and put a fair price on postage then ebay take a percentage of the shipping fee when they did nothing for it.

The fee should be purely on the listing of the item not costs that the seller has to pay. The only reason I put a fee for shipping is just so the entire sale doesn't waste my time and cost me to send someone something they may end up winning for 99p and I end up having to still pay £10 for shipping. The shipping is a seperate cost that eBay has contributed in no way towards, they provided the platform to list and sell the item.

I bet they get a cut of the shipping fee when it's arranged through them, there is no way they don't (UPS through eBay somehow costs £19.99 yet I pay between £8 to £12 when go direct to UPS). That I can understand as taking a cut because the shipping is organised through them and their system is totally understandable. But not if it's something the seller is organising themselves, bearing in mind the time it takes to box it (including cost of box) organise shipping and either drop off or be available for collection...

The shipping fee is an expense the seller somehow has to cover, not a profit (some do of course but the many should not suffer because of the few and eBay benefits regardless) . The buyer has all the figures in front of them and chooses how much they are willing to spend on the item and postage if any.

The seller can't ensure that at least their costs are covered if eBay take a percentage that could easily wipe out the postage fee.

[jme_cook]

ebay are a bunch of robbing *bleep*ing *bleep*s! Their fees have become a joke and the fact they apply them to postage costs as well is beyond dosgusting! As sellers we're left out of pocket! Someone should reslly report ebay to trading standards becauss here in the UK i'm not sure they're operating within the law. Either way they're a *bleep*ing joke and I would encourage everyone to sell elsewhere!

[gla-4934]

Agree

I sold a pen for twelve pounds. Out of that I have been charged for postage although it looks likethe buyerhas paid for the postage. Ebay need to learn from eg. Vintedwhich operates a far superior and transparent system. I feel a bit cheated. Other outlets willnow be my preference.

[stockingsworld]

I totally agree, the promoted listings fee is ridiculous now and there are too many Chinese sellers pretending to be in other countries and not subject to domestic taxes. It's not a level playing field.

[paspe_2762]

It's still shocking 

[paspe_2762]

I'm thinking of using Facebook marketplace like everyone else because of the fact they charge fees on delivery soon no one will use ebay if they do not treat sellers better 😉 

[alex260782]

Regardless of whether it's in the terms and conditions, taking fees from postage is wrong. The way I get round this is by adding 10% on the P&P costs. This was not a legal question but one on morals 

[arkwebus]

Adding an amount of 10% to cover the P&P element is an acceptable way to ensure you are not out of pocket. 

Fees on postage have been in place for 15+ years and whether or not you think it "wrong" it is what eBay does and they are not going to change, I fear. 

It is said that one reason is that people would sell and expensive item for 99p plus £50 postage!

@alex260782 

[nockdown2u]

I fear that Ebay are pricing them selves out of the market, Every week we are seeing a change more fees less free listings. My feeling is that they do not want you to sell small value items. After your first 300 free listings after 30days a 99p item is worth nothing with a 35p listing fee every 10 days plus 35p if sold international. On top of that we pay a percentage of the import tax.

[pinder73]

Even if you don't use ebay's own service to create the postage label, but put the postage cost on the listing, it will still calculate the total fees based on the item cost and the P&P.

So, I just sold something which started at 99p, just had the 1 bid, cost £5.09 to post, and it actually cost me to sell it... as I got £1.10 fees and still had to pay the £5.09 to post it.

[papso22]

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@pinder73 wrote:

Even if you don't use ebay's own service to create the postage label, but put the postage cost on the listing, it will still calculate the total fees based on the item cost and the P&P.

So, I just sold something which started at 99p, just had the 1 bid, cost £5.09 to post, and it actually cost me to sell it... as I got £1.10 fees and still had to pay the £5.09 to post it.

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Yes because that's the fee structure.