26-02-2025 3:51 PM
Hello.
Bear with me 😊
I haven't used eBay to sell for years, but have returned to sell a few personal items on my private account.
My image below isn't the best to explain, as I've only had a quite low value sale, but with the current changes (buyer protection fee) do I add that figure to postal insurance cover for loss / damage on any sales worth paying insurance cover for?
I don't want to under insure.
That's probably as clear as mud, but I have two items to sell that should fetch £80 - £100 ish each.
Thanks
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26-02-2025 5:21 PM - edited 26-02-2025 5:22 PM
Separate the 2 issues the item and postage.
Item is £100 the BPF fee is £4.75 you get £100 eBay get £4.75
The postage has no buyer fee so you will claim for a £100 from the carrier and you refund £100 the £4.75 is for eBay to refund as you have not received it
26-02-2025 4:06 PM
No the postage label should have cover up to £20 with royal mail. If that is what you used.
26-02-2025 4:11 PM
Hi. That was my only example for a photo.
It's higher value sales worth insuring that I need to know about, such as the two items mentioned.
Thanks
26-02-2025 4:16 PM
You should always send items by a method that covers the amount of the item. It may also depend on what the items are as to which method they would be covered by.
26-02-2025 4:41 PM
@miss_daisys_delectables wrote:
It's higher value sales worth insuring that I need to know about, such as the two items mentioned.
Royal Mail's retail services are covered by Royal Mail's retail compensation policy - this has a compensation limit of £20 against loss for 1st Class and 2nd Class (including Signed For) services. Special Delivery Guaranteed offers compensation for actual loss up to the limit of compensation purchased; the basic level is £750. Actual loss means the lower of whatever you paid for the item (not what it sold for) or £20.
Non-account Tracked services (Tracked 24 and Tracked 48) offer compensation for the market value of the item up to a limit of £150. Market value is what the item sold for up to a limit of £150.
Note that to make a claim you would need a certificate of posting.
26-02-2025 4:52 PM
@miss_daisys_delectables wrote:Hi. That was my only example for a photo.
It's higher value sales worth insuring that I need to know about, such as the two items mentioned.
Thanks
Others have beaten me to the advice 4 bathrooms gives a good breakdown of your options, i would send via special delivery, you don't need to alter your prices if sent by a service that already has cover included.
26-02-2025 5:01 PM
As as an example, a £100 item will incur a £4.75 buyer protection fee.
£104.75 would need to be refunded to the buyer.
Courier case handlers for loss / damage claims don't get to see eBay's fee structure, they only go to the listing and see what the item value was, which includes the BPF, so I'm guessing the fee has to be included when paying for courier insurance.
I don't want to risk undervaluing insurance cover, which will lead to a void claim.
26-02-2025 5:13 PM
@miss_daisys_delectables wrote:As as an example, a £100 item will incur a £4.75 buyer protection fee.
£104.75 would need to be refunded to the buyer.
You would not be responsible for refunding the BPF; eBay would. The BPF would therefore not be your loss so you would not include it when calculating the item's value for compensation purposes. The sales record will show a breakdown of the sale, what you were paid and what the BPF was.
In that example your claim would be £100 if you sent the item using Tracked 24 or Tracked 48. If you sent the item via Special Delivery - which compensates for actual loss - Royal Mail would likely ask for your original purchase receipt for the item.
26-02-2025 5:21 PM - edited 26-02-2025 5:22 PM
Separate the 2 issues the item and postage.
Item is £100 the BPF fee is £4.75 you get £100 eBay get £4.75
The postage has no buyer fee so you will claim for a £100 from the carrier and you refund £100 the £4.75 is for eBay to refund as you have not received it
26-02-2025 5:48 PM
No, the BPF is a fee paid by the buyer to eBay. So nothing to do with the value of the item as you aren't getting, and aren't even involved with, the buyer fee, insure just the item.
26-02-2025 5:56 PM
Thank you.
26-02-2025 5:59 PM
If you send items tracked 48 or tracked 24 with royal mail you are covered for up to £150 but when you put in a claim you need to prove how much you paid for the item .If you send items standard tracking you are only covered up to £20
26-02-2025 8:30 PM
Note though that valuables, such a jewellery and items made from precious metals, have no insurance cover if sent by any other Royal Mail method than special delivery, which is insured to the value of the goods.