Ebay's new Buyers' protection fee from the 4th Feb

[rsbrickshop]

I'm a private seller. Items I sell are between £2.90 - £10. Is It just me or will ebay's new Buyers' protection fee from the 4th Feb make it near impossible to sell competitively. A few months ago Ebay got rid of Sellers' fees for private sellers, which was a welcome move. But this new change and getting rid of multi-buy discount for private sellers will make it worse than it was with the original fees.

[sportex-uk]

That's what I'm saying, private sellers selling small things are those hit the most, no idea why ebay targeted them so badly. Their complaining is fully justified.

I call moaners some established business sellers, who instead of looking after their own business, cry here in hundreds of similar messages that private sellers don't pay fees and it's illegal, against trading standards, etc.

[sammylou40]

There’s always going to be a fee of some kind. EBay is a business. 
the fees are transferring essentially to the buyer instead of the seller. So a lot of small sellers are concerned that the low priced items will no longer be viable once the 75p buyers protection fee comes into effect. 
this may be ok but the difficulty then is that we will be forced to use the eBay postage system, even for items that are only worth a couple of pounds. That means an item you sell for £2.90 will have a 4% charge, 75p fee and then have to be sent tracked at around £3 ( guess) instead of what most sellers would do and send 2nd class and take the loss if it disappears.  The likelihood is that those items will no longer sell and that’s what small private sellers are bothered about 

[sammylou40]

There’s always going to be a fee of some kind. EBay is a business. 
the fees are transferring essentially to the buyer instead of the seller. So a lot of small sellers are concerned that the low priced items will no longer be viable once the 75p buyers protection fee comes into effect. 
this may be ok but the difficulty then is that we will be forced to use the eBay postage system, even for items that are only worth a couple of pounds. That means an item you sell for £2.90 will have a 4% charge, 75p fee and then have to be sent tracked at around £3 ( guess) instead of what most sellers would do and send 2nd class and take the loss if it disappears.  The likelihood is that those items will no longer sell and that’s what small private sellers are bothered about 

[sammylou40]

I wouldn’t send without tracking as I’d expect to be scammed nowadays.  The post office will provide a receipt that has a 16 digit code even for 2class postage ( not just a stamp) and that can be traced as proof of delivery even if you can’t follow the journey. 

[*maetrix*]

For your information the item was £15 with free postage & packing..I am not paying £3.39 to send an item to get it tracked - rather than the £2.10 I paid out of my own pocket to send it 2nd class.

Get your facts straight before chipping in in future.

[ett1954]

" ........ the item was £15 with free postage & packing..I am not paying £3.39 to send an item to get it tracked .... " - You are not paying the £3.39 the buyer is.

" ..... rather than the £2.10 I paid out of my own pocket to send it 2nd class." - Drop your price by £2.10 and you will still be receiving the same amount of income from the sale as you would have done previously.

There are many arguments for and against this new system however 'the seller pays more' is not one of them.

[steveberg777]

I think eBay has known all along that they were going to do this, and their sellers' fees scrapping scheme was an empty gesture but also a deceptive gesture. As for the mocking business sellers laughing at the private sellers who are usually making pocket money, thanks for outing yourselves. I'm making a note of you so I know who to avoid when making my purchases.

[polarlight3]

Looks like the new changes have started earlier than I expected!

I sold a listing today that I had quoted postage as Large Letter 2nd class (£1.55)
My confirmation email from eBay suggests I should send tracked! 

(£2.80 ish)
Guess I’ll just have to take the hit on the chin this time and amend all my other listings postage prices 🤦‍♂️

I’m glad to have sold something but it would have been good if they had given me some warning the changes would start sooner than Feb.

[podlingsmum2007]

EBay have always suggested using a tracked service. If you buy the £1.55 postage label online and book a collection they bring a 2D label which can be scanned. Just write on the packet 'if you can please scan the delivery'. Or the royal mail 48 is £2.70. 

[polarlight3]

The email kinda “Insisted” rather than “suggested”.

Thanks for the advice tho. 

Think I’m just gonna issue a refund and delete the listing.

i knew changes were coming but we were told February. 
Id assumed any listings made before Feb would be exempt from the compulsory tracking. 

[papso22]

Tracking is not compulsory ATM, whatever the tone of the ebay message,

[the_artist_123]

I've stopped now on eBay selling inheritance items, things I no longer need ect. Too much hassle. It's eBay's policy fault, 4 February. It all now open to scams too. Businesses fine, they don't want private people now, that's obvious. I signed up in 2010 on eBay and I don't recognise it now.

[tsc269]

From the 372 (!) previous threads, it's obvious that there's a lot of confusion, not to mention dismay, about Simple Delivery, and I hope that eBay support staff are braced for a torrent of enquiries in the week ahead.  My selling days are all but over,  but I continue to find eBay a convenient way of buying old postcards, without the hassle of going to a fair.

[sammylou40]

It’s frustration for most of us. Especially when it comes to the lower priced items. 
Im not even going over the buyer protection fiasco again but once simple delivery becomes compulsory then it will become very expensive for you to buy your postcards on eBay.  First and second class postage stamps won’t be an option. Everything is tracked only

so if you buy a few postcards for say £2.50, you will pay 4% in fees, 75p buyer protection as a minimum and then simple delivery at whatever the cheapest tracked option is. Around £2.95 at the moment. 
If you’re the buyer, you’re not interested any more are you? 
And the small private sellers dwindle away. 
which is what the whole conversation has been about 

[rishi1984you_6]

Sign the petition to stop this policy: https://chng.it/ysWGvkQPRx

[snowylilliput-0]

I wonder how many private sellers have realised once simply delivery
becomes normal private sellers will also have to cover the cost off any
packing material they have to buy , at the moment you are able to add it to
your postage charge .

[podlingsmum2007]

Would have to be added to the sale price which means ebay get 4% of the packaging costs too!

[sportex-uk]

Packing material will have to be counted in the price, so not much difference really.

Tha main and only problem with Simple Delivery is that it's managed by scammers Packlink.

[buffster1963]

---

@snowylilliput-0 wrote:
I wonder how many private sellers have realised once simply delivery
becomes normal private sellers will also have to cover the cost off any
packing material they have to buy , at the moment you are able to add it to
your postage charge .

---

I have never charged for packaging anyway. I recycle boxes and if i know i am having a clear out i buy mailing bags or bubble wrap  in bulk so only cost a few pence each. I am happy to get whatever price i get for items i am getting rid of so a few pence for packaging does not bother me. 

[johnwash1]

---

@snowylilliput-0 wrote:
I wonder how many private sellers have realised once simply delivery
becomes normal private sellers will also have to cover the cost off any
packing material they have to buy , at the moment you are able to add it to
your postage charge .

---

Personally I've never done that.  For two reasons

1) because I use recycled packaging that doesn't cost me anything but effort and putting the word out with friends and acquaintances (they already think I'm odd, so no harm done)

2) because there are buyers out there who can be really poisonous about people who add to postage their cost of packaging, bus fares, petrol, etc etc and will even award negs to such sellers.

Be careful out there!