Have suspended all sales due to Simple Delivery - Absolute Joke of a policy!

[foyersguy]

What a god awful system this is and as such Ive suspended all of my listings as Simple Delivery simply does not work for my business

The vast majority of my items are small car parts which fit into letter envelopes, SImple delivery has increased costs to my buyers maming most items now unsellable at 0.99 - 1.99 each. Also, living in a remote area with limited Post Office Hours where I used to rely on my parents to post items on my behalf when I wasnt there means my entire small business model is now not viable!

Ebay, sort yourselves out!

[jckl1957]

The solution is in your hands.

You mention your 'small business model' - sellers who have a business account on Ebay, rather than a private account, don't have to use Simple Delivery.

[akemp1]

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@foyersguy wrote:

What a god awful system this is and as such Ive suspended all of my listings as Simple Delivery simply does not work for my business

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While I agree SD is a mess for private sellers to it's not mandatory for business accounts.

You don't need to be a company to get a business account they are for sole traders too.

[foyersguy]

You can run a 'buisness model' without having to have a Business Account ..., which actually costs money which would equate to 10% of monthly sales in my case. Lets face it, Simple Delivery is a fiasco! 

[papso22]

You cannot run a business model legally on ebay without having an ebay business account. 

[akemp1]

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@foyersguy wrote:

You can run a 'buisness model' without having to have a Business Account ..., which actually costs money which would equate to 10% of monthly sales in my case. Lets face it, Simple Delivery is a fiasco! 

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I guess you can (if they don't catch you) but it's against the ebay rules and the listings do not meet the consumer protection requirements so you are always running the risk of your account getting suspended.

There is a cost to selling with a private account too in that you are not getting the full amount the buyer has paid as ebay are taking their cut via the buyer protection fee.

So with either type of account the buyer pays their money and you only get to keep a proportion of it.

I completely agree SD is a fiasco.

[guymafo]

And another one….

GM

[foyersguy]

Seems like people here take 'Business Model' very literally! You can be a private seller quite rightly with a number of items for sale on an ongoing basis as part of Sole Trading style income. 

Having been with Ebay for over 25 years can safely say SD is the worst policy Ive ever seen!

[akemp1]

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@foyersguy wrote:

Seems like people here take 'Business Model' very literally! You can be a private seller quite rightly with a number of items for sale on an ongoing basis as part of Sole Trading style income. 

Having been with Ebay for over 25 years can safely say SD is the worst policy Ive ever seen!

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Sole trading (buying to sell) should be with a business account see below. I cannot agree more that SD is a total mess but for what you are doing the good news is you don't have to use it - either way ebay will take their cut from what the buyer pays.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/sellercentre/selling/start-selling/create-ebay-business-account

"Do I need a business account?

If you plan to sell casually, such as selling items you no longer want, a private account is the best option. 

If you want to sell large quantities, if you have items that you've made or bought to resell or if you already have a business outside of eBay, you’ll need to register a business account."

[4_bathrooms]

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@foyersguy wrote:

You can run a 'buisness model' without having to have a Business Account 

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Not legally you can't. Amongst the many offences a trader doing so commits under consumer law the most serious one is found in the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act. It is a specific (criminal) offence for a trader to masquerade as a private seller (or a private buyer). All private seller accounts state the person is registered as a private seller and that consumer law doesn't apply to their sales - it is therefore impossible for a trader to conduct their trade via a private account and not break the law by doing so.

eBay might not care (although they pretend to). HMRC certainly will not care as long as you are declaring your income and paying the tax due. However, if Trading Standards ever wake up and pull their finger out it will be a different matter.  

[foyersguy]

Sole Trading style does not need to be a Business Account and the fees to run EBay business accounts actually outweights Pirvate seller fees - remember Private Sellers are counted as sole traders by HMRC regardless of the typf of Ebay account as you can be a 'Hobby seller' which does not make it a business!

So my original point still stands, SD has made my Ebay sales unviable!

[foyersguy]

If your sales are under £1000 a year that actually is not the case and you know that for some people running a 'business model' in the loosest sense, some people are quite happy earning less than that (myself included)!

[pegr-834437]

Can you explain what you mean by a 'business model' you either run a business or you don't. If you buy to sell you are a business, if you buy a job lot of 50 and sell 40 but keep 10 you are a business, and by law and eBay policy you should be using a business account otherwise you are breaking the law and policy, doesnt matter that it costs more.

[akemp1]

Being under the £1000 pa trading allowance doesn't stop you needing a business account to be compliant with ebay rules and consumer protection laws for sole trading (buying to sell) activities.

Not all private selling is considered trading for example selling unwanted used personal possessions or maybe something you bought that you didn't intend to resell but no longer want, etc. Clothing your kids have grown out of, stuff you inherited, gifts you didn't want, etc. For this you can go above £1000 pa and still have no tax implications unless you get into capital gains on very high value items.

There is no recognition of the concept of 'hobby selling' in ebay rules, consumer law or HMRC tax manuals.

It's either buying to sell (trading, a business activity) or selling unwanted personal items.

Sorry this has been done a thousand times on this forum and those are the rules. We don't make them.

With either type of account ebay get their cut of what the buyer pays one way or another but the type of account you should have isn't based on which would workout cheaper but on what's right for the activity you are doing.

The good news is if you are doing sole trading then you can avoid SD with the right account.

We are trying to help not have an debate about it as the rules are well understood around here.

[4_bathrooms]

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@foyersguy wrote:

If your sales are under £1000 a year that actually is not the case and you know that for some people running a 'business model' in the loosest sense, some people are quite happy earning less than that (myself included)!

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If someone's turnover is less than £1,000 then HMRC doesn't require them to register for self-assessment. 

£1,000 turnover (that's turnover, not profit) is a very low bar, though - that's less than £20 per week. Anyone who is (or should be) declaring their eBay turnover definitely requires a business account.

[thepillenwerfer]

If you buy things for £10 each with the intension of selling them and sell them for £5 you certainly wouldn't owe any tax but you'd still be a business.

[jonatjonatjonat]

Given, as you’ve shown in this thread you shown at best ignorance of your legal requirements, why should anyone have any sympathy? 

The solution is in your hands. Your issue is your business doesn’t appear to be viable enough to trade legally. You don’t even accept returns!

[style_wise]

In case you want to protect your account while you think about @jckl1957 's advice...

You could request eBay remove your most recent Negative feedback, as Buyers are not allowed to mention returns.

[akemp1]

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@jonatjonatjonat wrote:

Given, as you’ve shown in this thread you shown at best ignorance of your legal requirements, why should anyone have any sympathy? 

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To be fair I have sympathy as I think ebay could be a lot clearer with users in educating them on which type of account(s) they should have and why it's an important  legal requirement.

Ebay do the opposite like sending private account offers of loans to buy stock to sell on the account.

All completely wrong and ebay should know a lot better.

Ebay could improve the website and app to make it easier for those with both types of account to use without needing to keep logging in and out again.

[goodibags · Accepted solution]

I agree. Ebay keeps banging on telling sellers about new ways to 'grow their business' so it's hardly a surprise that 99% of sellers may have started calling their activity that. 

I'm happy to admit to having bought large job lots and selling on the ones I don't need. It used to be called 'collecting' and Ebay users did this for many years (admittedly, it's become a LOT harder now).

Apparently, bulking items together is a customer service recommended solution to the new-fangled problem of sellers being completely unable to invoice for multiple purchases, as well as reducing buyer fees. Not to mention a legitimate way to avoid the totally out of control SD postage charges. Why even attempt to sell 1 toy car in a small parcel when 15 will fit in the same box?