NO LONGER SELLING DUE TO SIMPLE DELIVERY

[rugbyguy1960]

AS OF 15TH APRIL MY DAYS AS A PRIVATE EBAY SELLER WILL STOP AFTER 19 YEARS.

I AM FED UP OF THE GREED OF EBAY AND I HOPE OTHER EBAY SELLERS DECIDE TO NO LONGER LET THE EBAY CONTROL FREAKS HAVE THIS MUCH CONTROL OVER PRIVATE SELLERS.

[punzel9072]

I (used to) buy and sell on eBay, because I am a collector of certain bus-related signs, which are usually only available on eBay and at auctions, but I also sell of DVDs that I no longer want and for reasons of space, along with other random things that I no longer have an interest in, and clothes that I won't now wear, as well as selling off some of my late-mums ornaments and jewellery. That surely doesn't make me a trader, my definition of which is people who buy things specifically to sell on?

[heglo_59]

Ah great thanks! Someone's just put that the £2.87 is without the vat which makes perfect sense. 

[edwardian-dreams]

Great

thanks and to  @the_book_seekers for that

and yes it shouldn’t be showing at alll anywhere on the listings 

[edwardian-dreams]

Well it means they knowingly talk *bleep* and know we will see through it but are happy as Larry to patronise and have a joke 

hmmm

unless they believe it themselves

🤣🤣

trumpian or what 

you’ll save 20% on postage is akin to I had to stand under the shower for 15 minutes for my beautiful hair to get wet 

let’s see what tomorrow brings

this is getting better than black mirror 

nite all

[gmij1961]

They really don't have a clue  what they are doing  and they really don't understand why Simple Delivery is so flawed and will never ever be despite what they keep spouting at  their customers . 

I won't not going anywhere near Simple Delivery for numerous reasons  as its a pile of cr*p .  The supposed  Ai  bot is cheap imitation of any  form  of intelligence .  Its an under thought bit of conditional logic  that  seems to assume that if something is not large letter it must be RM Medium parcel size  and It won't be long unless they FIX it the Royal Mail  will not be that keen to ship over sized parcels because Ebay don't understand the basics about package sizes .

In the mean time they oblivious to the fact they are  haemorrhaging customers and revenue .  I have noticed that the Ebay  "Free to Sell " app is being aired a lot more often today  probably in-line with the hard launch of "Simple Delivery" . 

[heglo_59]

Yes thanks book keepers. It still says save £2.87 on the collect in person bit on mine . Strange system stuff going on.....

[jonatjonatjonat]

No, I wouldn't consider you a trader as you aren't buying to sell. ebay couldn't really make things much clearer.

Business sellers are required to follow all government regulations, including registering as a business on eBay, and providing contact information and a return policy.

An eBay seller must register as a business if, for example, they sell items they have bought to resell, they make items in order to sell them, or if they buy items for their business.

Not sure where its been construed that the definition of 'people like me' is that its ' if someone is buying AND selling'. Load of rubbish that.

[moonlight-rhapsody]

"you don’t have a choice when listing to stipulate tracked 24 only, it’s up to the buyer"

This is one of the (many) things that doesn't make sense to me about SD.  If the options given to the buyer are 24hr or 48hr delivery, but the postage rates tables that ebay shows to the seller have nothing to do with the 24/48 hr options, what use are the postage rates tables anyway?  I feel as if I must be missing something, but I don't know what.

[superchallenge]

---

@freetraders66 wrote:

And who are you MR CAPITALS to decide who is and isn't  a genuine business?

The judgement of people like you seems to be if someone is buying AND selling. But a collector of model cars or postcards can do both. They keep a piece for a while and then pass it on. Nothing wrong with that but they often get tarred with the 'business seller' brush. 

I get a bit fed up with these self-appointed judges who think they are superior to other sellers. They are not.

---

I do see some of that judging going on - I do it myself - but I think a lot of it comes down to anger and that the grass seems to be very much greener for private sellers, as much as it may not seem to be from those private sellers' point of view.

As a genuine business seller, I have to pay listing fees (or pay for a store that is more than treble the price of the eBay US version), I have to pay the final value fee, plus the operating fee, plus I have to offer free tracked shipping or my listings get lost in the mix and my sales drop by close to 75%. If it isn't tracked, the customer claims it never arrived and eBay just give them their money back without any investigation. In order to get the eBay "Premium Service" badge to give me any hope of competing in the listings, I have to offer seller-paid returns, too. Always fun paying for a buyer to ship something back because after 27 days, they decided that they didn't want it. Plus promoted listings are a must to even try to overcome wave after wave of Chinese-dropshipped rubbish...and those guys are on private accounts, too. Not to mention the other businesses in my niche who genuinely are masquerading as private sellers. One of my competitors literally has a bricks and mortar store that's open 7 days a week - I've been there and spent money! - and eBay does nothing about them selling as a private seller.

After all the costs, I get about £4.50 from a £10 sale that goes via Tracked 48 Large Letter. When you're a business seller looking over at a private seller who says "I want to sell this for £10" and who then gets £10 deposited in their account when it sells, it can be easy to get a bit wound up.

I think everybody is just on a bit of a hair trigger. I can see why mistakes are made and why accusations fly.

[technthread]

You don’t need to offer free returns now. I think you were right, that was a pre-requisite to get the badge but they seem to have quietly ditched it a while ago. 

[prelovedtreasures-3]

To quote SP it hits the fan. I’m trying to get my head around this thread and trying to summarise as best as I can what I can glean from it.

So, I have been a trawling, diving and drowning through this looooonnnng thread.

Basically. EBay have once again cocked it all up.

By being greedy so and sos, they have alienated everyone be it a buyer or seller.

They are not listening and blindly going ahead with Simple Delivery.

Based on what I’ve read so far here is that SD is already causing issues. Quel surprise.

EBay have also jumped on the AI band wagon and ended up falling in muck beginning with s.

Post offices are starting to refuse parcels, is that correct? It seems to be the general consensus is that the SD label bot thing is all wired wrong and spewing out nonsense and the incorrect labels are being rejected by the post office, and yet EBay are ok with this? That their big idea is clearly not working. It’s had more than a few gremlins as someone else here put.

My point here is that I’m just trying to get my blooming nogin round this thread.

I can’t help but laugh, this can’t be real. Can it? It sounds like a right load of nonsense with march of the gladiators as the theme song. It’s a farce, that’s what it is, it is truly is a joke.

SD is clearly not ready and instead of working on the kinks before dishing it out on us all.

They are in fact and in not so many words using us as Guinea pigs to test it out.

Well, if that’s true, we should be at least paid for the inconvenience.

The postage rates have gone to the dogs as well it seems based on this thread.

Ohh la la it’s gonna be a gas watching this play out. But who will cop out. Us not eBay.

Simple delivery my derrière more like complicated delivery.

[gmij1961]

Like every thing with Ebay its all  really very vague . There is massive gap between what Ebay perceive/suggest what  a Private seller should be and what a business  seller actually needs  to be , and most of us fall into that middle ground 

I sell more than what Ebay would perceive to be representative of  a Private seller but I definitely don't sell enough to be a Business seller . I am simply not a business . Ebay is the only place I sell , and most of my sales revolve around my hobby , to a point they have become part of my hobby.    

Before Ebay lost the plot,  Ebay were earning  a fair deal  from my Ebay  sales activity and now they earn   nothing  .   Which is  a  pretty stupid Business approach from Ebay . 

[superchallenge]

Well that's good to know, thanks! It definitely used to be the case, but nice that they've changed it.

To be fair, I don't get THAT many returns as all my stuff is tested and well photographed/described, but when it happens because the buyer just doesn't want the item after all...that's not fun!

[moonlight-rhapsody]

"That surely doesn't make me a trader, my definition of which is people who buy things specifically to sell on?"

You'd think so, wouldn't you, but I'm not sure HMRC see it like that.  I think it partly depends on whether you go over the £1000 allowance that HMRC give you, but there are other caveats as well.   Ebay are now legally obliged to report to HMRC any sellers who sell more than 30 items per calendar year or have a sales value of £1700+.  As I understand it, HMRC would then want you to do a self-assessment and you'd probably end up paying tax (possibly only on the excess over £1000 but I'm not sure).  To be on the safe side, it would be best to read up the HMRC guidelines.

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/check-if-you-need-to-tell-hmrc-about-your-income-from-online-platforms#s...

[technthread]

Yeah I hear you, it is frustrating but thankfully rare.

It probably boosts your visibility having free returns on as it ticks another one of eBay’s boxes. 

[moonlight-rhapsody]

I've had another thought on this.  Is ebay the only platform that HMRC has singled out to report to them about sellers' activity?  If not, and if someone is selling on multiple platforms, I would expect HMRC would combine the figures,

[*devils.advocate*]

Under new rules, digital platforms are legally obliged to collect information on the trading activities of sellers using their platforms and to report such activities direct to HMRC.

It includes Amazon, eBay, Etsy, Vinted, Depop, Airbnb etc etc etc - even PayPal and the like, if necessary.

Even if you’re a UK tax resident and you hold an account in another country then HMRC will receive information about you.

It’s all to do with the OECD - it’s not just the UK but loads of other countries as well.

[gmij1961]

"An eBay seller must register as a business if, for example, they sell items they have bought to resell, they make items in order to sell them, or if they buy items for their business."

If everyone adhered to  that statement  then Ebay would have already lost 90% of its sellers without having to introduce simple delivery and buyer protection

I looked  into selling as business seller , and  I couldn't as Ebay  need business detail and I am not a business and I am not going to that expense to fund what is  a hobby selling  . That is another  hole of Ebay's making .

A reason I have 100% feedback over a 22 years period is I am honest with people and I do pretend to be something I am not . If I am selling some thing on I don't hide it  , in the same way if it comes from my own collection  .  Another reason I have 100% feedback is my volumes of sales is low perhaps 6 items  average a week , I can give a level of attention a Business cannot give on per sale basis , especially when Ebay is not their only market place, unlike me  . That is why so few Business sellers don't have 100% feedback . 

Just because someone may trade does not make them a business and  that is something that HMRC etc would agree with . As a potential  buyer you can make your own judgement . 

Perhaps the answer is to categorise Private sellers on the amount they sell and I seem to remember the term power seller being used . 

[punzel9072]

Having read the HMRC information in your link, I think the key point for me is:

Example — selling unwanted items

You’re clearing out your attic and decide to sell your unwanted items using online marketplaces. None of the items you sell are worth more than £6,000.

It’s unlikely that you’ll need to tell us about this income or pay any tax, no matter how many items you sell.

For attic I also read garage, shed, spare room and cupboards

[moonlight-rhapsody]

That's excellent news!