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.

[gnosemalf]

It's the unnecessary complication with free shipping that really does my head in. Everybody knows, buyer included, that the shipping is factored into the price so I was always comfortable sending stuff by Royal Mail Tracked 48 and if an item sold before midnight, I would book a collection the next day. I'd always keep an eye on the tracking and if there was going to be a delay, I'd contact the buyer to inform them - I think that all but the most unreasonable people are forgiving if they are kept informed.*

Now with free shipping there is the option of who pays for the free shipping, the seller or the buyer - that just does not compute. But also, if I am offering free shipping, why the hell does eBay have to get involved at all? It's my responsibility to get the item to the buyer and if there are any problems, I shoulder that responsibility. Now eBay wants to nanny me and rip me off while it it at it.

*Nobody likes standing on a railway platform waiting for a train that never comes but I remember once in the 90s being on a platform at Paddington (if I remember correctly) on a particularly disastrous day. The female announcer kept the waiting passengers amused with a few quips. I specifically remember one announcement starting, 'you're not going to believe this, but...', even the most miserable commuter had a smile on their face.

[spartansteel]

This is what was said but then again he was a call handler so take that as you will. He also didn't have a response for some questions I had so I think they're struggling with it to be honest so could be misinformation, it does make you question though how much control they are going to have over this. Only thing I could think of in regards to him saying that was if there were any issues with either of them (strike etc) but he didn't elaborate on his statement. 

It was also explained that I could cancel their postage on a successful sale and request a refund (up to 14 days) then arrange my own. I am also not prepared to mess around with these loopholes so I informed him I will be looking elsewhere to sell from now on. He said my feedback will be passed on to the relevant department so hopefully they will take the feedback on board from all complaints about this.

[gnosemalf]

Simple Delivery reimagined. Buyer pays, seller chooses whatever delivery service suits them. Simple.

The way eBay sees Simple Delivery probably does look simple compared to the shipping profiles that were introduced maybe ten years ago. I remember trying to list something in a hurry when they were introduced and having a wt- moment. I had to spend an hour or more figuring out what was going on and then creating a profile which didn't save any time on future sales whatsoever. It was as if somebody who had worked at an online retail giant thought, let's apply the same complicated system that retail giants use to the little people.

I can imagine that there might be a bit of panic at eBay HQ as they pore over the spreadsheet of consequences that introducing Simple Delivery has caused but wondering how the hell they can roll it back. I'm not a tech genius by any stretch of the imagination and remember the problems I had once trying to revert to a previous version of a Wordpress template that had messed up my website.

[punzel9072]

I would rather pay seller fees than the debacle we have now.     I never thought they were expensive. 

Private sellers do not look to "turn a decent profit"

Exactly my thinking. Most private sellers are clearing things they no longer want, or selling off surplus collectables etc. The seller fees were only a small proportion of the sale value and everything worked fine.

[punzel9072]

The email sent to me for the sale, had a link to the postage which was RM. I was given the option of a pick-up and took up that option. I was also allowed to state my safe place, as I won't be in that location tomorrow...
However, there was no option for RM to print out the label and bring it to my location...

There wouldn't be much point in Royal Mail bring your label too you if you're not going to be there to receive it and stick it on the item.

[infohelps]

If you look at another thread called A Petition, you will see that many private sellers would be happy to bring back the final value fee and scrap SD and BPF.    I didn't think the FVF  was expensive - where else could you get such exposure for your items?  Obviously I expected to pay for this opportunity and the convenience of selling via eBay's platform.  You knew what % it was, and you factored it into your asking price along with any packaging costs (and postage if it was postage free as all my items were).  The buyer wouldn't have bought it if they weren't happy with the price, you sorted your own postage in accordance with the value/rarity of the item, and after fees, packaging and posting you ended up with the price you wanted.  That's my idea of simple!

Many of us private sellers are selling items that we no longer want or have room for, items we have inherited and so on.  A lot are collectors who want to offload duplicates or items they are happy to sacrifice in order to invest in new items for their collections.    We obviously want to cover our costs, and for some maybe make a little extra money to reinvest in collections and so on..  We know that our items, which are often pieces of social history,  will have value to someone out there.  Many of the items belonged to loved ones and it would be too upsetting to throw away (which is often what happens in charity shops for the more niche items) so our main goal is to match the items to people 'out there' who could love them. We are not on eBay to turn a profit.  

[hughbenny]

RM take the item from the safe place and stick the label onto the item themselves. They have done it scores of times. I have even seen them do it when I was in and had them pick it up from the safe place.

[akemp1]

---

@gnosemalf wrote:

if I am offering free shipping, why the hell does eBay have to get involved at all?

---

Because they wouldn't want to miss the opportunity to slip their covetous hand into someone's wallet.

[*maetrix*]

Ebay have to get involved with free shipping because they're being run by a control freak.

Good owners are people you never need to hear or see.

[1956glyn]

Exactly......the majority of items we used to list were inherited so personally cost us nothing.   

I still have loads (half a double bedroom)  i could list....but to be honest no longer have much interest in Ebay anymore 😞 

For the forseeable future it will probably just continue to sit there in boxes.

[tressygirl]

spartansteel  wrote:   I was on the phone with ebay yesterday for 45 minutes. You have the option of...

Umm,   please do not believe everything CS tell you,  I'm afraid they are as in the dark about some aspect of Special Delivery as we all are here!

One thing though,   currently under SD only,   Evri and RM are options,  if a buyer requests another courier,  the seller if they agree have to do this off their ' own back' ,  not use SD,  then they open themselves up to a longer wait for a payout ,  and if tracking cannot be changed ,  open themselves up to item not received cases.  Doubt many ( any?) would agree to a courier outside the , without any argument   meagre choice now.

We are told other  couriers are to join SD,   but we are also told Combining postage will be ' fixed' / available too!   

🤔

[bwalton123]

Simple Delivery is such an infuriatingly restrictive system, I feel like I'm being treated like a toddler by the eBay nanny state.

For example, when setting your own postage rates, you had some leeway if you underestimated or overestimated the weight of a parcel (even if you weigh items before listing, you can still misjudge the final weight when they're packaged). You could use cheaper postage services or offer buyers postage refunds, respectively. If you encountered a problem, the solutions were in your own hands. Now if you run into a problem, you have to jump through eBay's bureaucratic hoops; apply for postage label refunds, cancel orders, etc.

[sml192]

---

@hughbenny wrote:

The email sent to me for the sale, had a link to the postage which was RM. I was given the option of a pick-up and took up that option. I was also allowed to state my safe place, as I won't be in that location tomorrow (which is what I usually do for RM pick-ups).
When I looked at the RM page confirming I had a pick-up or collection booked for tomorrow, there was nothing about having to pay the 30p for it. It stated collection is free. This must be included in the postage fees. Maybe a new thing by eBay?
Not bad. However, there was no option for RM to print out the label and bring it to my location. 
Now I need to do a 12-mile round trip to print out the label.

---

It is now possible to request that Royal Mail bring the label if you book the collection on eBay:

Booking a collection

If you have a Royal Mail label, you can book a collection on eBay. Royal Mail can then collect your item and also bring the label for you if you don't have a printer. You'll need to book the collection before you create your prepaid label. Here's how:

1. Go to Orders in My eBay.
2. Select the order you'd like to book a collection for.
3. Select Get prepaid label.
4. Choose the date for the collection.
5. Select Book collection.

Once you've booked your collection, you won't be able to change the date. If you miss your collection, you can book it again for another date on the Royal Mail

[spartansteel]

Umm, please do not believe everything CS tell you, I'm afraid they are as in the dark about some aspect of Special Delivery as we all are here!

As I stated myself in my follow up comment. 

[hughbenny]

How can you book a RM collection if you cannot get the address of the buyer unless you create the label first?
Do we need to contact the buyers for their addresses first? 

[sml192]

---

@hughbenny wrote:

How can you book a RM collection if you cannot get the address of the buyer unless you create the label first?
Do we need to contact the buyers for their addresses first? 

Why do you need the address of the buyer to book a collection? 

[hughbenny]

How would I get RM to bring the label?

[jonatjonatjonat]

The way I read it - if you are booking a collection with RM bringing the label - they are generating the label from the data supplied by ebay? As noted...

If you have a Royal Mail label (by which they mean the courier selected for your Simple Delivery order is Royal Mail), you can book a collection on eBay. Royal Mail can then collect your item and also bring the label for you if you don't have a printer. You'll need to book the collection before you create your prepaid label. Here's how:

1. Go to Orders - opens in new window or tab in My eBay.
2. Select the order you'd like to book a collection for.
3. Select Get prepaid label.
4. Choose the date for the collection.
5. Select Book collection.

[hughbenny]

I will give that a go next time.

[kath3735_wxmjn]

I was quite happy to pay a fee, i do not expect to get something for free.  I would rather i knew where i was than lose buyers because of BPF (which is complete nonsense) and SD.  No way will i use SD.  I am a private seller not a business and am not interested in 'profit', after all how do you make a profit on second hand goods (unless it is a collectable).   Businesses make profits, real private sellers just get a bit of extra money.