Option to send invoices disappeared

[s2000king_123]

Option on sold listings to ‘send payment details’ has disappeared and I’m unable to send people invoices for combined orders like I normally do. I did a live chat with customer service, but I don’t really think they knew what I was talking about.

I have buyers waiting to pay, but are reluctant to pay for the entire postage cost in one go and have me refund due to the amount of money they would have in limbo. 

anybody else having the same problem? Anyone at eBay able to confirm it’s being looked into so I can tell my buyers? 

[a45heaven]

Thanks for your informed and considered responses.

You are assuming that the current inability of private sellers to do combined shipping is deliberate and will remain.

Current efforts to restrict Combined shipping includes

'4 day To Pay '

'Reduction in Search Functions'.

'Simple Postage'.

And Now the 'Inability to produce and send Invoices'.

[ever_stone]

Same issue here. No option to send a revised invoice to combine postage on multiple items.

[lucy_farmer]

'Making it mandatory for business sellers really would be commercial suicide.'

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Blimey yes.

Can you imagine the really big boys in this game - Music Magpie, World of books, etc - having to do as they're told, post wise? 

Not to mention they've probably already got seriously favourable contracts with couriers already.

[alloa1234]

I also have sales and can not combine invoices. Is it true it will take 90 days if so might as well cancel the orders and not list anything else.

[andha-21]

Maybe message the buyers, link them to here so they know you aren't mucking around and offer to cancel/refund their orders and if they want you can relist everything they want together.

[a45heaven]

Or being radical - maybe ebay could just fix it 

If it were an error where all sellers got paid out double, id imagine it would be repaired pretty damn fast.

[andha-21]

I don't think it's going to be fixed, at least not soon. & Simple Delivery always looked like it would kill it anyway.

[gorgeousbabybows83]

My account has also been affected. gorgeousbabybows83

[daveholdsworth]

Evening

Is this getting looked into and when is going to be resolved? 

Do we as a seller need to do anything?

Thank you for your support.

Dave

[reddomino31]

My account also suffering from the same thing.  Also recently sold items have gone to the unsold item box and I can do nothing with them.  

[zillabudgie]

I am able to send a combined invoice abroad, but surprise surprise can't do it for the UK.  Another kick in the teeth for private sellers.... I regular buyer has bought 10 items , so Ebay steal £7.50 in BPF, surely this is illegal?? Obviously I can refund the buyer excess postage, but that's really not the issue here. The Ebay suits should be ashamed of themselves.....

[parsley2003]

That's the plan i'm afraid you could cancel it with the buyers permission and list as one lot but they are bringing in a rule that we cannot find a way around them getting their money or we will have restrictions which guess are payment holds and listing bans. 

[squirrelsinmygarden]

I had a couple of auction sales end yesterday evening, one for the U.K. and one for the Netherlands. I was able to send an invoice for the Netherlands sale, but there was no option to send an invoice for the U.K. one, just a box saying cancel.

[andha-21]

@squirrelsinmygarden 

Like I thought, it's BPF that broke the invoice system, specifically that they were charging a Protection Fee on every item within the invoice to the same buyer.

Almost certainly illegal under English law.

That's why it's off and that's why I don't think it will be fixed.

Could be why you had a "Cancel" button too. Haven't heard of that before.

[eastern-lights]

Musing: I can still print an invoice to send with an item.

The difference between sending an invoice and printing an invoice is that you send invoices before the buyer has  paid but you print invoices after they have paid.

When you send an invoice, before buyer has paid, you have the ability to change figures, give discounts, alter the shipping cost. When you print invoices, after the buyer has paid, there is obviously no such ability.

I wonder if the problem is that Ebay's programmers did not put in any code to recalculate the BPF when someone alters the invoice?

I still have the ability to give a partial refund after they have paid, before I have despatched. That (presumably?) recalculates the BPF? If so, then explaining the problem to the buyers of multiple items and getting them to pay in full on your promise to do a partial refund in double quick time, then printing an invoice to send with the items, might be a viable workaround. 

Not ideal I know.

[andha-21]

You want to refund BPF fees that you have no part in?

[timcar_94]

Hi Marco,

My account is also affected by this issue. Please could you add my account to those affected? I have just needed to ask a customer to pay for postage on items separately and await refund.  Many thanks. 

[eastern-lights]

---

@andha-21 wrote:

You want to refund BPF fees that you have no part in?

---

Nope. As I understand it, sellers want to amend shipping costs for multiple items. One way is to get paid in full then partially refund.

(Actually, I do effectively refund BPF fees by altering my asking prices so that the potential buyer sees the original price I would have asked. But that is because I reckon people are more likely to buy something priced at say £19.99 than they are to buy the same thing priced at £21.54 or whatever it works out an on Ebay's calculator. But that's my choice and nothing to do with combined shipping.)

[zax93]

I've done this too for example something I want to be seen as £15 I list at £13.73

[andha-21]

@timcar_94 

I doubt they can fix this.

It's almost certainly the BPF causing the problem as it's been charging for every item in a invoice.

As it's a Buyer Protection Fee, not an Item Protection Fee it means eBay are almost certainly breaking UK Law. 

A buyer only "needs" 1 protection fee per transaction.

You may be better off relisting everything a buyer wants together in the future. Less hassle for everyone.