Unexplained selling restriction and money withheld

[novawatchesglobal]

I was recently restricted from selling on my account and eBay were asking for information on proof of identity, address, delivery ect. This was a surprise to me because as far as I'm aware I hadn't broken any eBay policies and didn't have any open disputes with buyers. What was even more surprising was when I sent them the information, proving that every item I had sold was delivered, my account was permanently restricted. My main issues with this is that I'm not allowed to appeal it, I haven't been told why it was restricted, and I have £200 on hold which won't be released until my account is unrestricted, which is unlikely to happen with the permanent restriction. Has anyone else had problems like this and what should I do to find out what I did wrong and claim the  money on items I've sold?

[*vyolla*]

That must be really galling to not be given a valid reason for your permanent restriction - whilst I obviously don't have access to your account, on the face of it I can't spot any issue there. You were correctly registered as a business seller and from what you've said the items were sent out to the buyers and delivered with no issue. eBay may hold your money for up to 170 days.

Were your items being shipped from the UK?

Have you ever held an eBay account before or does anyone else in your household have one that's subject to any restrictions?

Have you received defects for late delivery? Check your Seller Dashboard here:

 https://www.ebay.co.uk/help/policies/selling-policies/seller-standards-policy?id=4347&st=3&pos=1&que...

[yorkshire*flower]

Were you asked to provide any invoices? And where were they from? This is a common reason for a permanent restriction when the seller provides invoices that are not from a wholesalers (eg theres no VAT on the invoice indicating that its a wholesalers) and you have listed items as new 

If not that then it could be anything, even if your address or IP address has been black balled from another household member or prev resident of that address - I personally dont agree with Ebay not telling people why, as it does seem arbitrary and Im sure mistakes can be made, but unfortunately until someone persues this practise legally then it appears that they can refuse to allow people on their platform.

[4_bathrooms]

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@novawatchesglobal wrote:

This was a surprise to me because as far as I'm aware I hadn't broken any eBay policies and didn't have any open disputes with buyers. What was even more surprising was when I sent them the information, proving that every item I had sold was delivered, my account was permanently restricted. 

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The watches you sold look like imitations (i.e. unauthorised copies) of a very expensive Swiss luxury brand. Even worse, you mention the brand name in your item specifics - not in the "Brand" specific but in "Theme" and "Dial Pattern". I'm fairly certain the brand complained to eBay and that's why you're permanently restricted. 

[*vyolla*]

@4_bathrooms 

Great spot!

[novawatchesglobal]

Ah that would make sense thanks for the help. My payments are still on hold until my account is unrestricted, do you know how or when this will be payed out? 

[4_bathrooms]

When eBay state a selling restriction is "permanent" they usually mean it; I doubt your account will ever be unrestricted.

eBay state they typically withhold funds for up to 30 days or until they have received what they are asking for from a seller. However, they don't state how long they will withhold funds when an account has been permanently restricted. My gut feeling is it could be up to 180 days (6 months) from the sale as that is the limit the buyer would have to raise a dispute with their payment provider. I doubt the FCA nor the Financial Ombudsman Service would be of much use to you as eBay would simply claim they are withholding the funds in order to protect themselves against any future claim your buyer may make with their payment provider. In fact, I'm not even sure they're obliged to release the funds at all as doing so could risk making them appear complicit in the sale of counterfeit goods. 

In your shoes I'd be worrying less about the £200 eBay is holding on to and more about the brand owner concerned - after all, Richard Mille's watches are far more exclusive (and expensive) than Rolex's. If you hadn't mentioned their brand name in the item specifics I could have believed it was an innocent mistake. What other information did eBay request from you; did they request purchase invoices for the items you sold?  

[novawatchesglobal]

The watches aren't counterfeit, they are their own brands with their own trademark as advertised in the listings. The brands I used sold watches with an inspiration or homage to brands such as Richard Mille, eBay allows homage items so I assumed that fitting this note under the theme would be the right place to put them, as it is its own watch with a theme outlined by Richard Mille. I don't think it's likely that eBay can legally hold my funds for suspecting a counterfeit.

Yes eBay requested invoices to prove that I owned the items I sold 

[*vyolla*]

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@novawatchesglobal wrote:

with an inspiration or homage to brands such as Richard Mille,

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Brands hate this - it's just a kind of copyright theft disguised as flattery and, if you use their brand name anywhere in your listing and the product isn't actually anything to do with them (i.e. licensed)  then it's technically keyword spamming in that you're using it to promote your items for your own commercial gain. 

I can assure you that brands do not feel that this is an homage to them in any way, and may look at legal action, so I'd be careful here.

eBay do not allow keyword spamming. 

[myriad*seller]

You can't use any brand names in your listings at all (eg Bugatti) 

eBay has a VERO programme that means the Verified Rights Owner can get your listings removed by contacting the VERO department if you breach eBays keyword spamming policy and use brand names for items not made by the brand owner. 

You also appear to be dropshipping these watches from China and have created VERO issues due to the keyword spamming with brand names. This breaches eBay policy, and would create a bad buyer experience on eBay, which is bad for business, and is why you have been suspended.  

eBay may hold your funds indefinitely

[4_bathrooms]

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@novawatchesglobal wrote:

The brands I used sold watches with an inspiration or homage to brands such as Richard Mille, eBay allows homage items  

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They don't allow them. Homage, replica, imitation, counterfeit...it's just semantics. This is what eBay has to say:

"Counterfeit products are illegal and not allowed on eBay. These items may infringe on someone’s copyright or trademark.

• Examples of counterfeit products include:
  • A replica handbag, watch or pair of sneakers"

It isn't just a trademark issue. Besides the fact you did infringe RM's trademark by mentioning their registered mark in the listing the designs of their watches are also covered by copyright and registered design rights. This means someone else can't just manufacture or sell a replica then claim they're not infringing anything as they didn't stick the trademark owner's name/logo on the product. 

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@novawatchesglobal wrote:

I don't think it's likely that eBay can legally hold my funds for suspecting a counterfeit.

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They could hold the funds even if they only suspected the item was counterfeit. As eBay are the merchant who receives the funds and disburses them to the seller - after taking a commission - they could be accused of knowingly profiting from suspected illegal activity. I suspect you will have to wait the full 180 days following the sale before eBay will release the funds - as mentioned, this is the limit the buyer has to report a problem to their payment provider. Only eBay will be able to give you a definitive answer on when they plan to release your funds (if ever).

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@novawatchesglobal wrote:

Yes eBay requested invoices to prove that I owned the items I sold 

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I suspect they were more interested in finding out whether the watches were purchased from RM (or one of their authorised outlets) or not; as the invoices demonstrated they were not it was an immediate permanent selling restriction. Also, brand owners will often take action against the manufacturer or importer of the infringing goods to protect their brand and remove the infringing items from the supply chain. If you purchased them from a wholesaler or dropshipper registered in the UK that is who RM would be interested in pursuing. However, if you purchased them from a person or business that is registered outside the UK you are the importer - a brand owner isn't going to bother trying to stop a Chinese factory they can't prosecute. As I said, in your shoes I would be hoping the permanent eBay selling restriction was the last I ever heard about it.

[adivinesoul]

......payed out?....🤔

or.....

paid out? .....😊

Never mind......🤓🎒