Is Ebay really that evil?

[TooOld]

Unless you sell regularly on ebay and are familiar with the shipping charged by the USPS and UPS it is easy to complain about what sellers charge .

From what I can tell most of the shipping charges are "in the ball park" with some that charge the actual cost . Yes there are those that still try to make a killing with shipping charges , so just skip past them and keep looking !

[Skydime]

Evilbay really makes me mad sometimes. I've sold quite a few things there but, it gets annoying. Once I sold a cell phone there and the auction included a pic of the phone (turned on) and everything that came with it. The buyer uses it 29 days, then claims the top of the screen was jittery when he got it. Needless to say, despite the proof it worked when sent, and the fact that the buyer had no complaints the first 28 days, they decided to override what I knew as the truth and give them a partial refund. Oh yeah, this on a purchase on which I had already received positive feedback and no personal communications to resolve.

Edited October 24, 2012 by Skydime

[Greg Myers]

Ebay isok just the fee's they charge are a little high in my opinion .When they charge you to get your own money back that is tacky.

Fees too high ? Go somewhere else.

[hooterville75]

Unless you sell regularly on ebay and are familiar with the shipping charged by the USPS and UPS it is easy to complain about what sellers charge .

From what I can tell most of the shipping charges are "in the ball park" with some that charge the actual cost . Yes there are those that still try to make a killing with shipping charges , so just skip past them and keep looking !

Not so much true because most of the kits I purchase off Evilbay are Nascar 1:24 kits. Ive purchased Nascar kits from California eight at a clip. Shipping charge in a priority flat rate box was a little under $9 for eight kits. Was looking at buying a kit the other night from the same state I live in and the seller was charging $15 for one kit. This happens a lot with at least Nascar models I look at. Im not against paying the actual shipping charges that are necessary to cover the costs but I'm not all about getting raped with the shipping charges either.

[george 53]

Never sold there, heard TOO many stories about how they charge sellers for EVERYTHING! i do and have purchased some rare kits from them though, that's where i got my 70 and 71 MPC cudas. NOT cheap mind you, but WHERE ELSE you gonna find 40 year old unbuilt kits?

[jeffb]

george, just save all yer vintage kits fer yer buds......

[fredgsanford]

I have been selling on ebay since 2003 , my main gripe is every 6 months to a year they send me an email to tell me they are giving me something i dont want for free and my rates are going up .

ebay them selves tacks 9% commision on the shipping charges and paypal another 3.9% and they say it is to save the buyers money (yes they , not me said that) Now sellers like myself who didnt charge or charged a nominal handling charge all have to pad their shipping to break even .

[Ace-Garageguy]

I have been selling on ebay since 2003 , my main gripe is every 6 months to a year they send me an email to tell me they are giving me something i dont want for free and my rates are going up .

ebay them selves tacks 9% commision on the shipping charges and paypal another 3.9% and they say it is to save the buyers money (yes they , not me said that) Now sellers like myself who didnt charge or charged a nominal handling charge all have to pad their shipping to break even .

I agree that the relentless upward nudging of the fees is sometimes off-putting, but it's just corporate-business-as-usual. Look at the prices of ANYTHING, and you'll see the same upward creep. It's just the way it is.....nothing unusual about ebay trying to wring every last cent out of every opportunity. Going to the grocery store and watching the climbing price of mayonnaise is just as maddening to me.

[Casey]

ebay them selves tacks 9% commision on the shipping charges and paypal another 3.9% and they say it is to save the buyers money (yes they , not me said that) Now sellers like myself who didnt charge or charged a nominal handling charge all have to pad their shipping to break even .

ebay used to charge fees based only on the final value, not including shipping, so sellers used the "high shipping, low item cost" loophole to pay less in fees, yet still get paid the same amount. Now (and for at least a year or so) ebay charges final values based on the item and shipping cost combined, closing the loophole. There's also a feature which you can use to report a seller for excessive shipping costs.

[martinfan5]

ebay used to charge fees based only on the final value, not including shipping, so sellers used the "high shipping, low item cost" There's also a feature which you can use to report a seller for excessive shipping costs.

Where is that option at?, I have noticed lately the trend on model kits is shipping around $11 and up, you know its bad when you can get kits shipped cheaper from other country then in the states

For instance, getting a kit shipped from Japan cost $12-14, I am seeing a ton of US sellers charging that or more to ship kits with in the US , thats is just ridiculous

[Casey]

Where is that option at?

Click the "Report Item" at the right hand side, part-way down from the top, then you follow the drop down menu choices.

[martinfan5]

Click the "Report Item" at the right hand side, part-way down from the top, then you follow the drop down menu choices.

I knew about that, I did not know there was the option for report shipping

[Maindrian Pace]

11 bucks is about what the USPS charges to ship a kit in the states Priority mail, go to their website and enter the box size and weight in the shipping calculator and see what you come up with. You can do the click and ship for Priority on the USPS website and print your own postage, but to get the cheaper parcel post shipping, you have to wait in line at the post office. I don't do that for small, cheap packages, because PO lines are among the most infuriating there are. I do it for big, expensive items because they are significantly cheaper to ship that way. Kit's sometimes don't fit in the flat rate boxes with enough room for good padding, so a bigger box must be used, and they nail you for the shipping cost on your own packaging, even if your box is smaller than the flat rate box.

As for ebay, I used to sell like mad there, but I stopped that about 4 years ago when they got crazy with the rules that heavily favored buyers, and screwed sellers in any way they could figure out how to. I could go on and on about how their rules got ever more draconian to the sellers, but I don't feel like working myself up over them and venting to internetland about it. I do buy there, but I took the hint that they don't want small-time sellers any more, and so off I went.

-MJS

[CadillacPat]

Let's see,

I can rent a table or spot at an open air flea market, set up and sit in the heat all day waiting for a tiny percentage of passersby who might be interested (and financially liquid enough to buy them) while watching my items melt in the sun and gather dust, then have to pack up all over again and go home, and then unload everything again there,

Or,

For a total 12% or 13% charge (sure I would rather it be only 8% or 9%, not that much difference really from 12% or 13%) I can expose my work to the PLANET and let USPS pick SOLD items up from the front porch in the FREE boxes that they not only provided but delivered.

No gas, no wasted time, no renting a spot, no packing and unpacking

Hmmmmmmmmmmmm-----

Guess which one I pick??

CadillacPat

Edited October 25, 2012 by CadillacPat

[TooOld]

Let's see,

I can rent a table or spot at an open air flea market, set up and sit in the heat all day waiting for a tiny percentage of passersby who might be interested (and financially liquid enough to buy them) while watching my items melt in the sun and gather dust, then have to pack up all over again and go home, and then unload everything again there,

Or,

For a total 12% or 13% charge (sure I would rather it be only 8% or 9%, not that much difference really from 12% or 13%) I can expose my work to the PLANET and let USPS pick SOLD items up from the front porch in the FREE boxes that they not only provided but delivered.

No gas, no wasted time, no renting a spot, no packing and unpacking

Hmmmmmmmmmmmm-----

Guess which one I pick??

CadillacPat

Well said .

[gtx6970]

My main gripe is the ebay feedback system,, 2 words

it sucks

in the past 3 weeks I had 2 buyers not pay for an item and the only thing I can do is file a non paying bidder

I can't leave a negative, I can't even leave a neutral to warn the next seller???? and if you click the user's feedback NOTHING shows the next seller there was ever a problem.

Yet, if I do get paid and don't mail said item,, you wanna bet if I get blasted with a negative or not .

I sell and buy there, but my selling days are coming to an end. I'll usually only buy what I can't get locally,,,,,, within a reasonable cost / effort on my part .

I have one LHS but it's about 20 mintues away and he's not exactly the cheapest to buy from, but I do try to give him at least part of my buying business

Edited October 25, 2012 by gtx6970

[tubbs]

funny, i have never made a purchase from ebay. dont even go to the model section let alone ebay (well, sometimes i go look at the pro stret cars for sale.). never visited craigs list either. do most of my swapping right here and buy my stuff from my LHS. i guess i am in the minority on this one.

[fredgsanford]

Let's see,

I can rent a table or spot at an open air flea market, set up and sit in the heat all day waiting for a tiny percentage of passersby who might be interested (and financially liquid enough to buy them) while watching my items melt in the sun and gather dust, then have to pack up all over again and go home, and then unload everything again there,

Or,

For a total 12% or 13% charge (sure I would rather it be only 8% or 9%, not that much difference really from 12% or 13%) I can expose my work to the PLANET and let USPS pick SOLD items up from the front porch in the FREE boxes that they not only provided but delivered.

No gas, no wasted time, no renting a spot, no packing and unpacking

Hmmmmmmmmmmmm-----

Guess which one I pick??

CadillacPat

The fees are a good part of the frustration on ebay but no where near the whole issue of why people dislike selling there . And as for the fees if you dont pad your shipping costs the fees can run between 20 and 25 % , a 10 dollar model with a 10$ shipping is going to set the seller back around $2.60 -2.70 in fees. if you do over your 50 fress auctions a month it jumps over $3 if you were only working on a small percentage its time to start thinking about if its worth it at all

their customer service , while well meaning , leaves a lot to be desired . many calls are routed out of the country and if they put you on hold for more than a minute or 2 it disconnects, every time ive had a problem it usually winds up being over an hour and several calls before i can get a hold of anyone that can help. And then they usually tell me im out of luck

they are constantly tinkering with the site and glitches pop up often , i recently listed a lot of 200 cds and typed out every single title only to have a glitch in the system erase all my work when i went to change the shipping information

rule changes , and fundamental unfairness twords the sellers

sellers cannot leave negatives to buyers

paypal is pretty much a must use whether you like it or not

according an email from ebay if you did not opt out and close your account you gave up your right to join in any class action suits against ebay

ebay now has given itself the right to award partial refunds to customers without asking you , ie you sell something and the charger doesnt work they will ask the customer to get a price on a charger and refund it to them

If you accept credit cards through paypal you now accept returns whether you like it or not ( In fairness this is with the credit card co's not paypal)

and finally if you sell something for example a model kit sealed , the customer opens it and the body is warped , he can now file a significantly not as described claim and either get his money back or ship it back to you and leave you on the hook for the shipping costs . (hasnt happened to me yet but it certainly could )

sorry for the long winded rant

[Ace-Garageguy]

I have to agree with Pat. He said it all, and said it well.

There are problems with anything, selling-venues or otherwise. In the case of ebay, in my opinion after over 1200 transactions, the positives Pat pointed out vastly ovepower any negatives associated with the service.

[CadillacPat]

I have to agree with Pat. He said it all, and said it well.

There are problems with anything, selling-venues or otherwise. In the case of ebay, in my opinion after over 1200 transactions, the positives Pat pointed out vastly ovepower any negatives associated with the service.

Thank you Ace GarageGuy and Too Old,

There are several instances in Mr. DeAngelo's reply that just don't add up to me and don't really apply to selling on Ebay

I started to respond with my thoughts/experiences but I've already said what I had to say and I thought best to just let it go.

It works fine for me so I use it.

Like anything, don't give up and quit, figure out how to make it work for you.

CadillacPat

Edited October 25, 2012 by CadillacPat

[fredgsanford]

Thank you Ace GarageGuy and Too Old,

There are several instances in Mr. DeAngelo's reply that don't make sense to me and don't really apply to selling on Ebay

I started to respond with my thoughts/experiences but I've already said what I had to say and I thought best to just let it go.

CadillacPat

The original posters question was why is there so much anti ebay sentiment , I tried to give him some answers

I do use ebay ,and will continue to use ebay but it does not mean i have to be thrilled about it.

[VW Dave]

I do use ebay ,and will continue to use ebay but it does not mean i have to be thrilled about it.

I agree. While I'm not happy about the recent 'final value fee' taken out of the postage, I know that the minor costs associated with Ebay are offset by the much broader audience, and I'll keep using it.

[tubbs]

Let's see,

I can rent a table or spot at an open air flea market, set up and sit in the heat all day waiting for a tiny percentage of passersby who might be interested (and financially liquid enough to buy them) while watching my items melt in the sun and gather dust, then have to pack up all over again and go home, and then unload everything again there,

Or,

For a total 12% or 13% charge (sure I would rather it be only 8% or 9%, not that much difference really from 12% or 13%) I can expose my work to the PLANET and let USPS pick SOLD items up from the front porch in the FREE boxes that they not only provided but delivered.

No gas, no wasted time, no renting a spot, no packing and unpacking

Hmmmmmmmmmmmm-----

Guess which one I pick??

CadillacPat

This is exactly what is ruining swap meets, venders areas, even simple flea markets. I actually enjoy going to these events, setting up and tearing down, it's all part of it and i dont mind it. i'd rather grab a few beers and walk the aisles and have the parts i am looking for right there in my hand and be able to barter with the fellow than sit at home staring at some computer screen, hoping the part i am gitting is what the guy is advertising! i hear more problems buying over the internet than i do buying at a swap meet.. Sure, most anything you want is there on the net, great selection, but i hate fees, shipping and anything else that gets tacked on.To me, loading and unloading takes just as much time as taking pictures, writing context, mailing back and forth, waiting till the auction is over, findiing the right size box, packaging it up and getting it to the post office....... just my .02 cents.

and one more thing, i can buy a heck of a lot of kits at a swap meet for the cost of what some of you are paying for your smart phones each month. My sons just can't see how i live without texting, internet right in my palm.... but that is another thread.

Edited October 25, 2012 by tubbs

[Rob Hall]

This is exactly what is ruining swap meets, venders areas, even simple flea markets. I actually enjoy going to these events, setting up and tearing down, it's all part of it and i dont mind it.

I bought a lot of old diecast and occasionally models and promos at flea markets back in the '90s, I thought those died out long ago...eBay is the world's largest flea market in some ways..

Edited October 25, 2012 by Rob Hall

[greymack]

Yeah makes some of us spend alot of money there too