Ebay Fleabay?

zedders

Ebay Ebay Ebay!
Is it what it’s cracked up to be? About two years ago I set up an account with the view of selling one or two bits floating around the house. But Since I have not advertised a single item. I have a mate at work who loves Ebay and states he is forever picking up a bargain. But I hear the odd comment that it’s been spoilt and is a minefield, full of dodgy folk?
Point in case:
1) My misses brought some sunglasses last year, thinking she had brought them from a lady in the Uk. They turned up from China, and weren’t as good as I expected. On contacting the lady she informed me her account had been taken over by dodgy folk and that she had been inundated. Ebay confirmed this.

2) Through work I knew that people bid on behalf of others and bump up the price. I have seen the computer evidence on their hard drives!

So have I been lucky. Should I forget it and either give away my stuff to a charity shop, or throw it away? Or should I get involved and have a go at selling one or two bits?
If I go for it. What are the pros and cons? I am a complete Ebay novice! All comments welcome.

gergusmcbergus

In my experience, Ebay is a good place to buy and sell things, every item I've bought has been as described and arrived in good time.
You can usually tell genuine folk from dodgy folk by the fact that their items are poorly/incorrectly described, and when questioned they don't give a good answer.
Obviously there are exceptions, but by exercising a little caution and common sense, I think you minimise your risk of being scammed.
Good communication is key on Ebay.

geoff_ss

I've both bought and sold quite a bit of stuff on eBay over the past few years and it's usually worked OK for me.

For example I had some old but sought after HiFi gear (Quad valve stuff) because my Dad used to sell it. I sold one item to a guy in Japan for far more than I expected - it cost about £30 to post. Then again I had a stack of 50/60s motor cycle bits that I knew people would value (magnetos/dynamos/electrical bits) but had no idea how to value it. Ebay solved the problem and it all sold. I even sold a lathe.

OTOH the eBay section I use most for buying is the RC model aircraft pages. That's changed a lot over the past year. It's quite hard to find genuine private sellers who are advertising models/kits/engines that are surplus to their requirements (if you keep building and get more skilled so you don't crash, the workshop tends to fill with planes). The pages are full of mostly Chinese advertisers selling new stuff. It used to be much more interesting when it was mostly amateurs. A plus was meeting the sellers/buyers who were, naturally, people with similar interests to me.

I've done around 100 deals in total and never really had a problem. When selling, the biggest bind is parcelling things up and posting them. I once had to send 2 model yacht hulls together with several kgs of lead ballast one to Shetland and t'other to Penzance which both were packing challenges

Give it a whirl with something of lesser value just to get the feel of it. Auction sites are excellent ways of avoiding sending surplus but useful items to landfill and recycling them.

If you do try, remember that there is no limit on how many words you put in the advert and describe fully what you're selling. It's not like a newspaper advert with a pay/word tariff.

Geoff

Le Commentateur

If heavy and not likely to sell for much (e.g. vinyl, books) you are better off giving to a charity shop, as you'll contribute too much in postage relative to what profit you actually generate. The exception will be something you know is valuable and going to attract a lot of bids and where a bidding war is likely to happen.

In the past few months Ebay have enforced a so-called "free postage" system on many categories, claiming they are in competition with retailers like Amazon who apparently do similar. This is misleading. The reality is that P&P costs obviously have to be incorporated in the starting bid price – unless you insist on buyers collecting the item in person – and this means Ebay are able to charge a higher valuation fee on completion of the sale than previously when P&P costs were separately listed.

The end result is that smaller sellers with interesting and genuinely rare items are declining in favour of cut-throat bucket shop sellers listing 1000s of items. If you want a mass market paperback at a peanuts price, fine, but a rare edition from 20 years ago is less likely to be there nowadays.

Basically for many items it seems like a lot of drudge work for little gain – and what gain there is is in a PayPal account so to convert that into real cash is going to cost you more. But anyway I keep anything I make from sales in the PayPal account to offset the cost of any purchases I subsequently make (these being fewer these days, as Ebay just isn't the motherlode of collectables it was a few years ago, probably for the above reasons).

disquieting_museeuws

Ebay have recently been on a drive to force out the small / medium seller by favouring the bulk sellers, so the site tends to be flooded by millions of the same rubbish items from China. There are still small interesting sellers but it's harder to spot them amongst the dross. The only people to benefit are the small- and big-time criminals who carry on regardless anyway in any walk of life. Generally it's fairly easy to spot the dodgy people with a little research on feedback, terms & conditions of sellers, etc. Bumping up the price ('shill bidding') happens very occasionally, but again it's often easy to spot. At the end of the day in any transaction there has to be an element of trust and you ultimately rely on the majority of people being decent. I was a music Powerseller for a couple of years & never had any problems apart from the odd moron. I played everything religiously straight down the line as regards the legal side and the Distance Selling Regulations, etc, but unfortunately there are always people who spit in the soup by cutting corners. Of course some areas of trade are more dodgy than others - you're going to get more problems selling cheap jewelry than if you specialise in antique books for example.

Generally I would say keep your eyes open and you will be fine on ebay, in theory it should be way better than Amazon, for instance, where you don't even get a picture of what you're buying.

dilemna

Zedders - Surely your comments only apply to buyers :? ? You are planning to sell?

So if you are selling then it is good if you realise more for your items. Even better if you can get your friends to bid the price up but a bummer for them if they actually win the item as presumably you'll want your money.

What I would say is avoid Paypal as their rates are extortionate. And Paypal Protection is worth bugger all in my experience. I lost £22 on some some car lights that were described as excellent condition by a seller (100% feedback) which when they turned up had a massive stone chip in each lens (MOT failure) and lichen on the inside of the glass of one where obviously water had got in. I tried to get a response from the seller - nothing. Set up a complaint/dispute with Ebay and Paypal - nothing. Reported seller to ebay - nothing but he is no longer selling under that user name as it is now dead. Requested contact details of seller from Ebay/Paypal as seller did not provide them on parcel when sent. Asked for my money back from Paypal as part of the Protection Scheme as items were not as described and defective - nothing. So had to write it off.

As long as you bid only on items from sellers that appear genuine, you shouldn't have a problem. Ask a few questions first, that will give you an inidcation of the seller and the goods they are selling.

geoff_ss

Le Commentateur wrote:

If heavy and not likely to sell for much (e.g. vinyl, books) you are better off giving to a charity shop, as you'll contribute too much in postage relative to what profit you actually generate. The exception might be something you know is going to attract a lot of bids and where a bidding war is likely to happen.

Don't forget, the buyer pays the postage. If they value the item they'll pay the cost. I've sent Caradice pannier sets to California (£50 postage IIRC) and a motor cycle magdyno to Finland (£60 postage which doubled the price to the buyer)

Geoff

northernneil

I have noticed the increasing number of dodgy purchasers in the last 6 months, I recently sold a phone for £207 - then sent the guy an invoice, next thing I know he 'no longer exists' as an ebay account ??? what the fvk ? why did he bother bidding then ?

next guy I sold it to asked me questions about the phone AFTER he bought it and started haggling about the price after the auction...... reported him and finally got paid like 4 weeks later

sometimes its not worth the hassle

still however just this morning I won some long sleeved cycling gear (rock racking :? ) from china for just over £30 - its worth a punt even if its only half decent for a jersey and long johns combo - I am not expecting assos quality or anything

Le Commentateur

Geoff_SS wrote:

Le Commentateur wrote:

If heavy and not likely to sell for much (e.g. vinyl, books) you are better off giving to a charity shop, as you'll contribute too much in postage relative to what profit you actually generate. The exception might be something you know is going to attract a lot of bids and where a bidding war is likely to happen.

Don't forget, the buyer pays the postage. If they value the item they'll pay the cost. I've sent Caradice pannier sets to California (£50 postage IIRC) and a motor cycle magdyno to Finland (£60 postage which doubled the price to the buyer)

Geoff

Yes, but it now has to be hidden in the starting price, meaning you pay a higher listing fee and also higher final valuation on completion of the auction. It just means you have to be very careful not to undercut any profit margin you*think* you are making.

I feel that for many items, life's too short to waste time weighing, calculating, photographing & describing, leaving feedback on, etc etc, whereas Cancer Research is 10 minutes away.

disquieting_museeuws

dilemna wrote:

Zedders - Surely your comments only apply to buyers :? ? You are planning to sell?

So if you are selling then it is good if you realise more for your items. Even better if you can get your friends to bid the price up but a bummer for them if they actually win the item as presumably you'll want your money.

That works against you the same if you're buying though, plus you can't expect people to treat you decently if you're ripping them off.

Shill bidding is illegal in an online or 'live' auction and you can get prosecuted for it.

skinson

It's an auction! Why would their mates bidding have any consequence for you as a buyer? When I bid I have a price in my head if the bidding goes over that I stop, simple really.
Dave

volvicspar

Ebay is great for buyers, but awful for sellers.

Forced free p+p on a lot of items, fees are around 10 - 20% plus there is every chance you will lose your item and your money when selling. You have to accept paypal as well.

If you want to buy then go ahead, if you want to sell, forget it.

Mettan

Ebay Fees-bay more like

drewfromrisca

Now too expensive, had way too many dodgy transactions and even had a threat of violence once by the person coming to my address!

bobtbuilder

I agree with all the comments regarding the fees, etc, but it is still a great way of selling your unwanted items and reaching a wide audience.

I collect pro team kit and am regularly buying and selling pieces. I now have over 1500 feedback (100%), and never had any real problems except the odd buyer not paying.

I recently bought a new Orbea Orca and raised the entire £4,200 by genuine selling team kit on Ebay.

Aggieboy

bobtbuilder wrote:

I agree with all the comments regarding the fees, etc, but it is still a great way of selling your unwanted items and reaching a wide audience.

I collect pro team kit and am regularly buying and selling pieces. I now have over 1500 feedback (100%), and never had any real problems except the odd buyer not paying.

I recently bought a new Orbea Orca and raised the entire £4,200 by genuine selling team kit on Ebay.

Did you get a helmet thrown in for that price?

Ands

zedders wrote:

What are the pros and cons? I am a complete Ebay novice! All comments welcome.

When I'm selling, I get sick of being bombarded with daft questions or questions from people who have no intention of bidding, but I am obliged to respond. We just sold a frame and one guy asked if we would ship to Taiwan so I set out on the lengthy process of finding a courier and costs, insurance, etc - he eventually bid £10 :roll: (the frame sold for over £1k). You get people asking "how much to ship to the US and can you tell me the answer in $USD" ( :roll: )

Selling clothes is the worst - "can you measure the circumference of the trouser hem...oh and give me the answer in inches not cm thanks"; "will it shrink if I wash it" :roll: :roll: :roll: .

I find the people who ask all the questions never actually place a bid.

And fees.....not cheap!

pedylan

skinson wrote:

It's an auction! Why would their mates bidding have any consequence for you as a buyer? When I bid I have a price in my head if the bidding goes over that I stop, simple really.
Dave

Not quite. If your max is say £100 and last "genuine" bidder is say £70 but seller's mate sticks a bid of £90 then you get the item at your bid limit but shill bidding has still cost you £20.

Buckled_Rims

Fingers crossed I've only had one "friggin" nightmare when I sold my car. The winning bidder kept saying, they had computer problems, was on nightshift, will OPEN a paypal account....then...will collect it on saturday...no Sunday, can't make it until Thursday...get the picture? So, I complained to ebay who did nowt. I relisted the car and actually got £200 more!

Apart from that, I like ebay somewhat, but there's not so many bargains now-adays. Everyone is wise.

However.......

I HATE paypal....really really HATE Paypal!!!!!

My paypal account was locked for 8 weeks for security reasons. I emailed them every few days demanding my money back (over £450). I have a very secure password in place for that account

1footedninja

As a seller the best way to get around the middleman BS fees for EBAY is to get you and the person who wants the item to agree they decided that they didn't want the item when they came to collect it / got it. This could be for varying reasons along the lines of item wasnt what they were exactly after. As long as you both do this then EBAY refunds the sellers selling fees (and the seller doesnt get charged the extra 3% of whatever you sold it for - which can add up to be quite alot if your selling something for a high price) and the item goes to the person who wanted it anyway for the price you sold it for and no black marks go against anyone, the three strikes and out thing only goes for stuff where you have an arguement with a seller that isn't resolved. As far as EBAY is concerned the sellers item never got sold so case is closed and resolved. Remember EBAY is just a middleman and its got fat off millions of people using there website.

As far as buying goes the thing that does my head in is , little discrepencies in how the advert is worded, to find out the item isn't as what you was thought to expect. ie hoodwinking. Thats probably my only niggle. And the shilling thing that I know goes on.Oh! and someone bumping up the price on the P&P so they get shedloads on the P&P extra, such as multiple items from the seller, only to send it out for cheaper and make a few bob off of doing it. I actually had an arguement with one seller over this, told them straight how they were conning me on the P&P , they didnt sell me the item, but by then I wasn't bothered.

afx237vi

pedylan wrote:

skinson wrote:

It's an auction! Why would their mates bidding have any consequence for you as a buyer? When I bid I have a price in my head if the bidding goes over that I stop, simple really.
Dave

Not quite. If your max is say £100 and last "genuine" bidder is say £70 but seller's mate sticks a bid of £90 then you get the item at your bid limit but shill bidding has still cost you £20.

But what's the point of the seller bidding on his own item when he can already stick a reserve price on the item when he initially lists it?

bobtbuilder

But what's the point of the seller bidding on his own item when he can already stick a reserve price on the item when he initially lists it?

a) A reserve price costs extra to the seller

b) Reserve prices have been proved to discourage a percentage of bidders

c) The seller may just wich to sell an item at any price, but is obviously happier the higher the price goes, and therefore uses a friend's account to shill bid.

Did you get a helmet thrown in for that price?

LOL!

zedders

Ummm,
As I thought. A bloody can of worms. I think I've survived two years without fleabay, and I think I'll go another two before revisiting the idea!

Classified in the Leicester Mercury then.

OffTheBackAdam

It has it's pro's & con's.
If you're selling something collectable (I do a lot with old wargames stuff, http://search.ebay.co.uk/_W0QQsassZmrgallon ) then expanding your market worldwide means you'll get much more than a small ad in your local rag.
If it's something that isn't collectable, so old baby clothes, trousers you're too fat to fit in - you know, the one's you bought last year because you were on a diet & they'd fit you by now! - then the local rag's the best choice.
The things to beware of, yep, something can be sold to you, the money's transfered by whatever means and you either never get it or it's not what you bid on/is damaged & the seller disappears. You've got limited means of redress, if it's worth a lot, then a Small Claims at your County Court can be used.
Paypal can work (It bloody should, the fees they charge!). I bought several OOP models, found that they were poor recast copies, complained, got Gamesworkshop to confirm that they were fakes & got my money back. Checked the seller's record and found he'd bought casting metal & mold-making materials not so long ago too.
E-bay's feedback process has been changed, so it's harder to spot a wrong un, you can't leave -ve feedback for a buyer! So no more "Non-paying bidder" to tip you off.
If it's bike stuff, then sell it on here (Reminds me, I've got a bag of fixed wheel sprockets somewhere!)