Annoying ebay gripe

[Tribal-Wolf]

It really annoys me when I see things on ebay asking for more money to insure the delivery or recorded delivery at extra cost. Don't these morons know the law in this country states that until you receive your item it still belongs to them so if it gets lost in the post it's the sellers problem. Another dodgy thing is forums asking for paypal as a gift, yes it avoids fees but it also means the buyer has absolutely no comeback if they don't receive the goods or it's faulty, you're relying totally on the seller being genuine.

Rant over lol

[StevieDvd]

Another one to watch out for is when a seller offers to send you a Paypal invoice for an item, you need to make sure it covers goods not services as the Paypal guarantee won't cover you.

Daughter is after an Ipad2 and am having a hard time getting it through to her that when something is too cheap it could be dodgy. She was quick enough to spot the invoice trick though and did not fall for it.

[Tribal-Wolf]

My wife sent a leather motorcycle jacket to a buyer on ebay who said they never got it, she never sent it recorded so even though we had proof of postage we had to refund the buyer so we ended up with no jacket and no money. I ALWAYS send everything recorded now because I trust nobody. It's a common thing unfortunately for buyers to try and say they never get an ebay item, gone are the days of honest Britain

[Damo636]

Although i have used the Paypal gift option quite a few times for both buying and selling i am always a little apprehensive about doing so. In saying that i haven't had any problems to date. I think astronomers are a pretty honest lot in general.

[Catweazel]

Although i have used the Paypal gift option quite a few times for both buying and selling i am always a little apprehensive about doing so. In saying that i haven't had any problems to date. I think astronomers are a pretty honest lot in general.

Me too! I have had a few things off Astro B&S and paid by PayPal gift, without any trouble, but it never hurts to be cautious

[cgarry]

I have used PayPal as a gift many many times without a problem. I see no reason to swell PayPal's coffers further. If the buyer wants the protection they can always pay the PayPal fees themselves.

Chris

[Earl]

A couple of things.

Ebay Business sellers are not allowed to charge extra for insurance with the exception on large value items and few others which I cant remember.

Recorded Delivery costs more, so it has to be more expensive. (on my personal ebay account everything I send out is via a signed for postage, on my business orders over x value go signed for regardless.)

DSR's at present do not cover auction items, only Buy it Now items, this is however in the process of been updated, of course at the nice bureaucratic pace these things take.

Paypal gift is iffy, however it is not unfair to request buyer covers the fees, (outside of ebay this is)( pay-pal does not always seem to offer that option, or i cant seem to find it at times.)

Seller Beware, Buyer beware oh and never ship to Italy im sure it has a black hole for post.....

[Viv]

Sometimes - the delivery lot really can't be bothered.

I tend to order online, especially at christmas time - more specialist gift (model cars). One was left out the front of the house (obviously no-one home, so it sat there for I dread to think how many hours. We're on a fairly busy road, so really surprised it wasn't there.

Also the royal mail who didn't leave one of their red cards, i ended up going there with the proof of postage, from the company website !

[Kai]

Also if using Royal Mail "Signed For" check the amount of compensation you can claim for is something goes wrong , iirc its £40.......These items are not tracked through the postal network so there is no proof that it has even got to the Mail centre / Sorting Office.

This is the reason that i will always use "Special Delivery" , yes its more expensive but its tracked from the post office to delivery every step of the way .Its guaranteed delivery by 1pm and covers up to £500.

[Astro-Bob.]

All mounds like good advice to me chaps. I have received deliveries with bits missing, in fact I had one today, but I always sent stuff on ebay to be signed for, I am quite happy to pay the paypal fees on low cost items, why should the seller lose money when it's not much in the first place, and I have gifted with no probs so far.

[Daveb3650]

Just to hoy a bit in about the compensation with Royal Mail - I work for the group - We aren't all bad, folks. The compensation available works out at 100 x the cost of a first class stamp which takes it to £46.00 and make sure you get proof of posting which is FREE.Keep it for a few weeks after the item has been delivered.

Ebay sellers should always send by recorded - this protects you from people who say they never receive an item. I deal with customers all day sending items and 99% do send using Recorded Delivery as lots of them have been burned by people saying that they did not receive something. Ebay used to take the side of the seller, they only do it now if the seller has used Recorded Delivery or in the case of more valuable items Special Delivery. The reason is that both of these services require a signature and delivery can be proved.

Also, if the item is MONEY - JEWELLERY - GIFT VOUCHERS - ANY FORM OF TICKETS - EVEN IF THE VALUE IS UNDER £46 - - THESE MUST BE SENT BY SPECIAL DELIVERY to be covered for any form of compensation.

I hope this helps a bit..... Any questions - ASK - I don't like to see us all get tarred with the same brush, lots of us are honest decent folk. EBAY is the same, not everyone is out to swindle you.

Be careful, make sure the correct service is being used - Even if the seller is NOT advertising something as being posted with Recorded Delivery - ASK for it to be included - IT ONLY COSTS 77p on top of your postage. If the seller wont do it....ask why not......Any genuine seller WILL.

Stay Safe folks.

[weemax]

I recently had some animal supplies go missing with Royal Mail. Sale was through eBay, I refunded the buyer after 15 working days and I am currently chasing things up with Royal Mail.

Sold quite a number of things on eBay over the years & this is my first claim for a lost item.

[hunterknox]

.... Don't these morons know the law in this country states that until you receive your item it still belongs to them so if it gets lost in the post it's the sellers problem.

Bit harsh to be calling people morons for not being such a hot shot trade lawyer as yourself.

[Tribal-Wolf]

Not really because they try and say it's not their fault if something goes missing and you have already paid. I have had a few ebay sellers get stroppy when I haven't received something saying things like 'well there was a more expensive postage that covered loss' or 'it's not our fault it got lost we but we don;t refund' The seller regs are in place for Buy it now items that's true but if you post something it is still classed as your property until the someone receives it, try claiming from the royal mail for something you never received and they will tell you they can only deal with the poster. The moronic bit is the twonks who try and pass the buck, I'm not claiming to be a hot shot anything just stating a fact that most of these people know but try to fool the general public into believing otherwise so they can charge extra for postage or fob you off when it gets lost.

[S1m0n]

One thing i state when i sell stuff on ebay is i send via special delivery so i know the item will get to you or its covered for ny loss etc and this is why postage is higher than normal!!! saying that ebay restrict me on postage price!! i could only charge £9 postage on something that cost me £22 to post ! Although i wouldnt charge that muc i normally try to charge 50% of postage cost if its a heavy item.

Under the sales of good act you are entitled to a refund on any item that is faulty or not as described under the distance seller act and this includes any item not recived.

Ifyou dont receive an item and seller wont refund open a dispute but you must wait 15 days.

Remember not all people are con artists and do sell things cheap I often sell things cheap i call it a no frills sale, |I get what I want for it and the other person gets a good deal.

Also you need to restrict who buys from you if they have little to no feedback do not allow them to bid unless they contact you first and give you assurances etc.

[Tribal-Wolf]

I find Parcel Monkey good for heavy stuff or basically anything you would use parcelforce to send as they're a fair bit cheaper, they use Citylink I think. I've used them for loads of motorcycle stuff.

I always charge fairly for postage and expect the same of others. I like ebay as a rule but I was having a rant after reading a few ads on there earlier lol

[jfox61]

My sale of items on ebay are all charged at cost of actual postage plus the cost of whatever type of packaging it requires. It states this clearly in my conditions of sale. If you are a buyer, you look at the cost of an item plus postage, then decide whether it is worth the expense. It has worked for me, I still have 100% feedback after mor than 2500 transactions.

What riles me, is the buyers who will buy something, pay for it, then leave negative feedback for the seller, slagging off postage costs. If you don't like what the postage is, don't buy the item. This doesn't affect me as my prices as stated are at cost and I make only 5 or 6 pence on my postage, sometimes a loss depending on if I get the wieghts right or not.

One scam to get around fees, is the seller will advertise an item he wants to sell for 1p. Let's say its value is £30, he will then chage 29.99 for postage.

I'm sure this loophole is closed now as ebay now charge, as far as I am aware, for the total cost of item and postage

[Tribal-Wolf]

Yep that is/was against ebay rules and classed as circumventing ebay fees.

[Demonperformer]

What riles me, is the buyers who will buy something, pay for it, then leave negative feedback for the seller, slagging off postage costs. If you don't like what the postage is, don't buy the item.

I agree about the negative feedback, but I think a lot of the problem here is that people get an item, see the value of the stamps (which they did not necessarily know before it is received) and wonder at the extra on top of that, forgetting the additional costs you may have incurred for packing the item.

[NGC404]

Heard from someone who works at Royal mail

With all the new automated systems, no parcel ever goes missing

(unless its got no delivery address and returns address on it)

If one does go missing it means someone along the line has got a freebee

[Daveb3650]

Not really because they try and say it's not their fault if something goes missing and you have already paid. I have had a few ebay sellers get stroppy when I haven't received something saying things like 'well there was a more expensive postage that covered loss' or 'it's not our fault it got lost we but we don;t refund' The seller regs are in place for Buy it now items that's true but if you post something it is still classed as your property until the someone receives it, try claiming from the royal mail for something you never received and they will tell you they can only deal with the poster. The moronic bit is the twonks who try and pass the buck, I'm not claiming to be a hot shot anything just stating a fact that most of these people know but try to fool the general public into believing otherwise so they can charge extra for postage or fob you off when it gets lost.

The reason they deal with the sender is because they want to know a lot of info about the item that usually the sender will only know. Like where was it posted,,,date,,,,,post office used,,,,type of packing......etc etc....

It speeds up the enquiry in the long run as they get this info in one fell swoop when the sender fills in a P58 enquiry form. Where as the receiver wouldnt know this information.

Sometimes there can be a reason for a delay that this information will uncover.

YES, it can be frustrating cos every packet you are waiting for is the most important packet in the world to you ..[Don't forget folks, it's happened to me too so I am NOT biased on this issue]..

But they do need the full info to try and sort things out....

I've had people attempt to post things at my office that I have refused to accept,,,, you'd be amazed at how many people pack things in a rubbish way, flavour of the month at the moment is to send stuff in a bin bag with a gummed label on it.....talk about maximising profits. I always tell them, "Pack it properly, Charge fairly and everyone is happy"....

There you go...........

[Daveb3650]

Heard from someone who works at Royal mail

With all the new automated systems, no parcel ever goes missing

(unless its got no delivery address and returns address on it)

If one does go missing it means someone along the line has got a freebee

Er.... think your info is a bit wrong...... Royal Mail deliver letters and packets and STANDARD parcels where the customer doesnt need a signature or any tracking and basically just wants a cheap NO FRILLS service - delivery can be 3-5 days......

Parcel Force deliver the COURIER type service parcels,they are more expensive but a much better and quicker service...

Ordinary letters/packets and ordinary parcels are not tracked and do not have any form of reference number on them.

Recorded Delivery is NOT tracked and traced - it gives you proof of posting,,,,then it just travels throught the prdinary mail system and when it gets to the delivery address the postie will request a signature.

Special Delivery IS FULLY Tracked and traced. Everything is scanned throughout its full journey..

Parcel Force 9/10/12/24 and 48 hour service ARE tracked and traced too.....

STANDARD Parcel service......nothing.....no signature

[NGC404]

Er.... think your info is a bit wrong...... Royal Mail deliver letters and packets and STANDARD parcels where the customer doesnt need a signature or any tracking and basically just wants a cheap NO FRILLS service - delivery can be 3-5 days......

Parcel Force deliver the COURIER type service parcels,they are more expensive but a much better and quicker service...

Ordinary letters/packets and ordinary parcels are not tracked and do not have any form of reference number on them.

Recorded Delivery is NOT tracked and traced - it gives you proof of posting,,,,then it just travels throught the prdinary mail system and when it gets to the delivery address the postie will request a signature.

Special Delivery IS FULLY Tracked and traced. Everything is scanned throughout its full journey..

Parcel Force 9/10/12/24 and 48 hour service ARE tracked and traced too.....

STANDARD Parcel service......nothing.....no signature

Unsure what you,ve said in your reply actually has any relivance to my post

Yep I know about all the different services, with running a mail order business myself.

I,ll be a bit more to the point with my origional post

One thing I,ve noticed running a mail order business is 2 things

1. Parcels without signature required sometimes go missing

2. Parcels sent with sig required never go missing

Work that one out for yourselfs

[cabby]

Many years ago before the internet we have now and ebay, when things were for sale in specialist magazines. I used to buy and sell alot of vintage scooter spares.

I always sent by recorded delivery and once it actually payed off. I sold a very rare petrol gauge, the buyer sent a cheque and I sent it recorded delivery.

He eventually rang to say it never arrived, so I got the info from Royal Mail when it was delivered and a copy of the signature (which matched the cheque!!).

I rang the buyer and gave him the facts and told him not to bother buying anymore from myself or others who sold the same parts in the Scootering Scene

as his name was going to be passed on country wide, he put the phone down and I never heard from him again!! neither did anyone else.

[Daveb3650]

Unsure what you,ve said in your reply actually has any relivance to my post

Yep I know about all the different services, with running a mail order business myself.

I,ll be a bit more to the point with my origional post

One thing I,ve noticed running a mail order business is 2 things

1. Parcels without signature required sometimes go missing

2. Parcels sent with sig required never go missing

Work that one out for yourselfs

You are right.....I'd like to think that we are quite an honest bunch - it's some of the peeps who do receive their packages and then try to say they didn't. I know it probably doesn't happen an awful lot. But from my work experiences in the Post Office, a lot of ebay customers have had their fingers burned. Not All, but too many!