10 Reasons Why eBay Sucks for Sellers

BY Ben Lang Nov. 20, 2009 552 Comments

Yes, I started my entrepreneurship career on eBay. My business was selling other peoples items and then taking a commission. I enjoyed making nice commissions and was even interview on television. I loved eBay then. Now I don’t. Here are 10 reasons why I think eBay sucks for sellers. I’m not the only one who hates eBay, so many people have eBay problems.

1. Illegitimate feedback

If a buyer gives you a negtive feedback for no reason, you can’t remove it. There goes your entire reputation and sometimes your entire business.

2. Annoying rules

For example in the last 12 hours of an auction you can’t change images. A potential buyer emailed me to notify me that I had put the wrong picture on the auction page. There was no bid but because there were only 10 hours left, I couldn’t change the picture, and what do you know, no sale.

3. Bogus buyers

No more negative feedback for bogus buyers, meaning that buyers who don’t pay for their winning bids cannot be penalized by the seller. This too destroys the entire feedback system.

4. Fees

EBay’s sale commission is a good chunk plus you have to pay for every listing detail practically. Subtitle: $.50, picture: $.25, bold title: $1, etc.

5. PayPal

If you use PayPal which is very handy for eBay selling you’re going to be ripped off. They continually take more and more commissions. Plus eBay owns PayPal so you are charged 3 times, listing, commission and PayPal!

6. Refunds

Someone can buy your item using PayPal, receive the item, and then lie and say that it was not shipped. PayPal will then refund them the entire purchase amount.

8. Shipping

Everything relies on shipping. The postal service once lost a small expensive package I sold; the buyer had not pay for insurance. So I had to wait for weeks to find out what happened, and then reimburse the item from my pocket!

9. Free alternative – Craigslist

There’s just no incentive to sell on eBay when you have Craigslist. It’s 100% free, the buying market is huge, its easy, no shipping involved, door to door. What more could you ask for?

10. Terrible customer service

If you have a problem with a sale or purchase, you have to go through bots and finally days later receive a humans actual help.

* Messy interface

Every time eBay seems to update their interface and website it gets worse. No matter how many people complain the site just becomes worse.

So even though I started a successful eBay business I have moved on. If you use eBay, let me know what you think.

Alternatives to eBay:

Feel free to share your experience with eBay below.

Entrepreneurship

eBay, top 10

hannah

I wish buyers and sellers would use alternate auction sites. I have found one that is great but people are so brainwashed to ebay and how they can scam sellers. There are quite a few but http://www.blujay.com seems great. I wish everyone would boycott Ebay and find these alternate sites that are on the up and up!
Emma

As long as I sold cheepish items (mostly wool yarn from my stash) i did fine on ebay. But the moment I listed electronic gadgetry there was a scammer at my door. Buyer started claiming lost item only a day or two after me sending, then brought up full refund a few days later. I answered all her 19 emails (she sent me 2-3 a day) in a very polite manner, then she filed a case against me claiming I was non responsive and item was a no show. Now I’m stuck in a case where buyer has 0% burden of proof and I will have to refund her for an item that she is most likely using as we speak. With ebays’s attitude, scamming a seller is easiest thing ever!

professor chaos

Did you provide a tracking number? They’re free if you print your labels. If you have a tracking number and it shows delivered, the case is closed in favor of seller. If you don’t use tracking you’re asking for trouble.

acid

To make E bay down, we have to make that e bay is not worth to trust for buyers. A year ago, I sold things on E bay and I didn’t do anything wrong. However, they suspended my account due to the negative feedback from the buyer who said that he didn’t receive the item I sent to him. After that case, I tried to start my e bay seller life again. However, I tried, they banned me after a couple weeks with no reason even I had some positive feedback. From that time, I am start hating E bay and start thinking how to make E bay to complete collapse. The only way is to make people think that E bay is unworthy to trust for both sellers and buyers. I invest 50 USD in every month to buy from e bay and give negative feedback to seller until three person. Moreover, I sell two or three items in every months without sending anything to buyers. E bay suspend my account when they didn’t hear any explanation from me. Then I open a new account and do it again. Because I know how to get pay pal account and e bay account without letting know my true ID. I know my idea can harm to others but revolution needs sacrifices. However, I will do it to e bay until last drop of my blood. Some people may think that I am bad. Yes may be. But what I believe is it is totally depending on the site you look. When I honest to them, they see me and treat me like a bad guy. Ok, now I am bad to them, what they gonna do to me? NOTHING!!!!! I don’t think their buyer protection can protect well because as an E bay law, to justify the seller rating, they have to let me trade for one time on e bay and listen how the buyer replies to that seller. I am not targeting to sell the things on e bay for long run so I don’t need these. My desire and intention are out of the bound what they except.

passionately pissed-off

Way to go dipshit! “Ebay is full of criminals, so we’ll get them back by joining the criminals!”

Yeah, that’ll help maintain what little faith we all have left in each other.

Levine21

Let,me start first off about ebay & seller return policy.
What is a used item?Does a used item require a return policy?
Used:Is a used good or a second-hand good as from a Market of Garage Sale may have damage, age,worn or defects.
Vintage:The word vintage is copied from its use in wine terminology, as a more elegant-seeming euphemism for “old”.
I sell used,old,vintage bamboo fly rods on ebay.I started around 2 months ago.The reason for selling them is I don’t want them.Find then a new home.This item I sell is aged,vintage or plan and simply as black & white old.A old item will always be old no matter if you completely restore the old item it will alway be known as old or vintage.No time machine.
I sell these rods to simply to find them a new home and to make a little money as well.Because,these are old,vintage and used I want to offer a 3 day return policy only if the buyer recieves the item damaged.I pay insurance for that reason as well.
I state in all my listing this:
This is a used item.Sold as a used item.Not New,Not New Condition.Authentic unknown,Originality unknown, no certificate of authenticity.If restored,refinished,repair,redone unknown.

After stating all of that in my listing.I still get bidders,buyers thinking it’s the holy grail.Bidders,buyers buy before they read or ask question.I have a buyer asking for a return/refund because,after recieving the fly rod.He took it to his expert.His expert stated this rod was refinished not original.As of now I’m fighting the case.We all know who’s gonna win this.The buyer.Ebay’s a scam.Only for the buyer not for the seller.A seller can choose not to have a no return policy.Ebay over rides the seller buy stated your under ebay buyer protection policy.Then,Why ebay?Why?Offer,to the seller the option to have a no return policy?Scam it is just a scam for the sellers.
Here’s another:Seller’s option from ebay for the seller:Buyer pays all return shipping.???
Take a return example:He/She returns the item.Buyer pays shipping.Ebay gives full refund of item cost and shipping cost.Ebay?Why give the seller a shipping cost buyer pays option then?Scam it is just a scam.
Then,we have the buyer misleaders/scamers,Ebay’s free shipping scam.Asking all buyers to offer free shipping to their buyers for ebays promotions.Seller see’s nothing from ebay.Seller get only one free photo to sell a item?2 free photos would be nice to avoid returns.Free auction style scam as well.Feedback scam.
Now, last from what you stated about Craigslist is totally wrong!Craigslist is all scammer people buying and selling with spam mail.Years ago Craigslist was fine now corrupted.
ihateebay

I sold item on ebay this month I mailed the package to the
buyer and 3 days after it being delivered I get this message from the
buyer:
When I received the tree, I thought is
was dull, so I washed it. The gold flecks were supposed to be INSIDE
the tree, however, most of the, what turned out to be spray paint on
the exterior, came off. I paid a lot of money for this item and I want
to return it for a full refund.
I replied:
I
beg to differ with you I washed that tree myself I know for a fact
that there was no spray paint on the outside of that tree. The gold
flecks are inside the tree and that tree is not dull. It’s glass, In
fact the label is Murano and this is how they make them. There’s other
Murano tree’s that I have seen on eBay and they were made just like
this one. The tree is a beautiful example of Murano glass. That’s why I
had so many bidders bidding on it. This tree was not misrepresented it
is exactly as I described.
Then she replied I don’t think so I’ll contact ebay.
I did not respond to that message.
So
she opens a item as not decribed against me. At this point I don’t care
about loosing my top rated seller and 100% feedback I want to fight
this. So I esculated the case and of couse the bastards sided with her. I
called ebay support to appeal my case and the rep reviewed my case and
looked at my pictures and he actually agreed with me..HUH? So who
reviews our cases a bunch of monkeys. He said the reason why they
decided in her favor was that she changed her mine and had buyers
remorse and that I can re-list the item to someone who really wants it.
What kind of bullshit is that? They even gave her a prepaid shipping
label. I said thats a bunch of crap and I reported the buyer for abusing
ebay protection. I told them your willing to loose a seller to someone
that buys maybe once every year? I told him we the sellers pay your
salery and without us you don’t have buyers. A lot of you are saying
whats the big deal just return her money… No it’s not right the buyers
black mail us and if we don’t do what they want they give us a negative
mark on our feedback it’s a no win situation even if we do have them
return the item for a refund. At this point I’m fed up with ebay I told
him what good is it to say no returns if you don’t stand by our decision
as sellers when we list an item ? I told him that I’ll be taking my
business elswhere (ETSY) and he said we really dont’ want to loose you
as a seller and to reconsider I said yeah right keep reading your
script!!!!!!
Posted this on ebay and they took it off!!!!!!
Yadayadayada11

I just can’t stand the shipping over seas, no tracking with first class so they get their stuff and then file a claim saying they didn’t get it and Ebay automatically rules in their favor even though our USPS shows accepting it when i dropped it off. Then you tell them they need to pay for Express so it has tracking and they complain about how much it costs. Until international first class has tracking i’m done shipping out of the country. Ebay does favor the buyers no matter what which includes the shady ones.
Phoebewillz

I agree!! i just been done twice this month, i have always been an honest ebayer, only to get those horrible malicious buyers who think its ok to rip people off by saying that i never sent the item that they bought, when i have a receipt for proof of postage, but does not contain a tracking number, therefore the buyer has manage to turn my reputation into a negetive score, leaving me with no item, and an empty pocket due to having to refund the full amount. Ebay look after their buyers and not their sellers. i hope one day, someone bigger than ebay will manage to get a petition signed by loads of people to take them to court, or close them down, they are greedy, theaves and allow all scammers to con sellers. I hate ebay, if someone out there is willing to bring them down, then the count me in!! im suprised they havent been reported yet on the news, or in the local newspapers as being the biggest conners going.
Danette

http://www.change.org/petitions/occupy-ebay-demanding-rights-for-sellers-on-ebay-and-paypal-end-to-the-policy-of-put-up-and-shut-up
Alexdottir

For someone like me – and I only sell stuff that I don’t use or wear anymore from my own closet – I made 600 dollars last year on that. Much better than giving it away
http://ubokia.com Scott Pine

Have any of you looked at Ubokia (com). They are taking a completely different tack. Buyers Post what they Want and sellers respond. The best part is the Want has lots of detail and you can select the buyer (s) you want to sell to. You get to see qualified buyers. It’s anonymous and you can dialogue anonymously until you have a deal.
thomas principi

I’m done with eBay. Someone took item to dry cleaner they ruined item. They want a refund. I have no choice but to refund them and get a no good item back that I cannot resell! This is just one of many seller problems that makes it difficult to make money. Ebay is for buyers only!
Kristykriel

Sell on facebook. A buyer can and will extort you. ONe out of ten buyers asks for the full amount back plus keeping the item. Ebay will do NOTHING to protect you but they claim they try to keep it safe. Safe for thieves and dishonest buyers they mean. They have the most unjust system. Most towns have a local facebook site in which you can sell your stuff locally and for free. Without extortion and high fees. Check your local facebook classified sites. I sell many things this way and tell ebay to fuck off.
Kristykriel

EBAY IS TOTALLY EVIL EVIL EVIL. THEY ALLOW BUYERS TO STEAL ROB EXTORT ETC.ETC.
Ebayblows

Ebay and Paypal BOTH suck!

I’ve been using Ebay for 10 years. Last month I sold 1 used music cd for $0.99 (out of 20 which didn’t sell) and charged $5 shipping. I went to my paypal account to check the balance only to find out that Paypal put a “HOLD” on any funds for 21 days because I had “not sold anything for the past 90 days”.

Now I have to ship an item the buyer is waiting for and I can’t collect my money for 3 weeks?!

I refunded the buyer his money, closed both my Ebay and Paypal accounts and said the HELL WITH YOU EBAY AND PAYPAL!

M.G.

Paypal stated that this is going to be their practice from now on.They are sorry and I would recommend that sellers not use Paypal.People need to stop using Paypal.

Anonymous

Anyone know what I can do. I sold an item on E bay, A jacket for £80. The buyer who lives abroad says he never received it. I have a proof of postage and that is all. E bay gave the buyer his money back and now want me to pay E bay £80. They don’t accept that the proof of postage. Now I have a debt agency after me threatening me all the time. Anyone else had this and what did you do. I am never using E bay again.

M.G.

Sell on ioffer and sell.com and don’t use Paypal or Google Checkout.Check,money order,international money order,Western Union,cash etc.

Bjeffery766

I think the 21 day wait for sellers on payment is dumb. I think that it is not fair for them to expect you to send out your product and not receive funds for it. I also think that instead of charging the seller with three different fees, they should make it one fee. I find that all of the fees confuse me. I apologize to all of the English Major’s on my poor spelling and grammar.
Kgalep

eBay suspended me in July and this is January 2012 they still have not told me why….they say it is internal….internal what? I had been a seller on eBay (and a buyer) for 10 years, a power seller, 100% feedback….then PayPal holds my money because of eBay….almost 6 months and I cannot get my money. THEN, I tried to resign from eBay, they say I cannot quit because I am suspended. Go figure. Then eBay owes me $40 and says I cannot have it because I am suspended. Go figure. Paypal has over $1800 of my money…can’t touch it……I have always been fair, truthful, legal, bending over backwards for sellers, sometimes deadbeat ones…and I get the so-called suspension.

M.G.

Paypal is holding my $435.00 for 180 days.Paypal got mad at me because I told the Iowa attorney general that they started holding seller’s money for 21 days.He told them that hey had to stop doing that.They did for one hour and then they limited my account.

Ding

Ebay has the WOSRT Customer Service of any company I have ever seen. You can’t email them and if you call them they read from a script. If you interrupt their reading from their script, they put you on hold for 4 minutes then come back and start the script all over again. They have zero common sense! I once asked for a supervisor of customer service and was refused. When I insisted they said the supv will have to call me back. That has been about 6 months ago now! I am done with these assholes. Too many other places to buy from to have to put up with stupid assholes!
Linda

I have been reading your guys comments for a time now….and I agree!!
I have been selling on ebay for over a year now, and im SICK and TIRED of getting ripped off by EBAY and its buyers!!
I have decided to buy stuff on ebay and sell on Craigslist.
Im going to see how much free stuff I can get on ebay, but first im going to do some research on buyer and seller protection.
I recommend this to all of you.
anyways, WHY am I doing this?
I just sold something. and the person is keeping it after ebay has reimbursed their money.
FUCK YOU EBAY! YOU FUCKING WHORE!

M.G.

Buyers have figured out that Paypal and Ebay protection mean they can get things for free.

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000142081144 Rebecca O’Reilly Boyle

So disgusted with Ebay and Paypal. I’ve been selling for a number of years on ebay, no complaints from buyers, now Paypal wants to hang onto my money for weeks and weeks. Getting ridiculous! Fees fees and more fees from ebay and paypal make it just a waste of my time anymore. Like all good things, ebay too had to end.

M.G.

I hear you.I was going along just fine.One day I received an email stating that Paypal is going to hold my funds for 21 days.I had not done anything wrong.I was told that I needed to be selling on Ebay.I sell on other sites,not on Ebay.I raised a huge fuss.Paypal emailed me and told me that they would stop holding the funds.Then an hour later Paypal emailed me and told me that now my Paypal account is limited and they are going to hold my funds for 180 days.

http://www.facebook.com/exclusivelyyours09 Jessica Weissenburger

I’m not a very active buyer, but I’ve never had a problem with eBay or any of its sellers. I pay once I win an auction, though I prefer to just buy it now. Never had a single person scam me while I was buying, so I have the utmost respect for sellers. My brother, however, has not been as lucky as I have. He once sold his X-Box on ebay for $300 and the buyer canceled the payment AFTER my brother had shipped the item.

To the best of my knowledge he never got his money back and eBay never did a thing to get his money back or even to get the X-Box back. I don’t see myself returning to eBay anytime soon as it’s gotten some-what ridiculous.

I frequent Amazon.com now and often find better deals from sellers. Just wish their feedback system was a little more developed, since it’s not always clear why they have some negative feedback — unless you want to dig through all their feedback.

m.g.

Sellers are safe on Amazon.com

Kally6

i tried e-bid and never so a thing you sellers have no choice to suck up to ebay or make no money, whats with amazon ive been told that they sell everything cheaper than anyone so there is no point selling on there either, im getting sick of ebay and to be honest i thinking of not going on there anymore unless the change i rather be skint and happy and i rather give stuff to charity
Kally6

i tried e-bid and never so a thing you sellers have no choice to suck up to ebay or make no money, whats with amazon ive been told that they sell everything cheaper than anyone so there is no point selling on there either, im getting sick of ebay and to be honest i thinking of not going on there anymore unless the change i rather be skint and happy and i rather give stuff to charity
1787

I started selling on eBay for 4 years now and there’s always something new going on with my account. something bad most likely. the first year i was well off, buyers loved my products i made lots of $ then i got reported by jealous buyers (maybe rival sellers) who did not like the product. demand a refund and little was i know i refund all their money back and did not even get the item back in return. i was very upset i close down that account due to 1 negative feedback that hurt me deeply. i stopped selling on that account for a few months and had to closed it down. i re-open a new account to sell. i wanted to start out new and fresh. my new account was limited to 10 listing per month. which was okay i understand that. so i sold and sold to gain more listing and after 2 months later ebay suspending my account. limited from free to 50 listing per month. they said i was associated with an account that was NOT MINE. and they found out who it belongs too and then gave me another reason to suspend my account. they said it was suspended because i have not sold on the old account for months and i shut it down when i am not supposed to so. so now my account is limited to selling 50 limited. this hurt me but it did not stop me from selling because i love to sell on ebay. so i wanted to change my real full name to a business account showing a business name. so i contact paypal and ebay to do and the ebay customer services told me to change my ebay real name to my business name and that should do it, so when i print out my shipping it will show my ebay screen name instead of real name. after that i waited 6months for them to remove the limit on my account. 6 months pass by i was so happy so i made a call to ebay and tell them to remove my limit. i spoke to an ebay customer services and he suspended my account. he told me that i was associated with an account that wasn’t mine and i told him that was my ex. then he also gave me another excuse reason to suspend he said i changed my full name and put a fake name, which i did not i changed my ebay screen name to my name because the other ebay customer services told me to do so to make a business account without showing my real name. he did not believe me he told me that they would never do that and accused me of a crime that i did not put my real name and use his power as an ebay customer services to suspended my account and hung up on me. i was frustrated i called back to report him but they did not do anything about it and told me it was my fault.. i hate ebay poor customer services that uses power against you (your account) and yet, it’s very unfair. they don’t understand that you need to work too just like them. gosh i hope this guy loose his fucken job.

1987

ALL THAT HARD WORK I DID JUST FOR THEM TO SUSPEND MY ACCOUNT IN THE END. I WAS VERY SAND AND FRUSTRATED. I EVEN CRIED. BECAUSE I DEPEND ON EBAY FOR MY INCOME!

Isaacldsm

IM SO SORRY TO HERE THAT… FUCK EBAY,, THEY ARE NOT THE ONLY SITE IN WHICH YOU CAN SELL YOUR OWN PRODUCTS AND MAKE INCOME .TRY GREAT WEBSITES LIKE AMZAON, UBID,THERE ARE MANY OTHER SITES.. WHAT THAT CUSTOMER CARE REPRESENTATIVE DID WAS EVIL AND WAS AN ABUSE OF POWER. GOD DOESNT LIKE UGLY, AND THE LORD WILL SURELY REPAY HIM FOR HIS EVIL DEED. THIS GUY DOESNT KNOW THAT KARMA IS A BITCH WITH A CAPITAL B… MAY THE LORD BLESS YOU AND HELP YOU FLOURISH FINANCIALLY, AND LIVE GOOD HEALTH…

http://pulse.yahoo.com/_PHMJUZVSCJQ6WO3UKXAFGVDSWM Ramon

Shut up, moron.

Ebayrapedme

ebay worker, eh?

Jen

I understand, so far I have received 2 negs and 1 neutral in 2 months of selling. 1 neg. of which was my fault, but the other two was not on me at all but on the buyer. One was upset because he claimed that he did not get his hat, but I had proof that he did. He threatened me then placed a neg feedback. I told Ebay and they would not take it off although I got the proof that it was shipped. The other person placed a neutral claiming the bracelet that I sold was showing elastic. It is a stretch bracelet and I described it with the elastic. At the end of her neutral post she wrote that I did a good job with the item. I was like, what the #%#%? Ebay would not take off the neutral or the other negs. I am new at Ebay, but already starting to hate it. I need a better alternative to sell. Please help and thanks for this article it shows that I am not alone.

http://pulse.yahoo.com/_CRGNT3ZAZWODYLEO5RLHLDAVK4 Pendleham crotchman

This is what I think of ebay,

http://myworld.ebay.co.uk/cheapchineseshit

enough said.
Samas1972

Totally agree and understand all reasons. I myself is a victim of feedback abuse because even after knowing the postage cost upfront one buyer left me negative feedback saying that postage was too much. I talked with ebay and they have no system in place which protects sellers from feedback abuse. I would not sell any item on ebay now.
Anonymous

Ya, I’m done with them it’s ridiculous how much they raise their fees. Here’s a list of other ones http://siteslikeebay.com. I think a lot of people are starting to jump ship more often, at least the people I know that used it.
http://pulse.yahoo.com/_P53PUTHOZZJ67MR6MOXRNQ6CAI Dellon

THIS IS SO TRUE, 4,5,6,8 I GUESS THEY MISS 7 BUT O WELL, I AGRESS WITH EVERYTHING IT STATED. RAN INTO A PROBLEM WITH EBAY, THE POST OFFICE LOST A $355 ITEM, EBAY REFUND THE CUSTOMER OUT OF MY BANK ACCOUNT, PAYPAL TOOK A $10 FEE, EBAY TOOK A $40 FEE FROM ME SO BASICALLY ITEM SOLD FOR 305. AND PAYPAL WON’T LET MY MONEY OUT MY ACCOUNT, IT HOLD IT UP TO 21 DAYS LIKE WTF. FUCK THAT IM DONE WITH BOTH. USPS LOST MY PACKAGE AND SAID I COULDNT DO NOTHING ABOUT IT, I HAD TO WAIT CLOSE TO A MONTH TO GET MY PACKAGE BACK. I WILL NO LONGER SELL ITEM ON EBAY OR SHIP WITH USPS.

professor chaos

Why didn’t you buy insurance? It’s cheap enough.

Wait! You said USPS lost your package and then you complained that you had to wait a month to get it back. How did they lose it and you got it back?

M.G.

Get off of this site Ebay seller.

passionately pissed-off

M.G. – why don’t you take a hike moron? You can’t even figure out what side of the conversation your on.
And yes, I’m a pissed off buyer who is positive that there are SOME sellers on this thread who have sold totally misrepresented crap, as well as greatly exaggerating the demise of their transaction.

I filed a dispute on $15 worth of cell phone batteries that didn’t fit my phone as stated. The batteries were too thick. My dispute got me nowhere. Seller won.
I check back about a month later, again, for extra batteries for my phone, and what do you know? Almost every add was selling a modified back to accomodate the thicker batteries.

It’s crap all the way around, and nothing but bullshit in between…..

M.G.

Close your Paypal account as soon as you can.

Domboy4u

seems to me your just a bunch of whinging bitches, with no real gripe. FFS sake get a life

M.G.

We are not canines in heat.We are human beings.Please take your nasty self off of this page.

Guest

I’m gonna have to disagree with most of the inflated “cons” spat about this page.

M.G.

Ebay used to be a terrific selling website.I was with them from the beginning many years ago and also with Paypal.Not now.It started with Ebay insisting that we use Paypal.Paypal sucks eggs big time.They always side with the buyer no matter what.If you don’t agree with Paypal they first hold funds for 21 days and then limit the account and hold your funds for 180 days.I gave up on Ebay many years ago and I closed my Paypal account just recently.