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Would you sell a high dollar item on ebay to someone with zero feedback
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Started by classicaaron,

29 posts in this topic

classicaaron

classicaaron

Posted
Posted

Sold a $1,000 plus book on ebay and buyer who bought has zero feedback. They paid very promptly but im nervous sending. I contacted ebay and they say to just send but cant offer any protection. 
 

ill ship with insurance and tracking obviously but am still nervous about getting scammed somehow. I did look up the address and it is an actual residence so thats a plus. I also contacted the buyer addressing the concerns and explaining my policy and they responded quickly and in appropriate fashion so another plus. 

just nervous as to why anyone in this age wouldnt have had ebay before. I guess its no different than selling on facebook or on here where theres no feedback system either so always a gamble. Just curious anyone elses experiences with this or anything i can do for added protection. 
thanks

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sagekilz

sagekilz

Posted
Posted
1 hour ago, Angel of Death said:

It's worth being concerned, but everyone has to start somewhere. I understand that other people may not shop for small-dollar items on eBay as I do (that would build their reputation as a buyer).

This +a million.

Every single person on eBay started at 0.  If the buyer paid without issue and everything looks up to snuff, why worry?  PayPal has your back as does eBay (to some extent).

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Lightning55

Lightning55

Posted
Posted (edited)
2 hours ago, classicaaron said:

Sold a $1,000 plus book on ebay and buyer who bought has zero feedback. They paid very promptly but im nervous sending. I contacted ebay and they say to just send but cant offer any protection. 
 

I don't understand why eBay would say they "can't offer any protection".  They supposedly offer Seller Protection on every transaction just like PayPal used to, as long as you comply with the requirements.  The customer service person actually said to you are on your own???  And you didn't challenge it?

On items over $750, you have to get tracking and signature confirmation.  That's a requirement.  So is sending it to the address that eBay furnishes for the transaction.  If you do those things, you are supposed to be covered for a claim of non-delivery if the tracking shows delivered. 

You are supposed to be covered for a fraudulent use of a credit card (stolen) if that gets reported and turns out to be the case.  "Can't offer any protection" doesn't seem to fit here.

EDIT: The above presumes you are eBay Managed Payments, where you did not receive funds directly from PayPal.  If you are on the old system, and PayPal sent you the money, you should have the typical Seller Protection there in place, same requirements.

Edited by Lightning55
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Lightning55

Lightning55

Posted
Posted
1 hour ago, BigLeagueCHEW said:

You can set auction options to not allow someone with less than X feedback? Am I wrong on that setting?

You used to be able to do that on eBay, but they they converted to the "Strike" system.  You can't block with 1 strike, but you can if 2 or more.

If you go to the thread in my post above, there is an eBay screenshot of Buyer Requirements.  Where it talks about blocking low feedback, it seems to only tie it in as a sub-rule to those buyers who are also bidding or have bought a large number of your items.  Doesn't seem to be a stand-alone setting as it used to be.

I do believe that you can add language to your description along the lines that bidders must have a minimum of "X" feedback to bid, and that you will cancel bids made that are below that feedback.  Or that people who are below "X" feedback have to contact you prior to bidding for access.  And of course, since some bids come in at the very last second, you would also have to add "if the winning bid is below a certain feedback, it would void the sale".
 

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The Lions Den

The Lions Den

Posted
Posted

Never again.

I've had people send back a completely different item than the one I sold them, claiming it wasn't what they ordered. Ebay sided with the buyer until I finally managed to convince them I was being scammed. No consideration given by eBay even though I have 100% positive feedback and the "buyer" already had several negatives for this type of behavior.

Not cool at all...  

  

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CatskillMike

CatskillMike

Posted
Posted
16 minutes ago, Lightning55 said:

 

I do believe that you can add language to your description along the lines that bidders must have a minimum of "X" feedback to bid, and that you will cancel bids made that are below that feedback.  Or that people who are below "X" feedback have to contact you prior to bidding for access.  And of course, since some bids come in at the very last second, you would also have to add "if the winning bid is below a certain feedback, it would void the sale".
 

I've seen this many times lately and, while it sounds good, probably won't fly with ebay.  But then again, they can't exactly make you sell the book either. 

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CatskillMike

CatskillMike

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Posted

My son buys stuff on ebay through my account.  He also sells a little.  Drum machines, processers, etc.  He is 17.5 years old.  At 18 I think I want him to start his own ebay account, so he will be a zero.  Not good for selling, but what is he supposed to do besides buy a few cd's or something ?  I liked the old way of setting the minimum buyer requirements.  But that makes too much sense, right ebay?

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classicaaron

classicaaron

Posted
  • Author
Posted
1 hour ago, Lightning55 said:

I don't understand why eBay would say they "can't offer any protection".  They supposedly offer Seller Protection on every transaction just like PayPal used to, as long as you comply with the requirements.  The customer service person actually said to you are on your own???  And you didn't challenge it?

On items over $750, you have to get tracking and signature confirmation.  That's a requirement.  So is sending it to the address that eBay furnishes for the transaction.  If you do those things, you are supposed to be covered for a claim of non-delivery if the tracking shows delivered. 

You are supposed to be covered for a fraudulent use of a credit card (stolen) if that gets reported and turns out to be the case.  "Can't offer any protection" doesn't seem to fit here.

EDIT: The above presumes you are eBay Managed Payments, where you did not receive funds directly from PayPal.  If you are on the old system, and PayPal sent you the money, you should have the typical Seller Protection there in place, same requirements.

I am on the new ebay payment system and not paypal. When i asked ebay about seller protection all she said was there is no guarantee. I did challenge that and she said well you do have the option of canceling the order but that may result in a negative feedback. At that point i just didnt bother any furtrher. 

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Roger66

Roger66

Posted
Posted (edited)

Personally I would not sell it - especially during these trying times.  I understand we all start out as newbies on eBay but eBay is IMO more prone to protect the Buyer over the Seller.  To be safe you can videotape the item being packed and get it appraised perhaps prior to shipping plus send it Fed Ex overnight insured.  You should also Google the Buyer and see if his or her address shows up and what their name might link you too (assuming not a common name).  The short of my experiences with con jobs on eBay is that you got to trust your intuition and not let your greed or desire to sell the item overwhelm your common sense. 

There are several tell-tale indicators that might indicate a potential con job buyer online...

1) Your item sat for awhile on eBay with no close to BIN offers - assuming you had a BIN

2) There are similar items on eBay like yours priced better.

3) The Buyer did not make an offer (assuming offers accepted)

4) You attempted to communicate with the buyer to seek some assurances from him or her but the replies were lacking to say the least

Finally in life I often realize IF you need to seek advice like this on a public forum - then you already know your answer, which in this case is you likely don't want to sell it to this individual but want the money and are seeking reassurances that it might be ok - when the truth is you should be nervous.   I say do not sell it. My 2 cents :preach:

Roger

Edited by Roger66
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Lightning55

Lightning55

Posted
Posted
1 minute ago, classicaaron said:

I am on the new ebay payment system and not paypal. When i asked ebay about seller protection all she said was there is no guarantee. I did challenge that and she said well you do have the option of canceling the order but that may result in a negative feedback. At that point i just didnt bother any furtrher. 

That is a sorry state of affairs.  Maybe we are operating under a false security, thinking eBay has the same protections that we grew accustomed to at PayPal.

While writing this, I looked up Seller Protection on eBay and found this page: https://www.ebay.com/help/policies/selling-policies/seller-protections?id=4345

Seems to cover a lot of stuff, as before, even breaks it up between MP and the legacy system.  Maybe the CS agent is just clueless.  Did I say "maybe"?  That's funny.

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classicaaron

classicaaron

Posted
  • Author
Posted (edited)
24 minutes ago, Roger66 said:

Personally I would not sell it - especially during these trying times.  I understand we all start out as newbies on eBay but eBay is IMO more prone to protect the Buyer over the Seller.  To be safe you can videotape the item being packed and get it appraised perhaps prior to shipping plus send it Fed Ex overnight insured.  You should also Google the Buyer and see if his or her address shows up and what their name might link you too (assuming not a common name).  The short of my experiences with con jobs on eBay is that you got to trust your intuition and not let your greed or desire to sell the item overwhelm your common sense. 

There are several tell-tale indicators that might indicate a potential con job buyer online...

1) Your item sat for awhile on eBay with no close to BIN offers - assuming you had a BIN

2) There are similar items on eBay like yours priced better.

3) The Buyer did not make an offer (assuming offers accepted)

4) You attempted to communicate with the buyer to seek some assurances from him or her but the replies were lacking to say the least

Finally in life I often realize IF you need to seek advice like this on a public forum - then you already know your answer, which in this case is you likely don't want to sell it to this individual but want the money and are seeking reassurances that it might be ok - when the truth is you should be nervous.   I say do not sell it. My 2 cents :preach:

Roger

I did google the name and it does come up with a matching adress. 
he did respond to my inquiry with a normal response. 
he did send two best offers before we settled at $100 below asking. My fault for not seeing his feedback during the offer requests. 
someone else mentioned about the signature confirmation which i wasnt aware of so glad i asked. I sent the buyer a message asking if they will be home and able to sign for it before i ship. He just responded he works from home and wont be an issue as long as they ring his door bell and dont leave it on his stoop. Looking at his house he does have a stoop so at least truthful there. Lol. I think ill chance it. Only live once. Tons of great info and advice here so much appreciated 

Edited by classicaaron
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Lightning55

Lightning55

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Posted

It's interesting that new sellers on eBay have to have some type of vetting completed (confirmed accounts, ss#, etc.), and are limited to how much they can sell at first, payments held until the feedback is received, everyone quite satisfied that the seller did not rip someone off. 

Meanwhile, buyers can jump on and participate with no similar "warm up" process.  Just order a comic for a couple of thousand right out of the gate, no buildup of credibility needed. 

EBay used to be based on an earned trust, feedback tracking performance, "trading partners".  Now it's the mall.  Anyone with a fat wallet or concealed weapon is welcome.

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rjpb

rjpb

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Posted (edited)

I've sold a couple of books in that price range to zero feedback buyers, one sent to a PO Box. I'll admit I was a bit nervous, and even googled the buyers to see if there was any dirt on them, but went through with honoring the sale. No issues with either, and it's been a couple years, so no fear of a chargeback down the road. In both cases the buyer closed their account sometime after. These were Golden Age books, what I primarily sell on ebay, and it does seem to be a market with fewer buyer headaches on ebay than other eras from what I hear, or else I've just been lucky. 

You can set a minimum feedback for purchases, which I later did, but I'm not sure if it still holds, I should check, ebay sometimes defaults to basic settings. Apparently they got rid of this option a while back. 

Edited by rjpb
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Rip

Rip

Posted
Posted

I have to say I've been lucky and I've sold a few $500+ collectibles with zero or very low feedback.

No problems so far. But its worth taking a couple extra steps as others have thoughtfully mentioned.

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