Opinions please - Types of payments accepted for eBay auctions

Outhaul

Let's hear from some of the "old heads" on the boards.

First off, I'm not a dealer, just a humble collector. Sometimes I find myself selling duplicates on eBay to fund other coins that are of greater interest to me. More often than not, this usually means losing a few bucks on the old coin in pursuit of the next one. I clearly state in my auctions that I accept Paypal using "direct fund transfers but NO CREDIT CARDS." Lo and behold, the winner attempts to pay through Paypal with a credit card. When I deny payment and forward a nicely worded explanation and direct the buyer to the above statement in my auction they respond with a flaming e-mail or not at all and I never receive the money and they end up off the hook. Then I file a NPB w/eBay to get my charges reversed.

I never post NFB to the buyer in order to protect my zero NFB rating. The way I see it, I'm already losing on the coins and I don't want to take an additional 3% hit from Paypal. I feel if the buyer doesn't agree with the terms of the auction then they don't have to bid.


Am I missing something, or do people just bid and not read the terms?

Cheers,

Bob

prooflike

People just bid and don't read the terms. I have the same Paypal terms and it happens alot so don't feel alone.

braddick

I've seen these terms too and don't understand. Why won't you take CC's with Paypal? Is there an additional charge for doing so?

prooflike

Yes, It is like 35 cents and 3% or somehting like that.

Russ

<< <i>Why won't you take CC's with Paypal? Is there an additional charge for doing so? >>



Yes, there is. There is also substantially more risk of getting ripped off by the buyer.

Bob,

You're not missing anything. You've just been unfortunate enough to encounter some idiots.

Russ, NCNE

Dog97

You can pay me however you like, I just want MONEY!!
Most people don't read auction descriptions. In my listings I say FREE SHIPPING so bid your max, and FREE SHIPPING so your winning bid is what you owe and in big red letters at the bottom !!FREE SHIPPING!! Then eBay send an end of auction notification and PayPal sends them an invoice but for a week afterward people are still emailing me asking how much is shipping and please tell them the total.

coppercoins

Regarding whether or not I'm an "old head" on the board - that depends on whether you are talking about this forum or whether you are talking about eBay. I have only been a member of this forum for a week, but I've been a member on eBay since 1996. As for my terms, they have always been pretty simple, I give the postage amount and the option to buy insurance right in the auction description - it's not separated from the rest of the text. I have also always e-mailed the winners on the date the auctions closed to let them know what their total is, and I combine shipping totals for multiple auctions. In addition to that, I accept checks, money orders, and Pay Pal, and have never had a problem accepting any form of Pay Pal payment. The extra charge involved with people using credit cards is all a pert of doing business...if you don't want to have to pay the fees, make sure you include enough in the minimum bid amount of your auction to cover the cost of the item, the packaging materials, your profit, and the fees incurred in running a business...that's about all I can offer that might do you any good.

BigD5

If you sell a $100 coin, and $3 is too much of a fee........that's nuts. Accept credit cards.
Russ, there is no more risk in taking credit cards from paypal than transfers. As a seller, you are protected under paypal's rules, as long as the buyer has a confirmed address, which means the buyer has signed up their credit card with paypal and the address has been confirmed. This is different than being verified, which means the buyer has forwarded his/her checking account information to paypal.
I'm with Dog, in the sense that I'll take the money in any way the buyer wants to send it.

braddick

BigD5- I thought that is the way it plays out with Paypal but I'm always willing to learn.

I have picked up on the fact that people are creatures of habit. I know I'm used to using Paypal a certain way and if a Seller didn't want to take the CC off my Paypal account that would be a step in the process I might overlook.
I"m not trying to ignore the Seller's instructions, just overlooking it accidently as I pay.

The less a Seller places rules and restrictions on their auctions the more successful I would think, in the long term, they would be.

Russ

<< <i>Russ, there is no more risk in taking credit cards from paypal than transfers. >>



Not true. Accepting credit cards increases the exposure to bogus chargebacks. The ONLY way to recover from a bogus chargeback is absolute proof that the item was received and signed for by the actual buyer. The "Delivery Confirmation" from the post office does not cut it. Doing so, adds substantially to the shipping cost.

I deal with that enough in my real business, I don't feel like dealing with it in something I do for fun.

Russ, NCNE

Loki

Thanks for that info Russ. So is there another (cheaper) way to get confirmation that the buyer received the item?
Also I am noticing that more and more sellers are shying away from Paypal due to increasing transaction fees and going strictly with check/MO as payment. I see nothing wrong with that approach, especially if you just want to sell a few things from time to time. The added benefit to you is that you have secured cash in hand prior to shipping the item(s) without fear of bogus chargebacks. My problem is that I need to get another checking account. I live in Florida and the average bank charge in my area for checks returned due to insufficient funds is more than $20! Ouch!!!

Russ

Loki,

As far as credit card companies are concerned the only way to get acceptable proof is the "signature confirmation" option when using the postal service, which costs $1.80 extra - or use one of the more expensive sign for options. Delivery confirmation at 45¢ or 55¢ is not sufficient. On small items, that adds substantially to the shipping cost. We already see enough whining about shipping amounts.

Even than, if anybody other than the actual buyer signs for it (kid, neighbor, landlord, etc.) the seller may not be able to beat the chargeback. For me, it is simply not worth the risk and potential hassle for a hobby.

Russ, NCNE

Outhaul

Exactly my thoughts, Russ. I don't do this as a living and do not wish to get burned. I would also like to keep my hobby as simple as possible. Just like everything else on line, a service begins for free and as soon as people become accustomed to it WHAM! here come the charges. That's OK if you make a living at it. But if I paid $100 for a coin worth $120 or so, and list it with a $90 reserve (more than fair) and it brings that price I've already lost $10 plus another $2.70 to Paypal. This coupled with underestimating for shipping (God forbid you should OVERestimate lest you get slammed on FB for overcharging for shipping) you end up losing $13 - 15 on each transaction! This may only be a hobby, but it isn't a charity facrissake.

Cheers,

Bob

Russ

You know, Outhall, the timing of your thread is right out of the Twilight Zone. The problem just happened to me for the first time. I had an auction end today, and the buyer just tried to send payment using a credit card even though the policy could not be clearer in my auction listing - I even put it in a seperate paragraph to make it more obvious.

Russ, NCNE

robertpr

1- Log into PayPal
2- Click on "Profile" in the menu at the top
3- Click on "Payment Receiving Preferences" which is located in the third column, under "Selling Preferences".

You can then block payments by credit card when the buyer has a bank account registered with PayPal. This forces them to use an "eCheck". Most PayPal users *should* have a bank account registered, and will be blocked from using a credit card to pay you.

Russ

Robert,

I just checked my account and that option isn't there. The only thing is:

Selling Preferences

Auctions
Shipping Preferences
PayPal Shops

None of which yields the opportunity to block credit card payments.

Russ, NCNE

robertpr

Russ,

Do you have a free or a 'premium' account with PayPal?

Russ

Robert,

I have the free account. I have no need for the premium account since this isn't a business, and I don't sell all that much.

Russ, NCNE

Dog97

Hmmmm... mine says in the PROFILE section:
Selling Preferences
Auctions
Sales Tax
Shipping Calculations
Shipping Preferences
Payment Receiving Preferences
Instant Payment Notification Preferences
PayPal Shops
Reputation
Guarantee Preferences

robertpr

Russ,

If you have a free account you shouldn't have to worry about the charges. But if you accept any payment over $100 they will force you to upgrade your account

As far as chargebacks, they are actually pretty rare. Once a CC charge is approved, the possibility of having a chargeback is remote. Usually if a card is stolen, it is reported immediately.

its4real

Here's my favorite...

They bid and bid and bid and then WIN!

And then you take EVERY conceivable form of payment and you never hear from them at all.

My fav.

Russ

<< <i>As far as chargebacks, they are actually pretty rare. Once a CC charge is approved, the possibility of having a chargeback is remote. Usually if a card is stolen, it is reported immediately. >>



Robert,

I'm intimately familiar with the nature of chargebacks since I accept credit cards in my real business. While rare, they do happen and it's a jump through hoops mess getting the money back once the CC company has reached in to your account and taken it. I also worry far less about stolen credit cards, since I monitor every sale and nobody has yet gotten away with it. I've had far more problems with legit cards where the buyer sees an opportunity to rip me off by using the muscle of his credit card company.

Russ, NCNE

DHeath

I love paying with paypal, and sometimes I'm so lazy that I look for the logo in the auction description before bidding. If paypal is not an option, I send a check, and will wait for my check to clear before looking for my purchase. I hate going to the post office to buy money orders. I have a premier paypal account, and my only complaint as a seller is that paypal is an expensive option. In this auction that just ended , the paypal fees deducted from my proceeds on the approx. $2000 paid by paypal was over $70. That equates to $1 per coin. The choice is a real double-edged sword.

robertpr

Don,

Try setting the preferences as I explained earlier in this thread and that will reduce your costs because it will cut down on credit card payments you receive. How do you get those full sheets of coins and how much do they cost? Is there a real profit in them?

DHeath

Robert,

It is a weird story, but I met a customer who hoarded tons of the stuff before Y2K. He is selling them away at bullion price, and I buy from him when I see him. I owned those for $31 per coin, and originally made the mistake of listing them in the Canadian Gold section of ebay. The auction counter read 7 after a week, and none were sold. I reduced the opening bid and moved them into the US Gold Bullion category, and sold them all, with some of the bids at $37 per coin. I cleared a few coins for my time. I would have done better, but for the darned fees. Oh well. Next time, I'll specify a higher opening bid. The sheets you asked about are the way the RCM ships the coins.


BTW - The singles have been selling on ebay for $39, and I expected these to do better.

Russ

<< <i>But if you accept any payment over $100 they will force you to upgrade your account >>



Robert,

I just received payment for the auction I mentioned above (funded correctly this time) with a total of $140 and they didn't make me upgrade the account. Matter of fact, it's already out of the account and transferred to my checking account.

Interesting side note is that the buyer had no problem with it, just missed it in the description, and he himself no longer accepts Paypal at all because of problems he had with them.

Russ, NCNE

BigD5

Russ, I think you should read paypal's terms, as a seller. They are not the same as a merchant account with mastercard and visa. I've been using this as a seller for over three years, and not a single glitch. Other than the occasional buyer trying to have me send an item to an address other than the confirmed address that is listed through paypal, I haven't had a problem. I've had a retail business, with a merchant account, and would never do that again. I guess I should never say never, but I would try to avoid it.
I guess all I can say is that paypal works for me.

TWQG

I try to make every payment option available. Anything to encourage bidding. I think the 3% is probably made back in higher prices realized.