eBay Seller alert

cosmicdebris · January 18, 2004 6:16PM

I won THIS coin and followed the seller's item listing to wait for his invoice now I know why:

1.BULGARIA 100L. SILVER WILDLIFE - EAGLE - Item #2217476186
Item price $14.99

In case you prefer to use paypal as a method of payment, you MUST add necessary amount for insured mail, also add 4% of the total to cover paypal's transaction fee.

My answer:

Yury,

I planned on paying by PayPal and IT IS ILLEGAL IN THE USA to charge the buyer the seller's PayPal fees. It is also against eBay and PayPal rules. I was wondering why you said not to use eBay's checkout. Now I know.

So I guess I will be mailing you a check instead. Since today is a postal holiday the check will go out in tomorrow's mail.

regards,
Bill

newbiecollector · January 18, 2004 6:22PM

What sort of recourse do you have Bill? I mean if he gives you a bad feedback or a "non-payment" feedback.

cosmicdebris · January 18, 2004 6:25PM

Wayne please reread my reply I still plan on paying him. Then after I get my coin ( I really want this coin )and feedback I plan on reporting him to eBay and PayPal.

hoardmonster · January 18, 2004 6:29PM

Total shady BS! Pretty pretty coin though.

newbiecollector · January 18, 2004 6:30PM

Sorry.. I did miss-inderstand. I did not see that he was accepting your check. Sorry about that.

In addition I want to say that I see many, many e-bay auction with the "you must add 3 or 4% if using Paypal". That is right in the auction/payments sections. I had no idea it was not allowed.
Of course, if someone came AFTER the auction was completed and said it I would be very upset.

Sorry I miss-understood your original post.

Cruzi · January 18, 2004 6:37PM

In many countries outside of the US it is quite normal for fees to be added for credit card transactions often between 1.5 - 4 % depending on the card used. I'm not just talking eBay, this is a common retail practice.

Having said that , I don't like it and wish it was illegal internationally.

newbiecollector · January 18, 2004 6:40PM

Cruzi
I have to agree in general with what you said but, I expect it to be stated in the auction. I find it wrong for it to be stated after the fact and the auction (commitment) has been made.

Just my opinion of course.

Cruzi · January 18, 2004 6:45PM

You are quite right Newbie, it should be stated clearly within the auction, to add it after is not on.

newbiecollector · January 18, 2004 6:50PM

It is only my thinking. That doesn't make it right or wrong. I am not a big eBay buyer and have only sold 1-2 things there. It is not correct for me to make hard comments about the fees, but if I am not told "up front", then I get very upset with the seller.

LOL...Even I know how to add 3-4% to what I am will to pay.

cosmicdebris · January 18, 2004 7:29PM

You got it guys it is the "NOT BEING UP FRONT" that I do not like. This means he knows he can not put for PayPal users to add the fees in his auction listings.

newbiecollector · January 18, 2004 7:35PM

I finally read your original post link, Bill. In the first place I would be AMASED (sp) that he can offer insurance. From many, or most places you can not get insurance "outside of the country".
He did not say anything about a Paypal addition and I, for one, would not have paid it. That is a BIG thing for me, because it is the only way I pay for any internet, auction purchase.

Once again, just my opinion and maybe a bit of a rave........ not meaning to hi-jack your post.

Stork · January 18, 2004 8:00PM

I bought from this guy before, I don't remember him pulling that with the paypal though. That would annoy me greatly to be told that after the fact. Anyway, I didn't have a problem getting the item, but I'm pretty sure that it shipped from the US, so it should be insured okay.

Cathy

hoardmonster · January 18, 2004 8:10PM

Just to clarify, that is what I meant by shady, the NOT stating it up front.

One thing that annoys me is when I see auctions that provide no shipping info whatsoever. Of course sometimes it's a newbie who forgets to include it or whatever, but other than that, I always get the feeling that I will get screwed on the shipping and I don't bid.

Tom

danglen · January 18, 2004 9:05PM

I have had dealings with this seller before. He is not out of the country, but lives in New York. Although we had an off-eBay transaction and I paid by check, I did let him know that the terminology he was using was illegal. What he could do legally is charge more for the item, and offer a "cash" discount for forms of payment other than PayPal. Still pretty cheesy, but it is legal.

wybrit · January 18, 2004 9:35PM

I get that trick pulled on me all the time. I just do what cosmic does via email - tell them it's not allowed.

In this case, the seller has been around long enough to know better, so it's a much more serious matter.

As a very small time ebay seller, though, I understand the problem. PayPal makes no distinction between a cash payment and a credit card payment to a premier account, so you get assessed the fee no matter what. That's why for small transactions on ebay I will not allow PayPal anymore. Between the fees for ebay and PayPal, I lose money transaction after transaction. For a typical $15 transaction with $1 shipping, you're talking as much as 15% for fees.

laurentyvan · January 18, 2004 10:18PM

By the way, that's a very nice eagle Cosmic-poor thing got lost...

Is this why some sellers shipping charges may seem to be a couple of bucks or more too high? Maybe it's the only gentle way to cover the costs that some of you already indicate are a problem.Between the fees for ebay and PayPal, I lose money transaction after transaction. For a typical $15 transaction with $1 shipping, you're talking as much as 15% for fees. Seller has to do it; buyer doesn't like it, gosh, a quandry.

Don't ask, don't tell; shipping goes up $2.00 and if that's excessive then pay by check or money order or cash.

Would we rather have an e-bay buyers fee on every transaction to take the heat off the seller? If so, what would be fair?

Are the current pay pal fees excessive by comparison to the rest of the industry?

For e-bay buyers and sellers who have been on the scene for several years longer than I have, how has ease/cost of doing business on e-bay changed during your buying/selling tenure there?

danglen · January 18, 2004 11:02PM

As a seller that sells alot of items for $9.99, I have had to raise my S & H fees to $2.50 for domestic shipping and $3.50 for international. About 90 percent of my auctions are paid for with PayPal or credit. Not only does PayPal hit you hard for domestic transactions, they actually charge an extra percent for international transactions.

291fifth · January 18, 2004 11:12PM

The adding of PayPal fees is not "illegal". It is merely against the rules PayPal sets.

ajaan · January 18, 2004 11:17PM

<< <i>The adding of PayPal fees is not "illegal". >>

I was under the impression this is determined by the States, some it is legal, some it is not. I could be misinformed again.

danglen · January 18, 2004 11:29PM

<< <i> The adding of PayPal fees is not "illegal". It is merely against the rules PayPal sets. >>

Actually, in most states it is. Since many PayPal transactions are done using a credit card, and most states make adding of credit card fees to a transaction illegal, it makes adding the PayPal fees illegal.

291fifth · January 19, 2004 3:40AM

However, since this is an international transaction I don't believe state laws have any effect. Correct me if I'm wrong. This is an interesting point.

cosmicdebris · January 19, 2004 4:26AM

Not international, seller lives in New York and buyer is in Connecticut.

laurentyvan · January 19, 2004 10:24AM

Canada 1979 silver dollar Griffon ship

Take this coin I won-$4.25 for the coin, $3.25 for shipping. Classic example of covering e-bay and paypal costs, although I don't know if he made any money on this or not-haven't checked the Krause.

eBay Seller alert

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