Ebay customer service is an oxy-moron
sliderider
Posts: 1,834
Or is that just a regular moron. Here's an email I just got back concerning a sensitive subject for many of us. Sellers who bail in the closing seconds of a listing to avoid selling low.
Hello,
Thank you for writing eBay Customer Support. I can understand your
frustration and concern regarding the seller ending their listings
early.
As a bidder, your frustration and concern are valid and understandable.
The most common reason for an auction ending before the scheduled time
is that the seller decided to end the auction early. We encourage
sellers to post an addition to the description of the auction explaining
why they have ended the auction early. However, sometimes the sellers do
not take our suggestion.
Yes, you are right that if the auction would end normally, eBay would
earn much more. But please understand that just as a storeowner can
remove an item from their shelves at any time, sellers on eBay have the
right to end their listings at any time prior to completion. While I
know this policy can cause our buyers disappointment, we don't feel it's
fair to force someone to sell an item they have decided not to sell
after all.
I appreciate your patience and understanding regarding this matter and
wish you good luck for your transactions on eBay!
Regards,
Wendell W.
eBay Customer Support Representative
_____________________________________________
Marketplace Safety Tip: Protect yourself from fraudulent emails that ask
for sensitive personal information like credit card numbers, passwords,
etc. Just because an email message looks like it is sent directly from
eBay, that isn't always the case. To learn more about protecting
yourself from fake or "spoof" emails, see our online tutorial at the
following Web page:
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_____________________________________________
For our latest announcements, please check:
http://www2.ebay.com/aw/announce.shtml
_____________________________________________
Original Message Follows:
-------------------------
Form Message %44300% 072599
Subject: GS=C22001 Bidding and how it works [?01]
Member-stated User ID:
User Feedback: 247
User State: ?01
Browser Info: Mozilla/4.0 (compatible; MSIE 6.0; Windows NT 5.1; SV1;
.NET CLR 1.1.4322)
Ask about bidding or buying > Bidding and buying > Bidding and how it
works
Message: My concern is actually about sellers who cancel auctions in the
closing seconds when bids aren't what they would like them to be. I do
not have any specific examples to cite, but I know this happens a lot on
ebay and that it is allowed. This policy is unfair to the bidding
community and should not be allowed. This is like a seller putting an
item up for bids at a real auction then deciding they want to the pull
the item just as the hammer is about to fall. No reputable auction house
allows this and ebay should not either. If I as a bidder am obligated to
pay when an auction ends, the seller also has an obligation to sell.
No state in the country recognizes a one sided contract. There are
always two or more parties to every contract and ALL are required to
perform.
If I have to give advance notice and a good reason for cancelling a bid,
then the seller should also have to give advance notice and a good
reason for cancelling the auction. Rejecting legitimate bids because the
seller doesn't think they are high enough is a bad practice and hurts
ebays reputation as a legitimate auction venue for allowing it.
Also, look at it as protecting your own financial interests. When a
seller cancels an auction you get what? 30 cents?? If the auction had
been allowed to close normally, you would have gotten much more than
that.
Please forbid the practice of allowing sellers to cancel listings
without notice and without reason. A true auction should end with high
bidder getting the lot at whatever the final price is. If the seller
wants a certain amount of money and will settle for no less, then they
should be using reserves and minimum bids.
Hello,
Thank you for writing eBay Customer Support. I can understand your
frustration and concern regarding the seller ending their listings
early.
As a bidder, your frustration and concern are valid and understandable.
The most common reason for an auction ending before the scheduled time
is that the seller decided to end the auction early. We encourage
sellers to post an addition to the description of the auction explaining
why they have ended the auction early. However, sometimes the sellers do
not take our suggestion.
Yes, you are right that if the auction would end normally, eBay would
earn much more. But please understand that just as a storeowner can
remove an item from their shelves at any time, sellers on eBay have the
right to end their listings at any time prior to completion. While I
know this policy can cause our buyers disappointment, we don't feel it's
fair to force someone to sell an item they have decided not to sell
after all.
I appreciate your patience and understanding regarding this matter and
wish you good luck for your transactions on eBay!
Regards,
Wendell W.
eBay Customer Support Representative
_____________________________________________
Marketplace Safety Tip: Protect yourself from fraudulent emails that ask
for sensitive personal information like credit card numbers, passwords,
etc. Just because an email message looks like it is sent directly from
eBay, that isn't always the case. To learn more about protecting
yourself from fake or "spoof" emails, see our online tutorial at the
following Web page:
http://pages.ebay.com/securitycenter/
_____________________________________________
For our latest announcements, please check:
http://www2.ebay.com/aw/announce.shtml
_____________________________________________
Original Message Follows:
-------------------------
Form Message %44300% 072599
Subject: GS=C22001 Bidding and how it works [?01]
Member-stated User ID:
User Feedback: 247
User State: ?01
Browser Info: Mozilla/4.0 (compatible; MSIE 6.0; Windows NT 5.1; SV1;
.NET CLR 1.1.4322)
Ask about bidding or buying > Bidding and buying > Bidding and how it
works
Message: My concern is actually about sellers who cancel auctions in the
closing seconds when bids aren't what they would like them to be. I do
not have any specific examples to cite, but I know this happens a lot on
ebay and that it is allowed. This policy is unfair to the bidding
community and should not be allowed. This is like a seller putting an
item up for bids at a real auction then deciding they want to the pull
the item just as the hammer is about to fall. No reputable auction house
allows this and ebay should not either. If I as a bidder am obligated to
pay when an auction ends, the seller also has an obligation to sell.
No state in the country recognizes a one sided contract. There are
always two or more parties to every contract and ALL are required to
perform.
If I have to give advance notice and a good reason for cancelling a bid,
then the seller should also have to give advance notice and a good
reason for cancelling the auction. Rejecting legitimate bids because the
seller doesn't think they are high enough is a bad practice and hurts
ebays reputation as a legitimate auction venue for allowing it.
Also, look at it as protecting your own financial interests. When a
seller cancels an auction you get what? 30 cents?? If the auction had
been allowed to close normally, you would have gotten much more than
that.
Please forbid the practice of allowing sellers to cancel listings
without notice and without reason. A true auction should end with high
bidder getting the lot at whatever the final price is. If the seller
wants a certain amount of money and will settle for no less, then they
should be using reserves and minimum bids.
0
Comments
This is NOT a case of a store owner pulling a piece of merchandise from a store display. This is an auction, and should be treated as such. Your argument is invalid and unacceptable. It is an apples to oranges comparison to say that putting a price tag on an item and setting it out on a store shelf, and listing for auction to the highest bidder are one and the same. Auctions have rules. One of the rules is that if you don't set a reserve, the item goes to the high bidder. If the seller doesn't want to go through with the transaction, then he must submit his own bid in accordance with the buyback policy of the auction house. Other online auction services such as Teletrade state this clearly in their terms of service. If TT can play by the rules, why can't ebay??
I can't wait to see what they say to that.
The Lincoln cent store:
http://www.lincolncent.com
My numismatic art work:
http://www.cdaughtrey.com
USAF veteran, 1986-1996 :: support our troops - the American way.
how many auction houses have owners of coins bidding on their own coins...................
Think about it, if you have a coin in an auction house and your on the floor and notice YOUR coin
is about to be ripped right before your eyes, what do you do................bid the coin up.
If you have a coin on ebay as a "true" auction, and your coin is about to be ripped,
what do you do.................end it early.
Again I'm speaking of an individual that wants to "try" the "true auction" aspects of ebay.
Push come to shove you'll pull the plug.