deadbeat buyers

[auntbetty25]

After going through my account history I've found that about every fourth transaction is a non paying bidder. What the hell eBay? You really need to come up with better checks and balances here. The last NPB has bid on and payed for nearly 18 items since my auction ended. My attempts at communication have been ignored completely. What really burns me is this guy now gets to keep his 100% positive feedback! How on earth can I as a seller have any confidence in a system that is clearly not supportive of my business.

[pierrelebel]

"What the hell eBay?"

??? What does eBay have to do with that?

From what I can see, since no other information was supplied, I guess that one buyer (in four) this month has yet to pay for a purchase made last weekend.

This buyer has a feedback rating of 2,363.

There may be many reasons why no payment has been received yet.

You of course have two options:

1) file with the Resolution Centre for non-payment

2) be patient and give the buyer ten to fiften days from time of purchase to pay (that is what I do).

The feedback rating is largely meaningless when it comes to buyers other than to note the level of activity.  Non-paying buyers who have been reported using the Resolution Centre receive warnings (strikes) from eBay and their buying privileges are suspended after a specific number of strikes has been reached.

Sellers should set their preferences to prevent repeat non-paying buyers from bidding on their auction listings or purchasing items listed at fixed price. That is what I do and I have experienced very few problems over the years with non-paying buyers.

[owen6122]

I'm not sure what you sell however maybe the Buy-it-Now with immediate payment required would work for you. I think certain merchandise lends itself more to non-paying buyers. I have not had one yet in probably 200 transactions however I have had my share of other obstacles.

[owen6122]

Also there are several Buyer requirement settings that you can set (if you haven't already) to meet stricter buying requirements.

[inuk_the_polar_bear]

Yer new, aren't ya Betty? Four sales in the last 15 days.

Auctions are passee, unless you have a "Holy kabong Batman, look what Aunt Betty has!".

The last time I tried auctions was over two years ago. Maybe ten listings. Five did not sell, three went super low, two NPB. Screw that. I went back to my BIN with IPR. Maybe the action is not as fast. The buyer committment is higher.

My store prices run a lot higher than completed auction prices. I make more with less hassle.

[jt-libra]

Don't forget that the last promotion was for free auction or auction w/BIN listings.  A lot of people like to take advantage of that, including me.

[queenbeecanada]

Seriously - WHAT THE HELL E-BAY!!!!!!!

**bleep** right e-Bay has everything to do with it.  If you are agreeing that anyone can sign up FREE for e-Bay and then go ahead and mess with someone's store that they WORK for then Wow.  

If a buyer can go ahead and bid on something and then ignore seller's emails and invoices, etc. and e-Bay does absolutely nothing more than give you a fee reversal?  Come on.  That is insane.  Deadbeats obviously need to have an account to pay set up right?

I want my money and I want e-Bay to get it for me.  I pay all my bills to e-Bay on time and I follow all of their rules and it is time they start realizing that this is not a game and that people make their living on this site and they work very, very long hours doing so.

Give me a break for crying out loud.  Why can't someone up there in e-Bay admin realize this is just ++++s___ fill in the rest.

[queenbeecanada]

and by the way how many strikes does it take before e-Bay makes any move all??????

I have asked this question over and over again and nobody is home.  This is not right.  This is not professional.  Who are they protecting because it sure isn't me.

queenbeecanada

Laura-Lee Heaphy - very **bleep**

[queenbeecanada]

I was reading everyone's replies to Betty and come on people we all deserve respect and if you are also a store owner then you should know better.

Is it any wonder that nobody wants to post any questions here when all you get is people jumping down your throat and basically calling you an idiot?

Auctions are passe?  What in the world does that mean?

---

[mr.elmwood]

---

@queenbeecanada wrote:

Seriously - WHAT THE HELL E-BAY!!!!!!!

**bleep** right e-Bay has everything to do with it.  If you are agreeing that anyone can sign up FREE for e-Bay and then go ahead and mess with someone's store that they WORK for then Wow.  

If a buyer can go ahead and bid on something and then ignore seller's emails and invoices, etc. and e-Bay does absolutely nothing more than give you a fee reversal?  Come on.  That is insane.  Deadbeats obviously need to have an account to pay set up right?

I want my money and I want e-Bay to get it for me.  I pay all my bills to e-Bay on time and I follow all of their rules and it is time they start realizing that this is not a game and that people make their living on this site and they work very, very long hours doing so.

Give me a break for crying out loud.  Why can't someone up there in e-Bay admin realize this is just ++++s___ fill in the rest.

---

No, they do not need a Paypal account to bid or buy unless the listing is Paypal account required. That can be set in buyer requirements.

[queenbeecanada]

exactly so if a seller only accepts paypal then what?

You cannot have it both ways.  You cannot let everyone have a chance on e-Bay either buying or selling as we all start somewhere and then at the same time block those people individually from shopping at your store.

If someone bids and wins they should be required to pay that price.  Period

[mr.elmwood]

To bid, a bidder does not need a Paypal account.

A seller has to set their buyer preferences to "Paypal acct required" to block anyone without a PP acct.

This does two things. One, the chance of a NPB declines. Two, the number of bidders declines.

[pierrelebel]

What is the point of answering a thread that is over a year old?

"I want e-Bay to get it for me."

eBay provides a venue for sellers to list and buyers to buy.  It is not a collection agency.  The fees you pay as a seller do not include a costly program that would collect money for you.

You can set up your listings in such a way to minimize non-paying bidders although you cannot totally eliminate them.

[queenbeecanada]

I responded to a year old thread because the problem still exists!

What is the point of you responding to my thread then?

Bottom line if e-Bay wants to hold us sellers to such high standards and control how and the way in which we sell then they should take the same amount of effort and protect all of us.

In fact (although by the sounds of it things work smooth as butter for you) did we not get hacked?

Was it not our personal information that was put at risk?

They offer a SERVICE - they need to make that service worth it.

[mr.elmwood]

No, we did not get hacked. Someone gained a password that possibly gained access to our names and addresses, nothing much else.

They do hold buyers to standards, we as sellers, just never see that.

[pierrelebel]

"then they should take the same amount of effort and protect all of us."

Here are links to eBay policies concerning buyers:

http://pages.ebay.ca/help/policies/buyer-rules-overview.html

http://pages.ebay.ca/help/policies/buying-practices.html

[mr.elmwood]

I have found that the best seller protection is by doing our job the best we can. Great pictures, great description, timely shipping, fair pricing, etc go a long way to a happy buyer. Happy buyers are our friends.

I find that another ally of mine is a positive outlook on everything. To some it is demeaning, but, I take a bright positive attitude towards as much as I can.

I had a very challenging situation today. I could have turned it particularly ugly. Instead, "Look on the bright side of life", I turned it to my advantage and made new friends where I could just as easily have made enemies, but for my positive thinking.

[pierrelebel]

"the best seller protection is by doing our job the best we can."

I totally agree with you.

... and if someone does not complete a transaction from time to ti... let it be... no point in blaming anyone....life does go on.

[femmefan1946]

Sellers can control buyers by:

Setting a Block against bidders who have Strikes for non-payment.

     -EBay doesn't reveal how many Strikes before the member loses membership. That would allow sketchey bidders too much information on what they could get away with. Members can get their first Strike annulled, on the basis that everyone makes mistakes. The usual guess is that four Strikes (counting the mulligan) is enough.

Setting a Block against bidders without an active Paypal account.

     -As noted, this also Blocks enthusiastic new bidders who can be some of the happiest customers (OMG! I found IT at last) or the most annoying.(I bid on four of these and I'll only pay for the one that is cheapest.)

Setting Blocks on bidders from countries the seller does not want to ship to.

Filing Unpaid Item Disputes.

     - As early as four days after purchase, but it takes another four days to close, allowing the spacey buyer time to correct her error.

Allowing returns for refund.

    --The buyer has to pay for the return postage. Often this is enough to make the buyer think twice.

     - By the way, No Returns does not mean No Refunds. If you take PP you make refunds.

Making shipping costs clear, whether by using Flat Rate or Calculated Shipping.

    - Many customers are upset when they see Canada Post's shipping rates. I've sold $10 books that required $25 shipping. No problem if the customer knows before buying that the book will cost him $35. Big problem if he didn't understand that.