Help Needed! Trouble with Another Seller Abusing Multiple Listings.

[guessfourless]

Hi there,
I'm at my wits end with this seller.... He has gone from having 1,000 items listed to 14,000 items in the matter of a couple days. He is not listings new items he's listing the same items over and over...

example below (one item with 20 listings for it - 8 in the last day)

http://www.ebay.ca/sch/shopbyinternet/m.html?_nkw=guess+finelee+2&_sacat=0&_odkw=&_osacat=0&_trksid=...

I thought eBay did not allow multiple items to be listed? I've called them and they said that they would look into.. in the last couple hours he's done over another thousand. My sales are a bit slower than normal (most likely as every time I post a new item I'm pushed pages back on display) and as he's doing auction style which results in better search standings.
It's all very frustrating and I don't know what else to do!?!

Help and suggestions would be great!!!

[cumos55]

Duplicate auction-tyle listings appearing on eBay

If you list duplicate auction-style listings, only one listing without bids will appear on eBay at a time. Once ...

Note: Duplicate auction-style listings that are not eligible to appear on the site will not appear anywhere on eBay, including search results and eBay Stores.

If you listed duplicate auction-style listings, there will be a note in the Selling section of My eBay stating that your listing will be available on eBay after you receive a bid on the identical...

More

Policy overview

Buyers need to compare different items to make a smart, informed purchasing decision. The duplicate listings policy is designed to ensure sellers don't list in a way that clutters the buying experience and hurts the overall marketplace.

Sellers can't have more than one fixed price listing of an identical item at the same time. 

Sellers can have more than one auction-style listing for identical items. However, only one duplicate auction-style listing without bids will appear on eBay at a time. Learn more about how duplicate auction-style listings appear on eBay.

If your listings don't follow these guidelines, they may be removed or not displayed in the eBay search results. You may also be subject to a range of other actions, including limits of your buying and selling privileges and suspension of your account.

These restrictions on duplicate listings include listing an identical item in different categories or listing an identical item using different user IDs.

What are duplicate listings?

Listings are considered duplicates if they are for items that have no significant difference between them. To avoid having your listings treated as duplicates, make sure you clearly show the differences between items in the title, description, price, photo, subtitle, product ID, item specifics, or in the parts compatibility areas of a listing. We may also look at other parts of the listing to determine whether it's a duplicate.

If the differences between the items you're selling aren't obvious in the search results, your listings my be treated as duplicates and will be subject to the consequences outlined above.

The following types of listings, if they are for the identical item, will be considered duplicate listings even though the listing format or details may vary:

Auction-style listings for identical items even if they have different ending times, start prices, or reserve prices.

An auction-style listing with the Buy It Now option and an auction-style listing without the Buy It Now option for the identical item.

A fixed price listing and an auction-style listing with the Buy It Now option for the identical item.

[guessfourless]

Thanks... but that doesn't really help me at all as I have read eBays policies on multiple listings..

I know he's breaking the rules - but there is no way to get him to stop because eBay isn't doing anything! I know that if I try to list a second item I get a warning and I know that within hours it's taken down. How this guy getting away with it??

It states it won't show more than one identical listing at a time - but it is.. in searches it's showing 10-20-30 copies of the same identical listing - all posted at the same time - all eligiable for bids. Flooding the pages for more sellers than myself.

[cumos55]

Check the titles carefully...

seller does vary the title.... Is it wording  or word spacing?

NIB versus New as an example...

and if they are multiples  they are ALL showing

Others may not know the exact regulation...

If they see this one series of listings,  and have the regulations relative to duplicates available...  then anyone can judge for themselves...

[guessfourless]

I'm not sure what you mean by the "others" and "regulations relative to duplicates available" and "anyone can judge for themselves."??

I  have checked the titles carefully and while two may vary the rest are the same.. and there isn't enough spacing to differentiate over 15 exact copies.. and he's gone from 14,000 to 15,000 since posting this topic....

I'm looking for help not explanations on how he is getting away with it..

[cumos55]

This discussion is only visible to powersellers.

You may get lots more input is it is listed under a non-powerseller discussion

[cumos55]

is it is

should read

You may get lots more input if it is listed under a non-powerseller discussion

[pjcdn2005]

Have you reported some of the listings through the "report a listing" link? They do have an option now for reporting duplicate listings. I don't know how much attention ebay will pay to it.

The listing special was over on Friday so I doubt that the seller will continue to list like that.. until the next listing special.

That quote was mentioned earlier about multiple listings not showing until a bid was made....that must be new as I don't remember ever seeing it before and obviously ebay doesn't seem to be enforcing it.

[cumos55]

A New search protocol,  and the fact that eBay might eventually have zero insertion fees.....

could be why this duplication rule is required... So as not to overload a potential buyer...

Someone can put up a 1000 of the same listing, but only one would show in a search, until it had a bid.

And if only a few sold  then I suspect the seller will be limited as to how many listings that seller would be allowed to have on eBay.

Many of the recent free listing options were by invitation.

It has all been a test to see how far a seller can push the rules.

 and in turn eBay is finding out what rules are required to control  situations such as this duplication situation..

perhaps the most important thing to do here is keep reporting this seller.... the more sellers that report him the better it will be for eBay to understand what the problem is  and how it should be controlled.