eBay

ricketts223 · ‎10-19-2014

I am Canadian and I think I am officially done with using ebay.

The Global Shipping Program is a joke. Just another way to introduce another layer of profit.

I am Canadian but have a US shipping address. Paypal REFUSES to allow me to use the US shipping address as I am Canadian. Forcing me to use the Ebay Global shipping program (see above).

So as a typical Canadian I bend over and take it with sand in the vaseline. I buy a table PC from EBay.com from a US seller. I suck up the extra $30.00 in the Global shipping program. I get the tablet PC but it is defective. So...

EBay Money back guarantee - joke. I get caught in an endless cycle of broken ebay links and empty promises. Ebay.ca tells me the item I bought from a US citizen was not bought on the US EBay site and therefore is not eligible for a refund. I'm pretty positive ebay.com is a US site. The seller himself is uncontactable. I will start the ebay dispute process but this is a losing proposition. . Because ebay.ca does not admit I bought the item as eligible under the Money Back Guarantee, I will not get the Global shipping charges back, even if I do manage to return the tablet.

I cannot believe how bad EBay has become. Even trying to find basic information is painful and time consuming, as is the current fashion to get you to give up trying. Things are intentionally made to be difficult to get the majority of buyers to just give up trying to find resolution.

I think from now on I will be buying items from Amazon.com. Exceptionally good to deal with and I can buy what I want and ship WHERE I want. Their return policy is first rate as well.

Life is too short to continue using a sub-par company that is more concerned about their future shareholder performance than actually providing a viable service.

respiraterry · ‎10-19-2014

I hear you. Ebay is one big joke now. They don't do anything about anything now. I won an auction and paid, seller kept refunding my payment and refuses to ship. Ebay refuses to do anything and to top it off took down the negative feedback i left. Complete joke, guess you can charge whatever you want, change your mind whenever you want and refuse communication and theres no consequence.
On your problem, if you paid with credit card just call them and cancel transaction. Credit cards are great that way, i always pay via cc, easier to avoid getting screwed or waiting months.

007steveb16 · ‎10-19-2014

As a CANADIAN seller I always love seeing this rant...

If I can't buy AMERICAN and cheap out...I QUIT!!!!!

dipmicro · ‎10-19-2014

@ricketts223 wrote:
I am Canadian but have a US shipping address. Paypal REFUSES to allow me to use the US shipping address as I am Canadian. Forcing me to use the Ebay Global shipping program (see above).

Why not use Credit Card directly without PayPal? If PayPal recognizes it is Canadian CC and gives trouble, most US banks will be happy to open personal account for Canadian and their bank card will work as credit card, but ask them first.

reid4311 · ‎10-23-2014

The problem here I believe is greed! With a soft economy and slumping sales they look to those who are still here to pick up the tab. They simply squeeze those of us left with more charges (some of which are hidden) to make up the short fall.

The site doesn't even work well now. I get constant freezing, tech problems on an almost weekly basis. Now in order to spur sales on if I get outbid on a CD I get notices to 'bid again' in my private mailbox, eBay mailbox, I can see it in the bids/offers area and now popups! Enough already! They've jammed advertising into every conceivable corner that won't load properly or takes too long when it does.

Remember the points program? That was cancelled supposedly because it didn't perform to the desired effect. We were told that they were looking in other areas to make 'the experience' more enjoyable for Canadians. What did we get in return? Why, the G.S. P. program! Thank you very much.

I now have only one disc in my watch list from a U.S. seller using that program. It's there only to remind me that this CD exists. Once a week I try the 'view similar items' link to see if someone else has listed a copy. That one disc is listed at $13.78 CDN in my watch list but when I click buy it now the price automatically changes to a monstrous $18.20 for a single disc. eBay has been asked more than once in the board hour why this happening and they have yet to respond.

PHOOEY!

mhaw2001a · ‎10-23-2014

I will no longer purchase items that fall under the GSP. I will continue to sell but no way will I pay for the GSP B.S. Thank you eBay GSP for saving my bank account.

reid4311 · ‎10-24-2014

Another thing to consider, which many people haven't (myself included) is that when eBay got in cahoots with Pitney-Bowes to start up the G.S.P. they must have signed a contract.

These guys started a thread that most of us I'm sure have read into about this program in Canada. Last time I looked there over 5,000 notes and still growing. I read a lot one rainy afternoon and saw not a single supporter for the program, not a one! The closest I saw was a few folks saying if you think the cost is too high then don't buy it! Not exactly supportive.

So having said all that and now that they know how poorly it's been received and avoided the reason it's still around has now become obvious to me. They can't end the program because they've entered into a contracted agreement with P-B. in which case they couldn't end it without having to pony up for some sort of buyout clause.

After all, my only loyalty is to my wallet!

patken123 · ‎10-24-2014

Ebay is not getting my business,I will give you my most recent experience briefly:

I was looking to buy a Craftsman right angle drill/driver,saw one on Amazon.ca for $105,then I thought why not try ebay,well out of 28 listings 25 was with the dreaded GSP,and the total was on average $10 or so higher than amazon.

Why would anyone entertain the idea of buying it from ebay(usa sellers) ,pay more,pay GSP,wait longer,no warranty (or at least difficult to return the item/more costly)when I could buy it within Canada and have the item in my hand in 48 hours,return with no questions asked?makes you wonder how competitive is ebay now a days?

You can take a wild guess where I ended up ordering from,and this is just a single example ,there are many more cases like it I'm sure b/c it make more sense to avoid ebay all together rather than to consider it ,the same ebay that used to be my first place to look ,is now the last or not at all.

They made their bed ,now they must lay in it.

reid4311 · ‎10-24-2014

Quite right! Out of all this though one positive thing has happened and that is more business for Canadians from Canadians!

ricketts223 · ‎10-27-2014

Man, glad to hear so many people are having the same concerns...but we must bow to the corporate monster ebay has become...lol

Even selling stuff on ebay has become virtually impossible. I cannot proceed unless I make a selling, shipping and returns template. 3 of them in total. I have only been able to create 2 of the templates...some glitch keeps me from proceeding...so I actually threw the item out that I was trying to sell. I cannot recall even now exactly what the proper term was for the templates...I sell so little, and ebay seems to be really geared to the volume sellers that it just isn't worth my time to fight with the website to set the templates to complete my simple sale.

Actually, in eBay's defense, I think the vast majority of websites now are so full of **bleep** that trying to perform some basic menial task is completely lost and buried...for example, just trying to find my local Canada Post location's operating hours off of the Canada Post website was impossible...after the second endless loop on the website and running into a brick wall. Jeez...all I wanted was the store hours lol.

Which concerns me about Amazon...it is SO easy to navigate, information is SO easy to find, returns are SO simple...it makes me wonder how long it will be before their corporate heads that site up too...

reid4311 · ‎10-27-2014

Funny you should mention Amazon ricketts. I found in Amazon.ca by accident a chap in Vancouver that I used to buy cds from. He always had loads of indie Canadian artist listed.

He even remembered my name! So we struck up a long distance friendship of sorts and when I felt comfortable asking why he'd switched he summed it up in 3 words. "Too much drama!"

Also you're dead on with how smooth and easy the site is to get around. It just seems a whole lot better organized.

mayfairsuperdog · ‎07-17-2016

The only things ebay is good at anymore is lying to you, me and everyone and sneaking in new hidden fees at every corner.

pierrelebel · ‎07-17-2016

This is an old thread from 2014. Let it RIP

marnotom! · ‎07-17-2016

@pierrelebel wrote:

This is an old thread from 2014. Let it RIP

Just want to point out that several of those that posted to this thread are still using eBay.

xenotime · ‎07-19-2016

@marnotom! wrote:
@pierrelebel wrote:

This is an old thread from 2014. Let it RIP

Just want to point out that several of those that posted to this thread are still using eBay.

Including the OP.

paledrome · ‎03-08-2018

Are you really a Canadian or are you just a copy of us Great Canadians. You are the type who asks for a little more sand in my petroleum Jelly please. eeew thats good, another inch sir please!
Stand together or fall apart, Canada the Emerging Superpower without the attitude.