Seller offered me a deal on an auction if I would buy outside of ebay to save her paying fees

[julieo459]

I was following an auction that ended yesterday. The seller emailed me on Monday (through the ebay messaging sysytem) saying that if I wanted to make her an offer that she that she liked, she would end the listing early. I asked her why she wasn't using the "Best Offer" option and she said outright that she is trying to avoid paying ebay final selling fees and Paypal fees. She also said that she has done this with about 5 other buyers and has successfully used ebay to advertise her auctions and then sold them outside of ebay to avoid fees. I told her that I don't do deals outside of ebay.  No one bid on the auction. Do I report this?

[lady.stark]

How was the seller able to contact you if you were just "following" the auction? I looked at my items and I can't see the names of the buyers watching my items... ?

[i*m-still-here]

Our world sure has gone "Tattle Crazy" in the 2,010s.

Not like when I grew up where Mind Your Business was the order of the day as long as no one was getting hurt.

It's up to you whether you report it or not.

[pierrelebel]

"Do I report this?"

There are two lines of thinking on the subject.

1 - some believe in minding their own business and see no point in reporting the policy offence to eBay

2 - others want a cleaner site where all sellers are subject to the same rules.  Why should most sellers pay fees for those who find a way to cheat and avoid them?

Your choice.

[i*m-still-here]

I totally agree with the post above.  100%

If you feel that reporting this particular seller is going to make a eBay a better cleaner lovelier place for the rest of honest decent folk who follow the rules and work hard to keep this site a decent honest place to do business, then by all means report this seller.

The item has ended so it's a little wonky to report the seller though.

You'll find that it takes a phone call and more time than you bargained for, but thank you for caring and doing your part.

[pierrelebel]

"he item has ended so it's a little wonky to report the seller though.You'll find that it takes a phone call and more time than you bargained for,"

???

It is very easy and simple to report the violation, even for ended listings.  Simply click on the "Report Item"

[i*m-still-here]

And so I"ve been corrected.   🙂

[julieo459]

I sent a msg to the seller about a week ago with a question about shipping, that is how they had my ebay ID.

Something else this seller does is list a ridiculous price for shipping and then put in the description something like "when I go to the post office, if the shipping rate is less than I charged you, I will send you a refund through PayPal". I guess it would be up to me to remember to check the package when it arrived to see how much the shipping actually was and then augue with her. I didn't bid because the shipping arrangement ws too weird.

[rykkm]

This sounds like a shady seller in some regards. Not only the unclear shipping charges, but the offer to buy outside of ebay. Doing so would offer you no protection whatsoever, so very much buyer beware.  Sketchy at best.

[i*m-still-here]

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@rykkm wrote:

This sounds like a shady seller in some regards. Not only the unclear shipping charges, but the offer to buy outside of ebay. Doing so would offer you no protection whatsoever, so very much buyer beware.  Sketchy at best.

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Actually, that's not true.

If you pay with paypal a buyer gets paypal protection which is the same as eBay protection.

If you pay with Credit card you get protected as well.

Depending on the circumstances, there are legitimate reasons to buy from sellers one "met" on eBay.

I know of one seller who collected all his eBay customer's email addresses over the years and then sent out invitations/solicitations to sell them off eBay even though he sells on eBay and those buyers would likely buy the same items from him here if they had no choice.

Obviously, it's to his benefit and not eBay's to side-step eBay.

Now, that's the same as ending a listing early and doing an off ebay deal (not sanctioned by ebay), but it's not far removed either but apparently sanctioned by ebay.

Confusing?

It can be.

[rose-dee]

Yes, it sounds like this seller is doing everything possible to not work within the system, and to blatantly circumvent eBay's rules.  You could also end up holding the short end of the stick if you needed to open a case.  I'd say sellers like this deserve to be boycotted. 

As for reporting, that's your call as others have said, but there is "tattling" on a fairly trivial matter that really affects no one else, and there is reporting some seriously bad selling practices that could impact many -- I'd say this is the latter situation. 

Besides, IMO not reporting someone like this leads to copy-cat abuse by other sellers, which ultimately leads to eBay having to institute even harsher rules on everybody to control the few. 

[pierrelebel]

"Confusing?"

Not really.  The policy is very clear:

Some examples of activities that aren't allowed include:

• Using member contact information obtained from eBay or using any eBay system to offer to sell any listed item outside of eBay

• Canceling a listing to sell to a buyer who found the item on eBay

• Ending a listing early to sell the item to the winning bidder a price higher than the current bid

• Including contact information or an offer to buy or sell an item outside of eBay within a Best Offer

• Offering to sell an item to a non-winning bidder without using Second Chance Offer

  http://pages.ebay.com/help/policies/rfe-spam-non-ebay-sale.html

  In the case cited in the original post, it is a clear violation of the policy.  Further, communication from the seller indicates it is a regular occurence for that seller to offer direct sales to avoid eBay fees.

[i*m-still-here]

Ooops.......... that was a typo............. Just in case someone doesn't realize that even though it should be obvious.  The last time I had a type I spent endless posts trying to clear it up so I'm doing it fast this time....... :).

I meant to say that ending a listing early and selling to a buyer met on eBay for that item is not sanctioned, while the other practice is........

As far as reporting the seller:  I've never had a even a peep from eBay when I reported sellers via eBay or the phone for very serious offenses, so Good Luck with That.

[pierrelebel]

"I've never had a even a peep from eBay when I reported sellers via eBay or the phone"

That is correct.  It is eBay's policy and has been from the beginning.  It is a question of protecting privacy.

Once an offence has been reported, eBay deals with it the way they see fit.  It could be a warning to the seller, a reprimand, a restriction, a suspension or, in worst cases, de-registration. 

It should be noted that eBay has ways to identify individuals attempting to register a different User ID when under suspension or restriction.

[i*m-still-here]

Alrighty Then.

[bb_cool_stuff]

Pierre, take a look at the Megadeth 2013 & McCartney 2013 Shirts.

I'm sure they have many more bands available for sale.

Counterfeits coming from Indonesia. Been watching these ones for awhile.

A lot of the pictures are the same but under numerous selling IDs.

It seems once they start receiving low ratings, that ID is no longer around & another ID is registered.

Could be other family members or friends registering selling accounts.

Sad but reality.

Must be difficult for eBay to monitor these sellers or they are giving them enough rope to hang themselves.

[bb_cool_stuff]

Regarding the original post, gutsy move for the seller to conduct business off eBay, but through the eBay message system.

Wow, just wow. 

[rykkm]

Actually, I stand by my interpretation of the seller here. If they had an online store outside of Ebay, for example, and also sold items through Ebay, either individual listings or store format, I could be a little less judgemental. However, this seller seems to be deliberately trying to use the Ebay platform for exposure, at minimal or no cost to them (with free listings and promotions), then circumventing the entire system by attempting to sell outside of Ebay. I am not taking Ebay's side here, but I am saying that any seller using those type of tactics is one that I would not do business with, for I view them as at least somewhat deceitful in their methods. And if they are that way with their Ebay dealings, how will they be with an individual buyer? Sorry, not for me.

[pierrelebel]

"once they start receiving low ratings, that ID is no longer around & another ID is registered.'

Unfortunately, we see that too often.  It is not against the rules.  It would be if the sellers were restricted or suspended but everyone is free to let a User ID go unused while using a new one.

[rose-dee]

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@pierrelebel wrote:

"Confusing?"

Not really.  The policy is very clear:

Some examples of activities that aren't allowed include:

• Using member contact information obtained from eBay or using any eBay system to offer to sell any listed item outside of eBay
• Canceling a listing to sell to a buyer who found the item on eBay
• Ending a listing early to sell the item to the winning bidder a price higher than the current bid
• Including contact information or an offer to buy or sell an item outside of eBay within a Best Offer
• Offering to sell an item to a non-winning bidder without using Second Chance Offer

  http://pages.ebay.com/help/policies/rfe-spam-non-ebay-sale.html

  In the case cited in the original post, it is a clear violation of the policy.  Further, communication from the seller indicates it is a regular occurence for that seller to offer direct sales to avoid eBay fees.

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You know,