Sick to my eyeballs of eBay, what's the alternative?

[aimingtobeaperfectionist]

Have used eBay for years but now getting increasingly frustrated with it. The latest thing being an automatic refund payment being set up so of a buyer complains, they can just take the money back without trying to sort it out?!
I've had a few run ins with not so honest buyers and I've just had enough.
So what's my alternative? I've never used anything else. I'd like something easy to use with chance or actually selling and making a bit of cash.

[aimingtobeaperfectionist]

Also, I sell mostly baby stuff/ household things. Nothing wildly expensive but lots of little bits IYKWIM.
TIA

[insancerre]

gumtree
amazon
pre-loved

[aimingtobeaperfectionist]

Are they any good? Easy to use?

[IDismyname]

Hi aiming
I too, am SICK of Ebay. I really don't sell that much, but for every 2 items I sell, the third one is an absolute pain.

I sold a pair of bike forks (that my son used to have) before Christmas. We were utterly honest about scratches etc. The bloke who bought it wanted me to wait in for a courier so they could be sent to Poland. This caused me huge hassle as it was the week before Christmas, but I did it with good grace.

Now he has opened a Paypal dispute with some very strange Anglo-Polish reasons why he wants a partial refund for the forks. He says they need servicing (well, they're second hand, and I never said they were fully serviced...) and they "didn't match the description". We included 4 photos on the page...

The forks reached a price of £48 and he wanted an £18 refund.

Its my word against his - the stuffs in Poland, anyway. I've just accepted that I have to refund him, but I'm sooooooo LIVID about it.

Why didn't he contact me via Ebay first - why just send a demand through Paypal? I've had no chance to discuss the problem with him.

I really cannot work out how to make Ebay work for me. It seem that every buyer is out to "do" the seller out of their money.

Maybe I'm unlucky. I don't know.... but I do know that I'm VERY cross!

[fergoose]

you don't have to give a partial refund - just refuse, escalate the case within ebay and tell him to return for a refund

incidentally you should never let a buyer arrange their own courier. He could pretend not to receive, claim they are damaged and you won't be able to claim from courier for damaged or lost, etc.

[aimingtobeaperfectionist]

eBay just seem to be all for the buyer and against the seller totally. They won't let me sell anything unless I nominate a payment method for refunds. Reading the small print they are saying if a buyer asks for a refund, they will automatically take the money and there's bugger all I can do about it. So I lose the item and the cash.
It just doesn't seem fair!! I'm going to give gumtree a go as they've got free listing. It's such a shame because eBay woul work brilliantly if not for the scammers who are out in force at the minute.

[fergoose]

no you don't - they will freeze the money and only refund the buyer once the item has been returned. They won't give a buyer back your money and let them keep the item.

[notcitrus]

I've had success with local groups on Facebook, and Gumtree.
Ebay just has too many sellers and not enough buyers willing to pay above postage costs.
Have sold over 200 items on Ebay in 5 years, but in last 6 months only 2 sold, one led to buyer never paying and the other was my first "lost in post"!

[queenofthepirates]

Fergoose sadly not, I've just had a buyer raise a case and refuse to return the item purchased. Ebay found in his favour and refunded him all of the purchase price plus the postage. This is despite numerous emails from me to the buyer asking for a return of the item sold and absolutely no emails back from the buyer. So in short this was a scammer. I'm a business seller and sell new items.

I will have my revenge though...moo ha ha.....

[lljkk]

Tell us the buyer id, QueenofP, I'm happy to put them on my blocked list.

Ebid is an alternative. Don't forget local Free-Ads, and Cheapcycle, too.

[queenofthepirates]

Pleasure, they are igor2011
Avoid them like the plague please.

[cerealqueen]

I had a few thing on Ebid for a year and nothing sold. I paid for a lifetime membership but they don't promote the site, which is pretty rubbish compared to Ebay.

[MisForMumNotMaid]

I've used preloved for unusual items that i don't expect to sell quickly and for bulky things. Oh andfor chickens and ducks as i can't list those on eBay.

Its been good as its free but things are slow to sell as it takes ten days for free users to see your contact details. So okay if you're not in a rush but a PITA if you just want to clear things. Itis picking up some pace though because i've been searching for some furniture and i've noticed a lot of ebay duplicated ads on preloved.


Car boots on a niceday can shift quite a lot of stuff if its priced well and theres no follow up hassle. NCT sales for baby stuff (never tried it but seam like a good idea)

I agree with you about the number of dodgy people now buying on ebay. I've sold a few buggies and several people have claimed non receipt. I pay the extra for the sign for service with my courier and so have this to back up their non receipts!

[sylvannia]

Ebay is very annoying now they have stopped the free 99p start listings also so rarely a chance to list free as you have to be invited to be offered 100 free listings. I have been caught out by people sending stuff back and wanting a refund even though it appears they have damaged it themself as the packing was very thick when I sent the item. I cannot leave negative feedback when people buy an item and they do not pay or contact me so I have the item still and wasted the listing time. Gumtree and Friday Free Ads are good but you get a lot of scammers on there for more expensive items. Preloved has been very good but I agree takes a while sometimes to sell items but they just sit and wait for the right buyer so no problem and little cost to me. Always local Chronicle and Echo and Supermarket or shop noticeboards as many are free and also many Facebook selling pages now about. Ebay needs to look at its selling methods as it will lose out soon as people will get fed up.

[FrancesOldhamKelseyRIP]

NCT NNS good to shift baby stuff in bulk in a single day without faffing around with postage and dealing with nightmare scammy buyers.

[DarylDixonsDarlin]

I love love love facebook selling pages, have bought and sold on these now for almost 3 years I'd say. I've done easily as many transactions in that time as I've done on ebay in 10 years. Clothes, shoes & accessories, house stuff, baby things, DCs toys, cars! electricals, gaming stuff.

I hate ebay as a seller. As a buyer its pretty good. I haven't used anything like gumtree or preloved, the last time I checked it wasn't really taking off down here in my neck of the woods - we are quite far from any major cities.

[Binit]

I do hate eBay as a seller. The problem is that over the past few years, some sellers have been compete con artists/rip off merchants. So eBay tipped the balance firmly in favour of buyers which for honest and decent sellers is really crap and leaves us open to getting swindled.

I now generally won't sell anything that will go for less than £5 and everything I sell is free postage. So I just really feel like I have to bend over backwards. Therefore I sell a lot less. I no longer sell kids clothes or anything heavy as I know the postage will fall to me.