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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To find eBay annoying

49 replies

ThisLittleKitty · 09/01/2018 23:31

Aibu to find it really annoying? First time selling on there but have been buying for years anyway listed an item for £10 got up to £24 then the highest bidder tells me he wants to cancel his bid because "his wife already bought one." Super annoying, don't bid on anything you don't intend to buy! Not even a thanks when I cancelled it. So now it's gone back down to £21. I have 13 people watching it but only 2 bids. Whats that about? Is it just me who finds it annoying?

OP posts:
PizzaPower · 09/01/2018 23:34

It’s the way of eBay.
I think some watch because they have the same item and want to get an idea of value.
At least he cancelled before the auction ended, could have been much worse having a non paying bidder, of messing you around wanting to return it.

Original poster
ThisLittleKitty · 10/01/2018 00:28

That's true however I was worried the person below may not have wanted it anymore either (bidded on another one when they were out bid or something) that it would mess up my whole bidding. Luckily they haven't said they don't want it aswell!

OP posts:
badcopgoodcop · 10/01/2018 00:53

To give you an idea of why people watch things... I was looking for a wedding dress by a particular designer. Every time I found one in my size I "watched" it as a way to bookmark it and come back and look in more detail later. I'd regularly review and compare the other 5 I had my eye on (i.e was watching), checking pics against each other, imagining myself in them. Obviously I had no intention of buying them all, it was just an easy way to keep the ones I liked in the same place until I made a decision.

ClaudiaD13 · 10/01/2018 01:10

Yes, this is very annoying. We have a business selling on Ebay and there have actually been several occasions when listings have ended and no payment made. After chasing payment we are told 'my kid bid on it so I'm not paying'. Infuriating. Especially if when re-listed it doesn't sell for as much.

Facelikeaslappedarse · 10/01/2018 01:24

I watch items then wait till the last few minutes to bid.

HariboForBreakfast · 10/01/2018 01:31

If you have a message saying my kid bid so I'm not paying then report them to eBay. Don't chase payment by message. Do a non paying bidder report (you can set these up to automatically happen) and with the second one completed they'll be blocked from most eBay sellers.

RemainOptimistic · 10/01/2018 01:37

Cheeky fuckers are more common on ebay now than a decade ago I think. Non payment is quite common even when buyers Buy it Now, which blows my mind. People have twigged that the terms and conditions favour the buyer so they can get away with a lot.

thebewilderness · 10/01/2018 01:47

I put things on my watch lit so I can use the "view similar items" option.
People are violating eBay policies if they are letting their children under 13 (I think it is) use the site.
You are absolutely right that it has gotten a lot worse over the years for both buyers and seller. Reliable online retailers are mostly gone and drop shippers and China sellers are in the majority.

outofmydepth45 · 10/01/2018 05:42

With the amount of things that get 'lost' and 'not what I expected' where the buyer gets full refunds even if sent signed for as ' not a clear signature' I no longer bother and have gone back to chariety bags.

WhatToDoAboutThis2017 · 10/01/2018 05:52

he wants to cancel his bid because "his wife already bought one." Super annoying, don't bid on anything you don't intend to buy!

He did intend to buy, hence why he had to pull out when it turned out his wife had already got one.

MsHopey · 10/01/2018 06:09

I'm a sniper.
Even if no one had bid on an item I wait till the last 30 seconds. You might still get a few more bids yet.
It has gone downhill recently. And a lot of sellers taking weeks to ship items out as they were on holiday/car was broken/sick child, and only send the item once I chase it up after not receiving it 2 or 3 weeks later.

CoffeeAndCupcakes85 · 10/01/2018 08:07

YANBU. I'd find that really annoying.

I used to sell a lot on eBay a few years ago. I've just started selling again this past year and can't believe how cheeky many buyers have become! Not just claiming they haven't received things, but buying items/bidding on items then challenging the postage and refusing to pay it. Firstly, I always put the postage as what it costs me to send the item. Secondly, if you don't agree with the postage, just don't bid on the item! Grrrr Angry.

Original poster
ThisLittleKitty · 10/01/2018 08:16

Well don't bid on anything if your wife is looking for one aswell then as you must know you may not intend to buy it if she finds one. I actually didn't even know you could bid on things then pull out since I've never done it I only bid on things I actually am going to buy not just bid on things whilst my "wife" looks for another one.

OP posts:
OneInEight · 10/01/2018 08:43

On the bright side watchers push your listing up the ranking system so you get higher visibility and more likelihood of selling your items. It is frustrating though when you get lots of watchers and no sale though.

WhatToDoAboutThis2017 · 10/01/2018 09:33

ThisLittleKitty Chances are he didn’t realise his wife was looking for one too; probably a simple miscommunication.

Whatever the reason, it’s nothing to get so worked up about. Shit happens (and this is only a tiny shit), and you need to be able to deal with it.

BuckysRoboticArm · 10/01/2018 10:10

I'm a buyer and seller.

There's absolutely nothing wrong with watching an item, whether you intend to buy it or not. There's clearly a reason they are watching it. Some are interested in an item and deliberating whether or not they can justify spending the money (even on small things) or whether they like the item enough to actually buy it, or if there's a cheaper alternative before choosing that one, waiting til they get paid and hoping it doesn't sell till then etc

Watching doesn't mean you've made some kind of pre-sale. It's exactly like going in a store, browsing, seeing something you like then keeping it in your memory as something you're considering buying. It's easy to lose things on eBay, hence the watch function.

If I knew a seller had an attitude like that I wouldn't be watching their items and they could potentially miss out on a sale. It's like being mad at a person because they refuse to give you their money and take your items. Ridiculous.

Also yes things do happen in life and mistakes are made. If a person is genuine and apologetic I have no issue with that. Not everyone is a CF you know.

People who are rude via messages, who lie about not receiving items, who try to take the absolute piss (can you halve the price of your item and also courier it to me for free even though it's collection only) who complain about postage after buying...these are the kind to get annoyed at. But sometimes genuine mistakes do happen, and life happens too. I don't make eBay priority when one of my family is ill or there's an emergency. I'm not a big branded business with employees to stand in for me.

I just had a message from someone who has been ill and not yet posted items I bought last week (I actually know from the item they are being truthful about their illness) they were sincerely apologetic and honest. Did I find it annoying and feel infuriated? Of course not, I was understanding. I'm a human being too. It's only eBay (they were not a big business seller either).

If you start seeing everybody you have an issue with on eBay as an arsehole then chances are it's not always them. I agree that some people take the piss and it's wrong, but you can't get infuriated over every single thing, you have to make allowances sometimes.

I do agree that there's too much protection for buyers compared to sellers - having to refund over a signed item because a signature 'isn't clear' is absolutely out of order. Luckily that's the first time I've ever heard of that. When I've challenged with a signature I've always won.

Original poster
ThisLittleKitty · 10/01/2018 10:17

They weren't apologetic though he told me to cancel it because his wife bought one so what if the person below him no longer wanted it aswell because they've bidded on another one? Not considerate at all IMO. No thank you after cancelling either. Last time i sell on eBay.

OP posts:
Puzzledandpissedoff · 10/01/2018 10:22

For me, there's no point in "small volume sellers" trading on ebay now. As a PP said, buyers have realised just how much the system's skewed in their favour and take advantage accordingly ... usually with silly excuses which absolutely nobody but ebay would believe

There's little point, anyway; IME ebay are only interested in huge sellers who make them most commission (and who can more easily absorb buyer stupidity), so if they lose a smaller seller they're really not likely to give a stuff

thebewilderness · 10/01/2018 19:30

If I wanted to buy from Amazon I would have. It does no good to try to buy from what you think is a small seller on eBay when they are using their Prime membership to sell "gifts". It feels like fraud to me.

Original poster
ThisLittleKitty · 10/01/2018 19:36

I tried to sell on sphock but people wanted half the price for the things i listed. For example a battery operated ride on car which is £129.99 in argos and I was selling for £50 so that's £80 below sale price, people kept offering me £20! honestly I would rather just chuck things away! It's practically brand new as my garden just wasn't big enough for it to ever get any real use.

OP posts:
LadyB49 · 10/01/2018 19:42

I buy and sell. Always clothes and one pays for the other. When buying i always snipe, waiting and placing my bid at 13 seconds. This trying to avoid a bidding war.

loopylobespat · 10/01/2018 19:55

I’ve stopped doing eBay now, to many ‘I didn’t receive the item’ and ‘it wasn’t my signature’

I’ve had people claim they didn’t receive and then I can see that they are selling the item on them self’s a week later.
eBay do nothing! They favour the buyer.

If I was to buy myself I’d wait until the last 5/10 seconds. You may get more bids.

ShimmeringIce · 10/01/2018 19:58

Sellers annoy me more!
I hate the way they set up listing with multiple items at different prices (always something crap at the end of the list for 0.99) - it’s impossible to search for the best value item.
I also wish eBay would crack down on descriptions/categories. There’s literally no way of filtering out horrible synthetic plastic crap when you’re looking for leather. It’s like nobody knows there’s a difference anymore Angry Don’t get me started on the fuckwits selling blatantly woven ‘suede’

Original poster
ThisLittleKitty · 10/01/2018 20:01

Currently 15 watching now but only 2 bids. I like to be optimistic but I doubt 15 people are planning on bidding in the last few seconds lol.

OP posts:
fairgame84 · 10/01/2018 20:09

I prefer eBay to Shpock.
Shpock is a Mecca for CFuckery. Half of the they don't show up to collect after they managed to barter you down to half the asking price.
Worst one was a CF who asked if I could deliver the item to a town 7 miles away. I said yes as I work in that town and could drop it round on my dinner hour and I wouldn't charge her for delivery. Item was a laundry bin at £5. CF then offered £4!! Id just agreed to deliver it at no extra charge ffsAngry
I cancelled the sale and took it to the charity shop.