eBay scraps private seller fees

[GingerBeverage]

https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2024/oct/01/online-retailer-ebay-scraps-fees-for-private-sellers-in-uk

I prefer ebay generally as I think I have more control over the process, but vinted has definitely taken over the market. Will this encourage people to return to ebay?

This sounds great but I sold a board game on EBay last night and have had fees deducted from the payout as usual.

It's for sales from today, 1st October.

Ah that makes sense then! Thanks, I missed that in the article. I think they needed to do to survive because Vinted seems to be expanding its categories.

Here's the bit from the email they sent me today that outlines the basics:

Free selling

Earlier in the year, we removed transaction fees for pre-loved clothing. As of 1 October 2024, we are extending this across categories, with the exception of motors. Here’s what this means for you:
•Transaction fees were paid when your item sells. We are removing these fees, meaning selling is now free. This applies for both new and existing listings.
•Listing fees are paid when you list an item. You will receive 300 free listings a month.
•Optional add-on features, such as international selling and promoting your listing, will be available for an additional cost.

As a business seller I'm furious. We are the backbone of ebay and are being kicked in the teeth yet again. There are thousands of so called 'private' sellers who are really just unregistered businesses. They do not have to conform to consumer law and now have a massive unfair advantage.
Thank God the taxman is now after them 😄

Originally eBay was mainly private, non-business sellers. They were the backbone of eBay in the past.

Yes, it changed but I'd welcome a return to more private sellers. Businesses have other options.

I just wish we could filter for private sellers, so I didn’t have to scroll through pages and pages of people selling the same Chinese sourced ….stuff( being polite there).

Agree with this. I always thought eBay was private sellers with their own used goods to sell. Exactly as Vinted now is. I've mostly stopped using eBay since it became all companies flogging cheap imported rubbish. It's become hard to sift through to find actual bargains from individuals.
I saw the other email too and thought it was a last ditch attempt to compete with Vinted but probably too late to save it now.

Yes, it changed but I'd welcome a return to more private sellers. Businesses have other options.

I agree. I go on eBay for the private sellers, and I hate wading through the volume of ads for generally shitty products being sold by companies.

@AnOldCynic yes it was mostly private sellers and it was an auction website when it started. I started off as a private seller. My issue is that 'private' sellers who take thousands each month have an unfair advantage as they pay no fees and do not conform to consumer laws. For tax purposes, if you buy to resell, you are a business.
I do agree that there is far too much imported Chinese tat on ebay now. Also, all the charities and shop chains selling on there so it has lost the excitement and vibe of the early days. I sell vintage and antique items so no imported crap 😀

Solidarity Fatfreefatball . I am furious too as a small business seller. Guess who will be charged more for the freebie offered to private sellers. My business doesn't make a huge amount anyway and my margins get less each year. I am honestly getting to the point as why bother.

I’ve been trying to sell stuff on vinted that isn’t shifting and this will definitely get me to look at eBay again so it’s worked!l as intended.

Not to denigrate any of the business sellers posting here as I doubt they are like this, but there's so much utter tat on sale from business sellers - the kind that import really cheap-looking stuff such as 'designer-inspired' handbags - that it makes it hard to find what you are looking for, if your object is good quality second-hand goods.

They have lost business now the government is cracking down on people on benefits selling on there I'm assuming Facebook is the next site for them to trawl honestly I'm a bit 🙄 at them "cracking down" on people flogging old clothing to buy new I could understand if it was literally thousands of pounds but no-one is raking it in selling their kids old toys and clothing which is (let's face it) the only people they will really "catch"

Calm down. No one is "cracking down" on people selling their old clothes.
You can even sell to the tune of thousands as a one off, just be prepared to explain your gain if someone does check. Seems entirely reasonable to me to prevent money laundering and fraud.

My beef with ebay is the ease that people can fence stolen goods. I’ve tried to report clearly stolen items (where you can see the damage from being jimmied off a vehicle) and they make it incredibly difficult - to the point of needing to be a cop to do it.
Counterfeits everywhere, chinese tat everywhere.
I use it because it has better seller protection IMO for higher end items than vinted. It’s also easier to contact an agent for a chat.

Does anyone know if it's only items listed after 1st October that are free or all listings even ones that were listed a couple of weeks ago but sell after 1st October?

Urrgghh that doesn’t sound good. I find a lot of people so rude on Vinted and get fed up with the ridiculously low offers. One of the things I like about EBay is the ability to turn off the offers button but I guess that won’t stop the unsolicited messages 😡 I think the only response to comments like that has to be “go ahead and buy it on Vinted then”. Knobbers.

What is the new "customer facing fee"? I have just googled and didn't find it.

Well I thought it would encourage me back but despite having free 299 listings to go I appear to have a limit of £5 that eBay will allow me to sell per month so that kills that off! I don’t know why I’ve got this limit. It says I can request an increase but the link isn’t working.

I was thinking I might sell some stuff. It's been a while. Does anyone know if you can still choose Royal Mail and take the parcel to them in the usual way, just barking it posted/adding tracking details on eBay? I don't want to use Evri.

Barking ha ha.
Marking.

Yes you can still use Royal Mail in this way. At the moment I am mostly using their free collect service which works well if you are home during the day but I guess not otherwise.