BUYERS BEWARE ... UK Ebay buyers and private sellers .

[David Hardy]

In case you never knew but Ebay in the UK are now charging buyers extra money on a purchase by what they call ... "Buyers Protection Fee ".
What it means is this ...

Item price set by the seller
£20
Buyer Protection fee variable (4% of £20)
£0.80
Buyer Protection flat fee
£0.75
Price that buyer sees for the listing
£21.55 + postage.

Item price set by the seller
£500
Buyer Protection fee variable (4% of £300, + 2% of £200)
£16.00
Buyer Protection flat fee
£0.75
Price that buyer sees for the listing
£516.75 + postage .

Even worse if you want to sell an item at say ...

Item price £3,989.00 Buyer Protection fee £86.50 Total item price £4,075.50.

The same policy is to apply to auctions .

None of this helps the seller or buyer .

In short ebay is now charging you money for the privilege of simply buying an item from them but not at the sellers actual asking price .
It does not really help the sellers either in the long run as he may lose potential buyers due to a selling price increase they did not want or ask for and
the seller has no control over this except to sell elsewhere .
WHAT A SCAM !

[Osi Osgood]

Not only that, but the highly heralded "Global/ international shipping program", costs more, and can take an extra two to four weeks for your parcel/package to arrive, when, if the seller was to ship directly, (and all you need is a tracking number for verification), it would take little more than a week.

[David Strelitz]

It's not a scam. A PIA maybe but not a scam. No one forces you to use eBay. It has been well publicised by eBay and the likes of Martin Lewis etc.
Other online selling sites already do it.
If I understand it correctly it doesnt apply to purchases from business sellers.

Try buying or selling at a "real" auction where both buyers and sellers pay around 18% + VAT.

[Mike Newell]

Ebay don’t charge the sellers buyer protection but hold their sales money until two days after receipt of the item by the buyer unlike the old system. “Just resting in their bank account”. You also have to manually withdraw cleared monies rather than it being automatically paid

The buyer protection fee is basically a name it is the same as what existed before except they are now charging you a 4% premium for supplying the service.

Funnily enough the international sales are the same as they were. They are mirroring online sales companies like Vinted and Depop. It’s also the same for auction houses. Buyer also pay a fee on item.

[David Hardy]

David Strelitz can you inform me what a PIA is ? I do not like the fact that if i am willing to sell an item at a "Buy It Now" on Ebay at a reasonable bargain of £XXX price in the hope of a quick sale that Ebay now inflate my asking price to £ YYY price via the Buyers Protection Fee . I know i am not forced to use Ebay sales . I wonder how it is that UK sales sites such as GUMTREE do not charge a penny for use of selling and buying on there site while other such as Ebay charge fees and are allowed to inflate an individuals asking price under the guise of Buyers Protection Fees at point of sale .

[David Strelitz]

David Strelitz can you inform me what a PIA is ? I do not like the fact that if i am willing to sell an item at a "Buy It Now" on Ebay at a reasonable bargain of £XXX price in the hope of a quick sale that Ebay now inflate my asking price to £ YYY price via the Buyers Protection Fee . I know i am not forced to use Ebay sales . I wonder how it is that UK sales sites such as GUMTREE do not charge a penny for use of selling and buying on there site while other such as Ebay charge fees and are allowed to inflate an individuals asking price under the guise of Buyers Protection Fees at point of sale .

The answers are quite simple:
PIA....Google it...bit like FFS 🥴

If you are a business seller, you're customer doesn't pay any extra.

As has already been pointed out other online sites have always added buyers protection.

If as a non business seller you don't like it, DONT USE EBAY. It's not mandatory. Use a REAL Auction and pay 18%+ VAT

As for Gumtree, I would have thought that most transactions were 1 to 1 in person, it is definitely NOT an online anonymous Auction. That's an Apples and Pears comparison.

[David Hardy]

David Sterlitz i find this part of your response to my question a bit rude ... " The answers are quite simple:
PIA....Google it...bit like FFS 🥴 " All asked was for you to kindly inform me as to what PIA is in the context of Ebay use . I did google it but i hoped that someone could explain it to me . Also i never implied that GUMTREE was an auction site and only that this online selling service is free of charge for it's users . However if i choose to use the BUY IT NOW facility on Ebay for selling in what sense is it an auction since no bidding takes place for my item ? That was the comparison i was trying to make between EBAY selling and GUMTREE selling . GUMTREE does not charge any private customers for purchasing or selling an item via their site while EBAY most certainly now do charge the private customers for the buying something via their site . This was not the case in the past . Ebay recently dropped the seller fees for private non - business sellers and have passed some the costs on to the buyer via that Buyer Protection Fee . In the past if i sold something via Ebay for say £800 including postage that was all the buyer had to pay . I was happy to absorb and pay sellers fees . Now Ebay bump up my actual sellers asking price by some percentages and pass it on to the buyer instead . Not very honest or fair in my opinion . That's why i claimed it is a bit of a scam . In future as a PRIVATE SELLER i will now think twice about selling anything via EBAY . Therefore that rare Derann Super 8mm Feature Film Print i may potentially have sold on Ebay for the asking " Buy It Now " price of only £ 500 will now cost the buyer an extra £ 16.75 p + postage for the privilege of doing so . It's a bit like going into a shop and buying something with a price tag of £ 20.00 on it and at the point of sale they charge you £ 21 .55 p at the till . As if paying the already added in V.A.T. was not bad enough for an item .

[Graham Sinden]

David Hardy for the best way to sell your films, come to Blackpool in November. You will have a great time and there are no sellers or buyers fees (only entrance or stall money). You can sell your films for a reasonable amount and both buyer and seller will be happy. You can also add to your collection and inspect it all before buying. So much to see and chat with everybody .

[David Strelitz]

Only "a bit rude"...to quote from my school report book "must try harder".😂😂😂
You have almost found the answer, dont use eBay.
It is still not mandatory.
Use Gumtree... and good luck if the sale goes pear-shaped. Caveat emptor.
Use a REAL auction and only pay around 18%+VAT
...and as Graham has just posted, a film fayre...but not much good if its not a cine related sale.

Any buyer has the option to say "sod that" and not go ahead with the purchase, in much the same way that my potential client does not have to accept a quotation I have sent them.
Not a difficult concept even for a simple Essex lad like me.🤔

[Douglas Meltzer]

Would it be possible to avoid using "Google it" as an answer? I understand the temptation to throw that in, however a fellow member is only seeking clarification to something posted in a reply and how that something might affect selling films. I find an explanation from an experienced member to be more beneficial than a search/answer engine that is often inconsistent.

[David Strelitz]

With respect Douglas, the O/P was on a rant about something that he described as "A SCAM".
I'd be more concerned about that libellous suggestion, than my tongue in cheek "Google it".
With regard to eBay and to reiterate:
As a seller, it would make no difference. As a buyer from a Business seller it would make no difference. Buying from a private seller, now attracts an additional fee, in line with other online selling sites. Sure it's a PIA (or should I type that in full) like any surcharge but no one forces anybody to buy anything from anyone on eBay or anwhere else for that matter.
There is no such thing as a free lunch.
Incidentally in an earlier post about eBay, I posted about a seller who as a condition of a full refund for a faulty or more likely pirated part, expected a 5☆review.

[David Hardy]

David Sterlitz ... I now find the manner of your most recent reply to my post somewhat condescending . However i tend to be a bit sceptical about what is written or possibly true on google or any other online search engine on any subject or person during my research . That's one reason i asked you as a fellow member on this site what IPA is . The internet is full of so much misinformation and utter lies and propaganda when you dig deep enough and subject it to scrutiny and real analysis . In fact not unlike the mainstream media today . I have however been informed and indeed if true that the companies of VANGUARD and BLACKROCK are among the many major shareholders and investors in EBAY . Which kind of explains to me the reasons why that only " Business Sellers " customers are now exempt from paying extra when making a purchase and " Private Sellers " customers now have to pay extra when making a purchase . Anyway i will say no more on this matter and draw a red line under it now .

[David Strelitz]

😂😂😂😂😂 +4%

[David Hardy]

Graham Sinden ... Thank you for your reply and suggestion. I have thought about coming to Blackpool and the BFCC over the years . Mainly to meet fellow film collectors and dealers in person with whom i have corresponded with over the phone and via my days writing articles for the PROJECTIONS magazine in the past . However the distance , health reasons and the expense of transport to attend these events to sell films prohibits me from doing so . As you may or may not know i stay in a coastal village in the North East of Scotland and am now retired and in my 70's . Cheers !

[Murray Paterson]

Just to put in my pennies worth. I did my first listing today with the new system. The first noticeable change was postage. It is completely new and a bit fiddly ( for now anyway) Where I use to select from a large drop down of various prices and couriers it appears to give a list of couriers and one option ( tracked) I use to do sign and tracked, so will see how it works out.
Also I always started at £19.99 . Its just me but I find that price seems to work but ebay automatically adjust it to £21.51 once listed. It annoyed me a bit, I either have to accept it or reduce my price slightly to get the starting price I like.
Once the item is delivered and confirmed ( so that means we rely on the courier doing there job and signing it off) I get paid 2 days later. Otherwise it is 14 days apparently.
It is a bit long winded and my friend who sells dvds cheap and sends them letter post has decided to stop. The changes would just make his items too unappealing.