r/eBaySellers

I hadn't sold on eBay for years. Before, I would take the item to USPS, they'd weigh it up and I'd pay for the post. Now that I can get it cheaper through eBay, I'm worried what might happen if I'm a little short?

The dimensions should be good. One box I measured and the other had it printed on the box. For the weights, I added a little bit more, like if it was 14oz I just went up to 1lb. But will the USPS check and if it's off, can I just pay the difference there?

My company has sold our returns on eBay for 8 years. In the past we would do around $20k in sales a year. We didn't pay much attention to eBay and just let it run in the background. I had noticed a downturn in sales over the last few years, so we transitioned to selling many of those items on our own website's clearance page, which works out well because we don't pay any of eBay's fees and fully control the customer experience. That said, we now sometimes see zero sales on eBay month to month, which is absolutely wild. Just 3 or 4 years ago we were seeing 5 sales a day. Our own website hasn't replaced that volume, so we've definitely lost out on sales overall. My guess is that because eBay is heavily pushing sponsored ads we have zero visibility despite thousands of 5 star transactions. Long story short, we pulled our listings yesterday to streamline fulfillment and I don't think we're missing out on a thing. The whole platform has become meaningless for us. Personally, I've been selling on eBay for over 20 years. It's sad to see what it's become. Maybe it's just the nostalgia of the early 2000's when it was peak eBay. Curious to here what other long time sellers think.

Okay, so I sold a Proplica Keyblade about two weeks ago. It was delivered, I paid for all shipping costs upfront at the UPS store (about $74) and this morning I got a message from Ebay claiming they charged me almost $164 because of a change in weight.

It was weighed at the store, cost adjusted there shipped, and delivered on May 1st. Now I have an email from ebay where UPS is claiming it weighed 90 lbs and all of a sudden are now adjusting the costs. I tried ebay support but their AI bot is useless and I can’t find any other form of support so here I am. I know this much, that thing does not weigh anywhere close to 90 lbs. It weighs maybe 2 lbs at most and I am on the hook for $164 is there anything I can do or am I screwed?

Someone bought 2 tracksuits from me on eBay which are very expensive, Returned them both and one was a completely different tracksuit, One was the correct one being returned but it was damaged…

I have never been more upset, so I reported it to eBay i said report issue or smthn. They still released funds to buyer.

After this I got soo hurt because they were teasing me in a way in the messages saying “No one will ever scam me” When I was the one who got flipping scammed 😭, And then he left me a bad review.

I was staying professional but at this point I decided To message him very aggressively and I said I have you address I can come and get my tracksuit.
And then I said I will call the police to your house because you have drugs there because you’re acting crazy.
Then I said again “I have your address I will ruin your life” and I will order from multiple accounts and also leave you a bad review.

Now I learnt my lesson not to get rage baited, but I think he’s going to report me when he sees my response in the morning.

Do you think I’ll get permanently banned? I wish I just got robbed and took it on the chin…

I will be happy if they reported me and it’s just temporary ban or a warning, but is it likely it will be permanently?

eBay is a fun side thing for me, but I’m tired of going to Staples to print my labels and then taping them to the package.

There’s a gabillion label printers out there, but what are people using here in this sub?

I’m on a Mac and would only want/use a label printer, and it would only be turned on when printing, maybe 10x/month.

Anyone got one they love and would recommend?

UPDATE: Thanks for the help everyone! I ordered a simple bluetooth/USB model from Amazon, and it'll arrive tomorrow. I appreciate the help!

I’ve been selling for more than 20 years, and have never noticed such ludicrous claims for the pure purpose of trying to get a partial refund.

I literally had someone send me a picture of paper towel in the trash and said there was a sticky residue on it cause it leaked out and she wants her money back. It was soap (just wash off) which I taped up, put in a baggie, bubble wrapped and encased in cardboard. When I told her she had to return it or she could contact eBay, she went into a full blown negative feedback mode accusing me of filling them with water. (How is this even related to her alleged damage?)

Just tonight I had someone say her mists were half empty and there was tape on it. Duh… you just proved the tape was on it to prevent leakage! No picture…. They were also taped up and bagged.

I swear, I’ve never had so much blatant fraud like I have this year. Have you experienced the same? I mean the buyers seem bold in making a false claim with no pictures or proof. Must be they’re trying to find change in the couch to pay for the high gas prices.

EDIT: Looks like I didn’t do enough research here, folks. Thanks for your help!

I sold a collectible double-sided angel coin comparable to other prices on eBay (they range from $74-$300–I sold for $125). The buyer has contacted me and said I’m a “liar” and a “scammer” and wants her money back. She said she took the coin to a “cornbroker” who said it was worthless and accused me of receiving the coin for free in the mail.

It’s not true (it was my mom’s before she died—one of the few things I’m parting with) and I feel I priced it accordingly. It’s a novelty coin and I think that’s pretty obvious from a quick search on eBay.

She’s not claiming she did not receive the coin, she seems to understand the coin is what I described, and what she received matches the photo I provided in the listing.

So far I don’t think there’s a formal dispute but this is pretty upsetting. What should I do?

I got the message below last night from a buyer asking me to refund "postal cost overcharge". I''m not sure what he means exactly, but it's probably one of two things:

1. the Post Office might be saying the package was shipped with insufficient postage. But, I generated the shipping label from eBay calculated using the exact weight and dimensions and shipped Ground. Package weighed 8 oz and was 4.5" x 7" x 1" and went from VT to WI (USA) and eBay calculated shipping as $5.89. Weight and cost information is right on the eBay generated shipping label.
2. the buyer might be mad I didn't charge him the exact shipping cost. I charged $7.50, so maybe he's asking me to refund the $1.61 I charged over the actual cost, and has refused delivery until I do so? I always list my auctions with a FLAT RATE fee to all buyers and restrict shipping destinations to within the USA. I don't have the time to mess around with invoicing after an item sells to calculate the exact cost to their door, then sending an updated invoice, then printing the label. I've done it enough to know what's going to be close, and I just set a Flat Rate. Sometimes I'm under and I lose a bit, sometimes I'm over and I gain a bit.

eBay provides the ability to set a FLAT RATE, and the auction was clearly listed as a FLAT RATE shipping in the auction listing, so I don't think this guy is being reasonable. If he didn't think $7.50 was reasonable to ship the item, he was free not to bid.

I'm not an eBay store. I just sell odds and ends that I don't want or need any more. I've been on eBay since 2000, have 827 buyer reviews at 100%. I might sell a couple things a month. It's not meant to be a money maker, so I try to keep it simple.

Any advice on how to respond to this guy? I think it's pretty petty for him to refuse delivery because the label says $5.89 and I charged $7.50. It's also odd that attempted delivery of the package was May 1 but he didn't send a message to me until May 8?

I sell lightly used cowboy boots and work boots. I hand clean these boots with saddle soap, water and brush. Take the insoles out and do the same or machine wash the insoles. Finally I spray the boots with disinfectant on the insides. Said that because a buyer said the boots were not up to his standards after 3 weeks and wanted a refund. These were Timberland boots by the way. I'm assuming that he bought a new pair needed my pair until he got paid to buy new ones. I asked if he wore them, the mansplaining started. I flat out said no for a refund. He pulled INAD whine to ebay. And of course eBay's customer service would not really look at my concern. (this douche, sent in the same pics that I had on the listing ) After babble from the CS rep, seeing that she was not going to help I hung up. Refunded the prick.

Should I of just let the whine run its course, as the deadline to handle was the 14th or just do what I did? WIth the new changes coming will this type of customers ripping off sellers continue?

So yesterday I created a new business account because I thought that was the right choice since I'm going to declare the income as self employment sole proprietor.

I uploaded 2 listings, updated my SSN and today eBay suspended my account... I called them and the reason my account was suspended was because I should have created the account as personal as per eBay without an LLC I don't have any way to verify my business.

So now I'm banned from creating any account on eBay using my name( forever?).

I don't see how this is fair to be honest, such a harsh punishment for a small mistake?

Wondering if anyone has gone through this before?

Any help would be appreciated.

So I have 30 day returns,buyer pays shipping on anything not a inad return.

This has happened a few times and I am curious if I am missing something or these customers really just hate money.

$10 item

$9 shipping

Total in over $20 after tax

Wants to return

$9 shipping

-$10 refund

Still about $20 in and now no product

Do they think they get original shipping costs back?

wanted to share some numbers i put together because i think a lot of us feel the squeeze but dont realize how much its actually changed.

2024: promoted listings attribution was around 35-40% of your sales. you ran ads, some sales came from ads, most were still organic.

january 2026: ebay changed the attribution model. now if ANY buyer clicks your ad, every sale of that item for the next 30 days gets charged the ad fee — even if the buyer who purchased never saw your ad.

result? sellers in UK and germany saw attribution jump from 35% to 80-90% overnight. US sellers are seeing the same thing since january 13.

on top of that:

• dynamic ad rate minimum went from 2% to 5% with zero notice (november 2024)
• priority ads minimum bid went from $0.02 to $0.20 per click — a 10x increase
• top search spot is now exclusive to priority (paid) campaigns
• promoted listings removed from time, price and distance sort

so lets do the math on a $100 sale:

• final value fee 12.9% = $12.90
• payment processing = $0.30
• promoted listings at 5% = $5.00
• thats $18.20 gone before shipping, returns, or cost of goods

and if you dont promote? your listing doesnt show up in the top spot anymore. period.

at what point did optional advertising become a mandatory visibility tax?

whats your opinion?

Sources:

• ebay official attribution policy change (jan 2026): https://www.ebay.com/help/selling/fees-credits-invoices/fees-managed-payments-sellers?id=5295
• seller impact analysis and UK/germany attribution data: https://www.valueaddedresource.net/ebay-promoted-listings-ad-attribution-update-fallout/
• 2026 promoted listings changes breakdown: https://www.frooition.com/2026/01/2026-ebay-promoted-listings-changes-why-organic-seo-is-your-best-bet/
• ad fee calculation changes (june 2022): https://export.ebay.com/en/resources/important-updates/ebay-news-archive/changes-promoted-listings-standard/`

I sold a package to a known freight forwarding address( I found out after I shipped it). I was trying to intercept the package through usps because I’m worried I will not win the eBay case. The problem is the package says it cannot be intercepted cause I need to give them a legitimate address to file an intercept. I’m trying to figure out what to do.

Do you think I could win the eBay case if they do the refund scam? (Note: the account had only good reviews and is clear but that specific address is link to a bunch of ebay scams)

Does anyone know what to do for intercepting packages in this situation?

Should I maybe try filling a police claim for internet fraud?

Urgently need help and will appreciate any responses with advice?

I listed an item today for $150, immediately after purchased gets cancelled request for “mistake”. eBay account created today, alphanumeric username, clearly a bot

I believe this is a scam but idk what exactly the point is or what I should do. If I issue refund, it says I refund $130, ebay covers $20. But I’m afraid they will then charge back the card after I sent the money.

What do I do? Do I ignore cancel and ship product? Then I’m afraid I’m down the product and money.

I’m gonna call eBay later tonight but I want some opinions and guidance thanks

What is this scam, I had the same person she first did this twice I thought I blocked her the first time, I remember her account being from Vietnam, then last night it happened again but the account was from Oregon blocked her again. She buys multiple of my items as soon as I list them then immediately messages and says she ordered by mistake asking me to cancel the order. I am just curious what the point of this is. Are they hoping you may accidentally send the item anyway? Is it feedback farming? I have had this happen multiple times, I sell pretty affordable 10kt gold.

USPS 8% rate increase: who's raising shipping prices? And who is sucking it up?

between final value fees, promoted listings, payment processing and now basically having to pay for visibility just to show up in search im looking at almost 30-35% gone before shipping and returns. it feels like every year they quietly take a little more and if you dont promote your listing it just sits there invisible. how is everyone handling this? raising prices? eating it? moving somewhere else?

A buyer just paid less than the already discounted price on my item. The item had a 20% discount and auto accept offer was enabled. But it sold for less than either of those amounts. Even applying the 20% discount to the offer price (which should not happen) doesn't get down to what they paid.

Although I can't find any way to see this in my seller reports, eBay told me the item sold via best offer. I never saw an offer notification so it must have been auto accepted. I simply received an item sold notification showing they paid less than any price I had offered.

eBay acknowledges there's a problem and advised me to remove auto accept from all my listings with best offer enabled while they investigate.

Original listing price	$69.95
Sale price shown on listing	$69.95 - 20% off = $55.95
Best offer auto accept price	$50.00
Actual price paid on order	$33.60

Has anyone else experienced similar phantom discounts on orders?

I strongly suggest removing auto accept on listings if you're doing any other discounts.

Sold a newly listed item. I went to print the label & it looked different. I realized it was FedEx & not usps. I select ground advantage for everything. This is an inconvenience, but I'll just have to make a trip to FedEx.

Later I go to check my balance & the whole section is just gone from where it normally is. I dig deeper & realize I was charged $354 for that fedex label.

I assumed this was my mistake but I look in the order & it says buyer selected ground advantage. I attempted to cancel the label. I'm so scared they are going to deny it. When I went to print another label, it won't let me select USPS ground advantage & keeps trying to purchase another FedEx label.

Please tell me this is gonna be ok.

I put in a void request, but I'm wondering if I should also call ebay/ FedEx.

I'm probably going to have to get a label from pirateship. Since it won't let me buy a ground advantage label.

I sold an item to someone and they responded to say that there was some damage when it arrived. I know it was fine when it was shipped. I already received the Ebay payout for the sale. How should I respond to the buyer? Should I tell them to submit a claim to Ebay? Is Ebay going to take the money back out of my account?