[78-L] Ebay Awry

[Benno Häupl]

. 
I know it is very difficult to stay up-to-date with all these changes in eBay 
policies and procedures, but I can tell you the following things. 

1) When a buyer contacts his seller after the purchase (e.g. when something 
went wrong), eBay asks about the item number and shows a list of items 
purchased.  After the proper selection a case is opened automatically (!) - 
on the site where the buyer purchased. This can be eBay Italy for an Italian 
buyer! Then you (the seller) may not understand too much of what's being said. 

2) Any case opened counts against the seller (somewhere in the background), 
if the seller does not close the case with a refund. Too many cases in the last 
12 months can get you kicked off eBay - for good. 

3) If you do not refund, but send a replacement, you need ''online viewable 
proof of delivery''. This is not identical with ''signature confirmation''.  If you 
cannot provide this proof of delivery which the eBay bots can see automatically 
on the net, then the buyer will get a refund - automatically as well.  This is why 
your best option is to refund immediately and consider this as part of doing 
business. 

If one in a hundred transactions turn bad, then add 50¢ or a dollar so to the 
shipping costs and "self insure". After 100 transactions you will have $50 or 
$100 in your sugar bowl to pay any claims from. 

Consequence:  whenever I have to ask my seller a question after the sale, 
I always select the option "This is not about an item purchased". This way the 
seller will not get a mark because of a ''case opened''.  But: how many people 
know this? 

It is not a matter of ''right or wrong'', but rather about understanding the eBay 
robots and their "scoring parameters" (evaluations). Mind you, the number of 
cases opened (even when closed amicably) also counts towards the visibility 
of your items in the searches, i.e. if your merchandise is on top of page 1 or 
buried on page 7. 

Or, as the new User Agreement says it, ''In some situations a listing may not 
appear in some search and browse results" - even if you pay for your listings!!!  
Bravo, eBay! Quite an achievement! 

Benno