Our E-Bay Story!

Well they have done it again!!!

Many of you have read our story below how E-Bay and Pay Pal have downgraded us and held our money back from us. They recanted in August of 2010 and lifted the hold. We decided to try them again.

Well, on February 9th, we received another e-mail saying we are an Unsatisfactory E-Bay Seller because we did not get a high enough rating in ONE AREA of their new Rating System. ONE AREA!!

So now Pay Pal is again holding our money from us and E-Bay has restricted our account.

I called E-Bay on Wednesday February 9th 2011 and spoke with a representative named "Mickey" She explained that we have a low rating in Shipping Charges. Now we use the E-Bay Shipping Calculator so the shipping rates we charge are E-Bays!!!

I asked her why they would take this action on a customer who has been with them for 13 years and generated over $53,000.00 in revenue for their company. Do you know what she said??

"It's Our Policy and We Have The Right To Do This!"

I asked to speak with her boss. She explained he was too busy to talk with me then, but would call me back within 24 hours. As I am writing this, it has now been 26 hours. I am not expecting a call back, from anyone and if I do get a call back, I am not expecting any resolution.

I will, however be posting any conversations and communication I have with E-Bay right here so everyone can read it because

That is Our Policy, and we have the Right to Do it!!

This just proves that Large Corporations are really the ones running our country.

We have contacted many different Television News Programs, and News Papers and so far no one has been willing to take E-bay and Pay Pal on. 

Keep watching for more information!

UPDATE:

Saturday February 12 11:00AM

As of this writing, I have still not heard from the E-bay Supervisor

Who was suppose to call me by 2:00PM on Thursday, February 10th!

Update Tuesday March 1, 12:30PM

Still no call from E-bay. I have written a letter to the CEO of E-Bay, Mr. John Donahoe at 2145 Hamilton Ave, San Jose, CA 95125. (This is in case you are having a problem and would like to write him)

I asked him to explain why having a low rating in the area of

Shipping Charges, makes me such a risk that they restrict my account

and hold back my money.

I am not expecting an answer, but if I do get one I will post it her verbatim.

E-bay is treating it's sellers as if they were it's employees. Setting monthly objectives and taking disciplinary action if they are not met! Well, guess what?? Sellers are NOT E-bay employees!! E-Bay does not pay us a wage, WE pay THEM a wage!!!

Keep watching for more news as it happens.

Update 4-19-2011

First of all I am still waiting for the Supervisor to call me back from February 9th!

Second, I have not had any response from the letter sent to the E-Bay CEO on March 1st

Third Our E-Bay account is restricted!! We are allowed to list no more than 38 items per month and our Sales cannot exceed $1600.00 per month!

This morning we tried to list items and could not, so I called E-Bay. I spoke with a guy named Brenden who explained that we have exceeded the restricted amounts for this month and therefore cannot list anything until after May 1st!

I asked him to explain why our account is considered such a risk. He explained that our account is "Below Standard" because during the last 12 months 13 people rated us low on Shipping Charges. I asked him to tell me "Specifically" why this makes us such a risk? He explained that is E-Bay Policy! He said we are not a "risk" account, but people like us with a low seller rating are restricted in the amount of items that can be listed, so that we can "Concentrate on the Buyers that have purchased from us this month and make sure they are satisfied."

Now these buyers have already received their items and left positive feedback. I do not know what else we are suppose to do? Call them up everyday and ask if they are still satisfied???

He said that those 13 people had a "Bad Buying Experience" with us which is why we are restricted. I reminded him that those 13 people gave us Positive Feedback, but just didn't like the shipping charges! So why is that a "Bad Buying Experience??"

He said we need to offer Free Shipping and just add the shipping charges to the cost of the item!! He said that is what E-bay is trying to get all sellers to do!

Can you believe that?????

After everything he just told me, this would not solve anything! Neither Brenden or anyone else can explain to me why 13 people not liking the shipping charges, makes my account that much of a Risk!!

I talked with him over 30 minutes, and he was very nice, however he and I were just butting heads. All he can explain is that It is E-Bay Policy!

I told him that no one has yet to explain my question  which is Why, after 13 years, and after generating over $53,000 in revenue to E-Bay, 13 people saying they are not satisfied with the Charges to Ship The Items they have bid on, can make my account that much of a Risk, that E-Bay would take these actions against me??? I told him if he can find someone that will explain it to me, to have them call me. But I also explained that I do not expect anyone will call, because I just don't think anyone cares!

In closing, I will just say this.

In all my years in business, and dealing with all the companies I have dealt with

I have Never Seen a Company, or Corporations go to Such Trouble

and Such Lengths,

To Prevent a Customer from Doing Business with Them!!!!

Please check back for further developments!

Read Below

As many of you know, we have been selling things on E-Bay for quite a while, in fact it has been 12 years!

2 years ago E-Bay switched their managers and hired some "fresh out of college, Wet behind the Ears, No Experience, Bean Counting, Look at the Numbers Only" people who decided to change things around.

They decided that they really don't need people who Sell on E-Bay, They only need the people who Buy!!

So, they instituted several new policies to "Micro Manage" their Sellers.

One of these new policies is the Detailed Sellers Rating, which is an additional survey that people leaving feedback are asked to fill out. There are 4 questions and they are asked to rate the seller from 1 to 5. If the person answering does not give the seller all 5 ratings, the seller is deemed to be "Below Standard"

Now we have been a Top Rated E-Bay Power Seller for the past 12 years, ever since we began selling on E-Bay. We have a customer feedback rating of 99.5% Positive and have always received the highest compliments on our feedbacks.

The week of June 7th, 2010 we were informed that because less than 2% of the customers who left feedback for us did not give us all 5 ratings, we are now "Below Standard" and our "Power Seller" Rating has been Revoked!

Not only that... But now when a customer pays us for the merchandise.. Pay Pal will hold the money from us for 21 days!!

E-Bay OWNS Pay Pal, and will not allow a seller to accept any other form of payment other than Pay Pal!!!

E-Bay seems to have forgotten that the SELLERS are Their Customers, NOT The Buyers!!

The Sellers are charged a fee for each listing they create. They are charged a Final Value Fee for each Sale they Make, AND they are charged a Fee for each Payment they Accept through Pay Pal!!!!

I asked our accountant to check some E-Bay figures for me.

As I said, we have been selling on E-Bay since May of 1998. He had the figures from 2002 to present which is 8 of the 12 years. During the last 8 years, our shop has paid $34,324.63 in E-bay Listing Fees, E-Bay Final Value Fees, and Pay Pay Fees! (Yes we have to PAY a fee to use Pay Pal, which is the only payment method E-Bay Allows!)

If I average out the dollar amount from the last 8 years and multiply that by 12 years the figure becomes $51.486.96!!

We have been in business over 50 Years. We were a Top Rated E-Bay Seller. Now all of a sudden we are Scum!!!

What is worse is that E-Bay and Pay Pal simply do NOT CARE!! We have asked why this action was taken and received NO Answer!!

Well, we at Bob's Hobby Shop have an answer for them. We are NO LONGER selling through E-Bay!!

We have merchandise listed for sale on our website, and you are invited to E-Mail or Call us with your Hobby Needs. We will give you the best prices we can!

We are also looking in to other On Line Auction sites that actually Care about the people keeping them in business.

We have just started listing on E-Bid, which you can connect to on www.ebid.net  Please look for our items there as well. We will post other sites as soon as we begin listing on them.

Tell anyone you know that sells on E-Bay, to read this story.