posted on December 6, 2000 04:10:01 PM
OK I have about had it. 6, count um SIX NPB's in the past week! Ebay has got to do something! I wrote to them and told them "Why doesn't EBAY make bidders register a credit card to bid, and if they deadbeat, they pay the sellers listing fee and the FVF. You would think EBAY would go for this, since it would keep the FVF in their pocket from the deadbeats account, and keep their bread and butter, the sellers, happy! I am so damn sick and tired of chasing these fools down. I have buried so many of their relatives these past couple of months, you would think the country was in the middle of a plague! grrrrrrrrrrr (now I feel better....burp)
posted on December 6, 2000 04:15:39 PM
Well, good idea except that I think that would mean less new buyers registering. And that's the seller's bread and butter. New buyers.
posted on December 6, 2000 04:23:29 PM
Hi furkidmom
I had my rant this morning...8 NPB in the last two weeks, for items totalling over $900. This is especially bothersome around Christmas when I am trying to move my stuff quickly as my items are gift-type stuff.
Yet...I would still be against any type of verification as it would chase off too many reliable bidders/buyers. Just gotta grin (or grit your teeth) and bear it.
posted on December 6, 2000 04:28:24 PM
I agree furkidmom...eBay really needs to do something!! I have also had many deadbeats in the last couple months. The thing that gets me is they send me their address (well, supposedly) and keep stringing me along. I don't know which ones to believe anymore! I just wrote a scathing note to a buyer who told me they were sending me a money order. I patiently waited a month (I state 10 days to pay) and wrote them a not very kind e-mail telling them I was a little tired of waiting for the MO...blah blah blah. She wrote back and apologized and said the MO was in the mail...I received it the next day. For a lousy $10.00 item!!! Who do you believe anymore???
posted on December 6, 2000 05:04:44 PM
My personal opinion is that Ebay should refund all fees (including the listing fee) due to a NPB. If that were the case it wouldn't bother me any more than NPBs on Yahoo..
[ edited by outoftheblue on Dec 6, 2000 05:05 PM ]
posted on December 6, 2000 05:10:33 PM
Being a merchant carries built in risks...in online sales the built in risk is deadbeat bidders. It's a fact of life that we can't eliminate.
Most "solutions", including forcing buyers to register with a credit card that will be charged if the buyer deadbeats, are worse than the problem the solution is supposed to cure.
posted on December 6, 2000 05:15:32 PM
I suppose that it would take some of you to get jammed with a couple super-featured listings like I did, to be as pissed as I am.
posted on December 6, 2000 05:20:52 PM
I had a NPB on an auction over $150.00 last week...yeh, that pisses me off and it should piss eBay off too...because I make sure and remember to requests my credit whether they are .10 or $10.00!!!
I've never used the "Featured" features. Is it really worth it?
I could see spending the big bucks for Featured if you were selling a car, boat or airplane or something expensive like that.
The biggest sale I've ever had on ebay was 1675.00 (lots and lots of over 1000.00 sales though). All of these were listed for 3.00 or less. Sometimes a quarter.
posted on December 6, 2000 05:50:25 PM
Perhaps eBay could do something as simple as verify the bidder's address and phone number. I have had deadbeats, whom when I tried calling after repeated e-mails being returned or ignored, has had false phone numbers.
It is just too easy to register and use false addresses and phone numbers, get booted then sign back up and do it all over again!
posted on December 6, 2000 06:01:28 PM
Pocono: Get bent! One time and out!
I agree with the idea of charging for the auction fees if someone backs out for any reason.
I can't think of a single person who is responsible not agreeing to this. I think the only people that would have a problem with this are those that sellers wouldn't want!! Do we need more bidders who make a mess of things??
Good Idea!!
[ edited by canvid13 on Dec 6, 2000 06:02 PM ]
[ edited by canvid13 on Dec 6, 2000 06:05 PM ]
posted on December 6, 2000 06:45:44 PM
Hold on now, Pokey! One "NPB" and you're out???
Okay, let's use me for an example, since I am the power buyer that every seller on eBay wants...I pay the day after I get the payment address (usually the day after the auction ends), I pay by money order (although my check is gold), and I don't whine about extra charges (as long as they are stated in the auction listing, and sometime when they aren't). Never had a neg...never deserved one. Never had a neutral that wasn't a conversion from a positive (on a NARU).
But about 5 months ago, I got a NPB alert from eBay, which a seller had filed because she "hadn't received" payment (within 10 days after the auction). She didn't bother to ask me if there was a reason for the delay in payment (there was no reason, and there was no delay)...just filed the NPB notice. I got the notice from eBay, and you may be sure that I took umbrage. I emailed the seller (what the heck?) and she said, "Oh, I filed that and then I realized that I had forgotten to check my new P.O.Box...ooops!"
So...I should be banned from eBay because I had the misfortune to bid on a fool's auctions?
posted on December 6, 2000 07:03:07 PM
Awwww, Pokey, you're just trying to get me fired up! It won't work, ya know...I'm so 'good' that Reddeer sends me the stuff that I win from him before he gets my money. (Hiya, Neil!).
Nope, on this, the last 3 hours of the last day of my first half-century on this earth...I'm feeling far too mellow to smack you around. Maybe tomorrow, or maybe on YOUR birthday...I know you'd like that!
posted on December 6, 2000 07:28:27 PM
Happy Birthday to you!
Happy Birthday to you!
Happy Birthday to you, you litte heavenlykitty...
Happy Birthday to you!
posted on December 6, 2000 07:58:54 PM
Thanks for the B'day wishes, guys! Pokey, if you let me know when your b'day is, I'll be sure you get a satisfactory spanking. How-dee-do to Monique!!
Neil, yeah...all this time and all the lobbying at eBay, and I STILL can't get a "Power Buyer" program going. Now I ask you...is that fair??? And a big grin to I-M!! Interesting...I was just rereading her book today. It was one of those days when a little "whisper" was just what I needed...just when I believe I have that little book memorized, I find something new, and it still makes a difference in my life.
posted on December 6, 2000 08:26:25 PM
amy> "Most "solutions", including forcing buyers to register with a credit card that will be charged if the buyer deadbeats, are worse than the problem the solution is supposed to cure." huh??? I do not agree with that statement at all! If a person takes the time to bid and they are a serious bidder/buyer, then registering a credit Card should not make a bit of difference to them. You can be sure that it would cut down on deadbeats, because if a buyer is a deadbeat in the first place, losing them as a bidder would not make me give a tinkers damn! They are a waste of time and time is what we are selling here as well as a product. And who wants a new buyer that goes on a bidding spree, (like the one I am dealing with right now...bid on 161 auctions in less then a month, won over 80 of them and wrote to tell me "sorry I am in way over my head and cannot pay". Well TA freaken DA! If she was charged for this mess, she would sure as heck not do it again, right?
posted on December 6, 2000 08:55:06 PMBeth ..... IM is having a Power nap at the moment, but I'll make sure to pass your regards along to her in the AM. I know she'll be happy to hear you're still enjoying it. Thanks!
Furkidmom .... I have numerous serious bidders, that refuse to use their CC online. Old fashioned, eccentric,have read too many online CC horror stories, whatever. These bidders are the type of buyers that most sellers dream about. MEGA deep pockets & lightning fast to pay. What, you want to try & force them to register a CC, or tell them to take a flying leap?
Get real.
Tell ya what, you don't want people that haven't registered with a CC to bid on your items, make it part of your TOS.
posted on December 6, 2000 09:06:38 PM
reddear> wasn't going after your customers. (although I will ask from now on if they have a tatooed RD on their forehead...that should give me a clue) It just gets very frustrating and sometimes things cannot be explained away with the blase' "all a part of doing business." If not a credit card, what then? I know!! A DNA sample...yup! that's it!! And I am getting real! Some safe guards would sure be a help somewhere along the line. 3 strikes your out sounds workable too.
posted on December 6, 2000 09:20:15 PM
Yahoo nows requires a credit card to be registered for you to bid, why CAN'T ebay?
I think it would be a GREAT idea!
posted on December 6, 2000 09:20:42 PM
I understand that it can be VERY frustrating, but I don't think a fool proof plan exists? No matter what you, or eBay does, there will always be a few deadbeats in the crowd.
I just don't want to chase the good honest bidders away, because of a few dorks. Some categories are plagued with deadbeats, I've simply learned to avoid those items/categories.
eBay could implement a feature that allowed sellers to choose "CC Payments Only", or "CC Verified Bidders Only" when listing. I'd be all for that, and would appreciate the extra biz that came my way.
posted on December 6, 2000 09:22:23 PMSome safe guards would sure be a help
This has been suggested a hundred times before, but what the heck...
You want protection? Encourage eBay to provide an "Accept bids from Verified members ONLY" checkbox on the listing page. Checking this box would cause any bid from a non-verified member to be rejected, with a link to an explanation provided by eBay.
That way, those who want to place limits on who is able to bid on their auctions do not force their limits on all sellers.
edited to add...
OK- make that a hundred and one.
[ edited by mrpotatoheadd on Dec 6, 2000 09:24 PM ]
posted on December 6, 2000 09:39:44 PM
Does anybody have any ideas why eBay hasn't done something like this (see previous post) already? It sure doesn't seem like it would be all that difficult- they were able to add the BIN feature, so I don't see why this couldn't be done, too.
Maybe because they don't see it as a way to make extra money by charging for it as an added feature?
