Im thinking about trying it for the first time - has anyone ever encounted issues with things on ebay? Is paypal really really safe? Do you ever get hit with additional fees you didnt know about? Any tips in general?
2006-11-16 04:21:39 · 20 answers · asked by radiancia 6 in Computers & Internet ➔ Internet
Hey!,
Ive been using Ebay for going on 7 years now and ive never encountered unfix able problems i have 184 Postive feedback and no Negitives i keep it that way by when you buy on ebay make sure to check your sellers eBay Feedback, i just bought a Ipod 60gb and things went very well through paypal, so as i said make sure you check feedback of your seller that your buying from so you can be sure its not a rip off seller id advise not buying from users with under 15 feedback if u want to be safe and power sellers/ Company's are good but if they say the item is like this and its not when u receive it they could care less!, they can even sometimes get eBay to remove negative feedback, so i advise buying from average people with around 50-300 feedback so you know that there not some kind of companying that will screw you over, id say use paypal its one of the best ways its pretty much all i use all you have to do is register a free account with a credit card and no paypal doesnt do hidden fees it will clearly tell you if theres a fee for what your doing, items on ebay when listed have a 20cents or more listing fee depending on the features you assign to have on your auction, (example: buy it now, gallery photo, gift mark..ect) that about sums it up for selling and buying hope that was helpful and ill say with my years with ebay they are good at what they do! just make sure you read the description well, and watch for high shipping costs :) theres also Reserves that you cant win the item till its to a certain amount and to know if theres a reserve if u go to the item and look where the price is listed it will say reserve not meant or it will say nothing meaning its either meant or there was none, and you cant tell what the reserve is. just take pro cautions like any online selling/buying to make sure your not getting ripped off, and in time you can figure it out well and a lot of people make livings off of buying wholesale and selling for regular. Well hope i was a help, and hope you have great experiences with eBay!
Cya
Brad
2006-11-16 04:33:57 · answer #1 · answered by B-Rad 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Ebay and Paypal are pretty safe. I have been using Paypal for about 8 years now. Never had any security issues or anything like that. Paypal can also be used for numerous other things including paying bills or just sending money to someone. They even pay a decent interest rate on your balance and have a 1% cashback on purchases when you use the PayPal Debit card. Not too shabby.
As far as Ebay. I have been ripped off a few times, but that is not eBay's fault. It is the seller/buyers fault.
As a buyer, you need to be absolutely sure of what you are buying, eBay provideds ample opportunity for communication between buyers and seller, it is even somewhat secure. Ask the seller questions, and do your homework before agreeing to buy/bid.
Fees are charged by eBay for listing (selling) an item. They provide the service, you pay a nominal fee according to how elaborate and detailed you want your auction to be. PayPal also charges a fee for credit card transactions to the party recieving the payment. I think it is 3% of the total price. This is no different than what the CC companies charge any other business for transactions CC transactions.
The biggest thing to watch, especially as a buyer is "Feedback". In eBay you can review a seller or buyers feedback. Seeing how previous customers were treated or checking a buyers history says a lot about what could go wrong with a transaction. if a seller has a substantial amount of complaint you may want to stay away from them. Same goes for buyers. If they have a history of not paying for the agreed purchase you have the option to cancel their bid. Keep in mind that not everyone is perfect but in general, the folks using eBay are pretty honest.
If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Sufficient negative feedback or non paying bidder complaints can lead to account suspension, so no, it is not a free for all. eBay does monitor the auction content.
2006-11-16 04:35:41 · answer #2 · answered by konstipashen 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I wouldnt recommend!
What the sellers do is Trick the buyers into showing on their product page the price is very cheap.. But the truth is they get more on the shipping cost (some seller wont even display their shipping cost).. Its the shipping cost that they are gaining advantage..
Many sellers abuse the shipping fees and Ebay system in general.. Pls note shipping fees are NON-REFUNDABLE.. so when they ship to you an item that is damaged or not as claimed, your choices will be either to return the item for replacement at YOUR OWN ADDITIONAL EXPENSE.. and when they receive the item, they will say the item is good .. they will say to you then that shipping back to you the item or a new item is not their responsibility.. You have to pay to them the COST OF SHIPPING back the item to you.
Ofcourse you will get mad.. So now you will just ask for refund.. so now they will say they can only refund the cost of the item (which we know they have slashed down and offset the cost on the shipping)
So who's the loser? -- it's always the buyer. His only option now is either to pay again the costly shipping to get a new item .. or to forget the terrible experience
Im not saying all Ebay buyers are fraud BUT just be very careful in choosing a Seller.. It still pays to check their reputation and comments from previous buyers
But if you still want to use Ebay,, I highly recommend you use Paypal in all your purchases.. because they have fraud protection and insurance.. and if disagreements arise they help in the arbitration..
Hope this helps!
2006-11-16 04:56:51 · answer #3 · answered by axillon 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It is safe if you are careful. Always check the seller's feedback. I would never buy from anyone with less than a 95% feedback score. Also you need to know what the shipping cost is and if there are insurance costs, etc. I like PayPal very much. It is quick, easy and safe. I have never gotten any extra fees or had problems. One purchase was disappointing, but that happens. Some sellers will allow returns.
2006-11-16 04:26:39 · answer #4 · answered by notyou311 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
PayPal is a very good site...so long as you're not a seller caught in a claim by the buyer, as it tends to turn a blind eye and doesn't even ask the seller what is happening.
Otherwise, I'd highly recommend Ebay in all facets of purchasing up to around $1000. After that, I'm not sure if PayPal would cover any customers who are conned.
2006-11-16 04:24:13 · answer #5 · answered by Gwydyon 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
ive had a couple auctions get canceled because ebay found the seller was frauding others. also i got negative feedback from a seller because i gave him neutral feedback because he took 2 months to ship the item i had purchased. other than those instances, ebay is great. be sure to read the seller's feedback especially any negative feedback they might have. iv never been hit with additional fees. ive been using ebay for almost 6 years now and have no real complaints. good luck.
~peace~
2006-11-16 04:34:35 · answer #6 · answered by East Texan 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
My biggest advice for Ebay is to pay very close attention to anything you do there, and always follow up in a timely manner. If you are selling, be sure to keep up with your buyers and send follow ups if they do not pay in the time you specify. I have used PayPal for buying and selling and found it to be very good.
The exception for both PayPal and Ebay is as a buyer, if you purchase something, even with proper documentation and admissions from the seller you cannot recoup your costs. And they are both unable to do anything about it.
2006-11-16 04:24:49 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
I bought some expensive moisturizer from someone on ebay. Normally $72, got it for $29. Pretty sure this person took the real moisurizer out and replaced it with something else. It was a different color and texture than I was used to. No way to prove it though. She had a low seller history. From now on, I'm going to keep that in mind before I buy.
2006-11-16 04:24:42 · answer #8 · answered by Hollie H 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I have bought and sold about 35 items so far.
Take good photos, give accurate descriptions.
Don't expect too much. Give it an hour or two when you feel like it. Every few days is enough but every 2 days is better.
People DO sell crap though. Many broken items etc. Don't spend too much when buying, don't charge too much when selling. Be sure to charge enough for shipping.
Yeah paypal is very safe, no problems with it.
2006-11-16 04:25:06 · answer #9 · answered by kurticus1024 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Yes. I bought a router and internet hookups from a seller on eBay. We sent a cashiers check but never received the product. We called eBay and they said there was an FBI investigation on that women because she had stolen over $15,000 on eBay across the country. We never got our money back.
Another time, we ordered brand new cell phones from ebay and when they arrived they had been visibly used. We won the eBay contesting, and they refunded us.
I'm not an eBay fan. My husband swears by it and has been successful, clearly I have not!
2006-11-16 04:26:10 · answer #10 · answered by Sweet Susie 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋