General CYA for selling equipment on eBay and dealing with Paypal?

[XFDDesign]

I have some test gear that I wish to sell, and unlike most things I've sold on eBay, T&M equipment tends to be higher ticket.

Since many of you are seasoned eBay pros, I'm wondering what all I can do to protect myself from getting screwed by paypal by way of shady buyers (if anything).

One idea I would be using was suggested by someone long ago, which is to record the packing of the instrument into the shipping box, and posting that to the buyer as a means of blocking that avenue.

Any advice?

Thanks!

[Weistek]

Take a video of it working, make sure it's time stamped (if it works).  Take a video of the packing process, take lots of photos, if there's a scratch take a photo make sure your listing is as accurate as possible without writing a novel.

Usually this will save your ass, also state that you are not responsible for shipping issues, Ala usps, ups etc.

Sent from my SM-G920T using Tapatalk

[Halcyon]

I wouldn't bother too much about recording the packing process, just a photo of two of how it was packed (to show you didn't just toss it in a box) is fine. Just because you have a photo or recording of the item in a box, doesn't mean that it's proof THAT item was sent.

I suggest you read and be aware of your responsibilities under the Seller Protection Policy (both eBay's and PayPal's since they are two separate companies). Keep a record of the exact weight of the article (as measured by the carrier). I one had one guy try to claim that a large part was missing from a package I sent him, however a quick phone call to Australia Post and DHL confirmed that the weight never changed at any part of the journey so the part *had* to be in the box. I confronted him with this and he fell silent.

Only ever send an item to the address listed on the buyers PAYPAL account, send it to anything else and you're not covered (if their address listed on the eBay order page and the PayPal 'payment notification' e-mail differ, make further inquiries).

also state that you are not responsible for shipping issues, Ala usps, ups etc.

Stating this won't automatically reduce your liability. You still need to comply with Policies. The seller is responsible for the package up until the time it's delivered (and you need to prove delivery in the case of a claim by the buyer). This means ensuring it's suitably packaged and labelled. Pay the extra for insurance/coverage (even if the buyer doesn't want it). If it's damaged or lost in transit, you can make a claim. Also request a signature upon delivery.


You can also look up eBay user's telephone numbers through this process: http://pages.ebay.com.au/help/buy/contact-member.html#requesting

As Weistek already mentioned, be descriptive when listing the product and be open and honest about any issues. Also be clear about how you ship your product (for example, if you don't accept people picking up the item, then say so). So many eBay users just assume they can call the shots at least if they haven't read your listing, it's their problem, not yours.

I guess finally, if you have a buyer who hasn't paid, open an unpaid item dispute at the earliest opportunity.

[EEVblog]

I've sold hundreds of bits of test and never once been bitten. Did lose one once and that taught me to use tracking for everything and put that code into the ebay system.

[XFDDesign]

Most of what I have heard is getting screwed by paypal, with people getting jilted out of both the material goods and the money.

[Stray Electron]

    I've sold hundreds of electronic items on E-bay and only had a problem twice; one was clearly damaged in shipping and the other from a buyer that tried to claim that his old, beat up item was the one that I sent him (my pictures PROVED otherwise).   Make an accurate description and don't say "user reconditioned" or other nonsense. Unless they're a commercial Cal Lab or repair facility, I RUN from any listing that puts that crap in the description! Also don't list it as "Used" unless you KNOW that it works (per E-bay's rules).  If you can't fully test it then say so and list it as "not working and/or for parts".  I have a LOT of repeat customers and get just as much for my "not working and/or for parts" items as most do for their questionable "used" items.  Take plenty of good pictures with a REAL camera and not an i-potato and use decent lighting.  Those will CYA and will also add greatly to the sale price.

  Taking and keeping a picture of the item packed and in the unclosed box might be a good idea.

    Also there seems to be a growing tread for people to buy equipment and then pull parts out of it and then try to claim that it doesn't work.  You might want to buy some (preferably numbered) seals (from E-bay) and and seal the access covers to prevent the buyer from switching circuit boards and the like.  Take and post pictures showing the seals in case they do remove them and unless they can find identical seals, they will prevent them from switching items.

[XFDDesign]

Unless they're a commercial Cal Lab or repair facility, I RUN from any listing that puts that crap in the description! Also don't list it as "Used" unless you KNOW that it works (per E-bay's rules).  If you can't fully test it then say so and list it as "not working and/or for parts".

This item just got back from an ISO cal, includes the cert and is good for a year. "Used" is fully honest and reinforced with trace

[nctnico]

I always send with tracking and more expensive items with insurance! In general the seller/sender is responsible for a package arriving so better be safe than sorry.

[Stray Electron]

Unless they're a commercial Cal Lab or repair facility, I RUN from any listing that puts that crap in the description! Also don't list it as "Used" unless you KNOW that it works (per E-bay's rules).  If you can't fully test it then say so and list it as "not working and/or for parts".

This item just got back from an ISO cal, includes the cert and is good for a year. "Used" is fully honest and reinforced with trace

   It sounds like somebody might get a good deal! But I still recommend seals. There's no telling what people will stoop to.

[CatalinaWOW]

All good advice.  Also, don't sell on Ebay if you can't afford to get screwed once in a while.  It is rare.  I would guess well under once in a hundred transactions.  Between my sons and I we have had only one problem, a dishonest buyer who claimed the item never didn't work, got his money back but refused to return the item (on our nickel).  So don't fret overmuch about it.  Think more about the fact that Ebay is one of the few places to access a market large enough to generate customers for the kind of thing we are interested in.  While it might be safer to sell in the local consignment store, the odds of not getting a sale are far higher.

[G7PSK]

I send higher value goods by courier, that way you get a receipt on pick up and the item is signed for on delivery, they cannot say they have not had it.

[Halcyon]

Only ever send an item to the address listed on the buyers PAYPAL account, send it to anything else and you're not covered (if their address listed on the eBay order page and the PayPal 'payment notification' e-mail differ, make further inquiries).

Can I just re-affirm what I said above. I just now had to sort out an issue with shipping. The buyer had two differing addresses, one on his ebay profile and a different one on his PayPal profile. I normally check but for some silly reason, I didn't this time otherwise I would have questioned it.

It turns out that he moved from the 'PayPal address' and was wondering where his item was. I did the right thing by sending it to the address I was supposed to. Luckily he was able to retrieve it from his old address and all is well.

Always check address information on both ebay and the PayPal transaction and if information is conflicting, ask the buyer!

[Rick Law]

I have some test gear that I wish to sell, and unlike most things I've sold on eBay, T&M equipment tends to be higher ticket.
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I assume they are used and hence wear, scratch marks and unavoidable signs of age.

Take good pictures and describe "imperfections" clearly - as much detail as reasonable.  If there is a hint of any thing imperfect, without clear description, users would (rightfully) assume the worst and not willing buy or to pay a higher price for it.  With a clear description, the user can decide: "well, by that description, it wouldn't cause me a problem" and thus willing to buy it and perhaps willing to pay higher price than otherwise.

I just purchased something from eBay cheaper than I should have - perhaps due to lack of good photo/description.  What caused it to sold cheap may be of interest to you:

By eBay's "trending at" value, this item is >$200.  Two I didn't win was sold >$200.  From the picture, this one looks like it is missing a non-critical part and the front looks down right dirty/scratch-filled.  Since I was looking to buy it as a parts donor, I didn't ask and it didn't bother me about the scratch/dirt nor did I need the "missing" part.  I bid low and no one was willing to bid higher ($120'ish).  It arrived yesterday and it was in terrific shape!  One tiny tiny scratch and the non-critical part that looked missing was not missing - just not in the photo.  The photo looked much worst than the >$200 ones, but in real life looks much better than the ones > $200.  Not a good thing if you are the seller.