Since 1995 Ebay has pretty much dominated the online auction industry. Because of this monopoly they are pretty much allowed to get away with whatever they want, this has to stop. Ebay has been screwing over sellers for years and with the latest "Update" We are fed up.

Ebay claims that all their actions and policies are to protect the buyers, well what about the sellers? The people that work hard just to make a few bucks, they are not a major corporation or huge business, in fact they are the very essence of mom and pop shops.

Fees: There's a reason they call it "FeeBay" First if you subscribe to a store, that is a monthly fee right there. On average $69 a month. Then You have listing fees, now they say that you get so many free a month but if you go over that then you have to pay. So in our case $.30 per listing, NOT including any extras like large photos, subtitles, etc. Those are all extra costs. Then we get to the "Final Value Fee" Which is 10% of the cost of the item + Shipping .

So quick math, you sell an item for $10 and it costs $4.95 to ship. The total cost is $14.95.

So we take the $14.95
$.73 for Paypal Fees (An Ebay Company) 2.9% + $.30
$4.95 Shipping Paid to postal service
$.30 Listing Fee
$1.49 Final Value Fee
$1.96 Daily Cost to have a store on Ebay avg at $59 per month

Leaves you with $5.52 after all is said and done.
This is just one example of the fee structure.

Buyer Protection Program:

This has been a source of HUGE outcry from sellers over the past couple years. Ebay claims that they want to protect the buyers but what about the sellers? Two classic examples are "Not as Described" and "Item not received" cases.

Granted there are some examples out there where shady ebay sellers have abused this but the vast majority are honest. Ebay has made it FAR To easy for buyers to abuse the system, 9/10 they will take the buyers side regardless of how much proof the seller has. Now with the most recent update it makes it even more difficult.

Seller Dashboard:

So say your a honest, hard working ebay seller, you have perfect feedback score, you are Top Rated Powerseller and then Boom you get a note from ebay saying "Your status is in jeopardy" WHY?!

I can site a prime example as this happened to us this past month. We were great on ebay then one day I sold a cup and saucer and when taking it off the shelf it slipped and broke. I refunded and emailed the buyer and explained, they fully understood and left positive feedback about my honesty and communication. We agreed to cancel the transaction. Easy enough. 1 Strike for "Canceled Transaction"

Then I had a buyer who I guess was new or something open a case asking for the tracking number of an item. When the tracking numbers are uploaded automatically and emailed to the buyers. 1 Strike "Opened case" + 1 Strike for Low Detailed Seller rating for shipping time

That same month a buyer opened a case because the makers mark was faded on the back of a plate and this was not listed in the description. 1 Strike for opened case + 1 Strike for low DSR Item not as described.

Then a buyer left neutral feedback saying an item was not as described, never contacted me or anything , I had no idea. I tried to reach out to the buyer with no avail. The item wasn't perfect and it was all clearly listed in the description and pictures to show the defects. 1 Strike.

How does this all affect you? Ebay calls them transactions with defects. You are allowed only 2% of your transactions. For a small seller such as myself this one month killed me.

6 strikes, took me to 4% of my transactions, when it was nothing that I could have done. If you reach out to ebay they say "Buyers are entitled to their opinions" So that took me from my top rated status where i received a 20% discount on seller fees to "Above standard"

Ebay makes it VERY easy to open a case, you click on contact seller and pick a topic, say for example I haven't received my item. It does NOT Send a message to the seller so we can do something simple as point out where the tracking number is but AUTOMATICALLY opens a case against the seller which counts a strike even if the seller is completely right. I believe they do this to keep as few "Top Rated" Sellers as possible to avoid the 20% discount on fees.

Feedback:
Feedback has been a sore spot for sellers for years. As sellers we rely on this , it is our sole reputation on ebay. Buyers can say whatever they want, leave whatever they want and sellers get no recourse. Sellers also CANNOT leave negative feedback for a buyer, only positive. Fairness? NO. If you feel a feedback was left unjustly and you reach out to ebay all you get is "buyers are entitled to their opinions"


So what is the point to all of this?

Simple WE WANT CHANGE, Decrease the fees, stop sticking it to the sellers. Make it a fair community once again.

What will happen with this petition?

Once signatures and comments are collected it is being sent to EVERY major news media outlet. Getting the word out, CNN, BBC, Fox, Newspapers, Bloggers etc and a copy sent to Ebay Corporate.

Help by spreading the word, Post to Facebook, Tweet, Leave comments etc If you have anything to ad or correct let me know.