posted on May 20, 2004 05:46:20 PM new
I have decided to start charging a fee for indivduals who fail to follow the terms of the auction. I ask that every bidder confirm payment within 3 days of the auction close. I always wait a full week and send 3 reminders during that time. I also ask that bidders pay for their items within 7 days of the end of auction. This is truly extended to 10 days before I send them a reminder, and file a NPB notice. After 10 more days without payment I do the FVF. If a bidder goes into default and gets a FVF assessed, I charge them $20 to remove the FVF, plus require them to pay for the item and shipping if it is still available. If not, they have to pay the $20 fee still. After 30 days, the fee goes to $50. I've already experienced one seller who was NARU'd and coughed up the $50.00 without hesitating one bit. He went as far as to thank me for removing it.
posted on May 20, 2004 05:51:25 PM new
I don't need the $20.00/50.00 that bad.
But good for you!
My biggest Net return is seeing them gone for good.
But now they have a New Lease on Life at Ebay!
posted on May 20, 2004 06:08:23 PM new
I'm sick of whiners who complain they were suspended, so I give them the chance to pay for it. It's a small price to pay if you live on ebay...
by the way, it is spelled asinine, not assinine. asinine is using a mispelled word to claim their idea is stupid. perhaps before you attempt to disclaim another idea, you should read the entire thread first.
as for my reasoning, if they want it removed they can pay. most people don't care. I wouldn't pay if I didn't care, but guess what??? when they get booted, it will be me who they contact to see if their warning can be removed. i'll get paid for my time, work, and fees lost because they didn't pay in the first place.
posted on May 20, 2004 06:51:16 PM new"My biggest Net return is seeing them gone for good."
Exactly. That is exactly the point for filing the NPB warnings.
Removing warnings for a price is doing a disservice to your fellow sellers. NPBs have had three chances, and it's not up to a seller to decide it should be four (or five, six...).
rusty, you have posted on this board complaining about eBay not doing this, not enforcing that, and then you boast about undermining the only method sellers have to weed the bad apples out.
I wholeheartedly agree, sanmar.
__________________________________
"The more I want to get something done, the less I call it work." - Richard Bach
posted on May 20, 2004 07:20:44 PM new
I sell on ebay as a business. You think you are doing a service by leaving NPB and FVF warnings??? Give me a break. Most simply don't care. Those who screw up and really care about what is going on are the ones who would pay to have the FVF removed. When I file a FVF, I'm still losing money while only gaining the satisfaction of them being removed from eBay... eventually. Big deal. I would have rather them paid for the item than go through the hassle of emailing them, filing NPB, filing FVF, etc. It takes time, and if they really want the item after its been relisted, they'll pay to remove it, to pay for my fees, and to pay for my time.
If eBay implemented this system and started charging credit cards for non payment to at least cover our fees, this wouldn't be an issue. This is probably a better deterent to bidders who don't pay than the ever so evil - FVF.
How many times has a NPB retaliated with a neg just for the hell of it, even though they screwed up and didn't pay? What satisfaction is there in that to a seller?
I agree, most won't even consider it. Hell, they won't even open their emails to read what I have to say, let alone accept it. They don't care. Those that do and want to continue using ebay may pay for this service as my one customer did.
posted on May 20, 2004 09:40:24 PM new
Square Trade charges a fee to remove feedback so it's on a sound legal footing to charge for removing a FVF warning.
Except in this case they (the troublesome buyer) pay a fee for the service you (the beleaguered seller) provide. Also the sliding scale makes sense as it rewards a quick response with a lower fee.
posted on May 20, 2004 11:50:32 PM new
3 reminders in a week, wow! If I were your customer I would be really turned off by that. When I do buy, I pretty much use paypal only (for my protection) but 3 notices within a week if they haven't paid? I hate NPB as much as the next seller, that just seems like too much work. I don't send any reminders, they go right from EOA to NPB, but only after 10 or more days. Yeah, I get a few complaints from people "turning them in" to ebay, but by far most of the NPB's do pay after that warning. My FVF rate is less than 1% - I've been doing auctions long before ebay was dreamed up by Pierre (when I actually went to the print shop to copy an auction catalog, and got customers through collectibles magazines) and that rate really is not that bad...
Friends don't let Friends say stupid things like Friends don't let friends vote Republican!
posted on May 21, 2004 01:33:18 PM new
It may be that I have missed something in the rules of eBay, but I can't be sure. I always thought the the NPB was the thing that really counted. Three & you are NARU'ed. What does that have to do with the FVF?
posted on May 21, 2004 03:26:55 PM new
I don't care to wait a month for payments. When I say I send 3 notices I mean the following: The day the auction closes they receive the WBN. On the 3rd day they receive a payment reminder. On the 5th-6th day they get a Final Notice. On the 7-8th day I file NPB warning and don't email again unless they respond. The 9th day without a response, the item gets relisted.
Most people like the fact that I send them a reminder. I've had very few complaints regarding my system in the 5 years I've been doing this. I give them plenty of time to confirm. My auctions state 3 days, but I actually extend this to 9 when it gets relisted. I believe a week is plenty of time to deal with a simple email. If they can bid, they can email me. Most people pay or email me within 3 days. Its the deadbeats that want to be reinstated that will cough up money. Why should Squaredeal get the $$? The seller had to put up with these yahoos to begin with. I'm not charging an unreasonable fee. Its not like the bank that charges $25 for their computer to process a NSF check. I have already done enough work sending emails, reminders, filing for NPB warnings and FVFs. I believe I deserve it, and perhaps you should consider it as well. I know if I had to pay $20 to make things right so I can continue, I would do it. I would also learn from that lesson and make sure to pay for my obligations.
Most of the posters on this thread act like it is underhanded to do so, but in reality it is a way to make both parties happy while keeping eBay or SquareTrade from making the money while we do all the work.
If I'm lucky, I'd see perhaps 4 or 5 people a year do it. Not all that many, but who knows.
posted on May 21, 2004 03:28:44 PM new
A perfectly sound business fee. I applaud you. If dad doesn't want the money he should participate and donate it to charity. As a group the sellers that post here should agree on a set of fees such as a bank has. You, just like the thieves.... er .... banks, can always waive them.
for fluffy:
Failure to read and abide by TOS incurs a special handling fee equal to s/h amount.
posted on May 21, 2004 03:40:07 PM new
If I tryed that I'd end up with somebody who bid on the item from a mental hospital and just got out and is on their way to my town to hunt me down to get even.
posted on May 21, 2004 03:49:11 PM new
Oh....Dad wants the money!
But he wants it when people Bid & Win.
Not for opening the door for Deadbeats who stuck me and will others.
Those I want gone for Good!
Letting them buy their way back won't get it done.
If it was such a great idea, don't you think Ebay would be racking in those Bucks?
They want them gone also!
posted on May 21, 2004 03:54:24 PM new
In the last 2 weeks I lost $139.00 in listing fees.
Thanks to Deadbeat Non Payers.
The last Damn thing I want to do is to let them do it again!
posted on May 21, 2004 04:06:55 PM new
I can't argue with that, then a policy of encouraging a consensus on a no nonsense approach towards FVF. Or a guide on both sides of the fence depending on how you view it? In unity there is strength.
Failure to read and abide by TOS incurs a special handling fee equal to s/h amount.
Aw, isn't that sweet. Parky put in something incomprehensible just for me. Kind of like presenting your third grade sweetheart with a live garter snake.
posted on May 21, 2004 05:57:25 PM new
I applaud this idea. Will ebay have a problem with this?
I don't see anything in the rules, but only regarding fees for credit cards.
If it backfires, it would suck for a seller.
I've only had one person winge about NPB problems. At that point it was so beyond the auction, I couldn't find the auction number...so I ignored the guy.
onward...
posted on May 21, 2004 06:06:52 PM new
E bay cares less what we do as long as it don't effect thier wallet.....they make money and NEVER lose. I sent an e mail into them 3 days ago,,,,no response and backed it up with another one today,,,,A power seller is making BIG bucks off my work,,,,,,I was,,,,,,,a ps,,,,,let's see who they stand in FAVOR of now.
What the mind can Conceive, and Believe,,,,It MAY Acheive.
I'll concieve, AND believe, I'll have another 2 Buck.
posted on May 21, 2004 10:05:06 PM new
If you do not clear the FVF then ebay does not get their percentage and your deadbeat bidder can go after you for fee avoidance.
posted on May 22, 2004 10:30:59 AM new
I would have no problems removing the FVF after they paid the fee.
the bidder who did pay me $50, was a regular seller on ebay. He had over 3000 positives as a seller. His problem was that he had someone else running things for him at that time and they didn't do things right. Simply put, they wanted a wrong corrected. The ironic thing is that they offered $100 to make things right. I thought that was excessive, so I told them I would take $50. It was about 4 months after the auction.
the idea wasn't really spawned by me, but i submitted 3 NPB the other day after no contact for 10 days. Right after that, two of the people paid. All they had to do was email me, but they waited until I filed the NPB and relisted it.
posted on May 22, 2004 11:29:40 AM new
Well, you can argue if you want to, but I just looked it up in eBay R & R. "Three Non Paying Bids will result in indefinite suspension" Must be from three different sellers. It does NOT say one word about FVF's.
posted on May 22, 2004 11:56:11 AM new
NPBs are simply payment reminders. I send them all the time, and they don't affect your account. Ebay will only put the warning on someones account once a seller files for the FVF. Ebay won't do it unless they have to refund us money through the FVF system. Funny how that works though. All in the interest of ebay.
posted on May 22, 2004 12:55:09 PM new
I guess I have to do this again.
1) A Non-Paying Bidder ALERT is the heads-up message you send (through eBay) after seven days with no payment.
2) A Final Value Fee filing is what you do (through eBay) ten days after you send the NPBA.
3) A Non-Paying Bidder WARNING is what gets placed on the offender's eBay account as a result of steps 1 and 2. Three from unique sellers and the offender is Sayonara, Charlie. This WARNING can be subsequently removed by the seller up to 90 days after the end of the auction.
You can thank eBay for muddying the waters on this one. The NPB policy reads as if it were crafted by gerbils.
