EBay has announced a huge change to its payments that will affect millions of its users from next month.
The online marketplace is changing its Buyer Protection which will affect both buyers and sellers from February 4.
From next month a fee will be included in the item price when buying from a private seller.
This means there will be no additional costs or fees at the checkout.
Meanwhile, for items from business sellers, shoppers will get the buyer protection benefits at no extra cost.
The fee will bring eBay in line with competitors Vinted and Depop, who have both ditched seller fees in favour of buyer ones in the past few years.
Buyers will pay up to 4% of the item price, plus an extra 75p.
For example, if they see an item listed for £20 the fee of £1.49 will already be part of the price.
The fee will be lower on higher-priced items of more than £300 and there will be a cap on the total amount they will pay.
This means that buyers who are purchasing lower-value items may end up paying a higher percentage of the item’s total cost in fees than those who make bigger purchases.
The news comes after eBay removed its “regulatory operating fees” for private UK sellers last October, just six months after introducing them in April.
Ebay said the buyer protection will give shoppers on the website “more confidence and security”.
COMMENTS by Consumer Editor, Alice Grahns:
It’s easy to check if items in your attic are valuable.
As a first step, go on eBay to check what other similar pieces, if not the same, have sold for recently.
Simply search for your item, filter by “sold listings” and toggle by the highest value.
This will give you an idea of how much others are willing to pay for it.
The method can be used for everything ranging from rare coins and notes to stamps, old toys, books and vinyl records – just to mention a few examples.
For coins, online tools from change experts like Coin Hunter are also helpful to see how much it could be worth.
Plus, you can refer to Change Checker’s latest scarcity index update to see which coins are topping the charts.
For especially valuable items, you may want to enlist the help of experts or auction houses.
Do your research first though and be aware of any fees for evaluating your stuff.
As a rule of thumb, rarity and condition are key factors in determining the value of any item.
You’re never guaranteed to make a mint, however.
It has also added 24/7 customer support, which will allow buyers to connect with a real person at any time of day, start a chat or get quick answers to questions.
Buyers will continue to be protected by eBay’s Money Back Guarantee at no extra cost.
This means that if an item doesn’t arrive, is faulty or damaged, or doesn’t match the listing description, you can request a refund within 30 days of the delivery date.
Shoppers will continue to be protected by the platform’s Authenticity Guarantee.
Under the guarantee, experts will verify the authenticity of an item for free and carry out a multi-point inspection at no extra cost.
For sellers, the change means that they will paid after item delivery from February 4.
The money will be available in their eBay balance two days after delivery confirmation.
The move could anger sellers as many buyers will forget to confirm that they have received an item.
EBay recommends that sellers use tracked delivery service either through Simple Delivery or by arranging for a local collection.
Ebay customers will need to start buying their postage through the website at some point this year under new plans from the platform.
Private sellers will have to use eBay’s “simple delivery managed shipping” system by the end of the first quarter this year.
This means sellers must confirm a parcel size and eBay will arrange the shipping at what it calls “competitive rates”.
The system is currently available for pre-owned clothing listings for private sellers in the UK.
But it is understood eBay is expanding this across all listings on an “opt out” basis over the next few months.
It will then make it compulsory in early 2025.
Sellers are fully protected for any loss or damage to their items during transit under managed shipping.
EBay has followed its competitors by moving towards a buyer fee instead of charging sellers.
At Vinted the fee depends on the order’s price.
For orders of less than £500 there is a fixed fee of between 30p and 80p, plus between 3% and 8% of the sale price.
Over £500 it is a flat fee of 3%.
Meanwhile, Depop charges up to 5% of the item purchase price, plus a fixed amount of up to £1, excluding taxes and postage costs.
Vinted currently offers managed shipping for sellers, which lets them choose which carriers they would like to offer to deliver their items.
Buyers can then choose which carrier they want to use and must pay that fixed postage cost.
At Depop sellers can use “Ship with Depop” or can choose their own delivery provider.
If a seller ships with Depop then they can either drop off the item at the local depot or have a courier collect it from their address.
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