My eBay pet peeves.......... lets keep this civil!!

[SilverJacks]

9 minutes ago, Roy said:

Yes, you are correct, anonymity is safety but...

Let's say I'm a 'bad actor'

I've reviewed 'Roy's' feedback and I see he likes Britannias

I join the forum, chat for a few days, get some points and offer up some blinding Britannia deals. 'Roy' responds, wants to buy. I now have his bank details and address.

If he is selling, I now have his real name.

Excellent point. With ebay, you can have a several accounts for buying/selling to conceal your address But on the forum, not so. This highlights the importance of safe storage, but doesn't really prevent a rogue from trying something sinister...

[jackflash123]

19 minutes ago, Roy said:

Yes, you are correct, anonymity is safety but...

Let's say I'm a 'bad actor'

I've reviewed 'Roy's' feedback and I see he likes Britannias

I join the forum, chat for a few days, get some points and offer up some blinding Britannia deals. 'Roy' responds, wants to buy. I now have his bank details and address.

If he is selling, I now have his real name.

I can’t see a way around this. eBay of course uses PayPal so a seller does not have to give their bank details to a buyer. Unless you’re going to insist on being paid by PayPal then you will have to give your bank details.

There is another option. You could setup something like Revolut, which is an online banking app and works just like any online bank. You can send and receive payment and even have your wages paid into it. But for the purposes of receiving payments on the silver forum, maybe you could setup a separate account that you only use for buying and selling, and your regular current account details are never revealed.

Another layer of protection would be to only buy and sell from premium members who have a paid account and will have their address and payment information registered with the forum. This will of course limit your opportunities for getting a sale but if it gives you peace of mind then maybe it’s something worth doing.

Unfortunately in this digital age you can never fully protect yourself against scammers. After all identify theft is one of the fastest growing crimes as a scammer can remain anonymous for all intents and purposes.

Edited September 6, 2022 by jackflash123

[James32]

Tomorrow is going to be a busy day for me, new house and bank account..bit of lunch and then change name by deed poll 😂

Some serious food for thought though. 

[jackflash123]

And of course you can setup a Postal Box address to have your items delivered to, then you won’t have to give your home address. This will of course be expensive and likely inconvenient, but maybe worth looking into 🤔

Edited September 6, 2022 by jackflash123

[James32]

2 minutes ago, jackflash123 said:

Another layer of protection would be to only buy and sell from premium members who have a paid account and will have their address and payment information registered with the forum. This will of course limit your opportunities for getting a sale but if it gives you peace of mind then maybe it’s something worth doing.

This is a great point,but then we alienate geniune newcomers ?

[SilverJacks]

Is there some form of click & collect service available to private sellers? Could be worth looking in to...

[jackflash123]

6 minutes ago, James32 said:

This is a great point,but then we alienate geniune newcomers ?

Not just newcomers mate, only non-premium members who are not paid up and have their address and card details registered by the forum. It’s an incentive for a newcomer to get a premium account. 

This is an age old conundrum, and we were all newcomers to begin with and I agree that it will limit your sales options if you only want to sell to premium members.

The steps I mentioned above can protect you to a degree, but it’s not fool proof.

Setup an account that you only use for transactions on the forum and get a PO Box address, then you can sell to anyone without too much worry.

Other than that I can’t see too many other options?

We don’t want to discourage newcomers obviously, but again a premium account immediately increases the likelihood that your safe to trade with as all your details are logged, of course it doesn’t stop someone using dodgy details but we could go round and round on this one me thinks.

[jackflash123]

5 minutes ago, SilverJacks said:

Is there some form of click & collect service available to private sellers? Could be worth looking in to...

Great idea, maybe the forum could integrate something like eBay uses with a click and collect service at drop off points or Amazon lockers etc. is the forum big enough to put something like this in place?

Personally I think this is something that will likely be implemented in the future as the forum grows with more premium members. But if anyone is worried about their financial info then use revolut for payments and use a PO Box for deliveries. For the time being these strike me as the best ways to prevent you from having to give out your home address and your current account bank details.

[James32]

5 minutes ago, jackflash123 said:

Not just newcomers mate, only non-premium members who are not paid up and have their address and card details registered by the forum. It’s an incentive for a newcomer to get a premium account. 

This is an age old conundrum, and we were all newcomers to begin with and I agree that it will limit your sales options if you only want to sell to premium members.

The steps I mentioned above can protect you to a degree, but it’s not fool proof.

Setup an account that you only use for transactions on the forum and get a PO Box address, then you can sell to anyone without too much worry.

Other than that I can’t see too many other options?

We don’t want to discourage newcomers obviously, but again a premium account immediately increases the likelihood that your safe to trade with as all your details are logged, of course it doesn’t stop someone using dodgy details but we could go round and round on this one me thinks.

Believe it or not, you can actually have more than one account which kind of vetoes most attempts at safety we can muster up.

I've seen one person get banned and pop up with new name..same lingo and mannerisms and argumentative behaviour, they have disappeared now thankfully. 

[jackflash123]

Just now, James32 said:

Believe it or not, you can actually have more than one account which kind of vetoes most attempts at safety we can muster up.

I've seen one person get banned and pop up with new name..same lingo and mannerisms and argumentative behaviour, they have disappeared now thankfully. 

Yeah that’s a problem, for someone to make a new account or ghost account. I think that would be difficult to prevent from the forums point of view, how could they stop something like that, I couldn’t imagine.

But anyone interested in a PO Box address here is some basic prices.

As I thought it’s quite expensive and not really necessary if you’re only receiving a few items a month or whatever. If your a business buyer/seller I can see the appeal and you could write the costs off as a business expense I’m sure.

But this service will receive your mail at your PO Box address and then forward it on to you. This will of course increase wait times for items and increase the likelihood of something going missing in the mail.

[Roy]

There are a number of members I will buy from without a thought. Mostly previous private sellers, @Paul for example.

Long term members @arshimo2012 @ilovesilverireallydo @richatthecroft @watchesandwhisky @Tn21

Then there are guys I will one day buy from because they are active members who have a keen interest in the forum, like @James32 and @Leonmarsh.

Guys who have an interest/business they want to protect, like @DuncanWylieWilson and @arphethean.

Don't be scared to deal on the forum, but build a relationship first. I've built some great relationships here.

[jackflash123]

I also seem to remember that some PO Box addresses are not looked upon positively because you’re hiding your real address, and technically you could have something delivered to a PO Box address and then do a flit.

[jackflash123]

2 minutes ago, Roy said:

There are a number of members I will buy from without a thought. Mostly previous private sellers, @Paul for example.

Long term members @arshimo2012 @ilovesilverireallydo @richatthecroft @watchesandwhisky @Tn21

Then there are guys I will one day buy from because they are active members who have a keen interest in the forum, like @James32 and @Leonmarsh.

Guys who have an interest/business they want to protect, like @DuncanWylieWilson and @arphethean.

Don't be scared to deal on the forum, but build a relationship first. I've built some great relationships here.

That’s a good way to insulate yourself from scammers and I agree that building relationships is extremely important. We all do what we think is best, and some of us are more aware or concerned of possible safety issues than others.

whatever works best for you (plurally - not you personally @Roy) but people in general, is definitely the best policy. I also have members I prefer to trade with, but I won’t discount someone I don’t know just because I don’t know them. I give everyone a fair chance, but if anyone crosses me then I will never deal with that member again.

[flyingveepixie]

7 hours ago, SilverJacks said:

I used to get annoyed about not receiving feedback. One particular instance, I sold a higher value coin (than I would ordinarily sell) and so would've liked the feedback for it. The buyer, who buys and sells coins himself, would regularly make low bids on my items in the hope of a bargain, and got this at a decent price.

He thanked me for the coin. I took that as transaction complete and gave him good feedback. Another thing to remember, many people out there will check if you give feedback. By giving feedback, you are showing a record of your previous sales even if feedback was not given in return.

I did politely reply to his message with "any feedback appreciated" - maybe that annoyed him... He replied with "sure", but chose not to give me feedback, whilst giving feedback to others (yes, I stalked his profile to check if he gives feedback). I wondered why he would do this?

Couple weeks later, he sold the coin on for a small profit, which I don't mind at all. I was only bothered with not receiving feedback for the sale. Did I annoy him by asking for feedback? Of course, he could've just forgot, but I doubt it because it was higher value than all the other items he given feedback for. Then I thought, perhaps he would perceive me as a potential rival seller and therefore not want to help my cause by leaving me good feedback (our ratings were actually quite similar) although I accept that's a bit far-fetched, and more likely that I annoyed him by asking for it.

So, how do others feel about being asked for feedback? Would it annoy you? Personally, I have been asked politely by buyers and sellers and it isn't an issue to me...

Alternatively, I have a repeat buyer that never leaves me feedback. I leave him good feedback every time. He's a good buyer. Pays quickly, smooth transaction both ways. That's all that counts at the end of the day, both parties being happy. 

 

I used to always leave feedback but eventually ran out of steam, mainly because so few people left feedback for me.  Now I don't leave feedback at all, although I would do so if I felt others needed to be warned of any potential trouble.

[flyingveepixie]

6 hours ago, James32 said:

Happens on here a significant amount also😅 personally I view feedback as my signal both parties are happy and deal is complete,so I can rip up postage receipts. Otherwise the little voice tells me to keep for a month "just incase" then the voice of the voice says keep for 2 months just in case case😅

Have no problem being asked for feedback, but I will always leave it anyway.

 

 

Ah yes.   I never received feedback for my very first transaction on here despite leaving it for my trading partner and I was a bit miffed about it

[SidS]

I always leave feedback. I don't care if I receive it or not, don't even look.

[flyingveepixie]

6 hours ago, SilverJacks said:

Interesting. It's nice to hear other points, but doesn't this mean the observer will only know your username, and not know who you are other than Roy?

 

Never underestimate the tech savviness of scammers is what I say.   @Roy has an excellent point.

On ebay I'm currently on my third account which has been active for about 12 years.  The previous two were hacked by scammers and I was locked out of them forever thanks to ebay's unwillingness to help at the time - things were altogether a lot more wild west in the earlier days and both ebay and Paypal - which was for many years an ebay subsidiary - tended to do as they liked with customer accounts. I'm also on my third Paypal account for the same reasons (they were hacked at the same time on both occasions) and although both ebay and Paypal security and customer sevice have improved somewhat over the years I still find both entities to be somewhat elitist in their attitude towards customers and I trust neither of them as far as I could throw them.   Regarding my first two hacked Paypal accounts, there wasn't even a decent contact option for Paypal back in those days and when my accounts were hacked they just spirited away the funds that were in them - fortunately only a small amount in both cases.   I would have walked away and given them both the finger but there was no other convenient trading platform available and due to the insistence of ebay that Paypal must be offered as a payment option I had no choice but to open new accounts for both if I wished to keep on trading.

Edited September 6, 2022 by flyingveepixie

[DrDave]

As an ebay seller, my feedback is left automatically as soon as the buyer pays. The buyer may still become a total nightmare afterwards though, but in fairness they've upheld their part of the bargain and paid up.

I don't chase buyers for feedback as some feel harrassed and might leave less than favourable feedback. No feedback is better than a negative.

As a buyer, i try to leave feedback as soon as i receive the item. I personally don't mind getting a reminder from the seller.

 

On the forum, i'll leave feedback as soon as a buyer pays, and as a buyer i'll leave feedback as soon asthe coin arrives. If the seller doesn't leave feedback i won't chase it

Edited September 6, 2022 by DrDave

[Charliemouse]

(Feeling guilty for totally hijacking this thread to talk about feedback, leading to the discussion about security.)

On feedback, I leave it every time, unless someone I have previously dealt with, never reciprocates. Then I assumed they aren't interested in feedback.  But it is really easy to forget, and I never mind being reminded (shamed).  The system on the forum is, I feel, a little clunky, and it adds friction which naturally causes people to delay or not bother.

On security, this is a really fascinating discussion, especially as cyber security is/was part of my day job.

Maybe I will start a new thread.

[flyingveepixie]

AArgh I just received another of those supremely annoying "What's your best price?" questions for an item I've still got listed on which it clearly states NO OFFERS.  

The price is £140 so I messaged the guy back and said   "The best price is the one listed mate but if you want to make me an offer on it I'll happily accept £170"

Thanks to @LawrenceChard for suggesting this response..😂

[DrDave]

3 minutes ago, flyingveepixie said:

AArgh I just received another of those supremely annoying "What's your best price?" questions for an item I've still got listed on which it clearly states NO OFFERS.  

The price is £140 so I messaged the guy back and said   "The best price is the one listed mate but if you want to make me an offer on it I'll happily accept £170"

Thanks to @LawrenceChard for suggesting this response..😂

I used to sell cars and was always getting asked 'Whats the best price?'. Id always pointat the windscreen and tell them 'That one!'.  It normally broke the ice and paved the way for sensible negotiation.........sometimes!

[Darr3nG]

1 hour ago, flyingveepixie said:

The price is £140

So, what is your best price then?  

[Paul]

33 minutes ago, Darr3nG said:

So, what is your best price then?  

£200

[Charliemouse]

I think this was mentioned earlier.  It is frustrating when people put "accept offers" and then don't.

I've offered £80 for list £85, auto reject.  Then £82, then £83, auto reject.  So what offer are you going to accept?  £84?  Is there really any point in setting an offer acceptance that close?  You're just going to annoy people.  Needless to say, I went elsewhere.

But I can see that receiving texts with offers when you've said you aren't interested, is also annoying.  It is often a cultural thing though.  I know there are places where haggling is expected, and just accepting the price is both unusual and (oddly) rude.

[SidS]

1 minute ago, Charliemouse said:

I've offered £80 for list £85, auto reject.  Then £82, then £83, auto reject.  So what offer are you going to accept?  £84?

£84.50?