Crescendo Audio FTMFW!!,
AA Havoc 15 ...
Your Mom FTW!!
Post Number: 3763 Registered: May-04
Posted on
So the other day I checked my mail and there was a letter for me from ebay. I had no idea what it was or why they were sending me something,since they have never sent anything in the mail to me and Ive been a member since 03 or 04. Anyways I opened it and started reading,apparently someone sued ebay,something to do with the final value and insertion fees ebay charges. I thought oh well who cares this doesnt concern me. Then it said you have been componsated and there is a check attached for you! I swear I about sheet my pants until I unfolded the rest of the letter where the check was and sure enough there was a legit check with my name on it from ebay! Then i seen how much the check was for and immediatly that excited feeling I had was gone. My check was for 9 cents,yes $0.09,nine pennies,less than a dime. I was kinda mad and upset even though I had no idea about this lawsuit or was expecting any amount of money at all. But still it cost them more to send me that letter/check then the check is even worth! lol Im not even going to cash the $0.09 check,I would feel like a dumbazz cashing it lol.
Has anyone else heard about this lawsuit? Or gotten a check from ebay? Im just curious as to why I even got the check and why it was only 9cents. The letter didnt really go in to much detail about it. Im going to try an Google this lawsuit and see if I can find out more about it.
It cost them more to mail than they are worth. But here is the deal... eBay knows that most people won't even bother cashing the checks, so they will only end up paying a fraction of what they actually owe in the settlement. This is a perfect example of how the normal rules don't apply to big business. They do whatever they want.
Crescendo Audio FTMFW!!,
AA Havoc 15 ...
Your Mom FTW!!
Post Number: 3764 Registered: May-04
Posted on
Brad do you know anything about this lawsuit? Or who started it and why? I read a couple things about it but it didnt really go in to much detail. All I know is that it had something to do with the final value fees and insertion fees but only in the ebay motors-parts and accesories department. My letter said I paid out like $1.38 in fees so I was entitled to $0.09. If i would have known there was going to be a lawsuit,I would have listed more things in the ebay motors-parts and accesories catagory over the years lol. Then maybe I would have got a decent check lol.
But no one else on here has gotten one of these checks and letters from ebay? I know almost every member on this forum uses ebay. Seems like more of you would have got this too.
ha ha.. No not from Ebay, But i recently got a check from an insurance company for 120ish from a lawsuit brought on by the states AG. The insurance company over charched my for my bike insurance...I cashed it and bought things.
See, they could have just credited your payment method on file to settle the suit but no. Just like Brad stated they know $.09 isn't enough motivation to go anywhere and cash it. Their actions satisfies the lawsuit and as long as the checks were issued they are off the hook for any wrong doings. (In this case).
This is just a tiny fraction of what they DID discover. Now imagine how many millions went undetected and never discovered.
You and I couldn't care less about pennies. Compound that by 10's of millions of trasactions a month and you see THEIR motivation.
I've ditched Ebay. Their fee structure has gotten out of hand.
Crescendo Audio FTMFW!!,
AA Havoc 15 ...
Your Mom FTW!!
Post Number: 3765 Registered: May-04
Posted on
Yea I hate selling things on ebay b/c of all the fees. First they charge you just to list it and then you have options that cost,like bold titles,extra pictures,reserve price fees,a fee if you want it to have a "buy it now" price,etc,etc. As if that wasnt enough they charge you a final value fee,a percentage of whatever your item sells for. Of course Im sure most of you already know all this.
If Im trying to sell something,even if its not car audio I still list it for sale on my regular forums and of course Craigslist is always my perfered method since you dont have to bother with shipping costs and having to pack it and go to the USPS or FedEx or where ever. Using Ebay to sell something can be fun though,like starting your auction at .99 cents and watch people get in to bidding wars and end up paying twice as much as its worth lol.
Now buying from Ebay on the other hand just simply cant be beat. You just have to make sure you read the whole item description to make sure you're getting what you want. And make sure you buy from a reputable seller. You can almost always buy things for 50-60%+ off of retail. And you gotta love when the items have free shipping!
Another thing that "grinds my gears" that is kinda Ebay related,is Paypal. They are almost as bad with the damn fees as Ebay is! I wonder if the same person that owns Ebay has anything to do with Paypal?
PayPal is owned by eBay, and has been for a long time. Together they take an average of about 8% off of sellers. Seeing as they grossed $9.2 Billion in sales for 2010... you do the math.
I love the "insertion fee". They actually tell you they are going to violate your bung -- and still get away with it
While the fees are insane and always seem to multiply the saving grace that saves the company is exposure. You're just not going to get more eyes on your product anywhere else.
What's ironic though is because of the exposure you have equal competition. Take the stay at home mom who tries to sell her handmade crafts. Because she can't compete with the labor rate of overseas manufacturing, she's stuck with all her crafts because ppl can simply get them at a fraction elsewhere.
Then if you ARE a big seller your profit margin per item is so tight that a mere 2% increase in shipping costs could wipe you out. I've had to sell knives before at only a $.50 profit margin. After you account for all the fees and shipping that's where you HAVE to be. In the end it just wasn't worth the hump for 2 quarters.
With the USPS cutting back dramatically you'll see a lot of businesses fall onto Fedex and UPS for their shipping needs. Something I'm sure has them salivating.
