Why trust eBay - Easy Auction articles

Why trust eBay: PayPal buyer protection and eBay feedback system

PayPal is a safe, quick and secure way of paying for items on the internet, such as those won at auction on eBay. PayPal securely stores your credit or debit card details and allows you to purchase items on the internet without re-entering these details; but don’t worry- you are fully protected against unauthorised use of your PayPal account. One of the biggest attractions of using PayPal, especially for tentative eBay users, is the buyer protection it offers. If an item is not received or differs significantly from the item description, a buyer will be able to contact the seller through PayPal. If a resolution can not be reached by amicable communication, the full item price will be refunded to the buyer by PayPal.

When you win an internet auction on eBay or buy a product, make sure you pay with PayPal whenever you can! I can’t stress this enough. I have had my own regrettable experiences in my early days of online auctions and eBay; all of which could have been solved if I had used PayPal. I have used PayPal for all internet auctions since, and have rarely had any problems.

I have, unfortunately, had to raise a dispute for an item which never arrived- but PayPal swiftly refunded the full amount including delivery cost. All of the fabulous marked items featured on my Easy Auction product pages can be paid for using PayPal. If you do opt to pay for them using PayPal; you are fully covered by the PayPal buyer protection program for any item you see on Easy Auction.

Look out for the PayPal logo on Easy Auction product listings-

Also beware of fake items! Although the vast majority of eBay auctions are from trustworthy sellers who hold genuine auctions for genuine items, some sellers do sell fakes. Fortunately; eBay also makes it easy for buyers to ascertain whether or not a seller is trustworthy before they part with their hard earned cash or place a bid. Whenever an item is won on eBay and received by the buyer; either via internet auction or direct purchase ('buy it now'), the buyer gives the seller feedback. Likewise, the seller is able to give the buyer feedback. This feedback system then gives sellers a rating; the higher the positive feedback the better! Also look out for eBay “Power Seller” ratings, which are received when a seller has had much experience auctioning or selling products- thus adding weight and meaning to their feedback score. Find a Power Seller with 98%+ positive feedback and you’re onto a winner. Make sure to read the negative feedback comments too; they may be minor points or points beyond the seller’s control which have since been sorted out. And remember- if things do wrong, pay using PayPal and you’ve got nothing to lose!

Update: eBay has just (Oct 2009) launched a new 'eBay Top Rated Sellers' initiative. To be eligible, sellers must regularly receive outstanding feedback from buyers. These are the most trustworthy sellers of the lot! Look out for products brandishing the rosette below:

Select a marked product on Easy Auction to be rest assured that the seller offers PayPal as a preferred payment method. All products included in RSS feeds and all products from the unusual eBay products section feature PayPal and are also sold by sellers with an exceptionally high positive feedback rating (at least 99.9% from at least 150 ratings).