Ebay bans 'surcharges'

[Vroomfunkel]

http://www2.ebay.com/aw/marketing-uk.shtml#20040507121134

This one slipped past me .. they announced it last week, but looks like I missed it.


From 6th June 2004 the following Surcharge Listing Policy will come into force:

1. Electronic Money Services
Sellers who accept electronic money services as a means of payment for an item purchased on eBay, may not impose a surcharge. Electronic money services include, but are not limited to, services such as PayPal, Nochex, FastPay or Moneybookers.

2. Cheques and Money Orders
Sellers may not charge buyers an additional fee for their use of ordinary forms of payment, including acceptance of cheques and money orders.

3. eBay Fees
Sellers may not pass onto buyers any eBay selling fees including but not limited to listing fees, listing enhancement fees and final value fees.


I know that there is eternal debate between those who dislike surcharges for Paypal and those who accept them, but I am really irritated that ebay have decided to impose this ruling, it smacks of authoriarianism and profiteering. If people dislike Paypal surcharges, then they can either (a) pay by another means, or (b) buy the item from another seller.

The only reason ebay is bringing this in is because if people see a surcharge for Paypal and decide, for example, to pay by cheque or bank transfer instead to avoid it, then eBay lose out because they could have made some cash from the Paypal transaction too. Hell, as if they haven't already done well enough from getting the listing and final value fees, now they are gunning for even more ... why do it?? It's not as if they are making a loss??

End result for me - Paypal will depart from my payment options, except for international bidders .. who I don't charge anyway, because there's not really any other reasonable way for them to pay for most things. in will go a simple note to say that although I have a Paypal account, ebay policy does not permit me to state my terms for accepting payments through it.

At the end of the day, I am currently listing probably 50 auctions a month. Paypal charges probably average out about £1 - £2 per item, which works out at a lot of money to be losing .. on top of ebay selling fees!!

Oh, I know there are people who will find reason to disagree ... but whatever happened to choice and free markets? All my auctions have stated that there is a surcharge for Paypal payments .. so all those who really object to that are free to not bid! Way to go ebay .. one more nail in the coffin of free choice. :angry:

Let the flaming commence!!!

Vroomfunkel

[punkoffgirl]

Hmm.. It sounds like a good thing to me. I don't see how this is interfering with free markets, people can still use any service they want to use for their auctions, pretty much. They just can't charge their customers for the fees they're supposed to pay. Like it says, it's not just Paypal. I find this good news indeed!

[Cmosfm]

This isn't going to matter, people will still charge it...they'll just call it "Handling"

[Daria]

Paypal will depart from my payment options,

You'll just chase away customers that only use Paypal. Kinda equates to cutting off your nose to spite ebay.
________
Vaporizer Volcano (http://volcanovaporizer.net/)

[Vroomfunkel]

You'll just chase away customers that only use Paypal. Kinda equates to cutting off your nose to spite ebay.

Well, as ebay never tire of telling me, apparently I do that already by having surcharges. Not that it seems to have bothered any of my customers so far - either they have paid the surcharge, or else they have simply sent me a cheque instead.

The reality is that most people use Paypal for convenience rather than any other reason. If they see something they want from a reputable seller, most people will go for it anyway. I sold on ebay before Paypal came along, and before it was available to UK sellers.

As cmosfm pointed out, it won't actually clear up the "surcharge" situation, as many sellers will simply bump up their P&P costs or something similar. I refuse to do that.


They just can't charge their customers for the fees they're supposed to pay. Like it says, it's not just Paypal

Yes, but this change was brought in because of Paypal .. no point pretending any different. Hardly anyone has surcharges for other methods, for the simple reason that other methods don't cost anything!!

And every seller in the world, in any situation, has to cover the costs of their operation. Shops price items higher to cover the costs they incur for credit card transactions, with the result that everyone pays more - even those who pay with cash. But I don't sell in a shop at a fixed price, so I have make sure I cover my costs some other way. Either that, or I cut out those costs. Simple as that.

Vroomfunkel

[StartTheBiddingLow]

Banning surcharges is like a licence to add surcharges. Yes, you read that correctly.

Lots of sellers put something like:
"P&P (shipping) is £1.50 if you pay by cheque or postal order, or it's £2 with Paypal" (50p fee).
After this surcharge ban, some of those sellers will absorb the Paypal fees, but plenty of others won't - they'll put "P&P is £2", and that will mean people who pay by cheque or PO wil be paying Paypal fees *even*though*they're*not*using*Paypal*.

[SoulBlazer]

Surcharges? Big deal. I pay them all the time selling stuff on Amazon. I don't ask anyone THERE to pay for them, and I don't ask anyone at EBay to pay for them either. Suck it up and accept it as the cost of doing business. If you don't like PayPal don't use it but you just won't get as many people buying your stuff.

GREAT move by EBay myself! Too bad it's correct that people will just get around it by other means. :o

[Funk Buddy]

If you are running a business, the credit card fees are a cost of doing business. In our company we do not "add" that 3 % to the price of our products. Some people may add that in, but it's kind of like office supplies and utilities. I don't price something thinking what our gas and electric bills are going to be.

I don't like the cut PayPal takes either, but if I wanted to sell extra items I needed to take credit cards. PP was my best choice because I'm not a business, just a regular guy. Charging fees is a no no... but eBay does allow you to offer a discount. So, if payments are made by money order or check then offer them a 3% discount for those methods. It's not like charging $10 shipping when it should be $5. At 3% if it was $25 with shipping, it'd be $25.75 w/ PayPal or $24.25 without. That's not sticking it to the buyer at all IMO.

[Vroomfunkel]

In our company we do not "add" that 3 % to the price of our products.

Maybe. But in the majority of businesses that sell directly to Joe Public, someone somewhere will have factored into the costs the price of accepting credit card payments, and accounted for that when they decide the final price of the product. If they didn't, they would not make money!

The difference is, I don't set a cost for my goods .. the consumer does. All my items start at £0.99 - so unless I change my entire way of selling, then there is no other way that I can account for those costs.

This just smacks of ebay wanting to boost their exorbitant profits even further, and push people into selling with fixed prices, or higher start prices to cover their backs (which also makes ebay more money, because they charge more for the higher listing fees, and BINs) ... which is moving further and further away from what eBay always was .. which was an auction site, where people had a chance of a bargain.

If I am going to keep my items like that, then Paypal with no surcharges is out. What irks me most of all is the the fact there is no choice about it. When surcharging was allowed, I clearly stated it in my auctions. If people didn't like it, they had the choice not to buy from me. I don't see how that was detrimental to anyone except that potentially, maybe, eBay might have made *slightly* less money out of me than they could do due to people choosing to pay by other methods than Paypal.

Frankly, I don't see how this is anything but eBay getting greedy. Others may disagree, but then they always had the choice not to use Paypal with me or not. Now they just won't have the choice. Nobody wins.

Vroomfunkel

[stonic]

.....

[SoulBlazer]

Well, if I was to buy anything from you anyway, I'd HAVE to use PayPal, cause I'm in the States. So you may want to think about that before banning it alltogether.

This is a step in the right direction for EBay, but I'd rather see them crack down on some of the other worst offenses.

[Flack]

I see both sides ... I mean, since eBay owns PayPal now, they don't want to hurt potential sales from buyers by sellers addings PayPal costs. On the other hand, it's like ... hey, if you're the buyer, you've got a right to do whatever you want. You can charge an extra $5 if people pay with a purple check. I think the buyer should be able to ask for whatever he wants, it's up to the seller whether the demands are worth it.

Like someone else said, I just see this raising everyone's shipping and handling fee's .50 from now on.

[video_game_addict]

About damn time! :evil:


This is new to you all UK'ers but this has been in effect for some time now to US ebay. I use Paypal ALOT, and have been a member sine 99, I hate the charges, but it is a necessary means for buying/selling thru ebay & online in general. You as a seller may not realize it, but it is a convenience to YOU that you accept Paypal. Sure you may be fine with a check or money order or bank transfer, but ultimately, you will start to see fewer bids, and lower ending prices without it.

I personally hate when sellers try to pass off their surcharges on me. I've only paid these once or twice as a buyer, and they were not disclosed in the auction, which is why I bid on them in the firstplace. Had I seen them I would not have. I think it's unprofessional and a bit shady, whenever I see sellers trying to pass off their fees on me. If they can't price their items correct from the start, maybe they shouldn't be allowed to sell on ebay at all. Go back to boot sales or yardsales, which ever applies, or offer your games to resell shops in trade, there are alternatives to ebaying.

[Achika]

I don't understand what the big deal is? The US has been like this all along, and all we see is shipping with high "handling" fees. Now that the UK has the same rule, what's the difference? I'm sure the UK sellers will start charging shipping with high handling fees like there is here.

What is eBay and Paypal going to do? Ask each and every person for their packing material costs and hourly costs of workers? I think not.

I guess the good thing is that I don't have to argue with UK sellers any more about that silly Paypal fee. If it's not allowed on US eBay, why should I have to follow it internationally?

You raise prices, you just don't advertise what they are for. It's also "the cost of doing business"

[anagrama]

About damn time! :evil:


Seconded. As a seller, I've never included a surcharge - I figure it's the price you pay for the convenience of using Paypal.
I've also always made a point of only paying by cheque if I'm buying from a seller who adds a Paypal charge - granted, once you pay for an envelope and stamp, the difference is minimal, but it's a matter of principle.

[sisko]

I've never used a surcharge as a seller, and as a buyer, I wouldn't be willing to pay them.

I think this is a good idea, but I think the effects you speak of are grandly overstated. In my experience, very few sellers surcharge, thus a very few auctions would have increased "handling" charges.

[anagrama]

I think this is a good idea, but I think the effects you speak of are grandly overstated. In my experience, very few sellers surcharge, thus a very few auctions would have increased "handling" charges.

Maybe not in the US, but until recently probably half of the sellers on eBay UK would add fees for using Paypal.

[frodo2968]

I am one of those sellers that doesn't like to pay the fee for PayPal, so I always used to charge extra and say "I do not accept PayPal unless the buyer pays the fee"...then, one day, eBay cancelled one of my auctions, even though I'd been doing it for a couple years...they could have just warned me :roll:...anyhow, now I just say "I do not accept PayPal due to the fees"...that way, buyers know the reason that I don't accept it, and so if they are willing to pay the fee, than they can use PayPal...plus, eBay can't get after me for charging extra, because I don't directly say that in my auctions.... :P

[Sniderman]

Before: "Shipping in the US will be a $5 flat charge."

Now: "Shipping in the US will be a $6 flat charge."

Anyone who normally charges a flat fee for shipping will just up their S&H fees to compensate. Whether you pay via check, money order, Paypal, animal pelts, the bartering system, etc. - the seller will make those fees back via an unidentified increase in price.

Hell, until eBay does something about the "charge-you-$5-to-ship-an-item-via-Fouth-Class-Mail-which-actually-cost-89-cents-putting-$4-extra-in-my-pocket" sellers, these surcharges are EASY to hide elsewhere. They haven't done a damn thing with this announcement.

[anagrama]

Hell, until eBay does something about the "charge-you-$5-to-ship-an-item-via-Fouth-Class-Mail-which-actually-cost-89-cents-putting-$4-extra-in-my-pocket" sellers.

$4 profit is nothing compared to some. I had a guy who told me it would cost $45 to send a Wavebird from the US to the UK! @_@

[frodo2968]

Well, some of us honest sellers don't and won't charge $5 shipping when it costs us $2.50. I know it's not that much profit, but otherwise you're being flat out dishonest unless you are paying for packaging (I just use what I have lying around)...and if you boost shipping costs to cover PayPal fees, what about the people that don't pay with PayPal? But yes, I guess that it would work in some cases, but buyers may view you as being dishonest. Either way, I like my way better...

[kevincure]

Though it may seem overbearing on ebay's part, this is a standard practice in the US with credit card companies. If your business accepts Visa, you are not allowed to charge any surcharge on Visa payments to cover the 1 or 2 percent that Visa hits your business with for the payment. You have the option of not accepting Visa, but you cant pass the surcharge along.

Do they do this to screw you? No.

They do this because Visa wants you to keep using Visa. Buyers won't shop with Visa if it means paying 2% on top of cost. Likewise, less buyers will use Paypal (for sellers with the surcharge or without) if some sellers charge a surcharge. It's not fair to Paypal's brand and it's not fair to sellers who abide by Paypal's contract.

For all its faults, Paypal is what made ebay's growth possible. Who wants to wait a week for a money order to go through the mail before having their package shipped (or paying the buck and a half that it takes to get a money order) when they're buying a five dollar game? It's bollocks. Keeping Paypal and other online intermediaries around is much more important than recovering 3% on the sale.

Lastly, at least in the US, sellers who don't accept Paypal get much lower bids that sellers who do. For the sellers own bottom line, it's better to use the service and bite the fees (for the same reason that it's better for your restaurant to let you use CCs and bite the fees - because they get more customers).

[jonjandran]

Though it may seem overbearing on ebay's part, this is a standard practice in the US with credit card companies. If your business accepts Visa, you are not allowed to charge any surcharge on Visa payments to cover the 1 or 2 percent that Visa hits your business with for the payment. You have the option of not accepting Visa, but you cant pass the surcharge along.

.

That's funny. Every McDonalds I walk into charges an extra $.69 or $.99 for using a debit or credit card.

And so do a lot of other fast food restaraunts now. :hmm:

[kontos]

It's called Cost/Benefit Analysis. If you didn't think that you'd be able to cover the costs of accepting Paypal via more bids on your auctions, it was a bad business decision to start acceping the payments.

My average selling experience has been:

$5 - $0 fees = $5 revenue yard sale
$8 - $2 fees = $6 revenue ebay (no paypal)
$10 - $4 fees = $6 revenue ebay+paypal

then you factor in that I only manage to sell about 25% of my available merchandise at a yard sale, 75% with ebay, and 80% with ebay+paypal.

That makes ebay+paypal the best way to sell. YMMV!

[Predatorxs]

Hey..

When i sell stuff (UK Ebay) i don't charge, i take the hit, i try my best to play fair, and i would ever dream of charging after the fact, someone else mentioned it will continue in the form of a handling charge (and there right it will)..

Handling equals = Money grabbers! :( and i won't be joining that group!! ;)


..XS ( Handling! can go kiss my ass!! X_x )

[Vroomfunkel]

*sigh* ... all so predictable.

Of Course people who don't charge Paypal fees now aren't going to object the changes, because it doesn't affect them. And I have no problem with people who don't want to buy from sellers who charge a fee - that is absolutely fine by me too - I fully support their freedom to choose who to buy from and who not to. My only point is this : - Buyers and sellers should be free to choose how they want to conduct their business.

If a buyer doesn't want to pay Paypal charges, they should be free to bid only on items that don't carry the charge.

If a seller wants to charge a Paypal fee, and thus possibly lose customers, then they should be free to do that also.

As people have mentioned before, many sellers will simply add a "handling" charge, or bump up their P&P - thus hitting all their bidders, not just the ones who use Paypal. I really don't want to do that - I would rather be open and honest about what my charges are for. Postage costs me money, so I charge for postage. Paypal costs me money, so I charge for Paypal. Cheques, cash and postal orders do not cost me money, so I don't charge for them.

And currently, I state all that quite clearly, and people can make their own minds up if they want to go with that or not - and I really don't see what the problem with that is (apart from that some people don't like it. But hey, I don't like paying income tax .. but that doesn't mean it's not fair)

Vroomfunkel

[Wavelflack]

"Maybe. But in the majority of businesses that sell directly to Joe Public, someone somewhere will have factored into the costs the price of accepting credit card payments, and accounted for that when they decide the final price of the product. If they didn't, they would not make money!"


You too can sell at a fixed price. You can either sell the item as a BIN, with an equal starting bid, or you can simply make your starting bid your fixed price.
I can't fucking stand people like this. They want to take advantage of a system (ebay) that allows them to do very little work and still be compensated at the market rate. Then they want to bitch because that system asks for a fee for services rendered. Then they want to take advantage of another system (Paypal) that allows the seller to expand his potential customer base (CC users, etc.), as well as providing instant payment and various protections. That service also wants a fee. Again, the seller bitches about it.

The bottom line is this: You are not entitled to eBay or Paypal services, free of charge. It's not a "right" you have. If eBay fees are unacceptable to you, then don't use them. Walk door to door and sell your wares that way. If Paypal fees are unacceptable to you, then don't use them. Skip the CC users, or setup your own bankpoint system through a local provider. They also charge fees, of course.

Final note: eBay is a service for sellers. It's not a service that logs requests from buyers on a giant "WANTED" listing. It's a service that lists wares from SELLERS. As such, it is provided at the sellers' convenience, and it is the sellers' responsibility to pay for that service. Not the buyer! Paypal is the same way. Who wants to see money switching hands RIGHT NOW? The seller, of course! The buyer won't mind that a check takes two weeks to clear his account (and lower his balance), but the seller sure does.
So if you're going to take advantage of those services, try to have some dignity pay for it yourself!

[Wavelflack]

"That's funny. Every McDonalds I walk into charges an extra $.69 or $.99 for using a debit or credit card."

No, they don't. That is 100% bullshit. You get a receipt for your transaction. Scan it and post it.
What's actually funny is wondering how you will explain the absence of a surcharge on your receipt.

[jonjandran]

"That's funny. Every McDonalds I walk into charges an extra $.69 or $.99 for using a debit or credit card."

No, they don't. That is 100% bullshit. You get a receipt for your transaction. Scan it and post it.
What's actually funny is wondering how you will explain the absence of a surcharge on your receipt.

Why don't you watch what you say so you don't end up looking like a fool.

Every McDonalds and fast food place I've been lately that takes debit cards ( where you have to slide your card and put in your pin #) charges either $.69 or $.99 for it now.

Walk in and look for yourself.

And keep your filthy mouth to yourself. If you feel like acting childish and cursing find a different site to do it on.

[Wavelflack]

Hee hee!

Please scan and post your McDonalds receipt showing the surcharge. I have McDonalds and Sonic receipts featuring--*gasp*--NO SURCHARGE! Imagine that!

I'm waiting...


Oh, while I'm at it...

"And keep your filthy mouth to yourself. If you feel like acting childish and cursing find a different site to do it on."

Landsakes! Yassir!

(waits for "scanner is broken/don't have scanner/don't have OrificeMax nearby/don't have computer/don't have receipt/don't know anybody with one" rebuttal..)

[esquire]

If people dislike Paypal surcharges, then they can either (a) pay by another means, or (b) buy the item from another seller

Well, it goes both ways I suppose. If you don't like paypal charging you a fee for every transaction, drop your premier member status and only accept payments from on-hand funds or from a bank account, like I do.


End result for me - Paypal will depart from my payment options, except for international bidders .. who I don't charge anyway, because there's not really any other reasonable way for them to pay for most things..

Perhaps you have not heard of Bidpay? This is great for international bidders and anyone else who wants to use a credit card to pay for the item. Essentially the bidder transfers the funds (from whatever source) to Western Union Bidpay. Bidpay confirms the funds and sends the seller a money order. This works great! The money order arrives fairly quick (3-4 days). I've used this with buyers from the UK, Spain, Germany and Denmark. Best of all, the bidder has to pay any fees (i.e. credit card fees) not the seller.


..in will go a simple note to say that although I have a Paypal account, ebay policy does not permit me to state my terms for accepting payments through it.

While ebay will eliminate surcharges, they do not limit your terms for accepting payments through paypal. As I stated earlier, if you downgrade your paypal account, you won't have to pay those surcharges. I state in all of my auctions that I do not accept paypal via a credit card (use Bidpay if you must use a cc). That way when some jackass doesn't read my terms and attempts to pay with a credit card, I can reject the payment as I am not a premier member with paypal. Moreover, you can simply eliminate the automatic paypal logo insertion as well as paypal as a payment option in your checkout. Replace paypal with "other online methods". That way your account is not setup to accept paypal payments. If the bidder is international and you want to provide paypal as an option, you can send an email to them at the end of the auction, stating that you will accept paypal payments, or just put in your auction terms that you only accept paypal from international bidders. Of course you still won't be able to tack on the surcharge. If you switch to bidpay for cc payments, you don't even have to worry about this.

A final option is to once again eliminate paypal as a payment option in your auction setup, but list in the auction that you'll accept paypal payments for purchases over a certain dollar amount, say for example $20, $50 or $100. I don't see a problem with this as many small business owners (like restaurants, etc) will not accept credit card payments under a certain dollar amount because of the fees they have to pay. The larger the dollar amount of the auction, the more likely you are able to afford those fees.

As many others have stated, paypal fees are a cost of doing business, just like credit card fees are. While you may not be able to recoup those fees through surcharges, you can always use reserves, raise opening bid amounts or tack on an extra dollar to your S&H fees. However, I feel I have provided you with a couple good alternatives (Bidpay, non-premier paypal) to using surcharges.

[Vroomfunkel]

You too can sell at a fixed price. You can either sell the item as a BIN, with an equal starting bid, or you can simply make your starting bid your fixed price.

Geez - did you read anything I wrote before you had your little apoplexy? I don't sell fixed price items. Everything I sell starts at £0.99 and no reserve. I don't cancel my auctions when they're near the end and not going as high as I would like. I don't endlessly re-run items at vastly inflated prices in the hopes that someday some sucker will bite.

In short, I run what are traditionally known as auctions. Because eBay is in fact (or was) an auction site. Nowadays of course, with all these changes they seem to be pushing everyone towards what you suggested .. which is not an auction at all - it's a kind of online shop. Sure, that is one way of doing business .. but it's not the way I do it.


They want to take advantage of a system (ebay) that allows them to do very little work

What the hell difference does it make how much work someone does? If you could make money sitting on your ass, like most company directors do, would you object? Besides which, you speak of that which you do not know .. as anyone who sells a significant amount of stuff on ebay will tell you, it does take a lot of time.


You are not entitled to eBay or Paypal services, free of charge. It's not a "right" you have. If eBay fees are unacceptable to you, then don't use them

You're losing the plot here, in your red haze. I have never had eBay or Paypal services "free of charge", nor claimed that I have the right to. I do however have the right to charge people who buy from me reasonable amounts to cover the costs of transactions.

I find it bizarre that it is pefectly fine for eBay (a.k.a. Paypal) to stack the system to ensure they squeeze the maximum amount of money out of sellers, but it is somehow outrageous and greedy for me to want to cover my operating costs.

Gah, I could go on forever but you're not worth it. Oh and you are wrong about McDonalds as well. All the McDonalds round where I live charge to accept cards. If you're so desperate to be proved wrong, I will go and take a photo of the notice, or get you a receipt ... sheesh .. what makes you think people would lie about such dumb insignificant thing just to prove you wrong? Get over yourself!

Vroomfunkel

[Mayhem]

Perhaps you have not heard of Bidpay? This is great for international bidders and anyone else who wants to use a credit card to pay for the item. Essentially the bidder transfers the funds (from whatever source) to Western Union Bidpay. Bidpay confirms the funds and sends the seller a money order. This works great! The money order arrives fairly quick (3-4 days). I've used this with buyers from the UK, Spain, Germany and Denmark. Best of all, the bidder has to pay any fees (i.e. credit card fees) not the seller.

Have Bidpay changed their signup procedure then? I tried to register with them a year or two ago but it was US people only (as you couldn't specify a country when you entered your home details!). Anyhow, anything that goes through Western Union is a auto no-no, too many horror stories of people being conned using that for me to entrust any money to them.

[Vroomfunkel]

I have used Bidpay a coupla times and it has been OK. I think I only received one payment through it though ..

The charge is something like $5 minimum as far as I remember (for payments to UK residents), so it's only really going to be for larger amounts. But I can't see how you could get burnt by it for recieving payments - the buyer pays Bidpay with their card, including the charge, and you get sent a cheque in UK Sterling, which is drawn on the Bidpay account, therefore pretty much guaranteed to clear.

Assuming Bidpay don't go bust of course ...

Vroomfunkel

[jonjandran]

Hee hee!

Please scan and post your McDonalds receipt showing the surcharge. I have McDonalds and Sonic receipts featuring--*gasp*--NO SURCHARGE! Imagine that!



(waits for "scanner is broken/don't have scanner/don't have OrificeMax nearby/don't have computer/don't have receipt/don't know anybody with one" rebuttal..)

Guess what just for you I'll go to McDonalds and take a picture of the card scanner with the $.69 surcharge in bold print , a copy of the receipt with the charge and I'll post it for you.

Just to shut your big mouth.

Good Lord I wish people had some common sense on this site sometimes. x_x

Oh and chew on this in the meantime. :
http://www.my3cents.com/showReview.cgi?id=4698&wrapper=

Hmmm seems other people are paying a charge also. :hmm:

[esquire]

Perhaps you have not heard of Bidpay? This is great for international bidders and anyone else who wants to use a credit card to pay for the item. Essentially the bidder transfers the funds (from whatever source) to Western Union Bidpay. Bidpay confirms the funds and sends the seller a money order. This works great! The money order arrives fairly quick (3-4 days). I've used this with buyers from the UK, Spain, Germany and Denmark. Best of all, the bidder has to pay any fees (i.e. credit card fees) not the seller.

Have Bidpay changed their signup procedure then? I tried to register with them a year or two ago but it was US people only (as you couldn't specify a country when you entered your home details!). Anyhow, anything that goes through Western Union is a auto no-no, too many horror stories of people being conned using that for me to entrust any money to them.

As stated, I have received Bidpay payments from the UK, Spain, Denmark and Germany with no problems whatsoever. In fact several payments have come from the UK. No horror stories at all. In fact, I don't see how there could be any problems as Bidpay confirms the funds before it sends them.

[jonjandran]

Hee hee!

Please scan and post your McDonalds receipt showing the surcharge. I have McDonalds and Sonic receipts featuring--*gasp*--NO SURCHARGE! Imagine that!


(waits for "scanner is broken/don't have scanner/don't have OrificeMax nearby/don't have computer/don't have receipt/don't know anybody with one" rebuttal..)

Here you go big mouth :

http://members.cox.net/jonjandran/MVC-009S.JPG

http://members.cox.net/jonjandran/MVC-011F.JPG

At this point you should probably open mouth and insert foot. :P

[Griking]

"That's funny. Every McDonalds I walk into charges an extra $.69 or $.99 for using a debit or credit card."

No, they don't. That is 100% bullshit. You get a receipt for your transaction. Scan it and post it.
What's actually funny is wondering how you will explain the absence of a surcharge on your receipt.

Why don't you watch what you say so you don't end up looking like a fool.

Every McDonalds and fast food place I've been lately that takes debit cards ( where you have to slide your card and put in your pin #) charges either $.69 or $.99 for it now.

Walk in and look for yourself.

And keep your filthy mouth to yourself. If you feel like acting childish and cursing find a different site to do it on.


I know that the fast food restaurants that I've visited here in Connecticut do NOT have fees added to my bill if I used a credit or debit card. On the other hand, they do have a ATM machine in the stores that they charge $1.50 to use. Maybe it has to do with what state law allows.

[jonjandran]

"That's funny. Every McDonalds I walk into charges an extra $.69 or $.99 for using a debit or credit card."

No, they don't. That is 100% bullshit. You get a receipt for your transaction. Scan it and post it.
What's actually funny is wondering how you will explain the absence of a surcharge on your receipt.

Why don't you watch what you say so you don't end up looking like a fool.

Every McDonalds and fast food place I've been lately that takes debit cards ( where you have to slide your card and put in your pin #) charges either $.69 or $.99 for it now.

Walk in and look for yourself.

And keep your filthy mouth to yourself. If you feel like acting childish and cursing find a different site to do it on.


I know that the fast food restaurants that I've visited here in Connecticut do NOT have fees added to my bill if I used a credit or debit card. On the other hand, they do have a ATM machine in the stores that they charge $1.50 to use.

Hence the reason I said " That's funny. Every McDonalds I walk into charges an extra $.69 or $.99 for using a debit or credit card."

I didn't say this was the case everywhere, but in Florida , Georgia, Alabama , I've seen this at more and more Fast Food places.

[kevincure]

I'm really rather stunned, jon, that the credit/debit card companies are allowing this. I've seen, once or twice, "35 surcharge on debits under $5" but never seen a charge for credit. Some friends that opened a store recently told me that the credit card companies simply don't allow surcharges and that you could lose your ability to accept Visa/MC if you tried to add them.

The .99 cent surcharge is a total rip, too. I know approximately what debit and credit card companies charge per transaction, and it's nowhere near a buck on a five dollar (or even one dollar!) purchase.

[Vroomfunkel]

Can you imagine how much money the Credit Card companies would lose if they barred McDonalds? That is why McDonalds can do what they like .. the credit card companies have more to lose. Whereas they can easily refuse to let Joe Bloggs in his store add a surcharge, because if he goes ahead they can bar him from accepting credit cards and not even notice a blip in their profits.

Plus of course, they won't lose all that much from McDonalds bringing in these charges .. a lot of people will just go ahead and pay it anyway, just for the sake of convenience.

Vroomfunkel

[Mike1988_11]

About damn time! :evil:


Seconded. As a seller, I've never included a surcharge - I figure it's the price you pay for the convenience of using Paypal.
I've also always made a point of only paying by cheque if I'm buying from a seller who adds a Paypal charge - granted, once you pay for an envelope and stamp, the difference is minimal, but it's a matter of principle.


Its not the sellers convenience, its the buyers. The buyer does not have to wait an extra week to get his item, the buyer doesn't have to write a check and mail it, and pay for a stamp. I would not have a single problem with go to the bank and cashing all my checks from ebay.

[Griking]

Can you imagine how much money the Credit Card companies would lose if they barred McDonalds?

They wouldn't "loose" anything since its only recently that fast food restaurants accepted credit card payments at all. You can't loose what you never had in the first place. On the other hand, they stand to make a fortune from fast food restaurants in the present and future now that they do accept credit and debit payments, even with the surcharge.

It'll be interesting to see if other companies demand the no surcharge deal that fast food seems to have gotten. I'm sure that Wal-Mart has the muscle to ask for it.

[anagrama]

Its not the sellers convenience, its the buyers. The buyer does not have to wait an extra week to get his item, the buyer doesn't have to write a check and mail it, and pay for a stamp. I would not have a single problem with go to the bank and cashing all my checks from ebay.

And similarly the seller doesn't have to wait and see if payment ever arrives, and also doesn't have to wait for the cheque to clear. It goes both ways.