So we have to use something but if the rules aren’t clear then it’s a difficult fit all
They can seemingly do a charge back on their credit card and Ebay will automatically deduct that amount from your bank. I think thats the game the scammers play now.
I've used ebay with their authenticity program both to buy and sell. I've sold about 10 watches >$2,000 and have not had an issue. Yes, ebay will side with the buyer if the buyer claims there is a problem and you'll have to do a return (which has never happened with me). But I see that as a cost of doing business. What I'm most trying to protect against is someone saying I sent them an empty box or that they received a Timex when they bought a Rolex. The ebay authenticity program stops that.
My suggestion is to take excellent photos and write a good and factual description avoiding opinionated terms like pristine, excellent, great, awesome, flawless, unworn, no scratches, etc. Let your photos do the talking. Also, disclose the flaws like a chip in the crystal that might not show up in the photos.
To those saying no to ebay, what is your recommended alternative? I have no interest in face to face sales, plus it dramatically reduces your prospective customer pool. The only alternative I can think of is to only accept wire transfer or Zelle. But what sane buyer is going to buy a $5,000+ watch from a private seller who sells a small handful of watches a year?
Chrono24 is reasonable option fees are lower (6%) and they have escrow acct buyer pays into escrow, seller ships watch, escrow direct deposits into seller account when buyer notifies they received watch ok. I find watches sell if you set reasonable price. No obligation to accept return as private seller. I’ve had no issues
Between the scammers, the tire-kickers, the fees, the authentication hassle, the 1099, and the death of the auction format due to out-of-control sniping, I stopped selling on eBay. I wish they would use an auction extension format like other online auctions, if it were a true auction site again, it would be reinvigorated for collectors. But they have moved on from that and just want it to be a high volume retail site. Don't get me wrong, I'm not say that eBay is awful, but on balance, I just don't find it to be worth the effort anymore, and my last sale on eBay was about 5 years ago. TBH, the signal-to-noise is so low that I don't even go through my searches anymore as a buyer.
The only thing I can imagine listing on eBay now would be a watch with a really significant flaw, like a repainted dial, that I just wanted to disclose and let it find its correct price/buyer in an auction format. Of course, I don't deliberately buy watches like that, but I do sometimes buy lots. If the value is less than about $100 though, I just give it away.
I sell in a combination of places. Here on the forum, other forums, on IG, in-person, and I haven't had trouble selling most of the watches I want to let go. A few lower value pieces haven't sold, and I just put them back in the drawer or gave them away. In the future, if I have trouble selling a $10k+ watch, I might put it in an auction that I trust.
Some points:
I get using an auction for a rare watch, but 100% of the watches I sell are common and have a pretty established price. I set the buy it now price where I think the watch will sell and that's that. Sometimes I start higher and reduce the price after several days.
I don't understand the problem with low ball offers. They are easy to reject or ignore.
I don't know of any other site that gets more eyeballs on my watches than ebay. To me that makes up for the higher fees.
Scamming on ebay is lower risk than most other platforms, in my opinion, when you use the authenticity program.
The standard for issuing a 1099 was really low for the 2024 tax year, but it's been changed back to issuing only if you have 200 transactions AND sales exceeding $20,000. For a hobbyist selling some watches, it's unlikely you're getting issued a 1099 now.
Good to know about the 1099. I will check on that.
Fees are very loaded on low value watches, 15% is pretty crazy for the little that eBay provides. Combined with sales tax paid by the buyer makes it hard to make a deal, in my memory. As an FYI, I had used it for many years with dozens of sales. But over time, it was just less and less appealing to me, to the point I was happy to stop. When they started charging fees on shipping, taxes, everything, that was the last straw. I can only imagine using it for a watch I can't sell any other way. If it works for you, that's great.
All of the watches I've sold on ebay have been in the $2,000-$10,000 range. For something less than $1k I'd probably sell on Watchuseek. That way there are no significant fees and if I got burned in a scam the dollar amount would be low. I'm not on Instagram or Facebook so those are not options for me. Reddit is an option, and I have an account, but I hate that place and would never use it for selling.
