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THE Post Office is refusing to accept parcels with eBay labels after the secondhand website updated its delivery options.
Earlier this week, eBay confirmed that from April 15, private sellers will only be able to list items on the platform using its “Simple Delivery” shipping method.
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This means sellers will no longer be able to arrange their own shipping and must pay for an item to be delivered via eBay.
The change is being rolled out gradually and will be applied to eligible listings from April 7.
When listing an item on eBay, it will recommend the parcel’s size and weight.
The seller must then confirm the information is correct before they can post the item.
The FAQs section of the eBay website tells customers: “If your parcel exceeds the maximum size and weight of the label, and you listed using our recommended size and weight for your item, you won’t have to pay any additional costs.
“Just go ahead and use the Simple Delivery postage label, as we’ve made sure the carrier will accept your package for delivery.”
This means that your parcel should not be refused and you should not have to pay extra postage to send it.
But sellers have complained that the Post Office has refused to accept their packages with Simple Delivery labels.
They have said that when they generated the label eBay estimated the weight and dimensions of the parcel.
But when they got to the Post Office their package was weighed and the details did not match.
Worried sellers have posted their experiences in the eBay UK community forum.
One said: “Just come back from my local Post Offices… and thought I would just post on here that both have now instructed their staff to refuse eBay parcels if they are labelled incorrectly.
“As Simple Delivery is automated, it guesstimates size and weight based on other items in category, many parcels will now be ‘mislabelled’.”
Another added: “My Sister took 3 packages to her local Post Office today, 1 had postage paid for via click and drop, that was accepted, the other 2 were Simple Delivery and both were refused as the label sent by eBay did not cover the cost of the size / weight of the packages.
“The cashier said they would be refusing all Simple Delivery items with immediate effect.
“So, you use what Ebay insist on, Post Office won’t accept it. What a bloody shambles.”
How to spot valuable items
COMMENTS by Consumer Editor, Alice Grahns:
It’s easy to check if items in your attic are valuable.
As a first step, go on eBay to check what other similar pieces, if not the same, have sold for recently.
Simply search for your item, filter by “sold listings” and toggle by the highest value.
This will give you an idea of how much others are willing to pay for it.
The method can be used for everything ranging from rare coins and notes to stamps, old toys, books and vinyl records – just to mention a few examples.
For coins, online tools from change experts like Coin Hunter are also helpful to see how much it could be worth.
Plus, you can refer to Change Checker’s latest scarcity index update to see which coins are topping the charts.
For especially valuable items, you may want to enlist the help of experts or auction houses.
Do your research first though and be aware of any fees for evaluating your stuff.
As a rule of thumb, rarity and condition are key factors in determining the value of any item.
You’re never guaranteed to make a mint, however.
Meanwhile, a third said: “Not surprising and can’t blame the Post Office for this. Ebay trusted their sloppy AI to get weights and sizes correct and it hasn’t delivered.”
The issues come after sellers slammed the change to simple delivery, describing it as “eBay’s most ridiculous move ever”.
Martyn James, a consumer champion, said: “While simplifying the process of sending eBay purchases makes sense, the reality is problems with the system are destined to lead to more disputes and the loss of often unique and valuable items.”
Sellers said Simple Delivery will force them to travel further to drop items at courier points, which will make the process more complicated.
They have also said the system will make it more difficult for them to choose to send items with the Royal Mail, which is their preferred courier.
An eBay spokesperson said: “Our model estimates the size and weight of the item using historic actual weight and dimension data.
“There can be some inconsistencies as not all items in a category will always fit within the dimensions expected.
If sellers believe their item exceeds the estimated parcel size, they are able to change this when listing their item.”
They added that the Post Office has issued training to branches that each Simple Delivery item should be accepted as long as it is within the maximum dimensions the carrier accepts.
For the Royal Mail this is 61cm x 46cm x 46cm and less than 20kg.
The Post Office said it apologises to any customer who may have had a parcel declined.
A Post Office spokesperson said: “Customers can still drop off eBay parcels at our branches.
“A recent agreement between eBay and Royal Mail means Tracked 24 and Tracked 48 items no longer need to be weighed or size checked, making drop-offs at our branches even quicker.
“Postmasters were informed at the end of February and are adapting to this new process.”
How does Simple Delivery work?
Simple Delivery is already an option on the eBay website, but the changes coming this month will make the process mandatory for sellers.
When they list an item via Simple Delivery, eBay will recommend the size and weight of the item.
The seller will need to confirm this information is correct before they can post their item.
Once an item is sold, the seller will get a printerless QR code and a prepaid printable label.
They need to attach these to their parcel then take it to their nearest carrier location, such as a Post Office.
They can also book a home collection.
Meanwhile, in eBay’s FAQs it warns that if you exclude certain couriers from your preferences then your delivery costs may increase.
Your items may also be available to fewer buyers.
Ebay has also said if you need to have items collected then you should exclude Evri – one of the cheaper couriers – from your preferences.
But choosing to send items with Royal Mail instead of Evri would add 77p to the cost of sending a 1kg parcel.
Meanwhile, it will cost £3.29 less to send a parcel that weighs 10-15kg with Evri than with Royal Mail.
This could put sellers with disabilities or those who live in remote locations at a disadvantage as they will need to alter their preferences to make sure their items are collected.
The change will also affect when sellers receive their profit after they have posted an item.
For tracked deliveries, the funds will be released two days after the carrier confirms delivery.
If there is no successful delivery scan the funds will be available eight days after the order date as long as the item was shipped within three days.
If not, it defaults to 14 days.
Ebay has said buyers will have peace of mind if an item is lost or damaged in transit.
The labels will come with automatic tracking so buyers will always know where their items are.
Ebay has said it will handle claims with buyers so sellers do not have to.
But it is not yet clear how this will work.
What other changes has eBay announced?
Simple Delivery is the latest in a series of changes announced by eBay last year
The secondhand website updated its Buyer Protection rules from February 4.
The fee is now included in the item price when buying an item from a private seller.
Buyers must pay up to 4% of an item’s price, plus an extra 75p.
For example, if you see an item listed for £20 then the fee of £1.49 will already be part of the price.
Buyers will not be hit with additional costs or fees at the checkout.
Meanwhile, for items from business sellers, shoppers will get the buyer protection benefits at no extra cost.
The change was designed to bring eBay in line with competitors such as Vinted and Depop, who have also swapped seller fees in favour of a buyer fee recently.
The secondhand platform also removed its “regulatory operating fees” for private UK sellers last October, just six months after they were introduced.
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