eBay support for Irish sellers during the developing COVID-19 situation
Last updated: 3 March 2021
Customer service update
You may experience longer than usual waiting times for Customer Service at the moment. Please read the page below for the latest updates on Covid-19 virus before calling the team.
PayPal
We are unable to help with PayPal specific problems. We would advise members to review PayPal’s statement on their services: here.
Seller Help
If you can't find any answers to your queries below, visit the Irish Customer Service pages: here.
Seller Protection
We may at times put seller protection measures in place in case of systemic interruptions to postal services beyond your control. It's always best practice for sellers to be upfront with their buyers and let them know if delivery delays are expected. It’s also advisable that sellers set their handling times to reflect their current circumstances. You now have the option to manually set your handling / dispatch times for each day of the week: here.
As always, we want to assist you in delivering the best possible experience for your buyers. Uploading tracking numbers to your transactions allows your buyers to see where their item is and you’ll be better protected in the event of carrier delays or if a buyer opens an item not received case.
Please note, even though we may protect individual service metrics from affecting seller standard rating, if a seller’s delivery performance drops below an acceptable level or if we observe unusual activity on accounts, we may have to restrict account privileges while we investigate.
Advice for businesses closing temporarily
If you’re affected by a temporary closure of your business, you can take the following steps:
Time Away settings
Sellers can activate Time Away settings and either hide fixed price listings in eBay search until they return or keep them live with extended times. Auction-style listings will continue to run for the set duration: Learn more.
"Out of stock" option
If you activate the "Out of stock" option by setting the stock of your Good ‘Til Cancelled listings to ‘0’, your listings will disappear from eBay searches and you’ll protect your sales history for when you’re ready to start trading again. To help you retain your sales history for longer, we’ll now keep your listings active for 180 consecutive days. You may also be eligible for an insertion fee credit: Learn more.
Emergency listing restrictions
Please be aware of our Corona-related guidelines on listing and pricing for important items:
Health claims and misuse of keywords: titles and item descriptions containing health claims and misusing terms such as "Coronavirus", "Covid-19", ‘Virus”, "epidemic" are prohibited.
Prices inflated over prevailing market value: listings that attempt to profit from tragedies and disasters (such as the Coronavirus outbreak) are prohibited.
Laws and Regulations: we recognise this is a fast changing situation. We advise sellers to always check local laws, regulations and guidelines when listing. We will continue to monitor the situation globally and provide further updates as necessary.
23 March - Face Masks, Hand Sanitisers, and Cleaning Wipes & Pads
On 23 March 2020, we restricted the sale of all Face Masks, Hand Sanitisers, and Cleaning Wipes & Pads products on the platform in a bid to stamp out unreasonably priced listings. Only approved eBay sellers will be permitted to trade these items at appropriate prices, enabling people to continue sourcing the items they need.
Unapproved sellers attempting to sell these items will find their listings blocked or removed and their account may be suspended.
Approved sellers may sell the corresponding products in the following approved categories only:
- Business, Office & Industrial > Healthcare, Lab & Dental > Medical, Lab & Dental Supplies > Disposable Face Masks
- Health & Beauty > Health Care > Hand Sanitisers
- Business, Office & Industrial > Cleaning & Janitorial Supplies > Cleaners & Disinfectants > Cleaning Wipes & Pads
Well sweep all other categories for restricted or banned items listed outside the approved categories. All banned or restricted items placed in the wrong categories will be removed, even if the seller is approved.
Please note, sellers may lose their approved status if:
- their business drops to Below Standard;
- prices are unreasonably inflated; or
- the seller breaches eBay policies.
24 March - Baby Formula & Milk, Toilet Roll
On 24 March 2020, we restricted the sale of all Baby Formula & Milk, and Toilet Roll products. Only business sellers will be permitted to continue trading these items at the appropriate prices.
Private sellers attempting to sell these items will find their listings blocked or removed and their account may be suspended.
The restrictions apply to the following categories:
- Baby Essentials > Baby Feeding Supplies > Baby Bottle Feeding > Baby Formula (including Baby Milk)
- Home, Furniture & DIY > Household & Laundry Supplies > General Household Supplies > Toilet Roll
26 March - Tampons, Baby Wipes, and Nappies
On 26 March 2020, we restricted the sale of all Tampons, Baby Wipes, and Nappies on the platform. Only business sellers will be permitted to continue trading these items at the appropriate prices.
Private sellers attempting to sell these items will find their listings blocked or removed and their account may be suspended.
The restrictions will apply to the following categories:
- Health & Beauty > Healthcare Products > Feminine Care Products > Tampons
- Baby Essentials > Baby Changing & Nappies > Baby Wipes, Creams & Cotton Wool (Baby Wipes)
- Baby Essentials > Baby Changing & Nappies > Nappies
We will monitor other categories for restricted or banned items listed outside the approved categories. All banned or restricted items placed in the wrong categories will be removed.
Please note, business sellers may not be able to sell these items if:
- their business drops to Below Standard;
- prices are unreasonably inflated; or
- the seller breaches eBay policies.