ebay questions About This Page:

[Marv]

O.K., so my great purchase at the disneydirect pin sale didn't happen. 2 DAYS LATER I got notified that they were not availabe (even though they showed they were and I paid for them) -- so, I took others advice and looked into ebay. It's pretty overwhelming. I put a bid on a set of pins and I got outbid at the last minute. Maybe I'm doing something wrong? I put in my bid and the max amt I'd go up to and the other bidder won it by 1.00. Are there any tips for bidding?

Next question, what does GBP mean when it's listed next to a price?

Do you all get the optional shipping insurance?

I signed up for PayPal, but obviouly haven't used it yet. If I sign up for the personal account, can I list a credit card or does it need to come out of a savings or checking? Is it safe to put my savings account in? If so, there were 2 sets of numbers to put in. I can't remember what they called the first set, but I couldn't find that on my savings statement, only the second set which is my account #. I hope I'm making sense! I want to get this all figured out in case I'd happen to get the next set of pins I just bid on.

Help of any kind would be appreciated, I'm such a novice!

[luv2sail]

You're not doing anything wrong. This is probably what happend. Say you put in your max dollar amt. as $50.99. The other person could have had his max dollar amt. as $101.99. He won it by $1.00 because he had a higher max dollar amt. and the auction goes up by $1.00 increments. He probably also bid at the last second. Most people who really want something do.

I'm not exactly sure what GBP means but I believe when you see that, the item is shipping from Great Britain.

Shipping insurance is only available if the seller offers it.

You can just put in and use a credit card for payments. You only need to put in your checking or savings account if you want to be "verified". You can look up what being verified means on the PayPal website. I'm not sure how to explain it. I've come across some sellers who accept PayPal but not when using your credit card. They will only accept payment if it's coming directly out of your checking acct. I guess some have had problems with fraud. I've only come across this sceniero one or two times. So far I've found PayPal to be very safe. I use my credit card to pay for most items but I have my checking acct. set up so I'm verified. Also, because I sell stuff on eBay I have my checking acct. set up so I can transferred my sold funds into my acct. and have access to the money.

I hope some of this info helps. It was all pretty confusing to me when I first started. Keep a look out for fake emails from PayPal. They look totally legit. If you're not sure you can forward the email to spoof@paypal.com and they will verify if the emails is real or not.

Good luck trying to get your pins.

[Taleena]

Okay, here goes...

You were outbid most likely because the other person's max bid amount was higher than yours. I always watch Ebay like a hawk when I've put in a bid (especially during the last 15 minutes of bidding), just in case of last minute bids that might be a buck or two higher than my max. It's best to use odd numbers for your max bid (i.e. $12 instead of $10, $17.73 instead of $15).

GBP means United Kingdom Pounds. That's the amount the item would be in Pounds Sterling, since it's most likely an item owned by someone in the U.K.. I know Ebay has a currency converter, but I've never had occasion to need it (I limit all my bidding to U.S. items).

I rarely get the optional insurance, and never if the item is being shipped UPS or FedEx (these have their own insurance).

Paypal is wonderful. You can have a personal account with a credit card or a debit card (you just won't be able to accept credit cards as payment with a personal account if you sell items). It's completely safe to use your savings account numbers - they're massively encrypted. The 2 sets of numbers are a routing number and your account number. The routing number is normally located on any checks you might have for the account between the "line and two dots symbol" (I don't have a savings account, so I'm not sure where you'd find them on a savings statement - try calling your bank to help you find the info).

Hope that helps!

[graygables]

GBP is British Pound, so it's international shipping. Sometimes shipping isn't so bad, but it's something to look for.

As far as bidding goes, you just have to put your max and hope for the best, OR you have to become a "sniper" (someone who comes in at the last second and outbids). I joke that I used to be able to win auctions on dial-up and now I can't win them on cable! It really stinks when that happens and I'm the buyer, but the only way to fight it is to do it yourself, unfortunately.

For PayPal, the other number is the bank routing number and I doubt you could get that on a savings statement. I put on a checking account and a credit card. I have never had any problems with PayPal of any kind and I think it's great. I even have their debit card and get 1% back on all the purchases I make with it! Great for paying for my WDW trip!

Oh, and insurance...I ALWAYS buy insurance and I always require it when I'm the seller. There are those out there who will tell you they shipped it when they really didn't or the USPS could smash all the backs off and you'd have no recourse at all.

Good luck and happy bidding!

[Momerath124]

[ QUOTE ]
Keep a look out for fake emails from PayPal. They look totally legit. If you're not sure you can forward the email to spoof@paypal.com and they will verify if the emails is real or not.

[/ QUOTE ]

I've had A LOT of spoof emails lately on PayPal. Also a lot of sellers state that they will only take 'Verified' PayPal (I don't know why either).
One of my friends says that she won't take credit cards via Paypal because of the fee they charge
I was losing a lot of auctions I really wanted and my friend told me about Auction Sniper where you can just put in your high bid and it will bid at the last couple seconds...but you still have to have the high bid
and safe bidding!!

[Marv]

Wow, you all have been very helpful for ALL of my questions. I really appreciate it. I'ts still a little overwhelming but I guess if I ever win that first bid it will get easier, hee, hee!