Welcome to the forums. You are well on your way to becoming one of "us" because in most cases we all have similar stories to you. Some tips for you as you're moving forward through the mire that is eB@y's shocking customer hatred policy.
1) Two to three hours on the phone with EB/PP is nothing. There are weekends that I've spent 16 hours on the phone with EB/PP "support" to no avail. My recommendation for decreasing your phone-time is to call when they first open (5am PST I think it is).
2) 90% of what any eBay/PP rep will ever tell you on the phone is either misinformation or a lie. Their entire lives are dedicated to shattering people's livelihoods and the representatives themselves are so dull to the experience that only the most entertaining sob story will get through their thick skulls and glassy eyes and prompt them to do anything other than repeat the script that is sitting in front of them.
3) Although the reps themselves may be empathetic to your situation, they are usually powerless to change anything. The department you want to talk to is the SafeHarbor department. 99% of the eB@y reps will tell you that the department has no phone and is e-mail only. This is a lie.
4) The reps are telling you what to do, you're just not listening. Fax them the documents you need to fax them and pray that you didn't catch the wrong person at the fax machine while they were on their period or something. If there are no invoices for the items you're selling, then write a hand-written note saying "I cannot provide receipts for these items because I bought them at local garage sales." and fax that in. Do not forget to clearly write your eB@y username and information on the paper. If you want, then forge the documents and there is a good chance that no one will double-check anything.
5) Over the last several months, eB@y has made a pro-active effort to be less like an "
internet garage sale" and more like an "
e-shopping mall." Essentially,
YOU are the exact kind of seller they are trying to wipe out. It's not pretty but its the truth. You are fighting an up-hill battle.
My suggestions:
1) The first person you talk to is useless. Every time. Be short with your answers and explain in very simple language what you want out of your phone call. Use their language and say something like, "My account has been limited and I am calling to resolve this issue." The rep will respond with something along the lines of, "So you're saying your account has been limited and you would like to resolve this limitation?" Just say, "yes" no matter how hard it is to withhold the flow of curses from your tongue.
When you get to the 2nd person, tell them that you have faxed the documentation to them and you are willing to give them your dog, your wife, your truck, your TV, and your left testicle to resolve this issue and move on. Even though you just spent 2 hours on hold, you are eB@y's biggest fanboy and you are overjoyed at the idea that *YOU* get to speak to a REAL, LIVE EB@Y REPRESENTATIVE! WOW! Even though the company they work for has now wasted hours of your life and added more stress to your finances than Japan's currently melting-down nuclear reactors have on bonsai trees you cannot take out any frustration on the person who is holding his booger-filled finger above the giant BAN button for your account because you will lose.
The representative will tell you that you need to fax in the documentation and wait 72 hours and the department will get back to you. You can either thank the rep for bestowing this advice on you and hang up, or you can tell him that you have already faxed your information in several days ago and are eagerly waiting to hear back from he and his fellow gods and goddesses on Mt. Olympus regarding your eB@y account. You can politely tell him that it has been over 72 business hours since you've faxed in your information and you since there has been no response as promised you were wondering if the fax went through, if there was a problem with your paperwork, or if there was an eB@y employee stranded on a rock in the middle of a lava river somewhere if you could volunteer to jump in and save from certain doom. If you are lucky and the representative isn't too hung over from drinking shots of Jack while high-fiving his friends at the eB@y-eBar after work and re-telling the sorriest sob stories of the day (
"Ha! Today I got a widow who has 9 children who uses her eB@y money to rescue lost puppies! INSTA-BAN!!! HAR HAR HAR HAR"). Then s/he will jump into action as they actually have a job to do for once in their miserable lives and they will say, "Hrm.. let me connect you to that department and see if they have your paperwork in order."
Now you're talking. Now you're about to talk to person who has the power of your account in their hands.
Three hours of being on hold later, assuming you haven't hung up yet, gone on a postal-worthy killing spree, or been lulled to sleep by eB@y's brainwashing phone messages saying how awesome they really are, you will get someone on the phone from Trust & Safety's SaveHarbor department. You will then have to politely re-tell the entire story without an ounce of anger in your voice. You will politely explain that you sent in all the paperwork over 72 business hours ago, but have not yet heard from them. You will explain that there may have been a mix-up with your paperwork because you faxed things in at different times and maybe you could help them sort it out by re-faxing everything in the next 5 minutes to this representative directly. You can offer to introduce them to your hot sister who is a nymphomaniac and if you let them buy you a beer you'll tell them the "secret password" she can't resist that will get her to rip off all her clothes and demand a romp in the sack anytime, anywhere.
You will do anything in your power to make this person's life a perfect nirvana of happiness if all they can do is collect your paperwork and tell you what's wrong with it.
Then, when she says your paperwork is perfect, s/he will say that you are not the kind of seller they want on eB@y because your actions raise serious security concerns (despite the fact that you are a quadruple-level powerseller with 9,000 positive feedback). You can argue this point. If you loose this battle (usually a 50/50 toss-up depending on weather or not their delinquent child got detention after school that day) you can buy the
stealth guide and start learning how to circumvent the system that led you here.
Then you will be one of us.
One of us.
One of us.
Sincerely,
Goozle
13x Silver-level Powerseller
3x Top Rated Seller
30,000 combined Positive Feedback over 15 years of sales on eB@y