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Competitor reporting - any advice?
 

It sure seems like I have a competitor reporting multiple accounts of mine. I tried changing username, edit profile, scramble auctions, etc

As we all know calling into ebay is almost never a good idea, but what's the current advice here?

I already called with an account that I lost and was able to fish out some info: Unless the account has 25 pos feedbacks as a seller there is actually no manual review if somebody reports - so basically that person clicks "report" and you're basically done.

Thanks

Re: Competitor reporting - any advice?
 

What are you doing to get reported?

Re: Competitor reporting - any advice?
 

Absolutely nothing.

Doing the same thing for years now. Just changing up description/pics... the usual to stay hidden.

Lately I saw another guy selling the same items as me and then the selling restrictions started. Definitely getting reported from the emails I get.

So what's the plan of action?
Calling ebay? That's usually the absolutely last resort.
Can't really tell them "someone is reporting multiple of my accounts" LOL

Re: Competitor reporting - any advice?
 

what are you selling??

Re: Competitor reporting - any advice?
 

Are you selling Vero?

Re: Competitor reporting - any advice?
 

I had a nutcase (troll) like this with wayyy too much time on his hands harassing not just me, but any other seller with the same items in a given category. He wasn't just reporting our listings as "⊗⊗⊗⊗" but also sending PM's to those sellers accusing them of this, along with threats they were being reported to law enforcement. He would also put every seller on his "watch list" and call them out in eBay message boards. This went on for years, and was more than a pain to deal with. He was a real a$$ to say the least.

The eventual "solution" was a bit unorthodox, lets just say it was a group effort that involved stealth accounts and some fellow sellers. We eventually got rid of this clown who was doing this, but it took awhile.

eBay will just tell you to block the seller if you know who he is and deal with it. They rarely do anything, even if it's a "policy violation". I found it takes more than one person complaining, and even then there are no guarantees to get it to stop.

However, if you are being reported for VeRo, by a VeRo or IP rights holder, there is little you can do. How do you know it's a competitor reporting your listings?

All I can suggest is having more accounts onhand to sell on.

Re: Competitor reporting - any advice?
 

are you absolutely certain that you are being reported?

This is a difficult thing to deal with. If your account is completely restricted, then there is no loss for you to call eBay and talk to them.

Another way is perhaps talk with the competitor and see if you guys can come to an agreement. But then again, you just never know if it's really him or if it's a buyer.

Something similar happened to me and it was a buyer who reported me and I was selling a kitchen cutting board. She claimed it was ⊗⊗⊗⊗.
The bots cut me off, I had to call in and give them documentations and I was good to go in less than 3 hours.

apparently the idiot buyer just wanted to return the product and get free shipping label to return it.

Re: Competitor reporting - any advice?
 

In my experience of ebayers saying they have reported me if its just a normal seller i doubt ebay will do anything, If its the rights holder reporting well thats very different.

Re: Competitor reporting - any advice?
 

It depends on the product he is selling too.

If it's high risk, even a single report can cause issues.

So I'm just waiting for him to reply back as to what category he is selling under.

Re: Competitor reporting - any advice?
 

Well you're the one with the multiple stealth accounts so retaliate.
I've played this game with competitors before, can get pretty much any listing removed automatically if you report it from enough accounts. Even if they don't get banned they still lose their best match ranking which can easily cost them 10s of 1000s.

Re: Competitor reporting - any advice?
 

Exactly.
I'm fairly sure I can spot his accounts too, so I guess I'll go nuts on him and start reporting. Kind of stupid since we both lose but what can I do.

I called Ebay from a restricted account and they didn't care much (huge surprise). I was told (maybe a lie but makes sense) that if somebody reports you and your account has less than 25 feedback the system automatically slams you as "limited selling experience" or something. Doesn't matter if you sold 50 or 100 of those items and have 100% feedback - less than 25 feedbacks = "Auto-restriction".