eBay "Save up to xx% when you buy more" scam

Lwally d wombat on 04/12/2023 - 15:29

Are people aware that when Sellers list items that CLEARLY state "Save up to x% when you buy more", buying more may not neccessarily result in the saving of x%?

I saw one item today that stated "Save up to 25% when you buy more". The checkout calculated a purchase of 3 at a 2.5% discount (Item: 275759602304)???
Another item said "Save up to 20% when you buy more", the checkout calculated this one at 2.0% (Item: 115743380720).

I asked ebay customer support about this, and although they agreed it was odd, all they suggested was that I "contact the seller".
Is this a known scam or is it that, as it is, in fact, "up to X%" it's therefore OK?

Amazon's looking better every day ;-)

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Comments

  • coffeeinmyveins on 04/12/2023 - 15:54
    +4

    Are people aware that when Sellers list items that CLEARLY state "Save up to x% when you buy more", buying more may not neccessarily result in the saving of x%?

    I fail to see what's wrong here. It's saying "up to" as you've even stated yourself. If it said "25% off" then that's a different story but there's no "scam' happening here. If you get a 5% discount for getting more, then it's within the "up to 25%". I guess the issue is, what do you need to do in order to get 25%?

  • djkelly69 on 04/12/2023 - 15:54
    +2

    "up to X%" it's therefore OK?

    Almost every traditional retailer has 'Up to XX% off' sales, not exactly new and definitely not a scam.

    • Protractor on 04/12/2023 - 16:46

      Yes, and the price they start the % off is always (most often) a fanciful RRP.

  • tekisei on 04/12/2023 - 15:56
    +3

    As a casual seller, I have the following options on eBay:

    Add volume pricing:
    Buy 2 and save -
    Buy 3 and save(optional) -
    Buy 4 and save(optional) -

    It looks like this particular seller is taking advantage of the automatic system by setting low discounts on the buy 2 and 3, and a large discount on 4. This makes the line about the "up to XX% discount" appear on the page. But every single item that this seller has with large discount (20% or 25%) only has a stock level of 3, so the discount is never achievable.

    Seems like unintended behavour on eBay's part, and they should probably look into updating for this edge case.

  • Protractor on 04/12/2023 - 15:58
    +2

    ebay is filled with scams.
    A few

    Multiple shops/sellers linked to one 'actual' seller (and even sharing the same feedback ratings).
    Drop shipping via location fraud.
    Sellers (not just ebay) allowed to activate tracking on pre purchased AP pkgs (AP needs to ban it)
    Hopefully others here will add more scams . The ACCC should (has a mandate to) stop these obvious consumer rorts.
    But if they can't and won't tackle supermarket gouging, don't hold your breath.

    • AustriaBargain on 04/12/2023 - 19:17

      What I hate are people who dropship from Amazon, charge more than Amazon, but list a delivery time that is a week earlier than Amazon. Except they are just drop shipping from Amazon so it'll arrive after Amazon's own delivery estimates if anything. So you pay more for the eBay one not knowing they are just drop shopping because you want or need it earlier, but then it arrives much later and in Amazon packaging.

  • hasher22 on 04/12/2023 - 16:00

    It says "up to"

    Sometimes I buy multiple of items but buying 2 or 3 or 4 rarely triggers the max discount unless you buy the max.

    I thought wording of sales "up to %" was pretty self explanatory?

  • Empharand on 04/12/2023 - 16:02

    Looks like the seller has set the 'Buy 4 and save' % to 25% but has either intentionally limited the stock available to '3' or just so happens to only have 3 left, but for some reason eBay's system isn't picking up the lack of stock availability and reverting the savings to the next tier down 'Buy 3 and save' and then so on and so forth.
    Could be a bug, could be intentional (eBay's Plan) - Who knows?

  • MS Paint on 04/12/2023 - 16:27
    +2

    Sites like cashrewards also use the term up to.

    You need to click deeper into the conditions to find the actual specific discount.

    Marketing 101. Been going on for decades.

  • localhost on 04/12/2023 - 16:30

    I am willing to pay up to $100, but more likely $10.

  • Bargainitis on 04/12/2023 - 17:33

    lmao…. reading problems.

    Honestly, this is almost primary school basics (yes, I'm calling it what it is, no jazz hands sh1t).

  • freefall101 on 04/12/2023 - 19:19

    The 25% off is the generic logo they put on anything with a multiple purchase saving. I'd be surprised if the seller controls that part of the page, it looks like an ebay thing.

    The checkout calculated a purchase of 3 at a 2.5% discount (Item: 275759602304)

    You don't even need to go to the checkout, when I clicked on the option to add 3 of those it comes up with

    Price:
    AU $19.74 each
    Save AU $0.40 (2% off)

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