The Press and Journal (Inverness, Highlands, and Islands)
EBayers to be banned for rip-off delivery fee
Crackdown on higher charges for buyers in north
The world’s biggest auction website is joining the fight to prevent businesses from hammering north residents with excessive delivery charges.
eBay already has a policy whereby third party sellers face bans if they are found to impose a surcharge to post an item after a transaction.
But Moray MSP Richard Lochhead still believes more can be done to prevent customers being ripped off.
Representatives from eBay have now agreed to meet the SNP politician next week to discuss ways of stamping out “discriminatory” selling practices by forming a consensus with other online giants.
Mr Lochhead said: “People across rural and northern Scotland continue to get fleeced by outrageous parcel delivery surcharges, and eBay has been highlighted over and over by people wanting an end to such discrimination.
“A particular frustration is that consumers are contacted and asked to pay a surcharge an order.
“Clearly eBay itself is a huge platform for third party sellers across the after placing
“Consumers are contacted and asked to pay a surcharge”
UK but when you have over 200,000 businesses using your service, it’s vital that they are all held to the same high standard.
“I very much welcome the commitment from eBay to consider this issue and look forward to our discussions on the topic.”
The firm is said to be one of the “big three” when it comes to e-commerce alongside Amazon and Groupon, which specialises in offering discount deals.
Mr Lochhead has already tackled Amazon ambassadors in person, and is preparing to present his case to those from eBay having written to the company’s managing director recently.
Research has shown that parcel delivery surcharges are costing Scotland’s consumers an extra £36.3 million a year compared to the rest of the UK.
eBay has declined to comment ahead of the meeting. However, the firm’s director of UK shipping, Mike Pitt, told Westminster’s Scottish affairs committee this year that the company “shared the frustrations” of residents in the north.
He explained sellers are allowed to impose surcharges to remote areas, including the Highlands and islands, to compensate for extra costs from couriers.