Ebay guarantee authenticity program

[Exhibitman]

Originally Posted by Gorditadogg

I'm not sure why a buyer would turn down a free authentication review. But I can think of one big reason why a seller would be against it.

I've bought my share of trimmed cards on ebay. There are many sellers on ebay that are unscrupulous. I know many of the big time collectors here can see issues with a glance at a scan, but most ebay buyers are not that good at spotting alterations or fakes.

I know I should have more sympathy for all the card doctors who are getting impacted by ebay's new procedures, and less for all the collectors being duped. Still, I think it's good that ebay is working to clean up its marketplace.



Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk

That's an understandable but not necessarily accurate assessment, especiall the assumption that the glance and return will actually ferret out trimmed cards. I doubt that is the case. The issue is four-fold:

--CSG is authenticating raw cards it doesn't actually grade.
--PSA is authenticating other TPG holders.
--There is a risk of false positives. I know several professional, reputable sellers who've had cards rejected, killing deals. I know these dealers are good enough to spot fakes and alterations. Mistakes cost money.
--The program is not voluntary. If I buy a card from a professional seller I've dealt with for years I don't need some jackhole at eBay mandating that I have to send the card to CSG. If I want to do that, I can do it myself.

It is inevitable that this mandatory program will end up as a 'wonderful new service for a modest fee' for sellers at some point. Meaning the buyer ends up paying for it in the end. Worst case scenario, it is a % charge like a service fee, which will give eBay a windfall profit on expensive cards. Just another profit center.

[BillyCoxDodgers3B]

Adam certainly cleared up a lot of it.

There are more well-intentioned reasons that sellers would dislike the idea.

Coming immediately to mind is that the sheer volume of cards being submitted will lead to things being lost/misplaced/damaged. Yes, the items are insured, but customers are looking to buy the cards, not to get a refund for lost or damaged goods. Involving more hands in what has forever been a much more straightforward procedure will increase the probability of issues. If there are any issues as a result of anything happening to items while in the possession of the authentication companies, that doesn't bode well for the seller in spite of it likely not being any fault of theirs. The customer gets annoyed and may not buy from that seller anymore. It may not be a rational reaction, but it will very well happen on occasion. Just more needless headache as a result of this money-making scheme.

As a seller, I actually care about my inventory and want my customers to enjoy their items. I ship properly and pack items as I would wish to receive them. Judging by the above Mecca, it appears that we are in for some inconsistency in how items are shipped from point B to point C.

I really think we should all sit back for the duration of this "promotion" just to see how many unfortunate stories we end up hearing about.

[Gorditadogg]

Originally Posted by Exhibitman

That's an understandable but not necessarily accurate assessment, especiall the assumption that the glance and return will actually ferret out trimmed cards. I doubt that is the case. The issue is four-fold:

--CSG is authenticating raw cards it doesn't actually grade.
--PSA is authenticating other TPG holders.
--There is a risk of false positives. I know several professional, reputable sellers who've had cards rejected, killing deals. I know these dealers are good enough to spot fakes and alterations. Mistakes cost money.
--The program is not voluntary. If I buy a card from a professional seller I've dealt with for years I don't need some jackhole at eBay mandating that I have to send the card to CSG. If I want to do that, I can do it myself.

It is inevitable that this mandatory program will end up as a 'wonderful new service for a modest fee' for sellers at some point. Meaning the buyer ends up paying for it in the end. Worst case scenario, it is a % charge like a service fee, which will give eBay a windfall profit on expensive cards. Just another profit center.

Some false positives maybe, but less "items not as described" too.

Ebay can raise their fees anytime they want. If they want to charge more now they can, with or without this authentication service.

The grievances on this thread seem like really minor points. The upside to you as a seller is that buyers on ebay will have more confidence in the items they are buying and be willing to buy more. Which means you and other legitimate sellers will get more sales.

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[nineunder71]

I received my first “Authenticity Guaranteed” item today through eBay’s mandatory system.

As a Buyer, I hate this program...

First and most importantly, I should not be forced to send what I purchase to anyone for approval!! Also, I really don’t want anyone else handling my cards. Most folks simply don’t handle raw cards in the manner that I expect.

Next, It takes longer to get my item and mine came with those bands holding the now terribly encased card by two corners. Well, that sucks!

The QR code is on that cheap plastic penny sleeve and states “Void if Damaged” on the seal...

So, I can’t take my card out of this cheap penny sleeve encased Card Saver 1 (which is not how I store my collection) without voiding the “Guarantee”

Haha, this is worthless to me!!!

Also, the cheap penny sleeve with the QR code comes damaged by the rubber bands holding it to the huge folder, just like shown in post #33, Haha, Wonderful Idea

No Thanks, I’m a buyer and I say its a Crock of you know what

100% this is a business ploy, honestly doesn’t even seem legal to force me to send what I purchase to someone else for undue, and un-Wanted handling of my fragile rare vintage collectible.

Just my 32 cents

[G1911]

As a buyer, I don't want this junk either. I'd rather just get my card. A time delay and future added cost to have an unknown person of unknown expertise tell me something I already know provides 0 value. And that's the best case scenario. As a collector of less common and non-Baseball items that graders routinely mess up and clearly know little of, I'm likely to have good items rejected. It's not that rare that I buy a card knowing it is altered or not in the condition stated, but the seller hasn't disclosed this. I want it anyways, not for somebody at CSG to cancel my deal for me without the input of myself or the seller.


We will absolutely be paying for this. The only question is how eBay will shift the cost (plus margin for profit) to buyers and sellers and how disguised it will be. Anyone who believes they will do this for free to clean things up, well I got this bridge in Brooklyn for sale.


I see other views of it as a good though. I do not understand the deal where PSA has to authenticate the slab of graded cards. That's just beyond silly.

[Leon]

Originally Posted by G1911

As a buyer, I don't want this junk either. I'd rather just get my card. A time delay and future added cost to have an unknown person of unknown expertise tell me something I already know provides 0 value. And that's the best case scenario. As a collector of less common and non-Baseball items that graders routinely mess up and clearly know little of, I'm likely to have good items rejected. It's not that rare that I buy a card knowing it is altered or not in the condition stated, but the seller hasn't disclosed this. I want it anyways, not for somebody at CSG to cancel my deal for me without the input of myself or the seller.


We will absolutely be paying for this. The only question is how eBay will shift the cost (plus margin for profit) to buyers and sellers and how disguised it will be. Anyone who believes they will do this for free to clean things up, well I got this bridge in Brooklyn for sale.


I see other views of it as a good though. I do not understand the deal where PSA has to authenticate the slab of graded cards. That's just beyond silly.

+1 on all of this
This crap is happening in reverse too. This is from ebay on a return I have ongoing, of a clearly mislabeled item- It is a $750 return....


On careful review on the matter, I see that you have returned the item to your seller. I checked the return tracking number uploaded and it shows that the item has been delivered to sellers return address.

I appreciate your effort returning back the item to the seller within the time given. Usually, refunds we process are credited to the member’s account within 24-48 hours; but due to the high value of the claim, please allow additional review of our financial team of the decision I have made for you before the release of the funds back to your account. Be assured, however, that you will be notified through your eBay Messages once the funds have been credited back and it will be reflected in your next bank/card statement. At this point, I placed the case on hold for 5 days. Please know we are handling this case with great urgency and importance. This will allow our specialist team time to review the details of the case further.I apologize if it would take a few more days to resolve the issue. Please note that the action we have taken today is an initial resolution for your concern.

As a valued member of our community, we want you to have smooth transactions here on eBay. I assure you that we are doing our best to make eBay a safe and reputable place for buyers and sellers to do their business. That is why we provide each member ample time to give us the information and evidence required to come to a fair decision on each case.

I'm confident that you will understand why we are holding this case and I thank you for the utmost patience. Thank you for choosing eBay as your online selling platform and cheers to more years to come.


Thanks,

Diana P.
eBay Customer Support



.

[Eric72]

Is this code for, "the seller claims you sent them a wet newspaper. Give us a few days to sort this $#!T out" or is that their standard response?

Originally Posted by Leon

+1 on all of this
This crap is happening in reverse too. This is from ebay on a return I have ongoing, of a clearly mislabeled item- It is a $750 return....


On careful review on the matter, I see that you have returned the item to your seller. I checked the return tracking number uploaded and it shows that the item has been delivered to sellers return address.

I appreciate your effort returning back the item to the seller within the time given. Usually, refunds we process are credited to the member’s account within 24-48 hours; but due to the high value of the claim, please allow additional review of our financial team of the decision I have made for you before the release of the funds back to your account. Be assured, however, that you will be notified through your eBay Messages once the funds have been credited back and it will be reflected in your next bank/card statement. At this point, I placed the case on hold for 5 days. Please know we are handling this case with great urgency and importance. This will allow our specialist team time to review the details of the case further.I apologize if it would take a few more days to resolve the issue. Please note that the action we have taken today is an initial resolution for your concern.

As a valued member of our community, we want you to have smooth transactions here on eBay. I assure you that we are doing our best to make eBay a safe and reputable place for buyers and sellers to do their business. That is why we provide each member ample time to give us the information and evidence required to come to a fair decision on each case.

I'm confident that you will understand why we are holding this case and I thank you for the utmost patience. Thank you for choosing eBay as your online selling platform and cheers to more years to come.


Thanks,

Diana P.
eBay Customer Support



.

[Leon]

Originally Posted by Eric72

Is this code for, "the seller claims you sent them a wet newspaper. Give us a few days to sort this $#!T out" or is that their standard response?

This seems to be a standard boilerplate. They said the dollar amount flagged it. And there is no question concerning the issue either. So we'll see but so far I think it's stupid.
.

[Exhibitman]

Originally Posted by Leon

+1 on all of this
This crap is happening in reverse too. This is from ebay on a return I have ongoing, of a clearly mislabeled item- It is a $750 return....


On careful review on the matter, I see that you have returned the item to your seller. I checked the return tracking number uploaded and it shows that the item has been delivered to sellers return address.

I appreciate your effort returning back the item to the seller within the time given. Usually, refunds we process are credited to the member’s account within 24-48 hours; but due to the high value of the claim, please allow additional review of our financial team of the decision I have made for you before the release of the funds back to your account. Be assured, however, that you will be notified through your eBay Messages once the funds have been credited back and it will be reflected in your next bank/card statement. At this point, I placed the case on hold for 5 days. Please know we are handling this case with great urgency and importance. This will allow our specialist team time to review the details of the case further.I apologize if it would take a few more days to resolve the issue. Please note that the action we have taken today is an initial resolution for your concern.

As a valued member of our community, we want you to have smooth transactions here on eBay. I assure you that we are doing our best to make eBay a safe and reputable place for buyers and sellers to do their business. That is why we provide each member ample time to give us the information and evidence required to come to a fair decision on each case.

I'm confident that you will understand why we are holding this case and I thank you for the utmost patience. Thank you for choosing eBay as your online selling platform and cheers to more years to come.


Thanks,

Diana P.
eBay Customer Support



.

In other words:

[RCFire82]

Originally Posted by nineunder71

i received my first “authenticity guaranteed” item today through ebay’s mandatory system.

As a buyer, i hate this program...

First and most importantly, i should not be forced to send what i purchase to anyone for approval!! Also, i really don’t want anyone else handling my cards. Most folks simply don’t handle raw cards in the manner that i expect.

Next, it takes longer to get my item and mine came with those bands holding the now terribly encased card by two corners. Well, that sucks!

The qr code is on that cheap plastic penny sleeve and states “void if damaged” on the seal...

So, i can’t take my card out of this cheap penny sleeve encased card saver 1 (which is not how i store my collection) without voiding the “guarantee”

haha, this is worthless to me!!!

Also, the cheap penny sleeve with the qr code comes damaged by the rubber bands holding it to the huge folder, just like shown in post #33, haha, wonderful idea

no thanks, i’m a buyer and i say its a crock of you know what

100% this is a business ploy, honestly doesn’t even seem legal to force me to send what i purchase to someone else for undue, and un-wanted handling of my fragile rare vintage collectible.

Just my 32 cents

100%

[Yoda]

Originally Posted by nineunder71

I received my first “Authenticity Guaranteed” item today through eBay’s mandatory system.

As a Buyer, I hate this program...

First and most importantly, I should not be forced to send what I purchase to anyone for approval!! Also, I really don’t want anyone else handling my cards. Most folks simply don’t handle raw cards in the manner that I expect.

Next, It takes longer to get my item and mine came with those bands holding the now terribly encased card by two corners. Well, that sucks!

The QR code is on that cheap plastic penny sleeve and states “Void if Damaged” on the seal...

So, I can’t take my card out of this cheap penny sleeve encased Card Saver 1 (which is not how I store my collection) without voiding the “Guarantee”

Haha, this is worthless to me!!!

Also, the cheap penny sleeve with the QR code comes damaged by the rubber bands holding it to the huge folder, just like shown in post #33, Haha, Wonderful Idea

No Thanks, I’m a buyer and I say its a Crock of you know what

100% this is a business ploy, honestly doesn’t even seem legal to force me to send what I purchase to someone else for undue, and un-Wanted handling of my fragile rare vintage collectible.

Just my 32 cents

Your 32 and 32 more from me. I purchased a nice '52 Topps SGC 6 Bob Feller on Ebay and without my knowledge or, God Forbid, my permission suddenly my Bob was not winging his way not to me but was parked with this authentication bunch of clowns. What a joke, no value, just a delay and a worthless cardboard and, yeah, guarantee. For a disinterested buyer, it really sucks.
And why the hell are they authenticating cards that have already been graded?

[Peter_Spaeth]

I am expecting tomorrow an SGC card that was "authenticated" by PSA. Real added value there.

[Natedog]

Originally Posted by Peter_Spaeth

I am expecting tomorrow an SGC card that was "authenticated" by PSA. Real added value there.

Me too! The guy that sold it to me lives about 2 hours away, yet the card went from NC to CA for authentication, now back to NC.

[EddieP]

Originally Posted by Natedog

Me too! The guy that sold it to me lives about 2 hours away, yet the card went from NC to CA for authentication, now back to NC.

I beat you! I bought an SGC graded card from a guy who lives in the same city. The card went from NYC to Newark to Chicago ( it stayed there for a week. I guess it was visiting relatives) to Los Angeles to Santa Ana. After arriving to Santa Ana in the morning that afternoon it went to Los Angeles to Memphis to NYC (Queens) to Yonkers finally to NYC ( Manhattan).

[Eric72]

Originally Posted by Yoda

…why the hell are they authenticating cards that have already been graded?

Hopefully, they’re making sure the holder hasn’t been tampered with.

[Peter_Spaeth]

Originally Posted by Eric72

Hopefully, they’re making sure the holder hasn’t been tampered with.

As if they could tell.

[Eric72]

Originally Posted by Peter_Spaeth

As if they could tell.

In theory, they should (at the very least) be able to tell this with their own slabs.

[robw1959]

Originally Posted by Exhibitman

That's an understandable but not necessarily accurate assessment, especiall the assumption that the glance and return will actually ferret out trimmed cards. I doubt that is the case. The issue is four-fold:

--CSG is authenticating raw cards it doesn't actually grade.
--PSA is authenticating other TPG holders.
--There is a risk of false positives. I know several professional, reputable sellers who've had cards rejected, killing deals. I know these dealers are good enough to spot fakes and alterations. Mistakes cost money.
--The program is not voluntary. If I buy a card from a professional seller I've dealt with for years I don't need some jackhole at eBay mandating that I have to send the card to CSG. If I want to do that, I can do it myself.

It is inevitable that this mandatory program will end up as a 'wonderful new service for a modest fee' for sellers at some point. Meaning the buyer ends up paying for it in the end. Worst case scenario, it is a % charge like a service fee, which will give eBay a windfall profit on expensive cards. Just another profit center.

I guess the eBay authentication process does include spotting alterations as well. Here is a portion of a current eBay listing description from a seller who originally sold a '52 Bowman Mays card to a buyer, but the sale didn't go through due to the card being declared as "altered" . . .

NOTE - an eBay's authenticator "claims" this card is altered. That it was trimmed. I have measured this card with a set of digital calipers SEVERAL times, and it measures out perfectly. Upon looking very closely with a Loupe on the edges, it has no apparent cut marks and the lay over on the cardboard is exactly the same on each edge. There is no "wavering" of the cardboard on the edge's indicative of trimming. There is no apparent clean corner or corners that would be present from trimming. The cardboard losses on the edges and corners appear to be natural and normal paper loss for a card 70 years old.

I DO NOT believe this card to be trimmed. BUT... because its eBay's world and they have some unnamed "authenticator" on their payroll, who obviously does NOT work as a card grader, we get their opinion and as such, I have to tell you that at least one eBay authenticators "OPINION" this card is trimmed.

That being said good luck and the card is priced accordingly.