"Condition is pre-owned" - really?!

[tsarpepe]

Is it me, or have you guys also noticed a recent trend on eBay: sellers put a one-sentence description of the item that says "Condition is pre-owned." I must have come across dozens of such ads in the last few weeks, from different sellers, with this exact wording (and hardly anything else).

When did it become such a pain to describe use and defects with words? Yes, I know that more and more people on eBay are just flippers with no idea of what the item is and what its history has been, so the best thing in such case is to say "Just look at the pictures." But I feel it goes beyond that, and it makes me nostalgic for the early days of eBay, when people wrote entire narratives for items that cost $5-10.

Who wants to rant with me? :hello:

[Clean39T]

Is it me, or have you guys also noticed a recent trend on eBay: sellers put a one-sentence description of the item that says "Condition is pre-owned." I must have come across dozens of such ads in the last few weeks, from different sellers, with this exact wording (and hardly anything else).

When did it become such a pain to describe use and defects with words? Yes, I know that more and more people on eBay are just flippers with no idea of what the item is and what its history has been, so the best thing in such case is to say "Just look at the pictures." But I feel it goes beyond that, and it makes me nostalgic for the early days of eBay, when people wrote entire narratives for items that cost $5-10.

Who wants to rant with me? :hello:The less they say, the less someone can claim "not as described" and appeal for a refund.

Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk

[bikser]

I've noticed that lately which is so vague I stay away. I have also noticed a lot that say "New", and then describe how it only has 500 miles on it, or only 6 months old etc. Not "new".

[tsarpepe]

The less they say, the less someone can claim "not as described" and appeal for a refund.

Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk

Yes, but we all know that buyers rule on eBay. If they want to complain, the seller's got almost no recourse. Methinks, it's better for sellers to be upfront about things, since the playing field is tilted in favor of the buyer in any case.

[unterhausen]

I've noticed that lately which is so vague I stay away. I have also noticed a lot that say "New", and then describe how it only has 500 miles on it, or only 6 months old etc. Not "new".

Cycling listing translation for ebay:
New: Used
NOS: Used
Used: No useful life left, in fact, I should have stopped using it a year before I did.
Slightly worn: I will ship you all the pieces of this item that I can find.
NiB: Used, I just happen to be a hoarder and I found the original box

[retrofit]

I've only recently returned to using bay to buy vintage Campy "pre-owned" parts and have to agree.

As for "look at the photos," I also noticed the frequent use of white backgrounds and bright lighting for pics, which to my eyes, tend to wash out/hide defects in what is photographed.

[Pegoready]

When eBay changed how sellers list things, this happened.

Relatively recently, when you list things you have to click Used/New/New-Other/etc. Once you click that eBay automatically autofills the fact that a used item may show wear, damage, etc. blah blah. Stock boilerplate info unless you overwrite it.

Then you have to fill UPC if you have it, Manufacturers # if you have it, and a whole bunch of other fields like color, size, material which is all optional but a lot of people go through the trouble of filling it out.

By the time you're done with all that who wants to write a description especially if you're a newb? I also think eBay prefers less flowery, open to interpretation descriptions so they don't encourage people to write a lot of text anymore. A lot of people just can't write. People that are A+ over phone and in person can barely text or compose a sentence.

That, or it's a good way for a seller to get out of "not as described" cases though I doubt it. Those are impossible to get out of if the buyer is hellbent on being dissatisfied.

[sailorboy]

^ this

they pre-populate the description section with the exact stuff that is in the title, so unless the seller clicks the box to edit that section, that's exactly what it puts in the description and nothing else. Stupid change that I see no added benefit from. I hate ebay

[unterhausen]

I often find it difficult to say much in the description. It's a 50 year old NOS seat post bolt with all the defects that Campagnolo put into it at the factory, okay?

If you don't use a light tent on a shiny part, it looks horrible.

[tsarpepe]

We are not talking about items that are new or NOS...

[Cat3roadracer]

My favorite is “no dings or dents that I can find”.

[jtakeda]

https://sfbay.craigslist.org/eby/bop/d/pleasant-hill-brand-new-campy-10spd/6860375827.html

https://images.craigslist.org/00S0S_amcZC4Wu1cs_1200x900.jpg

Craiglist offers "brand new 10 speed cassettes"

[NYCfixie]

So true....

Cycling listing translation for ebay:

BNIB: Used, I just happen to be a hoarder and I found the original box (and wiped it down)
New: Used
NOS: Used
Used: No useful life left, in fact, I should have stopped using it a year before I did.
Slightly worn: I will ship you all the pieces of this item that I can find.


I was inquiring about a wristwatch that interested me on eBay. When I questioned the seller about a small scratch he responded with, "I wore it around the house a few times so the strap has some marks and I dropped it once so the case has a small scratch. It has all the original tags which I took off but will include in the sale so it really is brand new". I am not sure how he defines that as "new with tags" because to me that would be "lightly used with a small scratch".

[merckxman]

On the other hand items described like this might present some good buying opportunitis as they might be passed over.

[Pegoready]

People on the forums aren't immune. I hold my expectations very low these days.

Very recent transactions in the classifieds here:

'BNIB' shoes-- not shipped with the box.
'I don't think it's ever been used' front derailleur- definitely been used evidenced by obvious chain rub, just very clean, and in the original box.
'NIB'-- new Campanolo brakes in a Dura Ace box so it's not a lie I guess.
'Freshly tuned this winter'- crunchy rear hub bearings

It's all kind of baffling. The deals were great so I didn't squawk.

[false_Aest]

Complaining about ebay is like blowing a snot rocket into the wind.

[bcroslin]

Yes, but we all know that buyers rule on eBay. If they want to complain, the seller's got almost no recourse.

This. As a seller you literally have no recourse at all. I've been selling camera gear on eBay for the last 3-4 months and buyers treat eBay sellers like Amazon. Don't like it, send it back even if the auction is "no refunds" and the item is exactly as described. And Paypal will reach into your checking account or credit card and refund the buyer even if the buyer is the issue.

The golden days of buying and selling on eBay are over.