Value Added Resource Week In Review 2-5-23
Welcome to the Value Added Resource ecommerce news week in review!
eBay News
The big eBay news this week was the Winter 2023 Seller Update, which included Final Value Fee increases across most categories and not much else.
Liz Morton ~ Founder
The other big news is that 1099-K forms from eBay are starting to arrive - and unsurprisingly that means new reports coming in from victims of identity theft that have had their names, addresses, and social security numbers used to create eBay accounts without their knowledge that funneled tens of thousands of dollars of fraudulent sales through the platform.
Liz Morton ~ Founder
Sellers also report eBay has mistakenly issued 1099-K forms with their individual names and social security numbers instead of their LLC business name and EIN.
Liz Morton ~ Founder
Speaking of taxes, in addition to the ongoing issue with eBay incorrectly charging the California Ewaste fee on used/for parts laptops, they are now also incorrectly applying the North Carolina White Goods Tax on used refrigerators and appliances as well as parts that are clearly exempt.
Not only are buyers overpaying on tax, but sellers are also overpaying on fees since the FVF is charged on the total including taxes and fees.
eBay has been made aware of the issues but has failed to correct their tax calculation program - a major conflict of interest since they profit off of the "mistake."
Liz Morton ~ Founder
This week eBay lost their General Manager of Authentication, James Hendy and Director Vertical Merchandise, Bob Means.
Means was the public face of eBay's trading cards, toys, and collectibles efforts, including eBay Vault and eBay Live livestream shopping, often appearing at industry events and as a frequent guest on hobby related podcasts and blogs.
Liz Morton ~ Founder
And finally this week, eBay suffered a major technical meltdown on Friday when the sitewide search function completely failed - return 0 results for even the most common search terms.
Liz Morton ~ Founder
Other Ecommerce News
Etsy announced ex-Meta General Counsel Colin Stretch will be joining the company as Chief Legal Officer on February 14th.
Liz Morton ~ Founder
Stretch's extensive experience in compliance, litigation, public policy, & regulatory issues will certainly be needed as Etsy faces a lawsuit from the Cashmere and Camel Hair Manufacturers Institute alleging the company falesely advertised and conspired with 3rd party sellers to offer counterfeit cashmere goods on the platform.
Liz Morton ~ Founder
Amazon announced this week that effective February 15th, custom and personalized items will no longer be eligible for returns.
Liz Morton ~ Founder
Sneaker marketplace StockX is launching their first authentication center in Mexico to enhance local customer experience and speed up delivery times and payouts.
Liz Morton ~ Founder
And finally, even though the IRS announced they were delaying lowering the threshold for 1099-Ks to $600, some ecommerce sellers may still receive the tax form even if they were under the previous $20,000 threshold.
Why? The answer may be - location, location, location!
Liz Morton ~ Founder
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