eBay offers Authenticity Guarantee on high-value items in certain categories, but one feature of the program remains frustrating for buyers – the inability to communicate with sellers.
In a recent post on the eBay discussion boards, a buyer said “purchasing sneakers was definitely one of my top favorite things to do on eBay,” but because they cannot communicate with sellers about orders sent to eBay authenticators, they said it has become a “horrible” experience.
Sellers have also said it’s frustrating for them – and it’s not a new problem. In a 2020 discussion-board thread on eBay, a buyer said they were trying to message a seller for some after-sales question, but got an error message: “Messaging is turned off for sneakers covered by Authenticity Guarantee.”
Sellers responded, echoing the frustration. One seller wrote, “I like to keep my customers updated on shipments. Not being able to communicate could open the door for negative feedback is a shipment gets unexpectedly delayed BEFORE it is sent for authentication. This does not make sense.”
Another seller said they were concerned a buyer would think they stole their money because they were shipping the sneakers to the authenticator late due to illness – “they will leave bad feedback and I can’t even reach out to explain. Thanks eBay. Thanks a lot,” the seller wrote.
A FAQ on the eBay Authenticity Guarantee landing page confirms that the inability for buyers and sellers to communicate about transactions involving the program is by design:
“Why can’t I message the seller after I purchase my shoes?”
“Messaging capability is turned off at the point of purchase, at which time your shoes are routed to our authentication facility and all tracking information and notifications are available on the eBay platform.”
The buyer who wrote about the issue last month provided an example of why they felt the inability to communicate with sellers over Authenticity Guarantee transactions on eBay was taking the joy out of sneaker-buying:
“Perfect example, I purchased a pair of sneakers on the 15th of this month, it’s is now the 25th and the sneakers haven’t even shipped to the authenticator yet. Granted the sneakers are not supposed to arrive to me until the 2nd of next month but being that they haven’t even left the seller yet, they may not make it to me by the 2nd.”
