Rules & policies
Our policies are designed to create a safe and fair environment for all eBay members. Learning what’s allowed can help you avoid unintentionally breaking the rules and helps everyone in working with reliable, trustworthy members.


What are the rules and policies for selling items on eBay?
eBay's policies are rules that help to create a safe, fair and enjoyable trading environment for all eBay members. As a seller, you are responsible for understanding and adhering to eBay’s selling policies, as well as all applicable laws and regulations as outlined in the User Agreement in Rules for sellers: overview.

Policies and guidelines specifically related to selling an item include:
Prohibited and restricted items ? What items can and cannot be listed. eBay’s restrictions are often based on country, including those dealing with copyright or trademark. However, many restrictions involve the sale of controversial or sensitive items and are not necessarily prohibited by law, and are often rules we have instituted in response to feedback from our Community. Before you list your item, it is a good idea to read eBay's prohibited and restricted items policy to see if it is on the list of what may not be sold on eBay.
Listing practices ? Actions that are not allowed in listings. To promote a safe, fair and enjoyable trading experience, eBay has established a set of Community standards and guidelines for listings and other Community content. These include policies restricting the use of profanity, HTML and JavaScript, and links. eBay’s listing policies also provide guidelines on how certain items may be listed and described. For example, using brand names or other words inappropriately for the purpose of attracting buyers to a listing (called keyword spamming) is not allowed. Listing policies also prohibit practices that would circumvent eBay fees. You should familiarise yourself with eBay's listing policies before posting an item.
Completing the sale ? These policies are related to transactions. For example, accepting payment and sending an item that is significantly different from the item described in the listing is not allowed. For policy and examples, see Seller non-performance.
Breaches of eBay policies can result in a range of actions, including:
Listing cancellation
Forfeit of eBay fees on cancelled listings
Limits on account privileges
Loss of PowerSeller status
Account suspension
When breaches of policy occur, eBay emails the seller, as well as bidders, that a listing has been ended. Learning about eBay's selling policies before you list an item will help you to avoid unintentionally breaking rules (and the law). eBay’s selling policies are updated to respond to marketplace, Community and security issues, so it is important to check them regularly for changes.

Standards overview

eBay expects sellers to consistently provide service that results in a high level of buyer satisfaction. This includes setting and meeting buyer expectations by providing excellent customer service from beginning to end.

Sellers can see how they're performing both locally and across various international markets in their Seller Dashboard. Specifically, they can view how well they're meeting buyer expectations with buyers from the United States, United Kingdom, German, and global markets. Learn more about eBay's global seller performance standards.

As a seller, you're expected to:
Charge reasonable P&P costs.
Specify P&P costs and dispatch time in the listing.
Follow through on your return policy.
Respond to buyers' questions promptly.
Be helpful, friendly, and professional throughout a transaction.
Make sure the item is delivered to the buyer as described in the listing.
For more information on meeting buyers' expectations, see our selling practices policy.

Keep in mind, too, that if you don't meet buyers' expectations, it can lead to:
A bad experience for you and the buyer
Low detailed seller ratings (DSRs)
Negative or neutral Feedback from buyers
A buyer opening a case in the Resolution Centre to fix problems
Detailed seller rating requirements

To meet the minimum performance standards that are required to sell on eBay.co.uk, the number of 1 and 2 ratings you receive on your detailed seller ratings can't exceed a certain percentage of your total transactions with buyers. Here are the minimum detailed seller ratings requirements all eBay sellers are expected to meet:



Buyer protection case requirements

The number of buyer protection cases closed without resolution is an important indicator of how well a seller may be meeting buyer expectations on eBay, and is a measure of overall seller performance.

A case closed without seller resolution is any case the seller is unable to resolve with the buyer prior to the case escalating to eBay or PayPal for review, and eBay or PayPal determines the seller is responsible.

Here are the minimum case requirements all sellers are expected to meet:

Minimum standard for all sellers
PowerSellers
Above standard
eBay Top-rated
Registered as a business on eBay
N/A
Yes
Yes
Minimum average detailed seller ratings
N/A
4.60
4.60
Maximum amount of low detailed ratings of 1 and 2 stars*
Percentage or count**
Percentage or count**
Percentage or count**
Item as described
Max: 1% or 3
Max: 1% or 3
Max: 0.5% or 2
Communication
Max: 2% or 3
Max: 2% or 3
Max: 0.5% or 2
Dispatch time
Max: 2% or 3
Max: 2% or 3
Max: 0.5% or 2
Postage & packaging charges
Max: 2% or 3
Max: 2% or 3
Max: 0.5% or 2
Seller unresolved buyer protection cases
Max: 0.3 % or 2
Max: 0.3 % or 2
Max: 0.3 % or 2
Notes:
Sellers with 400 or more transactions over the past 3 months are evaluated on their transactions with UK and IE buyers from the last 3 calendar months. For all other sellers, the rate is calculated from transactions with UK and IE buyers over the last 12 calendar months.
To offer eBay Premium Service, you must meet higher requirements than those above.
You can get more information on buyer protection cases that impact seller performance.

Fair performance evaluation

To measure your overall performance accurately, we look at your performance holistically, excluding a set number of low detailed seller ratings and buyer protection cases based on the number of transactions you've had in the last 12 months. We also consider a buyer's pattern for opening cases and leaving low detailed seller ratings—and protect you when necessary.

Focusing on good customer experiences
If you've had fewer than 400 transactions in the last 12 months:
We count 1-star and 2-star detailed seller ratings only if they come from 2 or more buyers within any given evaluation period.
We count PayPal and eBay Buyer Protection cases only if they come from 2 or more buyers within any given evaluation period.
If you've had 400 or more transactions in the last 12 months:
We count 1-star and 2-star detailed seller ratings only if they come from 3 or more buyers within any given evaluation period.
We count PayPal and eBay Buyer Protection cases only if they come from 3 or more buyers within any given evaluation period.
Adjusting for buyers' individual patterns
If you've completed between 100 and 399 transactions in the last 12 months:
If one buyer accounts for more than 80% of your PayPal and eBay Buyer Protection cases we only count one case from that buyer. 
If one buyer accounts for more than 80% of your combined 1-star and 2-star detailed seller ratings in one category, we only count one low detailed seller rating from that buyer for the applicable category. 
If you've completed 400 or more transactions in the last 12 months:
If one or 2 buyers account for more than 80% of your PayPal and eBay Buyer Protection cases, we only count one case from each of those buyers.
If one or 2 buyers account for more than 80% of your combined 1-star and 2-star detailed seller ratings in one category, we only count one low detailed seller rating from each of the those buyers for the applicable category.
What happens if you don't meet the standards?

The following may result:
Your listings could be demoted in search results
You could be restricted from selling items on eBay
If you are a PowerSeller or you offer the eBay Premium Service, it could affect your ability to remain in those programmes
If you have subscribed to an Anchor Shop and have opted in to international selling, your beneficial rates for international selling may be removed
If you sell to the US or Canada, your payment may show as pending on your PayPal account for a period of time to allow for successful fulfilment. Find out more about funds availability.
In very serious cases, your account may be suspended. If this happens, you:
Must resolve all issues on the account before you can buy or sell with other eBay accounts
Can't register for a new account
Can't use an existing eBay account to avoid any selling restriction or other policy consequences


Seller fees & invoices
You pay a fee to list an item on eBay. If the item sells, you also pay a Final Value Fee. The cost of selling an item is the total of these two fees. Learn how the fees are calculated.


http://pages.ebay.co.uk/help/sell/protecting.html