Reporting to aBay for incitement to commit a crime is turning into a disaster... | Members help members

perucci11 · 2026-02-11T20:49:56.676000Z

Hi Community, While searching for a rare movement, I found an offer from a private seller who, under his profile, lists more than 180 items of high-priced watch accessories and movements, some for well over € 1,000,-. His most expensive item is priced at € 50,441,-. Since, in the event of a possible purchase, an additional 19% import sales tax is charged on the purchase price including shipping costs, I made him a price suggestion, which he had also offered on this item. He rejected this price suggestion and made me a counteroffer, but it was only slightly below his actual selling price. I informed the seller by message that his counteroffer would be too expensive for me because of the additional import sales tax costs and how the total cost would work out for me. The seller then told me that after eBay fees, PayPal/Payoneer fees, exchange rate losses and the taxes he would have to pay, he would no longer make any profit. He offered to declare the item, with a pure sale value of approx. € 500,-, as € 50,- when shipping, in order to keep the import sales tax low for me. The criminal consequences that would then arise for me at customs were immediately clear to me, as this is a criminal offense under § 370 of the Fiscal Code (evasion of import sales tax). I would have to prove the actual value (purchase price) and would then have all the problems on my side. I took this situation as an opportunity to inform eBay about it. After assigning a reference number, they told me just one day later that they had looked into the problematic content of this communication, would take action, and that I could delete the reported message. At the same time, they wanted to inform the sender (the private seller) about this decision and the measures taken in this regard. Just hours later, this private seller contacted me again and told me that eBay had gotten in touch with him and had also mentioned my username. So I’m quite shocked at how insensitively and, in my opinion, absolutely unprofessionally eBay responds to such highly sensitive incidents. Here, someone was incited to commit a crime and would themselves be committing a crime in this situation. At the same time, they don’t even seem to check this private seller (should I really have been the only buyer who was tempted into committing a crime by accident?) And to make matters worse, eBay even informs this seller about which member reported him. I simply find this form of business conduct (facilitating crimes through omission) on eBay’s part appalling. Best regardsPerucci11

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