Shortening the warranty period to one year for used goods
Why does Ebay make it so hard for us to carry out the reduction of the warranty period at checkout???
What’s up, Ebay? Are we paying you too little? Why make it so complicated with variants?
It’s just fucking infuriating, every single time when changes are made no practical solution is offered. Do we all have to move to Whatnot and co. first? Finally do something for your sellers!
9 comments
ttd4it
·2 weeks agoActually, the problem is much more complex.
When laws and regulations come together, different groups meet.
The theorists and the practitioners, the lawyers and the non-lawyers.
... and then laws and regulations are written in such a way that there are always two kinds of interpretation.
One lawyer interprets the text that was written, the other looks for the statements between the lines that weren’t written.
In principle, all texts should have to be written in such a way that there is no basis at all for interpretation and discussion.
petersmodellbahnstuebchen
·2 weeks agoHey @fuchshoehle
why do you have a problem with shortening the warranty obligation.
you only need to mention this in your terms and conditions; you don't need variants for that, unless you mix new and used goods in one offer with variants:
Of course, that has nothing to do with the EU warranty label. That's a separate issue.
fuchshoehle
OP2 weeks agono, that isn’t sufficient in the terms and conditions, the customer must agree. Usually at checkout. eBay does not offer this option
petersmodellbahnstuebchen
·2 weeks agoI’m not allowed to offer legal advice here, but I’ll ask anyway how you came to this view.
According to common portals, the shortening is contractually recorded. This happens during the sale by accepting the seller’s terms and conditions at the time of purchase.
fuchshoehle
OP2 weeks agoHere is the answer the IT law firm gave me: for a commercial eBay sale to consumers, a clause in the terms and conditions alone is not enough. For used goods, the limitation period for claims based on defects can generally be shortened from two years to at least one year. However, the buyer must be separately informed of this before submitting their contractual declaration, and the shortening must be expressly and separately agreed upon — i.e. outside the T&Cs. If there is no such separate agreement, the statutory period remains in force. [1][2]
The key question, therefore, is whether this separate agreement can actually be concluded in the specific eBay ordering process; a note in the listing or in the T&Cs does not replace it. In a sale from private individual to private individual, different rules apply: there, warranty rights can generally also be fully excluded. [1][2]
1 Warranty explained clearly: basics, meaning (Published on 23.05.2015, updated on 11.01.2026) 2 Used goods: How can liability for defects be shortened in a legally secure way? (Published on 25.10.2021, updated on 31.03.2025)
bixtron
·2 weeks ago · EditedI only know it with an express, separate agreement, for example a checkbox:
Correction link: https://www.it-recht-kanzlei.de/ebay-verkauf-mangelhafter-ware-gewaehrleistungsverkuerzung.html#abschnitt_36
I don’t know whether anything has changed in that regard, since I don’t shorten it.
bixtron
·2 weeks agoEbay isn't really big on legal requirements... A lot have already moved away, and there are probably more every day.
When the cash register stops ringing, maybe they'll listen to us...
petersmodellbahnstuebchen
·2 weeks agoI’ve been reading this here for many, many years now. And the ones who write the loudest are usually still around, too.
bixtron
·2 weeks ago · EditedThat's true. Nevertheless, eBay is losing sellers. Buying and selling has meanwhile become a trend, and eBay is simply still (for now) the most convenient solution. So new sellers keep joining regularly, although the majority there are social media resellers and therefore stop again after a while.
But if you have a few weeks' time, you can just present yourself and pay only a fraction of eBay's costs, and in return you get all the imaginable functions, which work everywhere and permanently. The support is real, competent, and direct. No lies, no excuses, no putting you off, and instead actual willingness to act.
To each their own, but the path eBay is taking will sooner or later affect everyone. And anyone who isn't protected there will first be facing a big problem...