eBay bans spells, psychics and potion listings

Posted on 17 Aug 2012 at 11:33, by Gareth Halfacree

Online auction house eBay has announced a change to its listing categories which sees spells, potions and other mystic paraphernalia banned from being sold through the site.

As part of the company's regular updates, eBay has decided to remove the ability to list psychic and tarot reading services, spells and potions from the surprisingly busy Metaphysical category. As a result, listings like a spell cast at midnight by Celtic witch Esmerelda - just £2.45 - and listings promising the wipe out your debt with a little black magic - £9.99 - will be invalid for listing from next month, putting an end to a bustling cottage industry of covens.

The removal of the Metaphysical category is no slight on the existence or otherwise of paranormal forces, eBay explains, but simply a result of a growing number of dissatisfied customers - many of whom will have been receiving refunds through eBay and PayPal's buyer protection systems. "Transactions in these categories often result in issues between the buyer and seller that are difficult to resolve", the company explained in its notice to sellers. "To help build confidence in the marketplace for both buyers and sellers, eBay is discontinuing these categories and including the items on the list of prohibited items."

Also for the chop as part of the site's listing updates are club memberships, advice and instruction services in business, computing, diet and fitness, home-based businesses, recipes for food and wine making, and digital art - with the latter two categories valid for re-listing under the Information Products category.

A full list of the impending changes, which come into force at the end of the month, can be found on eBay's website.

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User comments

Shame on eBay

I understand some people do not believe and see us as fakers and frauds but our Alternative, Occult, New Age and Pagan beliefs are just as valid as other faiths and ideologies. Believe in magick, energy work and psychic abilities or don't. I'm not trying to convince you. Millions of people DO believe. Each to their own.

I want to address this another way. One many of you might understand better.

Ebay is financially harming hundreds if not thousands of individuals and their families. This was many peoples livelihood and sole business and income. They made eBay their business or rather, they made and grew their businesses ON eBay.

These people have spent YEARS being loyal to eBay, growing a good customer base and providing excellent customer service. I myself gave up a very lucratrive business over 4 years ago to devote myself full time to my eBay clients/business. I work with a group of elderly long time Practitioners of various Paths, Vodou/Voodoo, Wicca, etc.... We sell charged tools, empowered items, charms, charged candles and energized jewelry, etc.... The money we make allows them to practice their faith and calling full time.

I personally pay eBay and Paypal in excess of 2,000 PER MONTH IN FEES. That means in 4 years I have given eBay close to 100,000 dollars in fees. I know other Metaphysical sellers who pay TWICE and more what I do a month.

Yet eBay, after our loyalty, some sellers for 6 to 8 years even, they tell us to leave with only a month's notice. And, not even a true notice-they hide their banning of our items and services in pages of clickable links to other pages which I discovered just last week by accident. A full 99% of the metaphysical sellers I contacted had never even SEEN the new rule buried in pages of updates and small print. This is inexcusable on eBay's part as far as I and many others are concerned.

SHAME ON EBAY!

I also should point out that back in approx. 2005/2006, eBay actually featured the metaphysical category--focusing on it as a rapidly growing and dynamic category with great potential. They in effect 'courted' these very same sellers they are now banning and financially harming.

They say WE are costing them money? I ask HOW when we pay HUNDREDS of THOUSANDS of DOLLARS a year in fees. The majority of us have 14 to 30 day or longer refund policies and many happy and repeat customers. I personally have several thousand feedback and only ONE negative for a 20 dollar item because the woman did not get my email with some instructions right away. I have ONLY ever had two charge backs-from a scammer who hit several sellers. A lost package? A duplicate item is sent right out!

Again I say SHAME ON EBAY!

We stood with you when other sellers left in droves for Amazon, Etsy and other venues, yet you do THIS to us!

By Shame_on_Ebay on 18 Aug 2012

petition to ebay to stop ban on magick and psychics

http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/dont-ban-our-p
sychics-on-ebay.html

By Shame_on_Ebay on 18 Aug 2012

We stood with you when other sellers left in droves for Amazon, Etsy and other venues, yet you do THIS to us!

any psychic worth their salt should have seen this coming and jumped ship to another site

While I agree ebay shouldn't tar everyone offering alternative therapies it does make some sense. they must be sick of dealing with complaints against vendors who promise miracle cures and deliver nothing

By mr_chips on 20 Aug 2012

Psychics get a new home.....

We are Rated Psychics and we are in the process of setting up a large brand new marketplace for Psychics and Spell casters. No listing fees and no ending fees. We are set to launch on 11th September 2012. Email: info@ratedpsychics.co.uk for more information.

www.ratedpsychics.co.uk our website is currently under construction

By RatedPsychics on 30 Aug 2012