I am on E bay for the first time .
Questions I have
What has been your E Bay experience ?
My E-bay experience has been good to great. I've gotten many items there (through bids and the 'Buy Now' option) much cheaper than I would on other sites or in stores. For instance I got a fully crested NFL replica jersey for about $85 shipping included.
Who pays the shipping ?
Typically you do. The seller will usually note this in the details of the particular item; as well as where they are willing to ship to.
What if the product is defective? Does E Bay hold the monies until satisfaction?
Believe it or not, E-Bay is a very serious business. If the seller is known to sell 'defective' products than they are legally responsible the same as any other retailer. (i.e. they must be forthcoming as to what the product is; this is not an 'as is sale' or buyer beware) Check the comments left by past buyers regarding the sellers' reputation. On the other hand, the buyer is legally held to pay for their purchases in full, in the case of a winning bid. Typically, most sellers use 'PayPal', through your credit card, as a medium of payment and the money is transferred to them at the end of the auction.
Am I supposed to make a bid and the highest bidder wins?
Yup. You can preset the 'maximum' that you would bid for the item and your bid will incrementally increase in the case that someone outbids your highest bid. I suggest bidding low and re-visiting the item in the final moments of the auction. Better for items that you can risk not winning, but it does allow you to guage where the bidding is going before bidding too high.
THX