There's No Getting Out of eBay Auctions So Easily Anymore

Starting next month, winning an eBay auction in the US will be a lot harder to walk away from. In an email to users, the company said that as of May 13, American buyers will no longer be able to cancel after winning an auction, per People. They can still message the seller to ask out of the deal, but it's the seller's call, and eBay says its rules will back sellers who say no: "Our policy states all auction sales are final." The company argues that canceled bids disrupt sales and erode an item's value, adding that tighter rules should "better protect" sellers. Once an auction ends, all bids will be locked in and any problems will have to be taken up with eBay.

The platform will also let sellers ask to have negative feedback removed if it stems from a refused cancellation, as long as the request is made within 90 days. The change applies to auctions on eBay's US site but not to eBay Live purchases. Reaction online is mixed, with some welcoming the shift and others calling for matching penalties on sellers who cancel winning auctions. "It does sound like a positive step. (wait? didn't auctions used to be 'final' anyway!? )," one commenter noted, per Value Added Resource. Another wrote online: "Buyers will always still find a way to get out of auctions they changed their mind on. But the feedback protection is a good start."