ByHow to Appeal Facebook Marketplace Fees Effortlessly
Facebook's rise to stardom has been nothing short of spectacular. Since its inception some 17 years ago, the social media giant has accrued a whopping 2.89 billion active users. To put that into perspective, China—the most populous country in the world—has only 1.4 billion people.
Over the years, Facebook has launched one trademark feature after another. However, none has become a hit with users like Facebook Marketplace. As of now, the platform boasts over 1 billion active users. In Facebook's own words, it's a "convenient destination where Facebook users can discover, buy, and sell items from others in the local communities." As you'd expect with a platform of such magnitude and caliber, users are inexplicably required to remit a nominal fee every time they complete a checkout transaction.
While are admittedly meager, they can be a real headache if they pile up after several on-the-fly transactions or if you're on the wrong end of a botched transaction. Your obvious question at this point is, "Can I get my Facebook Marketplace fees waived?" The answer is an outright yes. This DoNotPay blog will show you how!
Facebook Marketplace Fees Explained
Generally speaking, there are two types of you're likely to incur:
- Selling fee
- Chargeback fee
Selling fee
The selling fee is exactly what it sounds like—the amount Facebook charges you for using their Marketplace to sell your item(s). This fee is typically 5% per shipment or a flat fee of $0.40 for shipments of $8 or less. That said, the selling fee doesn't apply to individuals, but rather, people who run "shops" and use Facebook Marketplace's checkout feature.
Contrary to other platforms, Facebook is very clear on what its selling fee entails. In their own words, the selling fee:
- Includes taxes
- Includes the cost of processing payment
- Applies to every other checkout transaction for all product categories on Facebook and Instagram
In other words, the more checkout transactions you complete, the higher your selling fee. So if you're an active seller on Facebook Marketplace, your fee is bound to reach tens or even hundreds of dollars.
Chargeback fee
If a customer files a chargeback via their card issuer, Facebook will deduct the transaction amount and a $20 chargeback fee from your account. While it's true that the chargeback may not apply if the issue is resolved to completion, it's often not the case. Ask any repeat seller on Facebook Marketplace, and they'll likely tell you that these chargeback fees are ill-timed, costly, and a real inconvenience.
What's worse, Facebook often places a hold on the transaction amount until a concrete decision is made. Mind you; it takes card issuers up to 75 business days to make a chargeback decision. In reality, you stand to lose much more than $20 when a chargeback is filed.
How to Avoid Facebook Marketplace Fees
Here's the cold, hard, sad truth about using Facebook Marketplace: Every single transaction is a chargeback fee waiting to happen, or worse, a money-sapping scam. The only real way to protect yourself is to be smart and treat each transaction with a high level of meticulousness. Here are four tips to keep you and your money safe in the Marketplace:
| Check out the buyer's profile. | This is pretty much a no-brainer. When you click on the buyer's profile, you'll see basic information about them. You can see if they're someone who regularly buys on the Marketplace and uses their profile, or if it gives you the feeling of it being a burner profile. |
| Avoid transactions that don't involve local buyers. | In theory, Facebook will only show you potential buyers within your area. (You can choose a radius as small as two miles or as wide as 100 miles, but the default is 40 miles). If a buyer asks you to ship an item long-distance, especially internationally, consider steering clear. The scam there is for the buyer to cancel the payment once the item is in transit or request a chargeback for a non-existent issue, which, as you well know, will cost you a cool $20. |
| Guard personal details. | Some buyers will ask you about your working hours or if you have a spouse or another person who can help with moving a heavy item. Those questions are often ploys to determine vulnerability. Questions that raise a red flag include: Are you home alone? Are you a single mom? Will you allow me to come to your home and pick the item? In essence, criminals want to understand your habits and the layout of your home so they can return and break in. Install home security systems and don't willingly give out personal information that could aid a burglar. |
| Meet the other party in a public place. | When we say you meet the other person in a public place, we mean an open spot like a coffee shop or restaurant. Even better, bring a friend along. And if you feel uncomfortable, take a few snaps of the exchange or record a video, so you can easily identify the other person if there are any disputes later on. |
Hit With an Unfair Facebook Marketplace Fee? DoNotPay Can Appeal It on Your Behalf!
While everything in this guide to avoiding Facebook Marketplace fees is presented in a do-it-yourself fashion, there's no escaping the simple fact that you'll have to set some time aside to follow through on any of our advice.
If you decide to use DoNotPay, you can take all time-consuming processes out of the equation.
If you're trying to appeal that you deem unfair, you can use DoNotPay as a highly effective middleman and save yourself bundles of time. Here's a quick demonstration of how easy it is to use :
- Search "appeal fees" on DoNotPay, choose the Fight and Waive Fees product, and select the type of fee you want to appeal.
- Select the merchant you want to appeal fees for and enter the details of your transaction, including an associated account if you have one.
- Submit your case! DoNotPay will generate the best argument for your case and make sure your fee waiver request gets sent to the merchant for processing.
Once you've given the go-ahead, our team will follow through on your waiver request before getting back to you in a timely fashion.
What Else Do You Need? DoNotPay Will Provide!
If you want to cancel a subscription before your free trial expires so that you don't get charged, you can count on our AI Consumer Champion to do it in your stead! We can also help you appeal all types of fees—be it eBay fees, Coinbase fees, Robinhood fees, PayPal Seller fees, Spirit Airlines baggage fees, HOA fees, Etsy fees, Chase checking account fees, American Airlines baggage fees, or even Shopify fees.
Here's what else we can do for you:
- File an official complaint on your behalf
- Notarize any document
- Appeal banned accounts
- Help you discover and apply for scholarships
- Create passport photos
You no longer have to go through the tedious administrative hurdles on your own. We can help. for DoNotPay today to find out how!