Our article series began by explaining how VeRO works, who stands to gain and lose, and how to stay out of Vero's grip. Now, in Part VII and Part VIII, we address the dreaded possibility that you have received some type of VeRO notice. The suggestions in our article are a combination of eBay's procedures and advice from our members who have been through the process more times than they would like.

When you receive the notice

When you first receive a VeRO notice, there are several things to do.

  1. Determine who initiated the de-listing.

    De-listings can come from one of several sources.

    • A rights owner submitted a Notice of Claimed Infringement to eBay, claiming that they own the rights to what you were selling. eBay terminated the auction(s) to comply with the DMCA.

    • Another seller reported you for violating eBay rules.

    • eBay's own internal auditors identified a problem with your listing.
    You will receive an email from eBay telling you why your auction was terminated. If you were shut down by a VeRO member, the email will tell you that, and to whom you should direct inquiries. If your auction was terminated by eBay, eBay will send you an email saying that you violated its rules without being clear about how they made the determination.

  2. Do Not Relist The Item(s).

    Don't assume that you understand what the problem is and simply relist the item(s) with changes to remove, or modify, what you think is the offending wording or other content. If you re-list and your guess is wrong, you can get suspended!

  3. Do spend some time trying to determine whether there's a legitimate problem that you need to correct.

  4. Do not waste time trying to figure out how many other sellers are doing the exact same thing you are doing, and haven't been de-listed; it's just not worth it.
First Communication from You

You should immediately begin to make contact with the complainant. Keep in mind:

  • Always create a paper trail with every contact – save documents on line and print them out and save in a folder.

  • Do not admit to any wrong doing of any kind, even if you think you might have made a mistake. Admission of wrongdoing can be your undoing if a situation gets to court.

If you were shut down by a VeRO member, contact the VeRO member immediately and politely, but firmly demand to know their detailed reason for the termination of your auction. Your correspondence should be simple and direct. Don't spend a lot of time explaining your situation – they probably don't really care. Simply ask why your auction was shut down, identifying the title and number of the auction.

Email eBay only if eBay terminated your auction. They usually respond by repeating that you violated policy and suggest that you review the policies.

The VeRO Claimant Responds

If the VeRO member replies, review the response carefully. They may just re-assert that you are infringing, or they may provide you with some rationale. If they do, make an honest assessment of the situation. If you find that you have made a mistake, correct it and move on. If you still feel you haven't infringed, you take the next step.

If the VeRO didn't give you any information, try looking on eBay to see if they have an About Me page that can help you. If after you review the About Me page, you still don't understand the de-listing, as above it's time to take the next step.

The VeRO Claimant Does Not Respond

If the claimant does not respond to you within five days, you should send a notice to eBay explaining that you have requested information but you have not received an answer. This may not actually help you to progress, but it creates another paving stone in the paper trail of documentation you are creating.

As above, try looking on eBay to see if they have an About Me page that can help you. If after you review the About Me page, you still don't understand the de-listing, it's time to take the next step.

Continue with Part VIII to learn about the counter claim and how to use it.