eBay encourages US sellers to list cloth face masks

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In early April, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended Americans wear cloth face masks when away from home to help slow the spread of COVID-19. In line with this announcement, eBay has adapted their business policies to address the evolving needs of customers during the global pandemic.

In March eBay announced that they were implementing Emergency Listing Restrictions to a small number of sellers that included the sale of face masks due to price gouging. Although eBay are continuing to restrict the sale of medical grade face masks they are now encouraging sellers to list cloth face masks.

When listing cloth masks, please be sure to follow these guidelines:

  1. The listing must not make any medical claims or claims regarding their effectiveness at stopping the transmission of viruses or diseases
  2. The listing may not mention “Coronavirus”, “COVID-19” or “Covid”
  3. Do not list surgical or medical masks including N95 respirators

This new announcement means that US sellers can now list cloth face masks for sale to consumers whilst helping limit the number of medical-grade facemasks being sold, leaving more PPE for vital workers or vulnerable people who require them. It also means sellers will be able to get creative and create stock that will appeal to a wider audience with colourful or styled versions. Although this announcement is directed towards US sellers, UK health officials have also discussed the benefits of cloth masks and why wearing them can help reduce the spread of COVID-19.

3 Responses

  1. This is good info. What I find confusing with eBay is who they are trying to become.

    Is eBay now trying to be the next Etsy? In Etsy recent earnings announcement, they broke down sales between two categories. Mask sales and non-mask sales. That’s how big the volume was. Too little, too late it seems as always with ebay.

    They’ve failed against Amazon and has become a junkyard in most categories.

  2. I just tried to list masks I made, following these guidelines and the listing was not allowed. I GIVE UP EBAY.
    I’m taking my 100% feedback and I will never use eBay to buy or sell again.

  3. Same here….tried to list masks…not allowed…to prevent them leaving the us….I am in Canada trying to SELL TO the US…..cant list them. EBay has just become totally stupid…not to mention their high fees.
    I too will just leave….100% good feedback on about 300 sales total from other products.

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