eBay Shortens Money Back Guarantee For Coins & Bullion To 3 Days
eBay is quietly updating their Money Back Guarantee policy for buyers in Coins and Bullion categories, significantly shortening timeframe to only 3 days.
While a public announcement has yet to be posted, users with a history in those categories report receiving an email today advising change to the eMBG for Coins and Bullion will go into effect May 7, 2026.
We’re making an update to eBay Money Back Guarantee coverage for Bullion, Coins and Paper Money.
What’s changing
Starting May 7th, coverage for items that don’t match the listing or arrive damaged will be more aligned to sellers’ policies for these categories:
- If a seller does not offer returns, you’ll need to request a return within 3 calendar days from the delivery date (previously up to 30 days).
- If a seller offers returns, coverage will apply within the seller’s stated return window.
What’s not changing
Your purchases in these categories will continue to be covered by eBay Money Back Guarantee, provided all eligibility requirements are met. This means you’re still protected if your item doesn’t arrive, arrives damaged, or is significantly different from the listing description, giving you added confidence when you shop.As always, do check your item when it arrives and contact the seller promptly if there are any issues. We’ll be here to help, if you need it.
eBay has previously made similar changes to limit Money Back Guarantee timeframes to 3 days in certain categories like trading cards and items listed in "for parts/not working" condition.
Users on Reddit surmised the change was due to eBay no longer wanting to foot the bill for claims on counterfeit and fraudulent coins sold through the platform.
Ebay new policy on coins and bullion
got this email today. I guess eBay is tired of having to refund the fees they collect when sellers sell fake bullion on eBay. now you only have 3 days after delivery to open a dispute.
This is a bad policy. Especially with all the fake bullion eBay allows.
I get 30 days was too much but 7 days would have been a more appropriate compromise. At least give less experienced individuals a chance to get their coins/bullion verified at a LCS.
While concerns over paying out claims for counterfeit items certainly could be a factor, it's likely that eBay is simply trying to protect themselves from losses on claims for all reasons - even when items are legitimate.
In both the Q3 and Q4 2025 earnings calls, CFO Peggy Alford advised that Coins and Bullion represented a significant percentage of the Gross Merchandise Volume (GMV) that eBay reported.
Liz Morton
Alford also admitted that those GMV trends were largely being driven by pricing volatility in the bullion market that may not be sustainable or durable in the long-term.
A 30 day window provides a lot of time for buyers to who are unhappy about an item losing value after the purchase to "conveniently" find a problem and file a claim, which could lead to eBMG abuse that costs both sellers and eBay money.
While it's understandable that eBay is moving to protect sellers, and themselves, by limiting the claim timeframe, buyers may get burned - especially if they don't happen to receive or read the email notice that appears to currently be the only record of the upcoming change.
What do you think of eBay limiting Money Back Guarantee claims to 3 days for Coins and Bullion? Let us know in the comments below!
