I gave negative feedback, seller offering refund if I change feedback

[fortifiedwithtea]

I bought a strap to fit an ipod nano 6th generation. Didn't notice seller was in China as wanted this for a Christmas present. Strap arrived mid January 2 days before max time they expected the post to take.

There is no way the fixing can be adjusted, its solid metal and too big for a nano. Picture misleading shows a diagram of how to adjust, it really doesn't.

With everything going on in my life I couldn't be bothered to open up a case with ebay for the sake of a few quid.

I have now received an email from the seller saying they would like to offer a refund and suggesting in return I change my feedback to a positive one. I didn't think feedback could be amended?

It seems silly to turn money down but I don't want others to be disappointed and inconvenienced as I was .

Do I say stuff your refund, your product is not fit for purpose.

Or accept a refund on condition I give neutral feedback saying item not as described but refund given.

What would you do?

[SpiderWilliesOnYourFrillys]

Open a dispute with eBay they can’t blackmail you into a refund

[fortifiedwithtea]

I have opened a dispute with eBay just so they can see that the seller has messaged me. I've also emailed the seller telling them I have reported them.

[Vitalogy]

Could you have messaged the seller before leaving the neg feedback?

[fortifiedwithtea]

Yes I could have messaged the seller before leaving negative feedback. I didn't because I was prepared to write off £5 I have bigger things going on in my life to worry about my daughter has been ill in hospital for a long time. And secondly I thought it would warn other people not to get caught. Its not like the item was broken, its a defective design they would all be the same.

[19lottie82]

Yeah..... a seller can send you a feedback revision form that you can use to change a negative or neutral.

Pretty poor to leave a negative without giving the seller a chance to resolve the situation though. Maybe the wrong product was sent in error? If you’d had just opened a case first, which wouldn’t have taken much more time, chances are they would have just refunded you straight away.

And what have you reported them to eBay for?

As a business seller, buyers who leave a negative without any attempt at communication first, are one of my main bugbears. I really wish ebay would do something about it.

[fortifiedwithtea]

Thank you Lottie I did not know that.

Poor form, ok you could look at it that way. I felt had. I run a small business from home and regularly buy equipment or supplies from eBay. I've bought in error from China before - badly tooled snap pliers that didn't line up. I chalked that up to experience "Let the buyer beware" and got a proper pair of pliers from a bricks and mortar shop.

Because this purchase was personal for my ill daughter I felt particular cheesed off.

What is so wrong in showing a seller is selling shoddy goods? There seems so much pressure to leave a positive feedback when the experience was mediocre . Usually I'm very happy and give 5 stars for everything to keep the sellers record 100% positive. Even though its farcical to give 5 stars on communication when there has not been any communication.

[ScreamingValenta]

I wouldn't personally leave a negative without giving the seller a chance to resolve the problem.

[19lottie82]

fortified maybe leave a neutral then....... at the end of the day it’s up to you, but I still say it’s bad form to leave a negative without any communication. Would you have done so if it was a private UK seller?

I hope your daughter is on the mend, but her being ill shouldn’t be a factor when you leave feedback.

[delilahbucket]

Standard practice for the Chinese sellers. You should have given them chance to rectify before leaving feedback though. Opening a dispute will resolve nothing as you will be expected to return the item, at your own cost (as it is none UK).

[italiancortado]

You bought in error. You left a negative without contacting seller to resolve

Pretty poor on your part OP.

[Whisky2014]

Stop buying cheap crap from China!

[19lottie82]

Opening a dispute will resolve nothing as you will be expected to
return the item, at your own cost (as it is none UK)

Not true.

[delilahbucket]

19lottie82 it is true. Outside the EU, sellers are not liable to pay the return costs. This is the risk you accept when buying from abroad.

[19lottie82]

Delilah - Maybe outside ebay (inc if you open a PayPal case) , but within ebay, sellers have to pay for a faulty items return, even if they are based in China. Hence why they push and push for you to accept a partial refund before finally giving in and refunding in full.

[ToadOfSadness]

You say you have had shoddy items from China before and you knew there was a chance it would be slow to arrive which begs the question, why did you buy from China? You do know you can adjust your search to UK only or Europe only?

Those sellers have multiple items on the site and in stock, it is easy to make a mistake or forget to change a description, or not quite understand what the item does, they are human and errors happen to people.

You will have damaged the seller's ability to sell and there is great competition in China, they have to make a living. A negative feedback without trying to resolve a problem is not recommended by Ebay. You have now compounded it by opening a case which will give the seller a defect if they don't refund you, they had already offered a refund to remove the negative so that their livelihood is not affected by it.

You are the kind of buyer that sellers dread dealing with. I hope you never find my listings.

[ToadOfSadness]

It arrived within the time frame, storm, admittedly only 2 days but postage from China is slow, usually about 6 weeks.

If I receive a shoddy item I contact the seller first, it allows them a chance to fix the problem, it is what I would call fair, they may easily have picked up the wrong item by accident. Buying in haste and not checking where it comes from is not wise, adding a negative to it is just not the right thing to do. It could have been resolved amicably or even a case opened for a refund without the negative.

As for not wanting to find me as a seller, I hope you don't.

However I have 100% and 5 stars and I work very hard to describe accurately and post in time, I check tracking to ensure delivery has taken place and I fix problems as soon as I am aware. As a buyer I contact sellers if there is a problem and if I get a poor response or none at all after a few days then I follow the appropriate procedure. I treat people fairly. People these days are in such a rush and have little consideration for others, it is sad.

[Aridane]

You are supposed to contact seller before leaving Negative feedback.

I think the seller is being very reasonable offering to refund and for you to change feedback.

FYI: I had a bad experience with a seller. Item never arrived and seller didn't respond - so had to open Dispute with eBay. Seller then eventually sent replacement item which was faulty. Again Seller didn't respond so I have to raise a further Dispute with eBay. Third time luck I got the item.

However, as the Dispute showed as resolved, the eBay systems didn't permit me to leave a Negative or Neutral review...

[Bendyandtheinkmachine]

The problem with items from China is it doesn't always show China as the location. Sometimes it will show London for example. I now check the legal information and tend to avoid if there is no address shown. It isn't always clear from the dispatch times either.

[ToadOfSadness]

You only need to see where the seller is registered or check feedback to find out if the seller is in China or the item is in China. I don't mind buying from there but I do check carefully first as I know it will take 6 weeks, longer if there is a holiday (like now). Some things I know not to buy but considering that the stuff is cheap I know I may have to write it off as being the same as you pay double or more for in a cheap tat shop here, that is where they buy it from.

As for the feedback, before you leave a negative you are asked if you have contacted the seller, which you are supposed to do.

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[UndomesticHousewife]

I hate when buyers leaving negatives without contacting me, if you can type in the negative feedback it’s just as easy to press contact seller and say the item isn’t right they usually refund you without having to send back.

I buy a huge amount from China and have had very very few problems I find Chinese sellers are serious sellers and either refund or ship again.

Yes you can get a lot of rubbish from China but that’s where everyone (or a lot of people) buys the stuff from to sell on eBay for a vastly increased price, so if I can wait I always look for the same product from China.