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eBay

If you buy or sell items on eBay, you will find tips and advice on this forum.

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Original poster

Buyer left negative feedback without warning

22 replies

MaudlinMews · 28/12/2017 21:14

I recently sold an item of clothing on Ebay and the buyer left negative feedback without even trying to resolve the issue.

She sent a message saying it was used. It wasnt. I’d listed it as new without tags as I bought it in the sale, got it home and didnt like it.

As soon as she’d sent the message I replied saying “sorry youre not happy, I’m happy to refund if you’d like to send it back. Nothing. Three weeks later, she left negative feedback calling me names.

Ive been on Ebay for 16 years and never encountered anything like it. Is there any recourse or do I just write a factual response on my feedback page?

It seems really odd to be so angry but not want a refund. Item retails at £60 and she bought it for £12 so not a huge amount.

OP posts:

chocolateorangeowls · 28/12/2017 21:20

I'd just write, "return and refund offered but no response from buyer" underneath.

Cupoteap · 29/12/2017 00:51

She probably thought you would just refund her - I hate selling on there now

19lottie82 · 29/12/2017 09:30

Firstly, send a final message to the buyer and as hard as it is, stay polite. Reassure them again that the item is new, without tags (as stated in the listing), but you’re sorry they’re not happy and would like to resolve the issue.
Tell them if they are willing to remove the negative then you are happy to issue them a returns label to return the item for a full refund.

You could try and call ebay and ask them to remove it based on the fact that they didn’t even give you a chance to resolve the problem, but the likelyhood is they won’t remove it. I have heard stories of people having a neg removed in similar circumstances though, but in my experience, they won’t.

Have a look at the buyers feedback and there will be a “feedback left for others” tab. It’s always interesting to see if they have form for this kind of thing.

All of the above is if you can be bothered, of course. If not then yes, just write a factual response to the FB such as “item was brand new, however you were offered a refund upon return but I got no response”.

Buyers aren’t fussed about a negative as long as they can see whoever left it is just being difficult and the seller has tried to resolve the situation.

Original poster

MaudlinMews · 29/12/2017 14:08

Thats the weird thing though, she has over 400 positive feedbacks as a buyer. No negatives at all. Nothing as a seller though.

My heart sank when I saw that she’d used the address of a lock-up storage unit as her delivery address. I just thought ‘oh no. Anonamous for a reason?’

OP posts:

Original poster

MaudlinMews · 29/12/2017 14:26

OK, looking through her feedback again, there are negative comments (chancer, liar) but the feedback is green/positive. This just gets stranger the more I look into it. Also, there’s no opportunity for me to leave feedback. Is this how it is now? Seems so stacked in the buyers favour that they can pretty much get away with murder!

OP posts:

Cupoteap · 29/12/2017 14:28

Yep it is!

Judashascomeintosomemoney · 29/12/2017 14:30

She called you names? Abusive? Where, in the feedback or the emails? Because eBay don’t like that kind of thing. If she has been abusive to you, report it and at the very least eBay might remove it.

19lottie82 · 29/12/2017 19:50

Sellers can’t leave negatives for buyers.

As I said click on her feedback link, then there will be a link to “view all feedback”, then a tab for “feedback left for others” and you will be able to see if she has a habit for leaving negatives.

MyKingdomForBrie · 29/12/2017 19:52

Yep I would never sell on eBay now, it’s so ridiculously unfair to sellers. Fine if you’re dealing with scrupulous person but that’s not always the case.

QuimJongUn · 03/01/2018 17:06

This happened to me a few months ago. A buyer in America bought a BNWT Sainsbury's dress from me - the postage cost three times what she paid for the dress, so altogether it came to about £40 for a dress I'd paid £22 for in the shop. I list meticulously and use all 12 photos so my items are described fully and photographed from every angle.

About two months after I'd posted the dress she left negative feedback stating that the design of the dress meant there was a gap in the neckline and she would have to pay to get it altered. The 'gap' was indeed the design of the dress and not only had I photographed it, I'd mentioned it in my description.

I contacted eBay several times but they wouldn't take the negative down. All I was able to do was state underneath it that the 'gap' was described and pictured. I was really upset though - what a daft thing to get my first and only ever neg for.

Oh, and a little digging into her 'feedback left for others' revealed she's a serial neg leaver for the most ridiculous reasons. She negged another seller because, while the item she received was perfect, she was concerned that the seller had too many listings and couldn't possibly offer excellent service to ALL her buyers. Someone else got a neg because the item arrived when she was out

19lottie82 · 03/01/2018 19:54

It really frustrates me when buyers leave an unproportionate number of negatives and eBay refuse to take action.

ToadOfSadness · 20/01/2018 20:15

It used to be that if someone left a lot of negatives they could be reported, not sure if that could still be done. I can't remember the term for it (was a good few years ago, maybe Lottie remembers).

19lottie82 · 21/01/2018 16:52

Not too sure? I do remember hearing something along these lines too but I’ve tries to appeal a couple of negatives based on this and it’s never worked.

Ebay should definitely do more to remove these buyers.

Gingefringe · 17/03/2018 15:21

I feel your pain OP - this is extremely frustrating and upsetting when you are an honest seller.
I sold a pair of trainers recently - described as worn (and a bargain at £10 for £130 trainers) - the buyer didnt contact me at all but left negative feedback which just said "this is sh...."

This was my first negative in about 20 years of selling on ebay - sadly I think buyers are getting worse - a lot more scammers and CFs.

Lithiumsmummy · 18/03/2018 10:23

Ok,
if she left you abusive feedback - contact eBay it WILL be removed. If anybody has feedback problems remember
eBay does not allow negative comments with a positive feedback i.e, you are the buyer and they leave feedback saying anything other than good things, fast payment, lovely seller, credit to eBay etc. Contact eBay as they WILL sanction the seller
If you have negative feedback that mentions an eBay - or Paypal case, contact eBay, they will remove it.
If you have feedback which does not relate to the transaction - i.e really bad seller, nasty person etc, contact eBay, they WILL remove it.
I recently sold a ring to someone. A week or so later, they tried to make an offer on a pair of earrings, but said that eBay wouldn't let them. When I said that my account was set up to prevent non paying bidders from purchasing & could that be the problem? If not, get back to me & I would try to help them, they started getting really nasty. Now I hadn't realised this was somebody who had bought before until they left negative feedback with only Yes in the comments box. I contacted them asking if there was a problem & was it sent accidentally. They said no, done deliberately because of my rude message when they made an offer. I contacted eBay, they removed it straight away.
Don't be put off by negative feedback. Contact eBay & they really do try to help
Gingefringe
Contact eBay a message like that is nothing to do with the transaction & is offensive, I am pretty sure they will remove it.
Go to help & contact at top of page click
Home
Customer Service
Email Us

19lottie82 · 18/03/2018 13:31

if she left you abusive feedback - contact eBay it WILL be removed.

Perhaps. Or there is a chance they will remove the comment, but the negative will still stand. As in, there will still be a negative there but all it will say next to it is “comment removed by eBay”. This has happened to me before.

I think it’s really the luck of the draw with who deals with your request. Some customer service reps will remove a negative straight away and others won’t, no matter how non sensical it seems.

Lithiumsmummy · 18/03/2018 14:13

That is NOT the case, email Customer services, they will remove all of it if you point it out properly.

19lottie82 · 20/03/2018 13:27

Lithiumsmummy maybe, maybe not.
I already explained what had happened to me a few times (inc in the last year), so why are you saying this is NOT the case? I’m not lying.

Lithiumsmummy · 20/03/2018 14:10

I am not saying you are lying, I a saying you are going about it wrong. Firstly it is totally irrelevant whether or not they contacted you BEFORE they left neg & even if ALL the feedback they left is neg, eBay will ignore this as, neither fulfil their criteria for removal!
Email them. That way it goes to the correct dept. If buyer left abusive neg feedback IT WILL BE REMOVED, because it fulfils eBay's criteria for removal. You should al read the feedback policy page. It is quite clear what they will / will not remove.
Even if you have a valid reason for the removal, if you don't tell them, they cannot help. I have 20,000+ feedback, over 2,000 feedback this year with 2 neutral & one neg. All from buyers who said there was a problem, but, refused to prove it with photos, or, open a case. If a case is opened against you, this is a GOOD THING, deal with it & they cannot leave feedback, if they do, it gets removed.

19lottie82 · 20/03/2018 16:45

Lithium I still stand that sometimes they will remove the negative, yes. And other times they will just remove the comment.

What you define as “removal” may be different to eBay’s.

I Have similar eBay stats to yourself. I’ve been using it for 14 years and have been a business seller for 6.

Gingefringe · 31/03/2018 18:01

Thanks for your advice regarding the negative that I received - even thought this was left a few months ago I contacted ebay (by Email) this week and they've completely removed the comment and the negative - so I'm now back to 100%.

Finally something has restored my faith in eBay - cheers guys.

Remotedog · 08/04/2018 18:06

I also am pleased to say I've had a positive experience with eBay. I had a buyer who for some reason was unhappy with an item I had sent (it was perfect and unworn) but I received a ranty email saying it was worn etc. The probably just didn't like it or it didn't fit. No problem I said, return it to me. I created a return and sent them a prepaid label and they returned it - I refunded them the same day I received the item back.
Checks today and I'd received a negative saying do not buy from me! They refused to remove it saying the feedback should stand as I'd listed the item wrongly.
One phone call to eBay and the feedback was removed after they saw the message trail between us. Thankfully common sense prevailed. Why buyers want to be malicious and ruin someone's feedback I'll never know. That is the only problem with eBay now, its heavily in the buyers favour.

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