posted on January 14, 2001 01:16:40 AM new
I just left my first negative feedback and I feel like I'm going to be sick! The auction ended 12/11 and I tried everything to get the buyer to contact me but I was just totally ignored. I wasn't going to let the feedback but then I felt like I was not being fair to other sellers. I'll probably get a neg for it in return which has me worried! (My only neg is from a newbie years ago that didn't notice an auction was "reserve".) Does it always feel this bad???? I keep thinking maybe they are sick or something and I'm being awful.
posted on January 14, 2001 01:27:40 AM new
Believe me after you get burned a few times, you will actually enjoy it. As leaving a negative for a non payer or non responder helps everyone out. These types of bidders need to be rid of. You did the right thing... and trust me if they were really concerned they would have found a way to reach you. I have heard so many excuses from Non Paying bidders. It is amazing...! I know no matter what happens to me... my seller will always hear from me or a I will have someone contact the seller for me.
Hang in there... it gets easier and the more people rid ebay of these types, the less sellers will have to deal with it in the future. I get less non paying bidder now a then I ever have, because the policy eBay has set forth for suspension of non payers.
posted on January 14, 2001 01:51:39 AM new
I just left my second neg. The first was due to a buyer with a fake registration, who got suspended and his feedback removed.
This time, I waited 27 days for a payment. NO reply to email, then the last email I sent bounced. No payment, so I decided to post a negative.
The same day, the buyer (a newbie) emails me from a new email address, asking if I recieved his payment which he mailed 2 days after the auction.
To make a long story short, his payment got lost in the mail (at my request he provided a scan of the money order recipt), and his computer died on him. Even so, he should have found a way to get email access.
I didn't tell him about the neg, so I hope he won't notice it. Before he emailed me I reported him to Safeharbor becuase he email bounced, and I filed a Non-Paying bidder alert. Hopefully he'll be suspended (until he updates his email address), or the item is off the data base so he can't post a negative.
I know it's selfish, but I don't want to suffer a negative on my perfect feedback rating for him. Maybe he'll be kind, I told him I'm sending the item anyways (worth $5).
On the other hand, I appreciate when others leave negative feedback when it is deserved, it benefits everyone to know what other users are really like.
Email a suggestion to eBau that they should lock out feedback once a NPB alert is issued, and a neg is automatically posted to the bidder. Maybe then more people would leave negatives.
posted on January 14, 2001 02:52:58 AM new
That is a good idea about bidders that don't complete a transaction. When you have to ask for a refund from ebay they should automatically prevent the bidder from posting any feedback concerning that transaction. They really didn't purchase the item.
posted on January 14, 2001 03:28:13 AM new
I did as you suggested and send an email to ebay. This is what I wrote.
********************************************
I just left my first negative feedback for a bidder who did not complete the transaction. Now I have to worry about them "getting even" with my own feedback record. Why are they permitted to even post feedback when they really haven't bought the item? I'm wondering why once a NPB alert is issued they aren't locked out of the feedback for that auction? If they were more people would leave "true" feedback because the fear of retaliation would be removed. Many people are afraid to let a negative because of this and that hurts all sellers. When a bidder doesn't honor the sale we lose the free relisting and then must suffer an unfair negative feedback when we tell anyone that they didn't pay. This is not fair and a solution should be found.
********************************************
They probably won't do anything but, it's worth a try........
posted on January 14, 2001 05:04:19 AM new
[i]Hopefully he'll be suspended (until he updates his email address), or the item is off the data base so he can't post a negative.
I know it's selfish, but I don't want to suffer a negative on my perfect feedback rating for him. Maybe he'll be kind, I told him I'm sending the item anyways (worth $5).[/i]
posted on January 14, 2001 05:16:49 AM new
I don't know how big your "perfect FB rating" is, but trust me, no bidder with good sense avoids a seller with a neg or two, particularly when those negs are retaliatory.
IMHO, if you respond to it professionally ("Retaliatory. Bidder never emailed, never paid." this sort of neg can actually work in your favor - demonstrating that you DO act professionally and DO expect bidders to follow through on their transactions.
Since it's humanly impossible to please everybody, as a fellow seller, when I see a seller with pos FB in the hundreds with NO negs, I start wondering: Is this seller merely outrageously lucky, does s/he actually hold up his/her end of the FB system by warning other sellers of bad bidders, or does s/he avoid negs at all cost? But then I'm just the suspicious sort
My suspicion (playing Psychology here for a minute) is that yours is the normal reaction to saying something negative about ANYthing -somehow in the back of our minds lurks the feeling that it's just not...polite, somehow...and maybe we were wrong and are accusing some poor innocent soul...and maybe we're just being a whineypants over nothing. There is nothing wrong with saying "HEY! I got stiffed." You did the right thing.
posted on January 14, 2001 05:40:39 AM new
Hi everybody,
Somebody suggested that a bidder be blocked from posting feedback after receiving a neg. Unfortunately that could allow a dishonest seller to really take advantage,(I'm a seller- an honest one)they could neg their buyer and do what they wanted. I would suggest that when a neg is posted there is:
1. more space provided for rebuttal and discussion
2. a way to just look at negs and neutral, if a buyer or seller has negs but they're a couple of months old it takes time to find them and as a buyer I usually move on. But suppose they were all over 2-3 days with an explanation or by one buyer who bought a bunch of things at one time and something happenned. That would give a different picture of that seller.
Just a thought!
posted on January 14, 2001 06:30:39 AM new
I've seen the issue of blocking feedback on transactions with a NPB, and it seems fair to me that feedback from both parties ought to be blocked until the FVF is granted and the bidder has had an opportunity to appeal. If the appeal fails or the bidder fails to respond, then the seller should be allowed to leave feedback. If the appeal is successful, then the bidder should be allowed to leave feedback as well.
posted on January 14, 2001 08:20:48 AM newjayadiaz, to check all negatives on a ebay user: http://www.vrane.com/ef.html
pickersangel, locking both parties works well, as long as the seller does NOT leave the neg before they file the NPB alert. Otherwise it is still open to abuse by a dishonest seller.
One other point, if the appeal is successful because the seller lied, then only the bidder should be allowed to leave feedback. Since the seller lied in the first place, there is no reason to believe they will not retaliate with a negative feedback.
Any feedback system better be fair to both sides or it won't work.
posted on January 14, 2001 09:17:21 AM new
I leave negs for all my non-paying bidders. Fortunately there haven't been many.
I did just leave my first neg on a seller. It was the first she recieved but the item was totally misdescribed, shipping was grossly overcharged and packaging was shoddy. I didn't think that a refund of the item price (wihtout shipping) really did it.
That was one upset seller, but when I saw her 'explanation' on my feedback comment I knew I had done the right thing. Clearly this was the way she treated all her customers - but no one had left a neg before.
posted on January 14, 2001 11:48:49 AM newEmail a suggestion to eBay that they should lock out feedback once a NPB alert is issued, and a neg is automatically posted to the bidder. Maybe then more people would leave negatives.
OK, I've heard this before and it is a pet-peeve of mine.
Lets see if I understand this, your buyer did send you payment -he provided a scan of the money order receipt. But since the post office lost it, and you filed NPB and left him a neg, he should have the ability to leave feedback taken away from him!?!
So you will probably eventually get the money, and he gets a neg and absolutely no recourse. There are two sides to every story, and the seller is not always right (or even honest). The feedback system is far from perfect. I buy more than sell, but if ebay implemented that rule, I would never buy again. It would be toooo easy for dishonest sellers to take the money and run.
So what exactly would stop a dishonest seller from just plain pocketing the money and filing NPB? The buyer?? No, he is not allowed to leave feedback!
[ edited by BlondeSense on Jan 14, 2001 12:04 PM ]
posted on January 14, 2001 11:56:50 AM new
I left a negative this morning after filing an FVF credit. Felt fine. I figure if they don't respond to an NPB alert, they get what they deserve.
posted on January 14, 2001 12:11:53 PM new
Hmm...wouldn't it make sense if eBay would simply show the number of NPB's in a bidders profile? This way most of the silly and ugly comments could be eliminated and a seller could easily decide when to terminate a bid based on that information.
Isn't that at least as logical as the number of bid retractions that are displayed?
posted on January 14, 2001 01:10:25 PM newSosoal, there would still be errors since sometimes the check is in the mail, or the post office did lose it, but I like it. Yours is a much fairer solution than disallowing someone from leaving feedback.
[ edited by BlondeSense on Jan 14, 2001 01:11 PM ]
posted on January 14, 2001 03:21:57 PM new
sosoal,
After reading all the replies I think that you have thought of a very good solution! Why doesn't ebay think of stuff like that?! You should submit it to them.
posted on January 14, 2001 03:34:50 PM newmshomo: I've left over 150 negs for deadbeats and to be honest it doesn't bother me at all. The only thing that bothers me is that the bidder never paid. You did the right thing by Negging him and warning all future sellers about this guy!
BlondeSense: I also believe that once we file a NPB & FVF against a bidder, that bidder should be "locked out" from being able to retaliate in a neg to the seller. HOWEVER - I think they should have the chance to prove they sent payment (a cancelled ck, mo, etc) and if they CAN prove it to ebay, then they should be "unlocked" from leaving a NEG - or maybe even perhaps the NEG they received for non-payment should be retracted.
posted on January 14, 2001 04:27:03 PM new
Execgirl, just wondering, how often do the deadbeats retaliate and post a negative to you? I would leave more negatives, but that's what scares me.
I think locking out feedback is a good idea once a NPB and FV credit is requested, but maybe with the option of during the 10 day period, the seller has the choice of leaving a positive or nothing (incase payment arrives), and after the 10 days, an automatic negative gets posted to the buyer and nothing or a neutral to seller.
BTW: I had an auction end today, the buyer just emailed me, and guess where he lives? Alberta! Muhahahahaha!
posted on January 14, 2001 04:29:10 PM newmotive: About 10-15% of the deadbeats have retaliated. I've left over 150 negs, I've received about 20 retaliations. Out of those 150+ negs, 45 of them are NARU'd.
posted on January 14, 2001 04:34:56 PM new
As a seller, I know if someone had 2500 positives and 45 negs, that's a very good ratio, but some buyers just see the negs and forget how many positives there are.
Do you know what the allowable percentage of negatives to positives is that eBay allows before you get NARUed?
Also, if you don't mind my asking, how many unique positives do you have to offset the negs?
posted on January 14, 2001 04:43:39 PM new
ExecutiveGirl, Thanks. That's encouraging to hear. I never used to leave negatives, for fear of retaliation.
I'm starting to think it's a good idea to do it, but I thought of a safer way to do it, I'm sure I'm not the first person to think of this, but we file for the NPB alert, then late on the 9th day, while the item is still on the database, we post a negative.
Hopfully the deadbeat won't notice until the next day, and at that point, they won't be able to access the transaction, or atleast I think it would work like that.
posted on January 14, 2001 04:45:54 PM newmotive: I have bad news for you! A bidder can leave feedback for at least up to 90 days after the auction ends. My mom received a feedback today for an auction that ended in OCTOBER. So there's really no "safe" way.
[ edited by ExecutiveGirl on Jan 14, 2001 04:46 PM ]
posted on January 14, 2001 04:51:42 PM new
ExecutiveGirl, don't the listings become unavailable after the FV and insertion credits are issued? I just checked one item I had listed 6 weeks ago, for which I received credit, and the buyer was NARUed, that item is already off the database. I posted a negative just before it was taken off.
I asked eBay if there is a definate way to know when an item comes off the database. According to eBay, they just made an upgrade that enables an item to be accessible for 90 to 120 days after the auction (through the Feedback Forum), with no way to specifically predict exactly how much time is left before it becomes unaccessible.
posted on January 14, 2001 04:57:08 PM newmotive: That's the first I've heard of that. I've accessed several auctions after I've left the buyer a NEG and filed my FVF's on that bidder.
Last I knew, we could access all old auctions at LEAST up to 90 days after the auction ends...
posted on January 14, 2001 05:00:47 PM new
Maybe this was because the buyer got NARUed. Perhaps under normal circustances it would still be accessible for 90 days (now, possible up to 120 days)
posted on January 14, 2001 05:05:00 PM new
I think it was an Ebay glitch. I'm still able to see all my auctions even when I filed a FVF on my bidder and they are NARU'd...
this sort of neg can actually work in your favor - demonstrating that you DO act professionally and DO expect bidders to follow through on their transactions.
