OT: Giving negative Ebay review

[Nil Else]

I don't do much ebaying (sold 3 items within about a year) so don't have a good sense of how things work over there. Here is a little question that came up: I just got burnt buying a $5 cell phone battery for an older phone. It was described as new OEM in original packaging but what I received was a used battery that came in a dime bag and holds charge hardly over 24 hours; not much better than the dying battery I was trying to replace.

The question: Is it worth pursuing/giving this guy a bad review/reporting to eBay etc for $5 item? Would this possibly cause someone to go out of his way to give you nasty reviews later just for the sake of getting even with you... I mean does this kinda thing happen? Am I over thinking this? I'm asking because I've been entertaining an idea of little ebay/Amazon thing getting rid of some of my overstock inventory and sorts that I have from a business I used to have and I can see that any negative review would not be a good thing. It bugs me that this guy continues to sell similar crap... so ethically, I ought to, right? Should I bother?

[eddief]

let him know about your experience. Request in a straight forward way what you think is a fair remedy to the problem. Give him a chance to make it right. Should be a no brainer. If he has no brain, give him the hammer ie, "I was screwed by this dude."

I have 250 positive feedbacks and no bad ones. I like how ebay works when it works and I protect my feedback by staying in communication in both directions.

[veggieburger]

How is his existing feedback? If it's decent, email the seller and express your concern. Wait for response and go from there. A big part of the feedback I leave is based on how they communicate...

Good luck.

d

[Benjamin]

did the seller leave you feedback already?

did you contact the seller to see if there was a mixup of some sort?

i've bought and sold hundreds of things on ebay over the last decade +, and i've been burned maybe once or twice, never in a major way, so in my experience, that's unacceptable, even for some $5 thing. i want to get what i'm promised.

that said, $5 is not really worth getting into some internet battle (for me, at least)

email the seller, see what happens.

[AndrewS]

There is a time limit on how long you have to leave negative feedback. If you are giving the seller the chance to make it right (which is as it should be), make sure they know that you need resolution by a certain date.

I've been burned by overseas sellers and long transit times using up that period. Feedback is an important part of Ebay - make it worthwhile. If they're willing to rip off people for $5, they'll do it for more.

[Nil Else]

He has 99.2%(356) Positive Feedback and no, he has not left me a feedback yet.

Here is the thing: I've been around the cell phone biz for a while and I know how the recycle/refurbishing companies collect the batteries from returned phones etc and sell them bulk to other smaller companies. This guy should not head the title description by "NEW OEM". He should have described what kind of battery it really is then I would have known these batteries are basically crapshoot. I went ahead and bought it based on "NEW OEM in original unopened packaging" description because I know the New OEM batteries in original mfg packagings are good.

As far as I'm concerned, personally, it's no big deal, however, I just wanted to get an understanding of the dynamics of how this works.

[cadence90]

Ebay revised its feedback policy a year or so ago.

"More fast facts about Feedback:

* Along with an overall rating, buyers can also rate sellers on the details of the purchase. These detailed seller ratings are anonymous, and don't count toward the overall Feedback Score.

* Since Feedback becomes a permanent part of your record, buyers are encouraged to contact sellers to try to resolve any issues before leaving neutral or negative Feedback.

* Buyers can revise Feedback they've left for sellers in the case of a mistake.

* Sellers can leave only positive ratings for buyers. That means buyers should feel free to leave honest Feedback without fear of retaliation. We also have safeguards in place to protect sellers against unfair negative or neutral Feedback."

[Nil Else]

* Sellers can leave only positive ratings for buyers. That means buyers should feel free to leave honest Feedback without fear of retaliation. We also have safeguards in place to protect sellers against unfair negative or neutral Feedback."

Is it possible for a seller to invert the situation, ie, track you around/your sale items and go out of their way, eg, buy some inexpensive item you're selling etc, to leave negative reviews...another words 'if there is will there is a way'... and this would obviously exclude open businesses such as eBay store front etc.

I know I'm thinking way extreme here but then, as I get confronted everyday, it really takes all kinds to make up this world. It's just my personality to try to cover all bases before I start anything... not that I often find myself managed to pull off the feat to my satisfaction.

[vqdriver]

It seems that your eBay activity thus far has been limited so feel free to leave honest feedback if they don't make things right. If you feel they'll be vindicive then you can just open a new account with eBay and ditch this one.

Kep in mind when dealing with them that some sellers will make promises to waste your time and stretch the thing out long enough you can't leave feedback at all.

Personally I find informative negative feedback the most useful and may sometimes buy anyway. I will ignore the random scathing negatives that don't describe the dispute.

Don't sweat the feedback. Just make an effort to contact the seller viaeBay messaging and then be honest in your comments section, which is pretty limited in size anyway.

[cadence90]

Is it possible for a seller to invert the situation, ie, track you around/your sale items and go out of their way, eg, buy some inexpensive item you're selling etc, to leave negative reviews...another words 'if there is will there is a way'... and this would obviously exclude open businesses such as eBay store front etc.

I know I'm thinking way extreme here but then, as I get confronted everyday, it really takes all kinds to make up this world. It's just my personality to try to cover all bases before I start anything... not that I often find myself managed to pull off the feat to my satisfaction.
Wow, that IS extreme thinking! :)

First of all, as a seller you can block any buyer, so the seller would have to open a different (with 0 transactions) account if you block him/her in the future in order to pull off your scenario...quite unlikely imho. Plus, someone selling older $5 batteries on eBay is unlikely to "track you down", I think.

My advice?
1) Try to rationally work it out with the seller first of all. If you receive no satisfaction and you're still pissed, then leave negative feedback, definitely. As vqd said you can always sell your future stuff under a different account.
2) If you receive no satisfaction and you're still worried about any possible "repercussions", then don't leave any feedback at all, write off the $5, and move on.

[thegunner]

the whole point of negative feedback is so people know he's a dick in the future. by all means try to resolve it, but if that doesn't work, then give the negative feedback... it's really quite hard for him to come up with a way to 'get you back'

[Nil Else]

Wow, that IS extreme thinking!


Plus, someone selling older $5 batteries on eBay is unlikely to "track you down", I think.



I know... :) entertain me.


Btw this seller is selling many of the same battery and other cell phone accessories so I know this person is a small retailer or someone who does it as business. With the inception of eBay/amazon it is normal practice to price the actual product really cheap and make your money from shipping & handling charges; these guys will charge full additional shipping charge per each one even if you order multiple of the same item. The point is this guy makes his living selling on ebay.

[LouDeeter]

Much ado about nothing in my opinion. Too much stress over $5.

[dimsy]

I havent read any of the other posts beyond the OP's, however i'd say try and resolve it through EBAY MESSAGES specifically and not directly through e-mail. if that doesn't produce any results. give him negative feedback and take the $5 hit. It'll at least let people know before they buy from him that he's a suspicious one to be (possibly) avoided. sucks that you got burned but you live you learn. I've bought thousands of things from ebay and have not been burned yet. But I make sure to scour their feedback for negatives and I never buy from anyone without any feedback, especially expensive items. better luck next time.

also, for future reference, because a users feedback states 100% positive, doesn't necessarily mean they've never received negative feedback. The feedback calculator only tallies them up from the previous 12 months.

[Ralph]

Good feed back is very important to any E Bay seller. So I would give them a chance to fix things before I gave negative feedback. And as above noted, keep it in the system in the messages area, where you have E Bay record. If no resolution quickly, then give them negative feedback.

[Nil Else]

I did send him a message yesterday through Ebay Message. We will see how he responds.

BTW THIS IS NOT ABOUT $5. I'm merely trying to grasp how the review system works and pans out with all its might and faults.


Another question (but related in a way): I'm trying to bid on an item but I think this is the first sale item for this seller. The thing I'm concerned is he does not have any picture of the actual item but rather a stock photo and no return accepted plus this being his first item... Thoughts?

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=270644732751&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT#ht_500wt_1149

[mo3039]

You've gotten good advice on the item you already bought.

I personally would never buy an item from a seller w/ 0 feedback. Any random 'how do i go about selling on ebay' inquiry would tell that potential seller to buy a few small items first and start getting positive feedback before trying to sell anything. This goes double for an item without a real pic and one over, say, $5. ;)

[dimsy]

You've gotten good advice on the item you already bought.

I personally would never buy an item from a seller w/ 0 feedback. Any random 'how do i go about selling on ebay' inquiry would tell that potential seller to buy a few small items first and start getting positive feedback before trying to sell anything. This goes double for an item without a real pic and one over, say, $5. ;)

+1, i had close to 90 positive feedback comments on my account before i sold anything. and then a string of consecutive positive feedbacks as a seller solidified my ability to sell items without too much trouble.

i received 1 negative feedback from an erratic dude who didn't bother to read the auction or look at pictures as the main picture i used was stock and the rest were of the item. it was a really sour experience but luckily it'll be off my % calc in a month or so.