Non payment then feedback

[pats359]

This question has probably been asked before but anyhow...  I have lodged the appropriate complaint/details with ebay for an item that sold (17/1) but the buyer has not made payment, even after 5 polite requests.  I can't help but notice that the buyer has 80+ positive comments. 
The question is, when this dispute has been resolved & I receive my fee credit, I should leave negative feedback (so other sellers are forewarned) but what is to stop the buyer from doing the same to me in return? (in the situation that maybe they just changed their mind)  Even though I have done nothing wrong.  Does this sort of thing happen much? 

[leader-of-the-band]

No, sellers can not leave buyers -ve feedback and it has been that way for many years now. If you leave a +ve with a comment that has negative conotation then the 'buyer' can have it removed becasue it is a comment not consistent with the +ve rating (a false positive).  Additionally, you will receive a policy violation from eBay.

What dispute did you lodge with eBay?  If you haven't lodged a dispute the do the UnOaid Item case.  If it was an UnPaid Item case and the 'buyer' does not pay and you close the case they will not be able to leave feedback.  If they leave feedback before the case closes just wait until it closes and ask eBay to remove it.  Don't respond to any feedback they leave.  As much as leaving a false +ve may make you feel better, it is not worth it.

If you sent a mutual cancellation request to enable a refund of final-value-fees then the 'buyer' will still be able to leave feedback for you, but it may be negative and you will have a hard time getting it removed.

Come back here if you have many more questions or need any more advice.

[leader-of-the-band]

UnOaid = UnPaid (damned small keys on this keybard)

[pats359]

Thanks, I did the unpaid item thingie already.  Still waiting for it to be finalised by ebay.   So I don't need to leave any feedback at all, ebay will do it upon finalising the dispute yeah?

[davewil1964]

eBay won't finalise it for you. You need to close it after a minimum of 4 days from opening and before about 37 days from the sale date. You will get your FVF back and the buyer will get a strike. 2 or more strikes in a 12 month period will result in them not being able to buy from the prudent sellers who have the correct blocks in place.

[pats359]

Seems I have alot to learn.  I've been using ebay as a casual buyer and seller for 6+ years and only just came across my first problems this month!  Can't complain about those odds really.

Thanks for the comments

[leader-of-the-band]

When you are selling, ensure you have your bidder blocks in place.  These can let you block bidders that have more than 1 UnPaid Item strike in the last 12 months, or you can vary the time to more than 1 strike in 6 months, or as short as 1 month.  This block will certainly stop serial non-payers from bidding on your items so long as at least 2 of their sellers do the UPI thing with strikes issued.

If your non-paying buyer is the one that left you feedback stating they misunderstood pickup then I would not ask eBay to remove the feedback.  The reason is that if it gets removed the +ve rating may stand and the comment replaced with "This comment has been removed by eBay", which may leave potential buyers wondering why it has been removed.  The comment as it stands says nothing bad about you.  You can post a reply to that feedback saying something like "sorry you did not understand the pickup process".

[putney32]

for future reference when you have pickup items do not offer Cash on Delivery  (that is an australia post service)

if you are NOT willing to post or deliver then you should choose Cash on Pickup as the preferred payment method.