Should sellers be able to leave negative feedback for non-payments?

[2011emc2]

As a first-time seller, I had a buyer who didn't pay and didn't bother to contact me or respond to my emails. I opened an ‘Unpaid Item’ case, which again got no response, and closed the case today.

Yet the only feedback option available to me was to leave 'Positive' feedback for this buyer.

Really, eBay???

This 'buyer' still has a '100% positive' feedback rating on eBay. How is this honest or fair? Shouldn't a feedback system allow members of a community to comment on their actual dealings with people in that community?

Little wonder some sellers try to sneak in negative comments using the positive feedback option, to try to warn other unsuspecting sellers. Yet eBay deletes these from buyers' profiles.

I think eBay should change its feedback policy in order to allow equal footing for buyers and sellers. So sellers would be allowed to either: (a) leave negative feedback - if only for non-payment; or (b) automaticallly note non-payments into each buyer's feedback profile, so these are clear for all to see.

It's not a problem to demonstrate that a buyer hasn't paid. Why not give sellers the same rights as buyers to leave honest feedback? Wouldn't everyone benefit?

I didn't ship the item because payment never arrived or cleared.  Still, what a negative experience, especially the shocking attitude toward sellers whose fees sustain and enrich eBay.

What is your opinion on eBay's feedback policy for sellers?

(Newbies: FB = feedback, NP = non-payment)

[thecatspjs]

Good on ya Jools 🙂

and still more voting activity on this thread over the past week 🙂

[davewil1964]

The action will be to do nothing. Especially considering the timeframe. Have any of you 'activists' heard of motherhood, direct from the cheat sheet, responses?

Regardless, eBay will never reinstate negative feedback for buyers, so your protests are p***ing into the wind. Fruitless and potentially uncomfortable.

[jools3078]

Thanks!! 😄 At least now hopefully more people with the same gripe might do the same, hey? 🙂

[thecatspjs]

Yup, you betcha, I reckon doing something, is better than doing nothing, or worse still, being a naysayer.

Merry Christmas to you jools, hope it is a restful and peaceful one for you and yours. 🙂

[jools3078]

Thanks again thecatspjs. I totally agree. Rather than bitch and moan I reckon if there's something you can possible do to change things, than you must give it a shot. Then, even if it doesn't work out the way you'd hoped, you can say, "Well at least I tried. And that's more than some have done." 

Hoping you and yours have a magical Christmas too and may all of your hopes and dreams come true in the New Year!!:-x

[digital*ghost]

Motherhood and so on??? What has that to do with anything being discussed here??? 

Motherhood statement.

It's essentially telling you what you want to hear, but without putting any actionable plan into play. (A bit like the maternal classic "we'll see". Eventually the child learns that it's used to give them a little hope in order to placate them for a while, but in reality it means no). 

[banf15]

So Chinese sellers selling fake gold jewellery should be able to leave negative feedback when a buyer realised they have been duped and refuses to pay?

Heck we should all make a habit of bidding on these sellers items and deliberately refuse to pay.

OP I agree with you in theory but because there are so many scammers trading from China allowing negative feedback would not be right. In a perfect world where eBay guaranteed and valued the items before being listed then allowing negative feedback would be a positive thing.

[***super_nova***]

Well done Jools; it will be a great Xmas present for all those sellers who left the false positives if eBay looks at that FB and starts issuing violations against them.  As already mentioned above eBay will not do anything against the buyer ID, it is up to sellers to protect themselves.

banf15 it is not just in China, there are plenty home grown scammers 🙂

[davewil1964]

and frequent stalker of Cats Pjs posts

Don't flatter yourself. I read all the posts in the threads I post to.

and are not willing to DO anything constructive either

Like most sensible sellers I do the constructive thing and block serial non-payers.

[thecatspjs]

Merry Christmas to Some of the Usual Suspects.