Seller feedback on buyers

Question

Is there some purpose for seller feedback on buyers? Looks like all eBay allows is "positive" rating for buyers, which makes the whole rating exercise entirely pointless. So are most sellers just skipping rating buyers? Does rating make any difference anymore?

woodland_gnome · Answer

I suppose it encourages buyers to leave feedback for sellers in the hope the seller will reciprocate. The feedback LEFT BY a potential buyer is far more illuminating than the feedback received as a buyer (also his/her retraction count for the past 12 months is on the feedback as a buyer tab).

Sellers can't leave negative (or neutral) feedback for buyers because too many sellers were using the threat of negative retaliation to discourage less than positive feedback from buyers no matter how warranted it was. And then if the threat wasn't enough, they would leave a scathing negative feedback for the buyer and seek a "mutual withdrawal." Since accurate and honest feedback for the seller is so much more important than for the buyer (all buyers have the ability to examine the seller's feedback profile before anything happens, while the seller is seldom able to do so and there are issues with taking action after the fact) eBay did away with negative and neutral feedback for buyers in 2008 and banned getting around that by leaving a negative comment on a positive rating (instead of just doing away with feedback for buyers).