Crazy Buyer
Summary: timeofjewels shared an experience of dealing with a difficult buyer on eBay who requested to cancel an order after it had been shipped. Despite offering a 30-day free return policy, the buyer claimed the gemstones received were fake, kept the items, and left negative feedback. mam98031 and others advised addressing such situations professionally, emphasizing return policies, and checking the buyer's feedback history for patterns. Several participants discussed strategies for responding to negative feedback and the importance of not personalizing business transactions. Concerns about eBay's handling of such cases and feedback policies were common throughout the discussion.
We have been selling on Ebay since 2011 with a steady record of customer satisfaction, great service and impeccable reputation maintaining a 100% positive feedback until today.
Buyer decided to buy one of our gemstone lots. A day after purchasing and while the order was shipped and in route to her, she contacted us asking to cancel the order. I told her that the item was shipped and she needs to get it first and then if she doesn't like it she can return the item, as we offer 30 days free returns. To this reply, she responded with :"Nevermind".
Today she received the item. She sent me a massage telling me that all the gemstones are fake. I told her that we have been selling on Ebay and also on other platforms for many years and we are expert gem distributers and employ a professional gemologist. I told her that evidently all our customers are happy, we got thousands of successful transactions, and a steady following of happy customers who purchase time after time. We had never had a buyer accuse us of selling fake or synthetic gems, and we maintained a perfect score on Ebay 100% until today.
But said all that we told her that if she doesn't like the items, she can return them, that was our policy all along, free returns. One would have assumed these facts to be self evident, elementary, and common sense.
Not for her, she decided that she wants to keep the gemstones which she paid $95 dollars for. She then went and gave us one of the nastiest and slanderous feedbacks. And I ask what have we done to deserve to be treated like this? Why does Ebay let this charade to continue? why Ebay is letting buyers the chance to leave negative feedback without following through with the seller's offer to return the item for free? Why did I have to spend 2 hours on the phone on Ebay trying to resolve this?
Why there is no better screening on Ebay and stronger penalties for buyers who lie, manipulate, slander, abuse and waste the time of sellers who only want to conduct good old fashioned honest business?
Thanks for hearing me out,
Seller
reallynicestamps
·3 weeks agoYou can Respond to feedback, although it is usually a Bad Idea.
The crazier the FB, the calmer and more professional the Response. You are talking to your future customers not the nitwit.
"Offered free return label and full refund. Refused." would be my suggestion.
limm_1360
·3 weeks agoWho cares about one negative review? We can see through it. And expect there to be one or two of those people.
gloryglorygifts
·3 weeks agoI just got a message this week from a customer claiming that I lied on the listing. I responded with the name of the manufacturer, who is well known in the U.S. and a respected company so they could google them. I do not sell plated medals, crosses nor crucifixes and also told them that. I suggested that they could send it to me (free of charge) to have it refinished, or return it for a refund. Haven't heard back yet, but I'm 99% sure that a negative will be left. Of course, it's an international sale, so postage will be a write off at the end of the year because it's going to be ugly (for a refinish).
I feel your pain.
timeofjewels
OP3 weeks agogurlcat
·3 weeks ago@timeofjewels May I ask why you set your feedback to make all sales 'private'? I don't recall ever seeing (here in the forums) a seller explain that. Try as I might, I can't think of a good reason, but maybe that's a failure on my part.
What I do know is this: I frequently shop on eBay and usually read sellers' feedback as part of deciding who to trust. When I see that (Private listing)
1. It eliminates what could be key information for considering a buyer's comments if they don't mention what the item was or how much they paid, and/or the seller's response comments.
2. It automatically causes suspicion because I have no idea WHY the seller made this privacy choice. Do they do special deals with elite customers and don't want me to know? Are they embarrassed about some of their items and don't want me to know?
All I know is, when I see that word, I feel unwelcome, barred, excluded. it reads to me as "This information is need-to-know, and you don't." Which makes me think, "Well then maybe you don't need my business."
gurlcat
·3 weeks agoWelp, looks like yet another seller won't answer this question. Maybe someday one will. 😔
mam98031
·3 weeks agoSellers can't have their feedback set to private, only buyers can.
gurlcat
·3 weeks agoI didn't SAY their feedback. I said their sales, as in listings. And if you had just gone to the OP's feedback before replying to me, you would have seen it with your own eyes.
And I guess it's time to remind you once again:
DO
NOT
REPLY
TO
ME
MAM.
naj-4163
·3 weeks ago188779237248, 158203576447, 158203576499, 158203576500 ok so these are some of the order numbers where I keep seeing the same bidder each time bidder number 3533. I don’t want to hear that’s it’s because it’s all boxing or that I’m also on them too so he could be feeling the same way about me. No he starts the bids on all of them then he will chase your bid up I have other examples on other sports I just don’t have the time to dig and post
bashort
·3 weeks agotype up your feedback response on notepad or something and then let it sit for a few days before you post it.
Very likely you will change it
inhawaii
·3 weeks ago · EditedNobody knows who's telling the truth, you or the buyer.
Nobody knows what was sent.
Nobody knows what was received.
That's why ebay will usually side with the buyer.
My advice to you is exactly what I would do...
Write a short, sweet, emotionless reply to that negative feedback.
"Sorry you are unhappy with your purchase. Please return for a full refund."
Remember, the reply you leave is NOT for the buyer.
It's for your future potential customers to read.
Good luck.
kibble-net
·3 weeks agoFirst neg since 2011? I'd say that's a big win.
Don't sweat the small stuff.
luckythewinner
·3 weeks ago · EditedSellers "vote" for policies with their listings, and millions and millions of sellers have voted by listing billions and billions of items here - including you.
drnusbaum
·3 weeks agoEbay was the dominant p2p selling site for decades, sellers were here because it was the main/only option, even though the policies against sellers have always been gross. But now there are so many new selling sites/apps with huge success... and they all seem far more seller friendly. I wonder if Ebay will stay dominant.
shire123
·3 weeks ago@drnusbaum A lot will depend on what you sell. Clothing maybe yes. Antique/collectibles maybe no. But it does take a long time to unseat the king. Not sure how you determine a "huge" success though. I imagine one way to determine a success would be if listings in a certain category go down. Haven't seen that yet here on ebay.
drnusbaum
·3 weeks agoMy daughter started selling on a clothing doomscroller p2p app, and I'm kind of jealous how seller-friendly it is in every way. And, well I thought it was mainly clothing because of how my lady friends use it (seems extremely popular), but my daughter immediately found out it's filled with pop culture collectibles too ($20-$100 range), and she's already been able to sell those easily. I don't know about expensive items, ebay might stay dominant for that because of buyer concerns (although as a small seller I would NEVER take the risk with expensive items on ebay unless it was in the Authenticity Guarantee program).
And for example there's another newish website that is for Magic cards specifically, seems to be growing very fast, and very easy, seller friendly, lower fees. I think ebay is going to see ever more competition from sites/apps like this (there seems to be a bunch already), I would hope it eventually leads to Ebay making their seller policies less horrible to keep the p2p/independent seller market and not just end up simply a market for big retail corporations (& China) under another domain name.
shire123
·3 weeks ago@drnusbaum Good examples. But until these other sites start hurting the bottom line don't expect any changes. From corporate's viewpoint if it isn't broken don't fix it.
If you look over a long period of time, ebay income has generally kept rising (and still is).
The demise of ebay has been predicted almost continuously for various reasons since almost the beginning.
timeofjewels
OP3 weeks agoI replied to eBay representative who refused to remove the slanderous feedback:
Hi Althea. I think this negative feedback qualifies for removal for several reasons, but primarily because eBay clearly articulated it on their site. Please view the first one on the list. This is exactly what buyer did, asked to cancel after placing an order and before receiving the item:
Buyer-related transaction issues
We remove neutral/negative feedback when we can see that:
The buyer asked to cancel after placing an order, winning an auction, or otherwise committing to buy
The order was canceled due to an issue with the buyer’s address
The order was canceled because the buyer didn’t pay
The buyer is raising an issue that was correctly disclosed in the listing
The buyer has been actioned under our Abusive buyer policy
The buyer requested a change to an order after they’d paid (and their feedback relates to this)
muhamm328342
·3 weeks agoSome times we have to face that mean type of buyers but for resolve it we have to adjust with them like to offer them a partially refund or refund full payment until we know that he is scamming with me after that we can just report him on eBay. In some of cases If ebay take action against them and declare us right then I think it's good but in mostly cases buyer win until he's wrong because there is no policy against them.
chrisseascornerboutique
·3 weeks agoSounds familiar. I think there are too many out there that know and play the system. I usually will report a buyer for misusing the return policy if I get some strange return reason or if I get a Wack job like what who you just described. I'm had two nightmares in my first few years, but so far not affecting feedback - thank heavens. I was out some money, though, obviously.
emuestate
·3 weeks agoI'm only a hobby seller, so maybe this isn't the best advice, if you are running a business, but I think you should respond that the gems she got were, in fact, real. As a buyer I always read feedback, all of it, if it is not extensive. She's raised the question, and you should address it. Some potential buyers will wonder. There are scammers that want something for free, or reduced cost beyond reason, and are angry when they can't manipulate you into getting what they want, and leave a bad review. But I'm not sure about your buyer. Sounds like she might have a reality disorder of some sort. It might help to assure her again in a reply, that what she bought is real, in a kind manner. If she were on psychiatric unit saying something that isn't true, the staff would correct her, instead of going along with it, or ignoring it. I agree, Ebay needs to do something about the unwarranted negative reviews. A human being needs to look at these things, and use some common sense. There should be a way for ebay to privately collect complaints, on both buyers and sellers, and deal with them if warranted. The community shouldn't be forced to flush them out with negative comments.
grann-4629
·3 weeks ago@emuestate ... Read what @inhawaii said.
The feedback being discussed isn't that bad ... get over it.
emuestate
·3 weeks agoWell that's easy for you to say, because you are at 100%. It doesn't look like you've had this happened to you. When you are an honest and helpful seller, it is difficult to see all your work get hammered by one nasty person. You might feel different if/when it happens to you. I was at 100% since I joined, until I recently got ONE negative review and now I'm at 94%. Now hardly anyone is looking at my listings, even though ebay claims it doesn't harm sales. I've moved half of my items to another website. If there is a silver lining to this ordeal, it's that my items are getting way more views than they ever did here. I had almost a hundred views on an item that I just listed, and it sold at full price, with no seller fees, in a day or so. That item was here for a couple years with hardly any interest in it! Unfortunately, there aren't a lot of other websites to sell vintage car parts, or I'd completely move! You only have a feedback of 43, so you would also have huge drop in percentage with ONE negative feedback. It's frustrating when you believe the buyer is just mad they couldn't get it for free or for less money. It had nothing to do with the quality, price, or speed it was sent to them. I was very polite to the buyer. I encouraged (her I think) to only search for sellers that take returns, when she became demanding and rude. Instead, the next day she bought the item anyway! I wish I had some way to block the sale of the item, because I knew she was going to be nasty.
grann-4629
·3 weeks ago · EditedAccording to what I have read here I will always be at 100%. I have very large collections of comics, graphic novels, non-sports trading cards, and other stuff that I will probably end up selling, but never on eBay.
It sucks that your feedback dropped to a percentage that most buyers will avoid because of one negative feedback.
Best of luck bringing that number back up again 😎
christworks
·3 weeks ago · Edited@timeofjewels Stop. Do not respond to the feedback - at least not yet.
The feedback provided by the buyer violates policy. If it is okay, I'm going to copy/paste their feedback here so others can see it without having to go look.
Your buyer stated: "Do not believe this seller. They claim they have all natural and not synthetic gemstones and the only authentic one I got out of 164 carats were some topaz. Plus they were almost all chipped."
The first sentence, "Do not believe this seller" violates eBay's policy against harming a seller's reputation. At a minimum that sentence should be removed. The rest does not violate policy. If eBay removes the entire feedback, great. If they only remove that line, then and only then would you respond to it. I'm not saying you should.
Here is an appeal you can copy and paste into the removal request. Edit however you'd like. It is vital, however, the actual policy that was violated is cited as an AI will review your initial request.
I am requesting removal of this feedback under eBay’s policy prohibiting “personal attacks that could harm the reputation of the seller or their business and could not reasonably be viewed as constructive criticism.”
The buyer begins by telling other members, “Do not believe this seller.” This is a broad attack on my honesty and credibility as a seller, not merely a description of the item or the buyer’s experience with this particular transaction. It directly warns the entire eBay community that I am dishonest and should not be believed, which can seriously damage the reputation of my business.
The buyer made a sweeping accusation against my character and business practices. I therefore ask that eBay remove the feedback under its policy against personal attacks that could harm a seller’s reputation and cannot reasonably be viewed as constructive criticism.
eBay stopped removing feedback when sellers offered to take an item back and the buyer refused. They changed this policy after federal laws were revised. The response was for eBay to leave automated positive feedback if a buyer didn't. They did this because they knew sellers could end up with more negative feedback then they might otherwise under the old rules.
timeofjewels
OP3 weeks agoWell said, Thanks.
authentic*vintage
·3 weeks agoI second this advice
inhawaii
·3 weeks ago"The first sentence, "Do not believe this seller" violates eBay's policy against harming a seller's reputation."
Wouldn't ANYTHING negative that buyer writes about a seller harm their reputation?
christworks
·3 weeks ago@inhawaii Not necessarily. If the comment can be viewed as constructive criticism related to the transaction, then it does not violate policy.
In this case, the statement is broad. It implies the seller lies and cheats and offers no value for the seller to improve.
This would not violate policy: "Many of the gemstones in this lot were not genuine. I had to return the entire purchase since it wasn't as advertised. The seller should make sure they correctly describe what is being bought."
mamacassidy
·3 weeks agoI would respond to the feedback, but I would not say anything derogatory about the buyer (including that she asked to cancel).
I would simply say:
"Since 2011 we have been selling quality gemstones on ebay, and we stand behind every single gemstone and their authenticity. If any buyer, for any reason, is unhappy with their purchase, we accept returns within 30 days. Please open a return and send them back for a full refund."
Feedback replies are meant for the other buyers to read, and if other buyers read that this person is claiming they are fake but didn't return them will know that she's the crazy one. No one is keeping $95 worth of fake gemstones.
inhawaii
·3 weeks agoThat's a little longer than my version ... but I like it.
gurlcat
·3 weeks ago · Edited@mamacassidy I'm curious why you say not to include the part about the buyer asking to cancel after the item had shipped. There's a difference between derogatory statements and illustrating the illegitimacy of accusations. It's a thin line, but it is there.
Picture future buyers as a jury. If I'm a prospective buyer reading that this person had asked to cancel, especially after shipping, it tells me that this buyer is an unreliable witness because they obviously had spending remorse before even receiving the item, AND they must have screws loose if they think a seller can "cancel" something that's already on the way.
Given such info, then her feedback is clearly illegitimate, but the seller should also reinforce their expertise and the fact that the buyer could have returned the item for free, if her accusations were true.
mamacassidy
·3 weeks agoUnless the seller can provide a screenshot with the cancellation request, then it's just their word against the buyer. (I don't think you can add a screenshot to a feedback reply). I have read many, many feedbacks from both buyers and sellers who feel "wronged". And since we readers have no way to prove either side, it usually just comes off as finger pointing.
In your analogy, if I was a juror, that would just seem like making excuses.
If a seller takes responsibility, states provable facts, and says WE DO EVERYTHING WE CAN FOR BUYER SATISFACTION, including accepting returns, then I feel like they are safe to buy from.
Just my personal opinion.
timeofjewels
OP3 weeks agomamacassidy
·3 weeks ago@timeofjewels That screenshot works for this forum.
The point I was making was that you can't post that in the feedback reply. So anyone reading the feedback will just see your word against hers.
With that said, I am surprised that the feedback wasn't removed. If I were you, I'd try to contact a rep via Instagram. I'd tell them what you have told us here and send them a screenshot of the message where she asked to cancel.
gurlcat
·3 weeks ago · EditedI swear I saw a message screenshot in a feedback just the other day, but now I can't remember who it was. Anyway I wouldn't need that; I would have no trouble believing a seller saying the buyer asked to cancel. It's just too specific a detail to make up, but you can agree to disagree.
@timeofjewels I do agree with mama that you should give the instagram employees a shot. They're more likely to remove it than the overseas phone reps. No guarantee but it certainly wouldn't hurt anything to try.
12345jamesstamps
·3 weeks agoFirst of all, I wouldn't respond to feedback of buyer...let it get buried.
When you respond to a buyer 's feedback...it usually pops up rather than gets buried...especially looking at a sellers' feedback on the eBay APP on an iPhone.
Let it go.
I agree as others...I wouldn't respond to buyer's emails other than once in a business like form...'please return for a refund'....nothing more.
I wouldn't even go into details about this or that...what's the point?
The moment you get 'please cancel'...it is going to go in your favor.
sin-n-dex
·3 weeks agoBuyers lie. I was accused of mailing an empty box to a customer (when it wasn't even a box that I mailed), and he posted in my feedback that I was more evil than satan. Not much you can do, but I would never challenge a fake accusation, just tell them to return for refund if they're not happy.
bonanza125
·3 weeks agoUnfortunately Ebay doesn't remove feedback which has something to do with the description. Your return policy is 30 days with buyer pays for shipping. If you had 30 days with seller pays for shipping there could be a chance for removal but it's still highly likely it wouldn't be that's due to the feedback dealing with description. Here is what you do reply with a polite response saying it's not fake. The buyer requested cancellation after item was shipped and then block the buyer. Also Ebay has no clue if the buyer lied or not. They go by policy. Ebay would just say buyer didn't violate feedback policy.
timeofjewels
OP3 weeks ago · EditedI believe that if buyer claims that item not as described the free returns kicks in and the seller pays. So she kept the gems, refused the possibility to return it for free, and left a nasty negative feedback, I also saw that she left a similar negative feedback to a different seller who sells gems too. Something is wrong with this buyer. Very strange.
bonanza125
·3 weeks ago · EditedThe feedback wasn't "nasty" at all. They were giving an opinion. Now will buyers believe what they are saying over you if you left polite response most likely not. If it were nasty Ebay would remove it. Yes unfortunately you get buyers who may have a complete different opinion on gem stones than say other buyers. Now those opinions may not actually be true and they may have a thought of an item being fake which they clearly aren't. Yes the buyer has an option to return which they elected not to do. Just the way things are. I've been in the same situation in the past. Nothing can be done to make specific buyers happy or change of mind.
timeofjewels
OP3 weeks agoIts nasty because you don't go to a store that sold cookies for 20 years that everyone loves and enjoys and buy a cookie and you personally don't like it, and you come out and get a sign and stand in front of the entrance and yell out to customers don't buy these cookies, they are bad. Anyone who does such a thing is a nasty person. Not only nasty, I would say evil. If she doesn't want the item she could have returned it for a full refund. She didn't want to. Why? Why would she lose $100 for absolutely no reason if seller is willing to offer a full refund? Remember she wanted to cancel even before she received them item. Does this sound normal to you? On what planet is it ok to try to ruin a person's reputation based on made up accusations? Is she a gemologist? No. Did she provide any evidence to back up her accusation? No. So you believe that it's ok to behave this way?
grann-4629
·3 weeks agoPosting an opinion about a person on an eBay feedback page is a little different than standing in front of a business with a sign that might even get you arrested. Is it worth it?
Ignore the feedback and carry on ... it ain't worth a hill of beans.
btw, there is no 'evidence' here ... it's all 100% hearsay.
bonanza125
·3 weeks ago · EditedTwo different situations. Holding a sign in front of a store is a protest of the business. Buyers do have a right to protest however they also have the right to leave feedback which is usually through a yelp review or an viral FB, instagram review. That gives people a chance to read through what others opinions are. On Ebay buyers only way to express that opinion is through feedback. I do agree with you that your buyer should've just returned the item and you issued an immediate refund upon return. Totally in an agreement. However they aren't required to. They have a right to leave the feedback and you have the right to appeal that feedback. It's 1 negative. No big deal. It won't hurt your selling. Just wait 1 year and it will be removed from your percentage. It's tough on some people to get a negative. I totally understand but in business you can't take things personal. Have to move forward.
18704d
·3 weeks agoI would respond to the Neg FB with something comparable to this:
Buyer payed. We shipped. Buyer then asked to Cancel. We advised she use our 30 Day Free Returns. Buyer Chose to Keep items, despite their 'claims'.
adamcartwright
·3 weeks agoI like that -- short, sweet, and sends every important message to future buyers.
mam98031
·3 weeks ago@timeofjewels I absolutely understand and appreciate your frustration with this transaction. While not all Ebay's fault, I respect why you are frustrated with them.
I don't recommend defending yourself like you did when the buyer contacted you with some perceived problem. That plays into their hands, it is always best to remember these are ALL business transactions and NOT a personal transaction. Treat them as such.
I would have responded something like this: I'm sorry you feel there was an issue with your order. I do offer returns. Please feel free to file for a return in Ebay and I will issue you a return shipping label, at my expense, so that you can return the item to me. Once I have received and inspected the items I will issue you the appropriate refund.
If a buyer sends another message, I just copy and past the above message in response. Your buyer was hoping to bully you into a partial refund. One of the FIRST things to do when something like this happens, even before you respond is go to their feedback page and look at their Feedback Left for Others. That can be extremely informative. Often times buyers like this have tried this before and the feedback reflects it. One of the easiest ways to get negative feedback removed is to prove that the buyer abuses the feedback system. And if you see more negatives going to sellers, it is likely they have done this to others.
Ebay does react to this, but they need to know about it first. So let us know what you see when you go and look at their feedback left for others.
timeofjewels
OP3 weeks agoI offered her a full refund upon her returning the product. She had absolutely no excuse to not return the items besides trying to damage my reputation.
mam98031
·3 weeks agoJust because a seller is willing to process and pay for as return does NOT mean the buyer is happy with the transaction. While most returns are for a good reason per the buyer, it takes time and effort to return the item and then often they still have to go out and locate the product they need again. So the Seller's willingness to process the return as quickly as possible doesn't suddenly turn the transaction into a pleasant experience by the buyer.
timeofjewels
OP3 weeks ago · EditedYou're missing the entire point. Buyer asked to cancel the order even before receiving it. She was up to no good from the outset. The fact that you support such detestable and outrageous and inconsiderate buyer practices says more about you than anything else. We have done absolutely nothing wrong. 20 years of steady reputable business with thousands of successful transactions got to mean something. For her to claim that we are effectively out to cheat people is delusional and slanderous and designed to hurt our business. She had absolutely no valid reason to behave this way. Normal sane people don't behave this way.
mam98031
·3 weeks agoOMG you certainly read a lot into a post that was NEVER said. It is totally unnecessary to do this. And attempting to start a conflict on the thread is now welcomed here at all.
I said NOTHING about supporting the position of the buyer. I did NOT say you did anything wrong.
You are correct, once an order is shipped a cancellation of the transaction is no longer an option.
Often times buyers think it improves their chances or something to claim the items are fake in order to get a refund. IDK why some think this, but they do.
Buyers, when posting feedback, can post their opinions. Ebay has to allow them to do that. While if that feedback was on my account I wouldn't like it any better than you do, but it does not violate any policy that I'm aware of, which is likely why they didn't remove it.
The only option I can think that is left for you is to review the buyers feedback page for Feedback Left For others. Often times, while buyers convince themselves they are very clever, they will leave abusive feedback on others that did not play their game with them as they were likely fishing for a partial refund. If you see that they abused the feedback system on other sellers, you can contact Ebay and appeal on the fact that this buyer abuses the feedback system. If Ebay agrees, they will remove the feedback.
You will be better served not to take all this so personally as it is not intended to be personal. Every single transaction on Ebay is a business transaction.