High Feedback user can remove negative feedback!

[*_forum_id_*]

The last six purchases I have made on eBay, have been horrible.  These purchases have all been in the last year.

One in particular, was a $300 item that was no where close to accurately described.    

I opened a claim indicating it was not as described - within hours of receiving the item.

Seller delayed responding for as long as they could before eBay stepped in disputing the claim of NAD and said the listing states, NO RETURNS!

Seller sent a refund on the last possible day as an e-Check.

e-Check failed to clear the first time.

e-Check finally cleared - it is now over 3 weeks from sale date

I left negative feedback due to seller's poor listing description and how they treated me in the claim process.

Seller has over 10,000 feedback and miraculously, it is 100% for the last year.   They have a lot of neutral and negative feedback over a year old, that say the same things - description was wrong, seller was confrontational.

Why is this sellers feedback 100%?  Because they can have negative feedback removed.   Feedback I left, was removed.   I didn't discuss a dispute, it merely stated the item was not as described.

 I buy collectibles and only purchase items that are listed to be in mint condition.   When a description says no flaws, it should have no flaws.    My feedback mentioned listing was not as described which was accurate and should remain in place.    A user with over 10K feedback will get more buyers because, hey, they have 100% feedback!    When an issue comes up, they will have negative feedback removed.    This is not an accurate reflection on the sellers reputation.

eBay lost the seller fees on my $300 purchase because they let the seller get away with not meeting the minimum seller requirements of having an accurate description.

[pburn]

"I left negative feedback due to seller's poor listing description and how they treated me in the claim process."

Mentioning the claim process is the basis for feedback removal. Below is an excerpt of a post from eBay staff concerning the wording of feedback. Maybe it will help you determine why your feedback comment was removed. Let me know if you'd like me to post a link to the thread.

Here's the excerpt:

Referring to an eBay or PayPal case outcome would be considered grounds for the feedback comment to be removed. Statements that indicate a case was opened, but do not indicate a result, would be allowed. Below I have provided some examples of comments that would be removable or not removable to give a general idea, but I want to stress that every feedback situation is unique and would contain a variety of factors that could affect our decision.

Comment Removable:

"I filed a claim with eBay and won"
"I had to open a request with eBay and got my money back from the seller"
"PayPal found in my favor, and refunded the money I sent."

Comment Not Removable:

"I wish PayPal would take a closer look"
"I filed an eBay Money Back Guarantee claim"
"I had to open a request with eBay"
"I filed a report with law enforcement"
"This person is under investigation!"
"I opened a case with my CC company and they gave me my money back!"

[pburn]

I ran out of edit time, but I want to clarify a couple of things. I should have said mentioning the claim MIGHT have influenced the feedback removal.

Second, if the entire negative feedback is gone--not just the comment, but the actual negative itself--there was most likely another reason the seller was able to get it removed. A comment that violates policy will be removed, but the negative itself will stay. If both were removed, there was some other reason.

Sorry I posted in such haste!

[*_forum_id_*]

I did not mention a claim in the feedback.   I merely said the item had flaws not described.

[pburn]

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@*_forum_id_* wrote:

I did not mention a claim in the feedback.   I merely said the item had flaws not described.

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Okay, well, in your original post you said, "I left negative feedback due to seller's poor listing description and how they treated me in the claim process." That's where I got the impression you had mentioned the claim process in your feedback comment.

Now I'm confused. Did you mention the claim process, as you stated in your original post, or did you not mention it, as you've said in your second post?

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[*_forum_id_*]

As previously statued, I did not mention a claim in the feedback.   Feedback stated that the item had major flaws that were not described in the listing.       My comment that I left negative due to seller blah blah, meant that it was due to the sellers arrogance that I left the feedback.   

If the seller had been apologetic or in some way took responsiblity for their false information, I would not have left negative feedback.   It was the sellers arrogance that had me leaving negative.   Based on their first reply to the case, I think they felt they would win.   Once they realized I would win, they responded with a return label.....just before eBay would step in.   Returned item was received within 3 days or inital receipt.  The sellers eCheck refund did not clear the first time.....they strung this along as far as they could.

My feedback, was accurate.   The seller did not accurately describe the item.    I know what to say and what not to say in feedback.   I don't know if feedback was removed due to a third-party vendor or if eBay removed the feedback.   Do some high-feedback sellers (not a Top Rated Seller) have feedback removal privileges?  

I know situations like this happen.   I am truly disappointed to be a witness to the feedback manipulation.

[*_forum_id_*]

Yes, the entire feedback was removed - rating and comment.  It's like I never left feedback.   

[omgitlightsup]

Feedback is not what it used to be. In the days before drop shipping was the norm on eBay, it actually meant something. Today, one neg can be offset in a matter of days by a few hundred or thousand positives. Sellers have to maintain a percentage, and the penalties they face are severe, so eBay allows them to remove negatives that are technically in violation... and many, if not most, negs are technically invalid in one way or another. It's like getting out of a speeding ticket because the cop put the wrong date on the citation. Yeah, you were speeding, but there are rules to play by.

So know that your negative feedback really doesn't have teeth, and that when you really can't put it behind you and feel that you must leave one, make sure you are following the book 100% if you want it to stick.

[iaintdoingit]

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@omgitlightsup wrote:

Feedback is not what it used to be. In the days before drop shipping was the norm on eBay, it actually meant something. Today, one neg can be offset in a matter of days by a few hundred or thousand positives. Sellers have to maintain a percentage, and the penalties they face are severe, so eBay allows them to remove negatives that are technically in violation... and many, if not most, negs are technically invalid in one way or another. It's like getting out of a speeding ticket because the cop put the wrong date on the citation. Yeah, you were speeding, but there are rules to play by.

So know that your negative feedback really doesn't have teeth, and that when you really can't put it behind you and feel that you must leave one, make sure you are following the book 100% if you want it to stick.

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What penalties?  FB no longer goes against a seller.  Has that changed?  Just curious!

[soh.maryl]

"So know that your negative feedback really doesn't have teeth, and that when you really can't put it behind you and feel that you must leave one, make sure you are following the book 100% of you want it to stick."

Sorry, but it seems to me that your remark above might be misunderstood by a seller.  It sounds like you are giving a seller permission to give a buyer negative feedback.  Couldn't you have just said that? 

[castlemagicmemories]

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@pburn wrote:
I ran out of edit time, but I want to clarify a couple of things. I should have said mentioning the claim MIGHT have influenced the feedback removal.

Second, if the entire negative feedback is gone--not just the comment, but the actual negative itself--there was most likely another reason the seller was able to get it removed. A comment that violates policy will be removed, but the negative itself will stay. If both were removed, there was some other reason.

Sorry I posted in such haste!

---

True; that is why I never refer to a case, period.  But still negatives disappear.

If the seller is in Free Returns, they are protected from negative feedback, even from SNADs.  It is removed automatically once a week, according to a Blue~and it completely disappears.  The only way the negative would stay on a Free Returns seller is if you kept the item.  

[airsheep]

Oh, nuts, I didn't know that. So a seller can totally be unresponsive and do all types of shenanigans, and ebay will helpfully scrub their record if they are in the free returns program. I wonder if there's a percentage or number of defects a seller in that program can receive before ebay quietly drops the protections, or tosses them out of the program altogether.

[castlemagicmemories]

Good question.  Just speculation on my part, but from what was said, I don't think there are those parameters.  They want to incentivize and reward those who offer services above and beyond the usual, or words to that effect.  So I'd say that is not a concern, as long as they keep offering Free Returns.

I don't think many were aware of this.  I was aware of the policy but astonished at the true interpretation.  I discovered this when a neg I posted for a blatant SNAD was removed.  It's like the best kept secret as many sellers weren't/aren't aware of this.

IMO Free Returns sellers aren't doing anything other sellers aren't as both come under the MBG for SNADs and the seller pays for return shipping.  And a SNAD isn't going above and beyond; it is not meeting basic standards.

But it is not my sandbox.

[greg5000]

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@*_forum_id_* wrote:

The last six purchases I have made on eBay, have been horrible.  These purchases have all been in the last year.

One in particular, was a $300 item that was no where close to accurately described.    

I opened a claim indicating it was not as described - within hours of receiving the item.

Seller delayed responding for as long as they could before eBay stepped in disputing the claim of NAD and said the listing states, NO RETURNS!

Seller sent a refund on the last possible day as an e-Check.

e-Check failed to clear the first time.

e-Check finally cleared - it is now over 3 weeks from sale date

I left negative feedback due to seller's poor listing description and how they treated me in the claim process.

Seller has over 10,000 feedback and miraculously, it is 100% for the last year.   They have a lot of neutral and negative feedback over a year old, that say the same things - description was wrong, seller was confrontational.

Why is this sellers feedback 100%?  Because they can have negative feedback removed.   Feedback I left, was removed.   I didn't discuss a dispute, it merely stated the item was not as described.

 I buy collectibles and only purchase items that are listed to be in mint condition.   When a description says no flaws, it should have no flaws.    My feedback mentioned listing was not as described which was accurate and should remain in place.    A user with over 10K feedback will get more buyers because, hey, they have 100% feedback!    When an issue comes up, they will have negative feedback removed.    This is not an accurate reflection on the sellers reputation.

eBay lost the seller fees on my $300 purchase because they let the seller get away with not meeting the minimum seller requirements of having an accurate description.

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eBay removes Valid Feedback for high volume Sellers faster than you can say "GTC has ruined my sales."

There is not a fair and even playing field here.

[castlemagicmemories]

Don't mention the claim process.  I never do so there is less chance the feedback can be removed.  I say, less chance because it can still be removed.

You can say difficult.