Sellers paying buyers to change negative feedback

[blj1008]

In discussions with others on a facebook page related to the Moncler designer brand, there is a network of sellers on ebay with mass produced accurately copied counterfeits of these jackets and lately some accounts have been getting negative feedback for selling fakes but suddenly this feedback gets changed to a positive remark.  I have noticed this 5 times in the last month or so.

Anyways, someone on a facebook group purchased from them and returned it due to it being fake and left negative feedback, and he has an email from them offering $50 to change the feedback, 30 up front and 20 after it's done.  I would have to assume this is a huge policy violation that could result in suspension of the account but the link I found for reporting such activity is a broken link.

I assume it would be best for them just to call ebay and talk to someone or is there an actual form where they can report it without going through the hassle of the ebay phone system?

[godzilla_goose]

@blj1008

atikovi,

No, the subject of this thread is sellers paying buyers to change negative feedback.

As blj1008 wrote in the OP, s/he assumed it's a (huge) policy violation.

This subject falls under the eBay Feedback Extortion Policy:

http://pages.ebay.com/help/policies/feedback-extortion.html

An example of what the seller can't do is "Offer monetary compensation, like a partial refund, to the buyer in exchange for positive Feedback or revising negative or neutral Feedback."

[godzilla_goose]

blj1008,

I honestly do not know how effective such an idea would work (for the BUYER) when the disreputable seller offers $50 to the buyer to change the negative feedback. I mean, I am assuming that the seller is going to send (via PayPal) to the buyer $30 upfront and then $20 after the feedback is changed. Let me assume that there is a buyer that agrees to this and does change the negative feedback to positive.

But, what is there to stop the disreputable seller from filing a "quasi-chargeback" (for a lack of a better term) when the buyer cannot provide any "tracking" since feedback is an "intangible" item? Furthermore, failing that, what is there to stop the disreputable seller from contacting their own credit card company for the same kind of "relief"?

[atikovi]

But if I remember correctly, didn't Ebay or it's agent a few years back offer a service for like $25 that would review and try to remove negative feedback?

[godzilla_goose]

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But if I remember correctly, didn't Ebay or it's agent a few years back offer a service for like $25 that would review and try to remove negative feedback?

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atikovi,

 eBay, many years ago, did have such a service.  It was called Square Trade Mediation service and that is all it was, a mediation service.

[godzilla_goose]

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But if I remember correctly, didn't Ebay or it's agent a few years back offer a service for like $25 that would review and try to remove negative feedback?

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atikovi,

https://www.squaretrade.com/merchant/pop/popup_odr_pricing.html

From that web page page, it was $20 per case.

[atikovi]

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But if I remember correctly, didn't Ebay or it's agent a few years back offer a service for like $25 that would review and try to remove negative feedback?

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atikovi,

https://www.squaretrade.com/merchant/pop/popup_odr_pricing.html

From that web page page, it was $20 per case.

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Yea thats it. So what's the difference between paying that and paying the buyer to remove a negative?

[godzilla_goose]

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But if I remember correctly, didn't Ebay or it's agent a few years back offer a service for like $25 that would review and try to remove negative feedback?

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atikovi,

https://www.squaretrade.com/merchant/pop/popup_odr_pricing.html

From that web page page, it was $20 per case.

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Yea thats it. So what's the difference between paying that and paying the buyer to remove a negative?

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atikovi,

I don't know (exactly).  Maybe during the time eBay had SquareTrade Dispute Resolution service available, eBay, I surmise, had a financial arrangement with SquareTrade.

To me, (disreputable) sellers paying to have negative feedback removed is akin to bribery and that undermines whatever little integrity is left of eBay's Feedback system.  Honestly, you should ask eBay's Brian Burke about Feedback during one of the weekly eBay chats.  Back in 2005, I had conversations with him about eBay Feedback on the old Feedback Discussion Board (defunct several years ago).

I mean, when eBay itself whitewashes negative feedback (with legitimate complaints) from some < cough, cough > big-box store sellers, can prospective buyers really trust these sellers' feedback profiles?

From my recollection, IF a seller filed a case with SquareTrade, the buyer had to respond within a certain time frame.   Some possibly misinformed disreputable sellers would try and game the system with SquareTrade by closing the case BEFORE the buyer could respond with the expectation that SquareTrade would remove the negative feedback WITHOUT the express agreement from the buyer (because the buyer failed to respond to the case).

After SquareTrade, eBay had its own Mutual Feedback Withdrawal system and in my opinion, THAT was abused by disreputable eBay sellers and that is why we don't have eBay Mutual Feedback Withdrawal anymore either (BEFORE) eBay had "ENOUGH", and then dropped the BIG HAMMER on sellers in 2008 forbidding ALL eBay sellers from leaving negative/neutral feedback for buyers.

In my opinion, eBay had made a LOT of changes over many years to its Feedback Forum and gave sellers many chances.  In my opinion, there was a segment of eBay sellers that just kept abusing the system after each and every policy change eBay made to its Feedback Forum and eBay, in my opinion again, simply got "fed up" because disreputable sellers who abused the feedback system drove away good buyers (AND their MONEY) away from eBay to spend elsewhere.

[castlemagicmemories]

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I take the 30 up front get them to send me the feedback revision link and then turn around and give them another neg saying that they paid me to change my feedback

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[castlemagicmemories]

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I take the 30 up front get them to send me the feedback revision link and then turn around and give them another neg saying that they paid me to change my feedback

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Since you can't leave two negs for one purchase, I believe you mean you post a follow up comment to your original neg.

[allisomas_5]

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I take the 30 up front get them to send me the feedback revision link and then turn around and give them another neg saying that they paid me to change my feedback

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Since you can't leave two negs for one purchase, I believe you mean you post a follow up comment to your original neg.

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No. What mean is when you revise feedback you can revise the negative to a negative

[castlemagicmemories]

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I take the 30 up front get them to send me the feedback revision link and then turn around and give them another neg saying that they paid me to change my feedback

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Since you can't leave two negs for one purchase, I believe you mean you post a follow up comment to your original neg.

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No. What mean is when you revise feedback you can revise the negative to a negative

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Thank you for clarifying.  It was my understanding that you cannot revise a neg to anything other than a positive.  

[webwanna]

I don't think I would actually follow the suggestion of taking $30 for a feedback revision and  then leave a negative again or leave negative message notifying of the payment made for feedback revision in a positive.

The seller has the address of the buyer.  That does not seem like a wise/safe move to me. 

If you want to notify Ebay of this type of behavior, you will have to call in.  They don't have a Report this Seller button.  They do have Report this Listing which the buyer could use if there is a similar item listed to the one they already bought.