Got Negged for not leaving a buyer feedback

[watermeloncornbread]

So this one's a new one for me. I got negative feedback from a buyer because I didn't leave them feedback. Not leaving feedback is entirely a fault of mine, I tend to put feedback on the back burner which I understand isn't a great practice. But is not leaving feedback grounds for a negative? Can I dispute it? I've tried to contact the customer to resolve it, but I don't think I'm going to be able to settle with them as they're now messaging me from a new account, and they sent me a strong message about my "bad business practices" and they're calling me an "ass" and "scammer" for not leaving feedback. The feedback they left didn't even mention any specifics, they just wrote their ebay handle in the feedback field. I'm not sure what to do, any advice is appreciated.

[turquoisetulips]

So this one's a new one for me. I got negative feedback from a buyer because I didn't leave them feedback. Not leaving feedback is entirely a fault of mine, I tend to put feedback on the back burner which I understand isn't a great practice. But is not leaving feedback grounds for a negative? Can I dispute it? I've tried to contact the customer to resolve it, but I don't think I'm going to be able to settle with them as they're now messaging me from a new account, and they sent me a strong message about my "bad business practices" and they're calling me an "ass" and "scammer" for not leaving feedback. The feedback they left didn't even mention any specifics, they just wrote their ebay handle in the feedback field. I'm not sure what to do, any advice is appreciated.OP 

Yes I think you should try and dispute it for two reasons . One is that feedback is voluntary and secondly feedback is supposed to be about the purchase itself and how well  the seller handled the transaction .  I don't  think your buyer has enough  of a beef  to warrant  giving negative feedback.  This is not to say that you shouldn't at least try a bit harder  to leave feedback for your buyers . Some people believe it's very important  and since  they are paying customers   you should try to  do your best  with it    I'd like to add that  it sounds  like that  particular  buyer may have a lot worse problems than not receiving feedback..  Tulips 

[fashunu4eeuh]

Hi, feedback is an entirely voluntary program. Neither party is under obligation to leave it, and it violates no policy to forgo it completely. That said, some buyers expect it and want it. However, it sounds like your buyer has crossed the line and may have violated the Member Contact policy, link below. Profane or hateful speech is not allowed, nor are threats or spam. If they have, then report the buyer after reviewing the policy. Right now, be sure to add them immediately to your Block list to prevent them buying from you again or retaliating in some worse way. As for removal, I don't know if that will be possible. You can always call Customer Service to attempt it. Sorry this happened to you.

https://www.ebay.com/help/policies/member-behavior-policies/membertomember-contact-policy?id=4262

[watermeloncornbread]

Thanks, I'll try and dispute it. I should probably go back to leaving feedback the way I did when I was new to ebay, I always used to give feedback as soon as I shipped to encourage the buyer to leave me feedback but I suppose I got lazy about it.

[chapeau-noir]

I would call and detail the harassment and accusations, plus their bizarre feedback. It's absurd to leave that kind of feedback because someone didn't get their little gold star. Don't let someone like that push you around into changing your business practices - you did nothing wrong.

ETA: I leave FB when I ship, too, but sometimes I forget - I would be really taken aback that someone would be that immature about it - I mean, we're all supposed to be over 18, not 12.

[luckythewinner]

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@watermeloncornbread wrote:

I'm not sure what to do, any advice is appreciated.

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Sellers have been coming to this board for years asking about feedback removal, and to be honest we are not very good at predicting whether eBay will remove feedback or not.

The only thing you can do is try and see what happens. 

[mam98031]

If it is the one that is currently showing on your account as being from this past month, I'm not sure how you know they left that due to you not yet leaving FB as they say nothing about that.  And what they have said won't give you any grounds to have it removed.  Sorry.

[watermeloncornbread]

I contested the feedback through the website, but I think I'll call them as well. In situations I've had in the past talking to a rep over the phone was the only way I could win cases and disputes. It always seems like they put the buyer before the sellers.

[watermeloncornbread]

They messaged me on a newly created account stating the negative feedback was because I don't leave feedback. Plus that message mentioned the fact that I had to partially refund that transaction because a piece was missing. There's no way it's a random person, they wouldn't have known specifics like that. Same customer, different account.

[chapeau-noir]

Normally I would say there's no way to remove that - but the harassment is another story - IF they are able to connect the accounts so it's worth a try.  IAC, the harrassment warrants a report. Block that ID, BTW, if you haven't had any transaction or communication with that ID, blocking it and also indicating that you don't want any communication with that ID, will pretty much cut that off.  I'd still call.

If you can't get it removed, it will not hurt your account since there is nothing connected to it (SNAD for instance) to warrant it, and anyone who reads it will wonder what the he!! it means and probably decide it's just some crazy thing.

ETA: Cross posted with OP.  They go on about missing pieces - I think they have some missing pieces themselves, be sure you block the other ID.  Sounds from your latest post that this isn't their first rodeo if they came up with a new ID to do that.

[watermeloncornbread]

I'd say it's definitely not their first rodeo, blocked both accounts. I peeped their feedback out of curiosity, and it seems like they've caused issues with at least 3 other sellers (sellers used the positive feedback option to state they blocked the buyer). With an account that's less than half a year old too.... 

[phanoto]

""So this one's a new one for me. I got negative feedback from a buyer because I didn't leave them feedback. Not leaving feedback is entirely a fault of mine, I tend to put feedback on the back burner which I understand isn't a great practice. But is not leaving feedback grounds for a negative? Can I dispute it? "

You might be able to get the negative feedback removed if you can show that the buyer gave the negative for no other reason than you did not leave feedback. 

If the buyer is rude to you in the emails, you might be able to have something done about it by reporting the emails.

I would also sometimes forget to leave feedback quickly enough to satisfy the buyer if  did not leave feedback right after I print the postage.

[inhawaii]

I predict you WILL be able to get it removed especially if you have messages from the buyer stating the reason they left you that negative was purely because you didn't leave them feedback. 

If it makes you feel any better, i would not be discouraged from buying from you because of that negative.  It may as well say "potato salad".

[the*dog*ate*my*tablecloth]

As a buyer I would say you cannot trust bad feedback left by sellers like that. If they don’t believe the rules apply to them, how do you know they tell the truth? Good on you for following the rules.

Since you have an email telling you it was because of feedback, you should be able to get it removed.

[the*dog*ate*my*tablecloth]

If you don’t get it removed and want to leave a follow up, come here and talk about it. Negs don’t bother me but nasty follow ups do