Is it alright to not respond to a message from a potential buyer who has worrisome feedback profile?

[ki_toys_cards]

I have recently gotten a message about one of my items up for sale. There is nothing wrong with the content of the message per se, but when checking the person's profile, they have on multiple occasions received feedback from sellers that state this person did not pay for items they won or purchased. The only feedback this particular person has left for their purchases is particularly negative as well. Overall, their page is a bit worrying for me as a seller, and I would like to avoid trouble if possible. Will I get penalized by ebay for not responding to messages such as this? I apologize this is quite a novice question, but advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank you in advance!

[katzrul15]

Yes, you can ignore

Best part about this job.  You can choose to engage or not.  If your research about your Buyer concerns you, put them on your BBL.  (Blocked buyer list).

[lamber9347]

@ki_toys_cards You are not obligated to answer any messages. You will not be penalized as there is no policy stating you must reply, so you won't be breaking any policy on this platform. You should add this buyer to your blocked bidder list or they can still purchase from you. If they do purchase and you cancel then you may receive a demerit on your selling account. Best to be proactive, which you are attempting to do. Best of luck to you....

[pikabo-icu]

Great replies above..

Will provide you with a link to your blocked bidder/buyer list, just in case.. 

https://www.ebay.com/bmgt/BuyerBlock 

[ki_toys_cards]

Thank you so much, @pikabo-icu , @lamber9347 , and @katzrul15 . I really appreciate your responses, they are all very helpful and gives me the answer to how to handle this situation and will no doubt help me in the future as well! Many thanks!

[donsdetour]

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@ki_toys_cards wrote:

I have recently gotten a message about one of my items up for sale. There is nothing wrong with the content of the message per se, but when checking the person's profile, they have on multiple occasions received feedback from sellers that state this person did not pay for items they won or purchased. The only feedback this particular person has left for their purchases is particularly negative as well. Overall, their page is a bit worrying for me as a seller, and I would like to avoid trouble if possible. Will I get penalized by ebay for not responding to messages such as this? I apologize this is quite a novice question, but advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank you in advance!

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If you know where your blocked bidders list is USE it.

[certifiedcitynet]

We always block anyone who leaves negs for reputable sellers. Always. 

[glenvonnie]

2% of buyers cause 100% of your problems, after 20 years I've seen some real fruitcakes.

Sometimes they out themselves ahead of time and give you an opportunity to avoid issues, I would block them now.

[ki_toys_cards]

Thanks, all! It feels odd to block someone before they make a purchase (as they technically have not done anything wrong to me yet), but I suppose that is the point- so that they cannot make a purchase and therefore avoid trouble before it happens. I'll add them to my list.

I've grown very cautious after a quite disturbing experience with a buyer not too long ago. If blocking a worrisome account preemptively can spare me from a similar experience, I'll gladly do it. Thanks again to everyone for your input!!

[cardsnmore2004]

Just like stated above. Just block them and you will be ok. Most will just go away if you dont respond anyway. 

[drydenhei]

I know how you feel.  I've become reluctant to list additional items for sell. 😞

[flyingmvp]

Follow your instincts (to block - or not to block 🤔)  that buyer actually did you a favor...

[chapeau-noir]

@ki_toys_cards  Also be sure to mark the question as 'answered' in the drop-down next to the item in your seller hub so it's not sitting open on your sellers page.

Sometimes people do us a favour when they write and show us their horrible feedback.

ETA:  Also, not responding means you can block them from further communication with you (use the 'block communications' setting) - they can still communicate but they have to go through your profile, etc. to do it and most will not.

[ki_toys_cards]

Thank you for the tip! I did not realize that I could mark questions as answered. I was always answering questions in messages, but still saw I had unanswered questions! I'll be sure to mark them from now on!

I've currently added the user to my block list, so hopefully that will prevent any trouble that could've potentially occurred with that person.

[soh.maryl]

Have picked up on a different part of your message that no one seems to be addressing here.

Sellers are never allowed to leave negative FB for buyers.  This includes negative wording in a positive FB.

If a seller does that, the smart buyer should contact eBay and get it removed.  That seller will then have a "defect" on his account.

There is a better way to address a non-paying buyer situation than trashing their feedback.

Just sayin'.