Archive for the ‘Negative Feedback’ Category

Dear eBay Queen:

I have a customer that wanted to buy four different items out of my eBay store.  My eBay listings say I do not combine shipping, because all my items are pre-packaged.  The buyer called me and we talked on the phone about shipping the items together. He asked me to combine the four items in a large box, which I did.  The next day he bought something else out of my store too, but I shipped that separately.

He emailed me to tell me the smaller box got to him last Friday. The large box has not been delivered and it shows on the USPS website that it never left my Post Office. The buyer is now wanting to wait another week to see if it comes or not.  If it doesn’t arrive by next week, he wants me to refund him and me file for the insurance.  He says it takes 3 months for insurance to be paid, and he is not going to wait on the refund for it.  Should I refund him and file or do I make him file? How should I handle this?  It is my first time I’ve ever had an insurance claim.

Theresa

Dear Theresa;

I have always wondered how well your way of shipping works.  In the last 13 years I have contemplated wrapping the items before I send them, but have never taken that step to do it.

The first thing I would do is contact your postmaster.  Give them the information on your package, and see if they can find it.  While you are on the phone with them, discuss the best way to start an insurance claim.  It’s been awhile since I have had a claim with USPS, but I do know it has to be missing for 30 days.  I’m not sure where your buyer got the 3 months.  I would also ask your postmaster if you need your buyer’s signature that it did not arrive.  If you do, I would send the paperwork to them, and let them sign and send it back before I refunded their money.   I hope your package is found and this works out for you and your buyer!

Dear eBay Queen:

I am going to have to file a non paying claim tomorrow. Can this person, (buyer,) in turn give me a negative feedback for pure spite?  I have been lucky and never received a negative in my 6 years of selling.  This time I think the buyer is a little nuts.  They’ve sent me ALL kinds of weird emails about the transaction.  I have found with most buyers, they won’t even take the time to leave a negative, but this buyer makes me wonder.  I strongly believe that if I have to file a non-paying buyer claim, they should lose the privilege of leaving negative feedback.  Is there such a thing? Can they leave feedback for me?

JP; Gardner, KS

Dear JP:

The answer is yes and no.   Let’s say you file a claim tomorrow, and the buyer leaves you a negative an hour later.  That negative will stay there for seven days until you close the claim.  Once the claim is closed, the negative is eligible for removal.  For more information, http://pages.ebay.com/help/sell/unpaid-items.html

I’ve had this happen to me before, and it seemed like the longest seven days I’ve ever waited. I even called eBay it annoyed me so bad.  Their advice was to respond, with something like: “Buyer has not paid”.  Don’t mention anything about filing a claim, as your feedback response will be removed, but not the comment the buyer left, unless it also makes reference to a claim.

I hope this buyer is like most, and pays without problems.

Strange eBay item of the week: eBay item: 330588694086 (enter this number in the eBay search box in the top right corner of the home page) Do you like ice cream? I’ve never given much thought to what I use to scoop ice cream out with.  Have you?  Check out this Pistol Grip Round Tube “Old” Ice Cream Scoop SOLD $292.92  http://www.ebay.com/itm/Pistol-Grip-Round-Tube-OLD-Ice-Cream-Scoop-/110736943334

Suzie Eads is a nationally known eBay marketer and eBay trained Education Specialist. She lives in Rantoul. Do you have a question for the eBay Queen? Email: questions@asktheebayqueen.com

Dear eBay Queen:

I was selling a Coach designer purse that I purchased 6 months or so ago in Branson at the outlet store. I listed this in the auction and said I would include the purse, box, dust bag and original receipt when I shipped the item. I did not know it, and no one pointed it out to me, but I accidentally had a typo in the title of the auction.  Apparently some of the other sellers were not happy about this and complained to eBay.

I don’t know why eBay, or the people that were angry just didn’t just send me an email letting me know there was a problem.  I return all emails quickly, and I would have corrected the mistake if I knew. The purse was pulled by eBay saying it was a counterfeit item without even a question or comment to me!

Did they even care about my 100% Positive remarks? I have found that they don’t bother to check or ask questions. They just take the word of sellers (probably their top sellers who are upset that I had the nerve to sell something that they sell).  I went on the eBay discussion boards and asked people there what happened, and I was not treated very well there either.

I am done with eBay, I can sell my items at a garage sale without all the hassle. I tried to call and found it very difficult to talk with anyone. I notice they don’t have an email option for sellers to ask questions. Why not be proactive, answer questions and be customer friendly? After all, who is paying their fees? I do believe it is the sellers. Well, I don’t need to pay them anymore. My husband told me to give it another try, he suggested I write you and ask for your advice in this matter.  So, eBay Queen, what would you do?

Angry, Lee’s Summit, Mo

Dear Angry:

I know where you are coming from, and I completely understand your frustration.  Fashion/Designer items are one of the hardest categories to sell in on eBay.  It is one of the categories where a seller could sell fraudulent or fake goods.

You mentioned you still have the receipt for the item. Did you include this in the photograph?  If I were you, I would contact eBay letting them know you have the original receipt, and would be happy to fax it in to them to prove it is not a fake Coach bag. Once you do that, they will remove the note they have on your account. 

I get that you don’t want to sell on eBay because of how you were treated. I urge you to give them a second chance.  This particular category can be pretty hard to sell in.  There are plenty of “purse snob” out there wanting to knock your listing down any chance they get.  If you do decide to give it another try with this purse, make sure you take a photo of the receipt and include it in the listing.  This is a one-time occurrence, and would not have happened in any other category.

Dear eBay Queen:

I won an auction for PlayStation 3 with games on the 18th of July.  I paid the seller with PayPal within 2 days, and since then I have had nothing but troubles with the seller. He originally said he sent it with UPS, then he claimed he recovered it and was going send the item with FedEx.

I have contacted the Police Department in his town, and I filled out an online Fraud Form.  I just recently learned from reading one of your old posts online that I could use the eBay or PayPal Dispute system.  I have filed a dispute, but I don’t know if that will do anything.  I have called the guy but he always hangs up as soon as he hears my voice.  I just want to know what is happening.

Will I ever get to see the PS3,or at least my money again?

David; Palm Springs, FL

Dear David;

You did the right thing by filing a dispute.  Has he responded to the dispute?  He will need to prove you received the item by entering a delivery confirmation in the dispute console.  If he does not do this, you will receive 100% of your money back.  If he seller has not responded to the dispute after 14 days, you can close it in your favor.  Here is more information regarding the dispute process.

http://reviews.ebay.com/How-to-win-a-Paypal-dispute-for-Buyers-and-Sellers_W 0QQugidZ10000000001676577

 My best advice is to stay on top of this, respond to the seller if and when he comments.  If you don’t receive resolution in 14 days, close the dispute and the money will be put back in your account.  I am so sorry this happened to you.  I hope you’ll give eBay another chance after this horrific transaction.

Strange eBay item of the week: eBay item: 130557149948 (enter this number in the eBay search box in the top right corner of the home page) Do you like Justin Bieber? Do you want to smell like him?  Here’s your chance!  SOLD $189.00  Check it out HERE

Suzie Eads is a nationally known eBay marketer and eBay trained Education Specialist. She lives in Rantoul. Do you have a question for the eBay Queen? Email:  questions@asktheebayqueen.com

Dear eBay Queen:

I would like your opinion on what I should do about a recent problem I had with a seller on eBay. I collect movie posters, and I occasionally sell them too.  A few weeks ago, I bought a really unusual movie poster for myself on eBay. The listing stated there was writing on the poster but it was faint. There was no mention of what the writing said, so I thought it was a name or address.  I couldn’t see the writing in any of the pictures, so I didn’t see any need to doubt the seller.  I really needed this piece for my collection, so I bid and won.  When I received the poster in the mail, the writing was not faint it was clear as day.  The worst part was it was the “F” word written in pencil prominently on the top right corner. I immediately wrote to seller and politely explained my disappointment.  

A week went by and no response from the seller.

I belong to an online discussion group that is just for movie poster sellers. I described what happened and got a variety of answers. A dealer-friend of the seller wrote to her and tipped her off that I was probably going to leave her a negative feedback. All of a sudden, I received an email from her. She claimed she had emergency surgery and that's why she never wrote back. I didn’t buy the explanation and I left her negative feedback.

Now, the seller friend of hers, (that I also know,) is pressuring me to remove the negative because she apologized and she said she was sick. My problem is I think she's sorry that I left her a negative, and not that she falsely represented an item. She ignored my email. I am sure that if I didn't write about this on that discussion group, she never would have written back to me.

What do you think I should do? Should I keep the peace between dealers and remove the negative, or let her suffer for her dishonesty? What do you think?

MovieLover; Hays, Kansas

Dear Movie;

This is one of those times where I think it’s imperative to dig a little deeper.  From what I understand, it is important for you to figure out if the seller really did have emergency surgery. Did your mutual dealer friend verify that she indeed had surgery? Is she a member of this discussion group? Has she posted anything about her surgery? I would verify that she did have the surgery (since this is vital in helping you make the decision).

If your seller did respond, what could she have done to have prevented her from receiving the negative?  Did you want to return the item? Keep and receive a partial refund?  I would email the seller and let them know what it is you would have liked for them to do. 

What will happen if you don’t remove the negative? You need to decide which is most important to you; the respect of your colleagues or to punish the person you feel did you wrong?

Dear eBay Queen:

I primarily sell books and other items on Amazon. I received this notification: “Canadian postal workers are on strike as of June 03, 2011. The strike will impact the delivery of shipments to Canada. If you have recently shipped orders to Canada via US Postal Service Media Mail, we encourage you to contact the buyers to let them know that delivery might be delayed. For orders you have not yet shipped, we recommend using a shipping method other than Canada Post during the strike.”

I am wondering what “shipping method” I am supposed to use besides Canada Post?

Jessica H; Kansas City

Dear Jessica:

The only shipping methods I am aware to Canada are the following:

·         Canada Post

·         United Parcel Service

·         DHL

·         FedEx

All of those will cost you quite a bit more than sending the item First Class International via USPS.  I would suggest you turn off international shipping, or if you don’t want to do that, you can always email the Canadian buyer and let them know that since the Canadian post is on strike it will take quite a bit longer for their item to get to them.

Strange eBay item of the week: eBay item: 290570418311 (enter this number in the eBay search box in the top right corner of the home page): It’s hot and time for a swimsuit! Check out this vintage Catalina Swimsuit SOLD $430.00. http://cgi.ebay.com/worlds-cutest-vintage-swimsuit-ruffles-Catalina-Sz-14-/290570418311

Suzie Eads is a nationally known eBay marketer and eBay trained Education Specialist. She lives in Rantoul. Do you have a question for the eBay Queen? Email: questions@asktheebayqueen.com