Posts Tagged ‘unfair negative feedback’

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;

What is going on with eBay buyers these days?  I just got my first negative this year. This person never contacted me, but she left me a negative, and wrote: “I miss read the ad”.  Why would she give me a negative if she misread something in my auction?

I emailed the buyer, apologized that she was unhappy, and asked her what was wrong. I also explained to her that she could have sent the item back for a refund, or at least let me try to correct the problem she was having first. I asked her if we could work this out and I sent a feedback revision. She has not replied to the revision, however she did email me back saying, “this is correct, I misread the ad.”  What can I do about this?

I checked her out a bit, and looked over her feedback and the feedback she has left.  She has a feedback score of 33 and left the same “I miss read ad ” on two other items.  I am thinking of getting her phone number and calling her, or should I or just let it go?

Teresa; Springfield, MO

Dear Teresa;

I completely understand your frustration.  I would get her contact information from eBay, and call her.  Try to be calm and professional when you call her.  Make sure that you explain to her that you want her to be happy with the item, and you would be happy to give her a refund if she sends the item back.

I would also contact griff@ebay.com and explain to him what happened.  See if he can do anything to help you out with the negative. I’m not sure it will meet eBay’s removal criteria, but Griff just might be able to figure out a way to help you out.

I don’t think in the current climate of eBay, a buyer should be able to leave a negative because they didn’t read the sellers listing.  Negatives should be about what a seller has done wrong, or how they refuse to make a situation right.  I hope that you get this worked out and the negative is removed.

Dear eBay Queen;

First of all, I would like to tell you thanks for all the helpful info on your website.  I am a fairly new eBay seller, with only 175 transactions.  My question involves shipping.  I want to provide my customer with fair shipping rates.  I bought scales so I could weigh the packages from home.  However, it does not really help with a shipping price until I see where the package is going to.

How do you come up with shipping costs?  Charging $7 seems high to the buyer, but as a shipper, they really do not consider what it really costs to wrap and ship their item.   Is that reasonable?  I have great feedback, but the handling time and charges is where people are being rather petty.  Most of the time I ship their package out the next day; it can’t leave my house any faster than that.  I usually just say $7, and purchase envelopes at Wal-Mart, but I was curious about what works for you.

Thanks for you time,

Melissa Ray

Dear Melissa;

Shipping costs can be tricky.  I think the best way to offer a reasonable shipping cost to your buyer is to use the shipping calculator.  With calculated shipping, all you need is the weight of the item.  You enter this weight when you list your item, and when buyers look at the listing, eBay will show the shipping cost from your house to theirs.

Here’s how I find accurate shipping weights; I know a USPS #4 box with packing weighs about 7ounces.  When I weigh my items I add the weight of the packaging to the weight of the items and then put that weight in the shipping calculator.  I also put in my listing “Shipping weight is 3.5 lbs and will be shipped from 66067.”  This way the buyer can do their own figuring if they doubt eBay’s shipping calculator.

Strange eBay item of the week: eBay item 330408176873 (enter this number in the eBay search box in the top right corner of the home page): Do you drink tea? Have you ever purchased a premium mug from the back of a tea box? Check this one out. Celestial Seasoning Premium 1993 Sleepytime Tea Mug SOLD $49.99 http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=330408176873

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? E-mail: questions@asktheebayqueen.com.