eBay Negative Feedback Suspiciously Removed?

[benebass]

Hi - had a really terrible eBay transaction a couple of months ago. Bought a packaged couple of Danelectro 63 basses (long scale & short scale) from a so called 'Power Seller' at a pretty good price. When they arrived, the invoice said they had been set up. However, one of them played really badly & buzzed beyond acceptable for a new bass, along with having problems with the finish (Danos have side tape & this was peeling off). I contacted the seller & returned the items straight away.

However, I heard nothing. I chased this up & they told me they lost the package in their warehouse, but would let me know when it had been processed. Again, heard nothing. Eventually called them & was told that, due to e-mail problems, only some of their e-mails hadn't been sent, but they didn't know which ones (which sounded suspicious...). Heard nothing again. Eventually, after saying I was going to escalate with eBay, they refunded me the purchase price through PayPal. I'd opened a return request stating the bass was damaged & they'd accepted it.

Now the thing that rattled me was, although they refunded me the purchase price, under UK Distance Selling regulations the seller should refund return shipping for faulty goods, although there is no obligation to do this if goods aren't faulty. When I asked the seller about this, they claimed there was nothing wrong with the bass & so had no obligation to refund shipping. To quantify this they went on to say that there can't have been a problem as they sold the bass to someone else & having to adjust the action for buzzes was a standard maintenance task, so was not a fault!

I was tearing my hair out at this point so I contacted eBay, but they said they couldn't help as they only provide a marketplace to trade (thanks for that!), so I did the only thing left & left negative feedback. Didn't say anything emotive or nasty - simply said that I had received poor after sales service & they refused to refund shipping on faulty goods (i.e. what happened). A couple of weeks later I received a request to retract the feedback - the seller claimed my feedback was incorrect as there was no fault with the bass, but I declined this as I felt I was right to say it was poor service.

Thought nothing more about it until I logged into eBay & noticed that the feedback I'd left had disappeared! It seems that sellers can have feedback removed if you don't agree with it, without the agreement of the person who wrote it! Surely this can't be right - it means that feedback can't be trusted if it can be removed without agreement from both sides.

Does anyone know anything about this? The cynic in me is wondering whether a high-volume seller has enough clout to get feedback removed - the worying thing is that, if this happens regularly, then you can't trust feedback to reflect what a seller's like. What do you think?

B.

[thepurpleblob]

You can trust Ebay feedback now? I didn't know that!

[Beedster]

[quote name='benebass' post='654821' date='Nov 14 2009, 08:40 PM']Does anyone know anything about this? The cynic in me is wondering whether a high-volume seller has enough clout to get feedback removed - the worying thing is that, if this happens regularly, then you can't trust feedback to reflect what a seller's like. What do you think?

B.[/quote]

I sincerely hope that isn't the case, and I hope you feel sufficiently motivated to follow this up with ebay and keep us all posted as to your progress.

I recently dealt with a US 'power seller' who sent me a significantly not as described item, and it was only my threat of negative feedback that resolved the situation (neither ebay or Paypal were really any use), so I'm guessing the ability to remove negative feedback isn't universal? On that basis I'm wondering whether, given that the seller in your case may have claimed your negative feedback related to their refusal to refund postage, and that their refusal in was (technically) within ebay rules, they were able to have the feedback removed on that technicality?

Please follow up on the basis that it probably has implications for a lot of folks here

Chris

[Platypus]

Well I'm no expert on eBay, however it was always my understanding tath negative feedback could be appealed and if sucessfull, removed by eBay admin. Maybe I'm wrong on this, though if it is the case that feedback can be removed by the admin team, I'm sure a 'PowerSeller' would have a lot more clout than the average punter.....

[lemmywinks]

Is there still the option of leaving feedback?

Also name and shame please, there's a sticky for dodgy eBay sellers IIRC. I'm sure there's a few of us who'd like to know who the seller is, i don't wanna buy a bass of them that's for sure!

[BassBus]

Don't forget the option of Watchdog. If they have enough complaints about any organisation then they follow it up. Ebay has featured on the program before.

Edited November 14, 2009 by BassBus

[supabock]

Guys, I bought an item from a seller who held the item for 6 weeks claiming non payment even though my card was debited at transaction. Seller left me neg feedback to which i replied. Seller then retracted and amended feedback, but still in a neg way. Item arrived, totally different from the photo of the item i bid and won. I raised a dispute for non receipt of item, then one for mis selling as item as it was not as photo........ Guess what, Ebay and paypal, found in the favour of the seller, so it begs the question, who and what is right and who gets to choose what feedback and result is good??

[Beedster]

[quote name='lemmywinks' post='654858' date='Nov 14 2009, 09:53 PM']Is there still the option of leaving feedback?[/quote]

Yep, but sellers can't leave negative for buyers.

[supabock]

My seller used the positive feedback route to leave a negative comment about me

[6stringbassist]

I really would never ever trust ANYONE on ebay.

If I buy something I always travel and collect the item. And I prefer people to collect anything from me that I sell.

Ebay/Paypal now hold onto the funds from a sale for up to 21 days, even if the buyer gives positive feedback.

[lemmywinks]

There's still decent sellers on there.

I've had to return 3 items recently as they were not as described, one through a Paypal claim. Got my money back every time as i always make sure i get the claim in early. Recently i bought a media player that was reprogrammed so Windows saw it as 32gb when it was really a low quality 3gb unit. Got the refund from the seller within a day and got to keep the media player, which is actually ok

Last week i bought a microdimm memory stick from a seller outside eBay (forgot to bid). He let me have it for £1 and it turned up the next day. His comms were excellent and he turned out to be a decent chap so i stuck extra in his Paypal account. The stick turned out to be twice the capacity he thought it was too!

[benebass]

Hi - thanks for the comments. I have followed it up with eBay & I'll let you know what comes back.

The scary thing is the fact that eBay never asked me about the feedback removal - I was sent a request from the seller to modify the feedback & when I refused they went ahead & removed it anyway. Makes a mockery of the whole system - if an eBay admin had asked me about it & had voted to go with the seller then I'd have been happier, but this is a bit of an Orwellian cover up.

Watchdog could be a good one if eBay don't reply with anything decent - not sure if I'd fancy meeting Anne Robinson though!

Won't name the seller on here until I hear back from them as it could be detrimental to my case (it's amazing how fast posts on here can be found via Google!).

Cheers,

B.

[Balcro]

I think ebay is in decline. Ever more examples of dodgy sellers and manipulated feedback.

I came across this today - well, he could be mistaken -

[url="http://cgi.ebay.com/EPIPHONE-BY-GIBSON-BASS-GUITAR-EXCELLENT-CASE_W0QQitemZ150387677152QQcmdZViewItemQQptZGuitar?hash=item2303cdd7e0"]http://cgi.ebay.com/EPIPHONE-BY-GIBSON-BAS...=item2303cdd7e0[/url]

Yea, of course,

Balcro

[AM1]

I complained to Ebay recently about misrepresentation, for which there is actually a Statutory offence and penalty.

Ebay ignored it, then I escalated to Trading Standards/Public Protection, who sent the following, utterly pathetic, response:

----- Original Message -----
From: <[email protected]>
To: <am>
Sent: Monday, November 02, 2009 2:55 PM
Subject: enquiry reference XXX

>
> FAO AM>
> Your email to this service concerning XXX Motor Company has been passed to
> me to consider. In light of your experience I will be writing to the
> trader to remind them of the need to ensure that any advertising they
> produce is accurate and further where standard text is used in an advert
> that it reflects the true position of any sale.
>
> Many thanks for brining this matter to our attention.
>
> Regards
>
> Spineless Wonder
> Senior Trading Standards Officer
> Public Protection, XXX Council
> Tel:
> Fax:

------------

The point is, mis-selling under the Trades Description Act is an offence, punishable by either a fine up to 5K or a custodial sentence. Trading Standards' response is unacceptable - they are the Enforcement Authority for these offences. Needless to say, I wrote back to demand that they recognise the offence and act accordingly, not just slap the seller on the wrists. False warranties on motor vehicles is a matter in the public interest, so why do both Ebay and Trading Standards turn a blind eye? Apparently dollars are more important than safety or honest sales, conducted with integrity.

I hope you follow this up, there are implications for all of us in letting such matters go.

Edited November 15, 2009 by AM1

[OldGit]

[quote name='Balcro' post='654908' date='Nov 15 2009, 12:02 AM'][url="http://cgi.ebay.com/EPIPHONE-BY-GIBSON-BASS-GUITAR-EXCELLENT-CASE_W0QQitemZ150387677152QQcmdZViewItemQQptZGuitar?hash=item2303cdd7e0"]http://cgi.ebay.com/EPIPHONE-BY-GIBSON-BAS...=item2303cdd7e0[/url][/quote]

A little OT but.. fair, I'd say.
He just read the headstock. I imagine he knows nothing about basses and I don't know if epiphone made a p bass bodied, explorer necked bass. After seeing the Gibson Jimi Hendrix strat recently it seems possible.

[TheButler]

My brother used to tell me that his old company used to buy their way out of negative feedbacks on ebay... not sure if thats an official thing mind you. Apparently if the comment is deemed offensive or something then they'll remove it as well. I think they just like to keep their power sellers happy tbh.

Edited November 15, 2009 by TheButler

[velvetkevorkian]

[quote name='OldGit' post='655026' date='Nov 15 2009, 10:24 AM']A little OT but.. fair, I'd say.
He just read the headstock. I imagine he knows nothing about basses and I don't know if epiphone made a p bass bodied, explorer necked bass. After seeing the Gibson Jimi Hendrix strat recently it seems possible.[/quote]
I used to have an Epiphone strat copy with exactly the same headstock. Looks legit to me.

[spinynorman]

[quote name='Balcro' post='654908' date='Nov 15 2009, 12:02 AM']I think ebay is in decline. Ever more examples of dodgy sellers and manipulated feedback.

I came across this today - well, he could be mistaken -

[url="http://cgi.ebay.com/EPIPHONE-BY-GIBSON-BASS-GUITAR-EXCELLENT-CASE_W0QQitemZ150387677152QQcmdZViewItemQQptZGuitar?hash=item2303cdd7e0"]http://cgi.ebay.com/EPIPHONE-BY-GIBSON-BAS...=item2303cdd7e0[/url]

Yea, of course,

Balcro[/quote]

Epiphone Accu-bass, as it says on the label by the heel

[url="http://profile.ultimate-guitar.com/profile_mojo_data/2/5/9/6/259673/pics/_c40004_image_0.jpg"]http://profile.ultimate-guitar.com/profile...004_image_0.jpg[/url]

[lemmywinks]

[quote name='velvetkevorkian' post='655215' date='Nov 15 2009, 03:10 PM']I used to have an Epiphone strat copy with exactly the same headstock. Looks legit to me.[/quote]


I couldn't see anything wrong with it either. My mate at uni had a similar super-strat epiphone with the pionty headstock and a floyd rose

[ase_one23]

i'm a bit scunnered (as we say in scotland) with ebay feedback. bought a pedal from a uk supplier, never arrived, had to wait 6 weeks before they would accept my req for a refund (the time apparently they then decide an item lost at) then a further week of them ignoring emails. i called them direct, the guy on the other end said i had to cancel the transaction from ebay to get a refund, told him this was of course nonsense, eventually got my refund thro the next day.

but...

after leaving them neutral feedback i recieved a huge email rant from them saying i was a liar and they were reporting me to ebay and that they were emailing all their customers to tell them to block me. i replied calmly that i was entitled to my opinions and awaited ebay's contact. nothing of course, and frankly i couldnt be bothered raising the issue of their blatant slander, but still - poor stuff.

thank god basschat's here to buy and sell stuff!!!!

[benebass]

Well, I had a reply - not impressed!

[color="#0000FF"][font="Courier New"]Thanks for contacting us regarding the negative feedback you left for
"xxxxxxxxx".

I have reviewed your case again and I'm sorry to inform you that as the
feedback you left has fitted one of our feedback removal criteria, I
have removed it.

Please note that our decision to remove the feedback does not constitute
us finding that the identified feedback is defamatory or otherwise
unlawful.

However, please keep in mind that due to eBay's privacy considerations
that are in place to protect us all, I am unable to provide you with
specific details of the investigation or the actions that will be taken
against the member's account.

I trust this information, if nothing else, reassures you of the level of
privacy that your own account with eBay holds.[/font][/color]

Seems like a fob off, but I was interested in the bit about the investigations into the member's account - not sure if they mean me or them - what do you think?

Cheers,

B.

[benebass]

Nothing ever came back from eBay about this (they never responded to my request for more information on why my feedback was removed), so as promised I'll name the seller - it was Purple Turtle Trading in Stockport. Has anyone ever had any dealings with them?

B.

[LeftyBiskit]

[quote name='benebass' post='695946' date='Dec 29 2009, 09:57 PM']Nothing ever came back from eBay about this (they never responded to my request for more information on why my feedback was removed), so as promised I'll name the seller - it was Purple Turtle Trading in Stockport. Has anyone ever had any dealings with them?

B.[/quote]
I have bought a couple of low value items from Purple Turtle this year and found them to be spot on delivery wise and on quality....they are still advbertising on evilbay tho'
T.