eBay Buyer Leaves Neutral Feedback, Gets Sued for $10,000 by Seller
A few months back eBay made the controversial decision to remove the ability for sellers to leave negative feedback about buyers. The site said it got too many complaints and decided that the system wasn't worth the trouble. So, with that ability gone, when a seller of some collectible coins felt jilted by a less than positive review from a buyer, he did the purely logical thing, which was to sued said buyer for $10,000.Steve Shellhorn was the buyer in this transaction and didn't like the packaging job done by the seller. When he received the package, he found that many of the coins were unprotected in an envelope. So, when the seller requested feedback, Shellhorn left him a less than complementary, but still not negative, report. The seller responded with the lawsuit, which was ultimately tossed out of court, but only after Shellhorn had to pay $500 for an attorney. That's the kind of auction fee that nobody needs. [Source: King5, via Fark]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
hofmaster2001 @ Apr 24th 2008 3:16PM
I have all but quit using ebay, there are way too many crooks on ebay, they either sell junk, or sell things really cheap and rape you on shipping. I had one that sold me a laptop screen and knew it didn't work. I put it on my clients computer and all I got were streaks of horizontal light which meant that the backlight worked. I put the broken screen back in place and it worked except for the broken part. This guy guaranteed them and it was packed great. I had to threaten him to get my money back. ALSO, I sent it to 2 other techs and They got the same result..all I am saying is LOOK at the price and the shipping cost. Investigate the cost to ship it before you buy it if it says ask the seller... I have had many excellent experiences on ebay as well, I have many favorite sellers... all I am saying is BUYER BEWARE and be vigilant....
Rick @ Apr 24th 2008 6:09PM
What are you talking about? Sellers can still leave feedback! I just did it today.
comicsgirl @ Apr 24th 2008 6:45PM
Only until may..after that sellers can no longer leave anything but positives for buyers..it is their new policy..
kpilker @ Apr 24th 2008 11:45PM
What the seller did could have ruined the coins. The guy could have bought the coins for $100 in mint condition but loose like that would make them only worth 50% of that.
RB @ Apr 25th 2008 7:01AM
As a long time seller on eBay, about 10 years running, I recently had the opportunity to question their decision regarding this change. Their response was that the customer is always right and needs to be protected. I said, you are right and I AM eBay's actual customer, since their revenue comes from me the seller, and not my buyer.
They need to look out for the seller, because without us, there is NO REVENUE!!!!!!!!!! I on the otherhand, need to protect my customer and I am sure there are plenty of bad dealings that take place daily on eBay, but don't take away our right to post a negative when OUR CUSTOMER has done wrong. Do you hear me eBay my customer, not yours, since your customer is me!. What eBay really needs to do, is to tighten up the process for being a seller. Right now, if you have a credit card or checking account you are automatically qualified. That's money hungary eBay's first problem that needs fixing.
Levien @ Apr 25th 2008 12:33PM
I think it is wise to leave only the positive rating on e-bay. So if you see a seller with no rating you know he is not good.
Also this can happen off-line. So it doesn't have to be e-bay
My wife runs an e-bay shop in Spain. I know she is giving the best service and tries to over deliver . Her online shop is http://www.lunaindia.es
You can leave a comment on my website:
http://www.barcelona-webdesign.com
And I wish you wise shopping.
Whiskey Run @ May 4th 2008 9:58PM
WTF? No negative feedback on Ebay? What is to keep poeple honestand accountable? Were they afraid they would hurt somebody's wittle fweelings? This is pathetic! Just like the schools who no longer keep score at sporting events becasue they don't want to crush the fragile little psyches. I have been a seller on Ebay since 1999 and have 100% positive feedback. Its on the shisters and frauds who are afraid of negative feedback.
babymouse6 @ May 15th 2008 11:59PM
I Think the feedback as been flawed from the start,my reason being no matter if you are the Buyer or the Seller If you leave a Neg.feedback for the other person no matter what the problem was or who was at fault you will be left with a neg. too.And that is not fair if you are a good ebayer and have a 100% pos. feedback all it takes is to leave 1 neg. for somebody and they in turn ruin your perfect rateing with a neg.So if you want to keep your 100% you just have to suck it up & not leave any feedback. Just not fair you can't tell the truth without retaleation against you.
mari @ May 16th 2008 4:20PM
I have been on ebay 10 years. My main acct. has 4400+ positives and 5 negatives. 4 negatives were from deadbeats. The last negative was from a stupid moron who blamed me for the post office losing her item. Thankfully, I was able to return her negative. Ebay has made the feedback policy worse. It wasn't perfect before but now it is going to get worse. How can I retaliate against an unjust negative? Do I go after the bidder with a lawsuit? Do I mail them a lb. of dog manure? Do I bid on their auctions and return the negative just to get even? Tell me Ebay, how to I protect myself against scum? Ebay forgot that the their customer is their sellers. Ebay doesn't realize that one of the reasons that people stopped using ebay is because of the poor economy. People do not have money to buy stuff now. I know that eventually Ebay will be changing this new policy because it is wrong. WHy should people pay ontime now?