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Ebay's feedback system has become useless! Most high rated sellers are artificially padding their feedback score with a feedback loophole that EBay refuses to correct, called retaliatory feedback, or buyer-first feedback policy. Avoid sellers with impossibly high feedback scores, and ask sellers about their feedback policy before you buy.

The eBay feedback system is becoming more and more useless everyday because eBay has refused (so far) to address an increasingly common practice of backward feedback.

In essence, the seller is holding your feedback ransom until they get what they want, a positive feedback from you. Should you give these sellers a negative feedback, (even when they deserve it) they use your feedback to retaliate against you!

Faced with this threat, most buyers are are not willing to be honest about the buying experience, and simply give a positive to insure they don't get retaliated against.

When the buyer has paid in a timely manor, their responsibility is done, and there is nothing else for the seller to comment on. Therefore the buyer should get feedback after they pay.

The unfortunate side effect of this feedback system abuse is that it renders the feedback system useless and inaccurate, since buyers afraid to be honest. By using this strong-arm method to reduce they're own negative feedback, their feedback rating becomes artificially inflated and no longer accurately reflects the true reputation of the seller.

It is this ominous threat of retaliation that causes everyone to be so nice on eBay; which leads to other flaw in the feedback system.

Rather than risk a negative comment on their own account, many members would rather say nothing than too much. And the way eBay is currently set up, you have no way of knowing the percentage of the total transactions a particular buyer or seller has participated in that has resulted in their existing rating. Yes, you know how many people rated him or her, but you don't know how many people refrained from providing any feedback at all for fear of retaliation

This might sound like a small point, but it's key. If most people are holding their tongues and simply not saying anything about the poor business ethics of a particular buyer, then that person's rating doesn't reflect reality.

Not surprisingly given the popularity of the eBay community, a number of fixes to the current rating system have been suggested over the years. Internet pioneer Brad Templeton, in his blog, summarized some of the major ones:

-- Alongside the number of total ratings a buyer or seller has received, list the total number of auctions he or she has participated in. This will tell you how many transactions went unrated. If the percentage is very high, it might flag a potential problem.

-- Allow for "double-blind" feedback. Under this scenario, the exact nature of the feedback for a particular transaction wouldn't be published until both buyer and seller have entered their comments. If only one party decides to provide feedback, it will be held and not made public until after the feedback period had expired.

-- Separate buyer's and seller's feedback. The way it works now, your rating depends on transactions for things that you bought as well as things you sold. Since it's relatively easy to get a very high buyer's rating--for example, you can purchase a large number of smaller items and pay promptly--it is argued that some sellers artificially inflate their ratings that way. The best solution: Have different rating scores for a person's buying and selling transactions.

How can you avoid a feedback terrorist?

Most feedback terrorists realize this is unusual feedback behavior and will disclose their backward policy in the auction description. Look for statements like "I leave feedback after customer leaves feedback", or " I leave feedback after customer is satisfied". The word "satisfied" seems to be feedback terrorist code for a giving the seller positive feedback. I guess if you leave negative feedback it means your unsatisfied and we all know what the feedback terrorist does then. However, the only way to be sure your not buying from a feedback terrorist is to ask before you bid.

Actual not-so-creative excuses I've heard for being a feedback terrorist, and their real-world translations:

Excuse: I've been burned in the past by many negative feedbacks.
Translation: Sometimes, sending my shipments out on time becomes secondary to smoking crack and my customers respond appropriately.

Excuse: I want to make sure that you're happy before I leave feedback.
Translation: I want to keep my feedback rating high by any means possible, and if I use my feedback for retaliation, I can force you to leave me a positive, even if I deserve something less.

Beware the feedback terrorists, their feedback rating is artificially over inflated. These sellers are EXPECTING negative feedback and have likely provided poor quality products or services in the past. Ask before you buy!  :devil:
:devil:  :bowdown:  :devil:  :bowdown:  :sofunny:  :sofunny:
I'm still amazed that eBay has done NOTHING to address their feedback system issues.

Case in point; I just ordered an item for a client. The item was supposed to be new and unopened, the only way I can sell it. But instead, the item was opened and clearly used.

Of course, the seller will not give me feedback until I give them feedback, and if I give them the negative or neutral they deserve, they will give me an undeserved negative.

BUYERS CANNOT BE HONEST IN THEIR FEEDBACK! THERFORE THE FEEDBACK SYSTEM DOES NOT WORK.

WAKE UP EBAY!
I agree i paid a guy and he didnt want to leave feedback before i did i told him if he has my money leave feedback or i wouldnt he ended up doing it but its just wrong.
Before I started towing I handled all the e-bay stuff (we were a used car dealer a repair shop and a dismantler) we sold stuff ranging from factory radios...to cars airbags...mostly all car parts and few cars here and there....What a nightmare...I literally couldnt sleep at night with the problems that were involved with that.....what the big thing is now....no one finishes the transaction....they hit the buy it now...or win the auction and thats it you never hear from them again....and then you go to send a second chance offer...but since theres so many scams going on the bidder that didnt win just either ignores it or assumes its a scam....ebay sucks....I have soo many horror stories about it. :thumb:
Congratulations to eBay for finally making changes to the ineffective feedback system.

The system was highly inaccurate because buyers were afraid to be honest about sellers when those sellers reserved their feedback for retaliatory purposes. Bravo to eBay for putting a stop to falsely padded seller ratings!!

Here is a quote from eBays Website...

Quote
Feedback changes in 2008

eBay’s Feedback system continues to evolve as community makeup and the online marketplace dynamics change.

The eBay Feedback system was originally designed to provide a simple, honest, accurate record of the buyer's and seller's online experience to ensure safe and satisfactory trade. It was driven by two factors: transparency and accountability. Over time, we found that the transparency of the existing Feedback system makes some members reluctant to hold others accountable. For example, buyers fear retaliatory Feedback from sellers if they leave a negative.

Therefore, we'll be making a few significant changes to eBay's Feedback system to continue to improve accuracy and accountability. Within six months, these changes should help to differentiate and reward sellers who provide a positive buying experience on eBay.

What is changing?

What changes are being made to the eBay Feedback system?

There are five key elements to the new Feedback system being introduced in the first half of 2008:

Beginning in February, buyers and sellers will be able to earn up to one Feedback per week from the same trading partner. Today, members may only affect each other's Feedback scores one time, regardless of the number of transactions between the parties. This change will both encourage repeat transactions and reward good service.

Sellers will no longer be able to leave negative or neutral Feedback for buyers. This change will occur in May, 2008.

Removal of negative and neutral Feedback left by members who are suspended or who fail to respond to the Unpaid Item (UPI) Process.

Positive Feedback percentage will be based on the past 12 months of Feedback, rather than lifetime, since it is most indicative of the seller's recent performance.

Restrictions on when Feedback can be left:
Buyers must wait three days before leaving negative or neutral Feedback for sellers with an established track record
Instead of 90 days, members will be able to leave Feedback for 60 days.