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I have only ever used Ebay once and that was a couple of months ago. I had bought a couple of concert tickets for my sons and they were unable to attend at the last minute. As I’d paid nigh on £100 pounds for these tickets I thought I’d see if I could get some recompense and so placed them on Ebay - it would have been a shame to have wasted them.

I cannot say it was a profitable experience though…they sold for £10 - both of them. A nice couple in Belgium bought them and would use them as an anniversary treat. I was happy for them - in a clenched teeth kind of way though. But that’s the whole Ebay experience, it’s all a gamble. You either get a great bargain or you sell and lose money.  No hard feelings right?

Tell that to some buyers and sellers who have successfully turned the feedback system there into a series of childish playground spats. Apparently it has reached the stage where new laws are being introduced, effective of May, that will stop Sellers leaving feedback about their buyers. Now, constructive feedback is always useful and especially on a site where people are basically paying online and then trusting that the item will be posted to them both quickly and in good condition. This is usually the case but of course there have been instances where buyers have been ripped off by sellers.

Not sending items at all; items being sent that are damaged/broken; sellers charging outrageous postage rates on items and then paying the cheapest rates to post the item. Many people have complained about such practices. Feedback allows the buyers to rate the seller so that other buyers can decide for themselves whether to deal with that merchant. But this has backfired on many people who left honest feedback…the sellers were getting their revenge by posting equally negative and, in some cases abusive, comments about the buyer. Read Simon Lamberts experience with an Ebay seller just to give you an idea about this kind of thing.

This has had a destructive effect on many honest people from both sides; the Ebay feedback system simply became a process of an eye for an eye and it is ridiculous. Leave a negative remark about a seller and that seller will in turn leave negative feedback about that buyer. But everyone suffers when this kind of thing happens…right?

As of May merchants will no longer be permitted to rate their buyers, though the buyers will still be able to rate the sellers. I think though that using a site such as Ebay one still has to be careful, it is an auction site and we all know that auctions basically are a gamble. You are dealing with a faceless individual and buying an item sight unseen. But when it comes down to it, if you wish to receive good feedback then give good service. Remember in business - the customer is King and can make or break you!

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