Power Sellers Unite

IhateEbay666 · Joined: 31 Jan 2012 Posts: 2

Hi!
Like many Power Ebay Sellers I have grown increasingly frustrated with eBay and their feedback policy! And I am sick and tired of dealing with ebay that legally allows buyer's to do fraudulent activities and then ebay restricts your account due to the negative feedback received. I want to take matters into my own hands and now want to sue ebay users that leave negative feedback for defamation, slander, and loss of income, in small claims court. I am aware that laws vary by state....most states do have defamation laws. Anyone ever try this route? Or ever looked into suing the buyer due to negative feedback?

Schistosomiasis · Joined: 19 Jan 2010 Posts: 192

I feel your pain. Bad feedback can be awful, especially when those scores have such a big effect on search results, etc.

I do know that small claims courts only have jurisdiction in their own region, so in order to sue a buyer (for anything), they would either have to be in your local area, or you would have to travel to their area.

It's a difficult situation.

MIKEHATESEBAY · Joined: 18 Nov 2010 Posts: 160

Feedback is not a problem, eBays reaction is THE PROBLEM

Stockmiser · Joined: 03 Jun 2006 Posts: 1169

Very small chance of success.

The "neg" and DSR's are not sue-able since they are subjective opinion. The only possible grounds would be the actual FB message. If the buyer made a distinct statement of "fact", and you can prove that fact to be untrue, and you can demonstrate some level of damages, it is possible to have as valid suit.

But realize,. he can call you a cheat, a liar, a fraud, a bad seller, the worst seller on the planet - all of that is just opinion.

They would have had to say something like "counterfeit item" or "stolen merchandise" or something that is objectively factual and you can prove is inaccurate.

This has been tried by a few - A lawyer here in florida named Elliot Miller is doing exactly that. If you have a lot of money (or are a lawyer) and have a lot of time on your hands, you can certainly harass the buyer. So far Miller has cost his buyer over $7,000 in legal fees defending himself for the neg he gave Elliot over a $44 clock...

MIKEHATESEBAY · Joined: 18 Nov 2010 Posts: 160

Stockmiser wrote (View Post): › docWrite("quote")Very small chance of success.

The "neg" and DSR's are not sue-able since they are subjective opinion. The only possible grounds would be the actual FB message. If the buyer made a distinct statement of "fact", and you can prove that fact to be untrue, and you can demonstrate some level of damages, it is possible to have as valid suit.

But realize,. he can call you a cheat, a liar, a fraud, a bad seller, the worst seller on the planet - all of that is just opinion.

They would have had to say something like "counterfeit item" or "stolen merchandise" or something that is objectively factual and you can prove is inaccurate.

This has been tried by a few - A lawyer here in florida named Elliot Miller is doing exactly that. If you have a lot of money (or are a lawyer) and have a lot of time on your hands, you can certainly harass the buyer. So far Miller has cost his buyer over $7,000 in legal fees defending himself for the neg he gave Elliot over a $44 clock...The "neg" and DSR's are not sue-able since they are subjective opinion. Exactly ... why would I want to base my business on a website where I am judged by "suggestive opinions" ???

IhateEbay666 · Joined: 31 Jan 2012 Posts: 2

Thanks all for your comments. My point would be in court, defamation of character as well as lost business/income due to the negative feedback, not the actual comments/opinion(s) of the buyer. The fact that negative feedback was left by the buyer significantly hurt the business. Its just like having a huge billboard inside your retail store saying DON'T BUY from this store.
Any comments?

Schistosomiasis · Joined: 19 Jan 2010 Posts: 192

Court jurisdiction aside, you would have to prove that the buyer's comments were false. Something like "I was unhappy with the item" would be hard to disprove.

As far as the buyer giving an opinion at all, well, they were asked to.

elpereles · Joined: 15 Dec 2006 Posts: 1478 Location: Puerto Rico

I agree with Stockmiser. You can't sue people because they have an opinion. If that was possible just imagine all the companies, Hollywood Stars and politicians with sue against all the media and anyone out there. The 1rst place close will be this site.

After reading comments to sue people based on their opinions. It doesn't surprise me to see the Congress again with more censorship laws. We are worry about countries like China or dictators (like Stalin, Castro, etc) or extremist religious groups, but also copying their laws or ideas. :roll:

Stockmiser · Joined: 03 Jun 2006 Posts: 1169

IhateEbay666 wrote (View Post): › docWrite("quote")Thanks all for your comments. My point would be in court, defamation of character as well as lost business/income due to the negative feedback, not the actual comments/opinion(s) of the buyer. The fact that negative feedback was left by the buyer significantly hurt the business. Its just like having a huge billboard inside your retail store saying DON'T BUY from this store.
Any comments?

I think you are missing the point.

Just because you are "damaged" in some way by someone else's actions doesn't mean you have the right to recover those damages.

Awarded damages are what you get AFTER you have proven a legal claim - they are not the basis of a claim.

A lot of people make this mistake when discussing ebay itself. Just because a certain ebay policy damaged your business, doesn't mean you can sue ebay. The damages must be a consequence of some action that is in itself illegal or negligent or something that creates liability. Like all these anti-trust suits - the damages are truly irrelevant if you can't demonstrate anti-trust itself.

The fact that the negative feedback damaged you is not enough to hold the buyer liable. There must first be a basis for the liability. In your case, it's the laws governing libel, slander, and defamation. These laws REQUIRE that the statement made must be (1) a statement of fact, and (2) must be provably inaccurate. You cannot be sued for stating an opinion or a true fact - even if those statements damaged you.

Peniwize The Clown · Joined: 14 Jun 2009 Posts: 84

MIKEHATESEBAY wrote (View Post): › docWrite("quote")Feedback is not a problem, eBays reaction is THE PROBLEM

I agree with MHE! Feedback is not the problem, it is eBay reaction to the feedback that is the problem.

Imagine you have a storefront on main street and a customer, who is unhappy, stands outside and expresses their displeasure. Because of this your landlord raises your rent and tells you that your store is only allowed to be open for 5 hours everyday.

Would you NOT sue? sure you would!! Why eBay is allowed to do this is beyond me. Why a class action lawsuit has not come about that has some teeth is beyond me!

But in real life you could actually sue both your landlord and that sour customer for unfair business practices and slander (or some form of defamation). You likely would not win against the consumer but you would have much more of a foundation against your landlord.

Thanks to eBay's policies, along with novice buyers, I have lost 60% of my eBay business over the past 2 years. I stay on eBay just simply to have some income to help support my Google Adwords addiction!!