Ebay's Customer Service Sucks

     I've been selling on eBay for almost twenty years.  I have never been more disappoint in their customer service.  eBay has a system of  rating seller which has three categories.  Top Rated, Above Standards and Below Standards.  I am currently listed as Below Standards.  I have been listed this way for the last four months.

     The rating is based on defects in your sales over a one year period. If you have a defect rate of more than two percent, you are a below standard seller. So, if you are a casual seller in eBay, sell less that fifty items in the last twelve months, and have one defect, you're below standard.  I have this status even though I have 110 positive feed backs in the last year and My total feedback are 100% positive. 

     This is important because eBay does stuff you if you are below standards.  They charge you a higher seller's fee and they do not promote your items.  So all those items you see crawling across the bottom of your screen will not include your listings.

     I got to "Below Standard" by moving.  I had to relocate my storage and three thing I had listed got misplaced.  When I could not find them, I had to cancel the transaction and refund the buyer his money.  That was three defects.  

Another of the defects assigned to me was not even my item.  It was some other seller.  That's four.

The last one was a dispute not resolved by the Seller (me).  I was talking to the buyer when eBay on their own approved the return.  I was waiting for the return which never arrived.  Ebay gave the buyer their money back from my account and dinged me for not refunding the money myself.  That got me pasted two percent.

     eBay's policy is the you must appeal defects within 120 days.  Of course they never informed me that I had a defect on any of these occasions.  I have written them and tried to call them and they simply refuse to respond.  

     If I provide the customer service that eBay fails to provide me, I would be kicked off their platform.  eBay has a de facto monopoly.  No competition mean they can do whatever they want and their is nothing a seller can do.