Feedback on fake items

[damosin]

Hi, i have been and eBay user for 20+ years.

I recent bought some gen 2 AirPods on EBay (as they have been discontinued, they are difficult to find elsewhere).

When I received these they were clearly fakes and not a genuine Apple product.

I have started the returns process to get a refund (let’s see how that goes!) but one thing that concerns me is that the listing has now been removed so I cannot leave any feedback. I notice from other threads, the suggestion that this is done by EBay as I reported the item and is not done to protect the seller. 

This doesn’t seem great for buyers - this is exactly the sort of feedback I want to see before committing to a purchase . The worst eBay breaches (I.e. fraud) therefore result in no negative feedback and the seller’s record is unblemished? How does that make sense? I would be interested to see if they continue to sell similar items to unsuspecting buyers in the future. Or maybe they try to resell the item I am returning!?

[dave@ebay]

Hi @damosin 

It sounds like we removed the item from site. This usually happens if the item is picked up by the automation or if the item was reported and it triggered a manual review. Either way you should be covered by the Money Back Guarantee. 

If we remove an item from site for a policy breach, we will usually do a random follow up review to make sure there are no further breaches for that issue. So although you can't leave feedback for the item, we will usually check the account again and take further action if necessary.

Thanks,

Dave 

[damosin]

This is an extremely poor solution that does not serve the buyers on EBay.

I see that the seller in question is still active on eBay with the same feedback rating as he had prior to my purchased. At least one of his negative reviews suggests they also bought a fake from the seller (clearly this buyer left Feedback before the item was removed). I have no way of knowing if multiple other buyers also had same experience as me but , like me, were unable to leave negative feedback.

I see he has had positive feedback for the same type of item that I bought as well as v similar ones. I would suggest that many, if not all, of these are also fakes but that the buyers are unaware of the fact.

It’s disappointing that this crime (albeit 

low level) can continue to operate seemingly without any repercussions. The fact that I cannot even highlight it with any feedback seems to help facilitate it - I cannot see any rational reason to justify this.