eBay

eBay

Online Dispute Resolution in eBay

A remarkable 60 million disagreements amongst traders on eBay are resolved every year using online dispute resolutions. There are two main processes involved. For disputes over non-payment by buyers or complaints by buyers that items delivered did not match the description, the parties are initially encouraged to resolve the matter themselves by online negotiation. They are assisted in this by clearly structured, practical advice on how to avoid misunderstandings and reach a resolution. Guidance is also given on the standards by which eBay assesses the merit of complaints.

If the dispute cannot be resolved by negotiation, then eBay offers a resolution service in which, after the parties enter a discussion area to present their argument, a member of eBay’s staff
determines a binding outcome under its Money Back Guarantee. This e-adjudication process is fast with strict time limits. The claim must be escalated to eBay within 30 days from the actual or latest estimated delivery date and, to encourage a full opportunity for self-resolution, no earlier than 8 days since the complaint was first raised with the seller. Disputes over feedback (reviews by buyers of sellers), which can include reviews that might otherwise lead to courtbased defamation claims, are dealt with by an independent company called Net Neutrals. Their service is called Independent Feedback Review (IFR). Using a separate discussion space for each dispute, a trained independent neutral reviews the evidence from both parties, invites fresh argument, and determines whether the feedback meets one of four criteria for removal.

The process takes seven days and eBay removes the feedback pending the outcome. Operational only in the Netherlands, a novel crowd-sourcing resolution process for feedback disputes is available for one of eBay’s subsidiaries, Marketplaats. After arguments are exchanged, 21 ‘jurors’ are randomly selected from a volunteer panel of experienced users of Marketplaats and shown the details of a dispute. The buyer is given 7 days to respond and the seller then has 2 days to rebut. The jurors, after that, have 10 days to review and they issue a decision as to whether the feedback should be withdrawn. Marketplaats acts in accordance with the majority decision.


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