Dear BBE Team,
I would like to raise a concern regarding the current defect policy applied to orders. The existing system, where multiple defects can be assigned to a single order, feels unfair and disproportionately harmful—especially for small businesses like mine.
It would be far more reasonable to limit defects to a maximum of one per order. An order is a single transaction, regardless of the number of items included. Assigning multiple defects for the same order does not accurately reflect the situation and can severely impact sellers’ performance metrics.
A buyer cannot be “disappointed multiple times” within a single order simply because they purchased more items. Yet under the current BBE metric, if a buyer orders multiple items and an issue arises, sellers are penalized multiple times for what is essentially one transaction. For example, if a buyer purchases three items in one order, a single issue results in three defects. If they purchase five items, it could result in five defects. This approach is excessive and damaging.
On other eBay performance metrics, only one defect is applied per order, regardless of item quantity. This standard is logical and fair, and it would make sense for BBE to follow the same principle.
In my specific case, I received three defects from a single transaction due to an INR (Item Not Received) case. The issue arose because the buyer provided an address in Japanese, which standard shipping carriers cannot process when generating an AWB. Despite repeated attempts to resolve the issue with the buyer (repeated attempts to provide the address M2M), the situation remained unresolved. Nevertheless, I was assigned three defects for one order, which has now resulted in account restrictions. I do have proof for this as well.
I respectfully ask: how is this fair, and what could I have done differently in this situation?
I strongly urge you to review and revise this policy to ensure fairness and sustainability for sellers. Limiting defects to one per order would be a reasonable and much-needed change.
Thank you for your time and consideration.
