Sellers get strikes too, and they are for specific things rather than general displeasure.
The five
- Cancelled an auction that had bids
- Took payment and never delivered
- Fake or misrepresented item
- Broke a Metzee policy
- A general policy strike, for anything else
That is the whole list. Notice what is not on it: a bad review, a slow reply, a buyer who was annoyed, a return you lost.
The window
Ninety days — the same rolling window buyers get. A strike from four months ago is not counted.
What they are not
Not your standards. Cancellation rate, defect rate and the rest are measured separately and continuously. A strike is a specific recorded event; standards are a running average. Both matter and they are different things. Why was my account suspended?
Not a review. Buyers rating you poorly is not a strike.
The first one is the one to avoid
Cancelling an auction that had bids. People bid in good faith and the item was taken from under them — which is why it is on the list at all, and why "the price was disappointing" is not a defence. The tool for refusing a price is a reserve, set beforehand. Can I refuse to sell if the bidding ends too low?
If you genuinely cannot send something, cancel early and say why. It still counts, and day one is survivable in a way day six is not. I sold something I cannot send
The other side of your strikes screen
The same screen is where buyers ask you to forgive a strike you gave them for an unpaid win — and you can. You can also decline, and you can block a buyer from your store.
Forgiving is usually right when there was a reason. A buyer whose genuine problem you understood is a buyer who comes back; one who was ignored is not. What is a strike?
If you think a strike against you is wrong
Ask for it to be looked at again, with what was missed. Same route as any decision. Can I appeal a decision?
How to not collect them
Keep stock accurate, so you never sell what you cannot send.
Describe honestly. Misrepresentation is on the list, and the line between optimistic and misrepresented is thinner than it feels while writing. How to write a condition description
Post what you sold, on time.
Three habits, and they also happen to be the ones that produce repeat buyers.
More: why was my account suspended, what is a strike, can I appeal a decision.