What do you mean I can't leave a bad review?
(Re-posted due to website feed issues)
As nice as it would be to ensure that every review posted for one of my books was positive, it wouldn’t be genuine. That, however, is essentially what some companies are doing. Either say something nice about them, or risk nasty legal consequences.
How can they do that? By inserting clauses into the terms and conditions you agree to when you purchase goods or services from them (you know, that legal jargon we so often agree to without ever actually reading it).
The practice came to light when a couple made a small online purchase from a retailer. The product never arrived, they cancelled the order, and left a negative review on a website. Imagine their surprise when several years later the company discovered the negative review and billed them a $3,500.00 "Non-Disparagement Fee" for violating the terms of sale. What!!!!
Needless to say, the pair didn’t pay the fee and the matter was turned over to a collections company, which negatively impacted their credit, and ended up in a court battle. The court ruled in the couple’s favor last year.
Fast forward. Congress is currently debating legislation which would essentially make these kinds of clauses null and void (yes, Virginia, your Congress might actually be working for you). It’s called The Consumer Review Freedom Act.
This is an issue that hasn’t gotten the attention it deserves. While this proposed Act may help in certain instances, if you search the internet for "leaving bad reviews, legal trouble," and the like, you’ll plenty of other scenarios which this will not address.
I am well aware that reviews are sometimes unjustified and/or are motivated by factors other than sharing accurate information (a fellow author received a 1 star review for "too much sex" in her novel. Ahem, this author writes only clean romance with 0 sex). Or there have been instances where companies paid money for negative reviews to be posted against rival companies.
While people should feel free to voice their opinions if they had a negative experience, they should not have free reign to be unfairly malicious.
How do we find the right balance? I don’t have an answer, but it’s an important question.
Below are links to the legislation, as well as a few others you may want to look at if you are interested.
In the meantime, feel free to buy my books. Oh, and before you hit the purchase button, please remember to agree to the terms and conditions. Thanks for your support.
https://www.congress.gov/bill/114th-c...
http://www.grubstreet.com/2014/02/bad...#
http://ideas.time.com/2013/01/07/yelp...
http://consumerist.com/2014/06/26/kle...
As nice as it would be to ensure that every review posted for one of my books was positive, it wouldn’t be genuine. That, however, is essentially what some companies are doing. Either say something nice about them, or risk nasty legal consequences.
How can they do that? By inserting clauses into the terms and conditions you agree to when you purchase goods or services from them (you know, that legal jargon we so often agree to without ever actually reading it).
The practice came to light when a couple made a small online purchase from a retailer. The product never arrived, they cancelled the order, and left a negative review on a website. Imagine their surprise when several years later the company discovered the negative review and billed them a $3,500.00 "Non-Disparagement Fee" for violating the terms of sale. What!!!!
Needless to say, the pair didn’t pay the fee and the matter was turned over to a collections company, which negatively impacted their credit, and ended up in a court battle. The court ruled in the couple’s favor last year.
Fast forward. Congress is currently debating legislation which would essentially make these kinds of clauses null and void (yes, Virginia, your Congress might actually be working for you). It’s called The Consumer Review Freedom Act.
This is an issue that hasn’t gotten the attention it deserves. While this proposed Act may help in certain instances, if you search the internet for "leaving bad reviews, legal trouble," and the like, you’ll plenty of other scenarios which this will not address.
I am well aware that reviews are sometimes unjustified and/or are motivated by factors other than sharing accurate information (a fellow author received a 1 star review for "too much sex" in her novel. Ahem, this author writes only clean romance with 0 sex). Or there have been instances where companies paid money for negative reviews to be posted against rival companies.
While people should feel free to voice their opinions if they had a negative experience, they should not have free reign to be unfairly malicious.
How do we find the right balance? I don’t have an answer, but it’s an important question.
Below are links to the legislation, as well as a few others you may want to look at if you are interested.
In the meantime, feel free to buy my books. Oh, and before you hit the purchase button, please remember to agree to the terms and conditions. Thanks for your support.
https://www.congress.gov/bill/114th-c...
http://www.grubstreet.com/2014/02/bad...#
http://ideas.time.com/2013/01/07/yelp...
http://consumerist.com/2014/06/26/kle...
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