Metrics are a blunt tool. They help provide an overall picture of how a seller is doing, but they don’t provide the reasons behind the numbers.
A seller can work hard on their performance and have great metrics, but eBay sees the whole communication with buyers and can take action based on a single case, if it is warranted. Metrics are there to help business owners manage key performance indicators, not to keep track of policy violations.
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A common violation is when sellers make deliberate attempts to manipulate their metrics. This ranges from aggressively pursuing buyers to change negative feedback, to as far as calling eBay pretending to be the buyer.
Other examples of policy violations include:
Not paying eBay fees
Selling substandard or counterfeit products
Selling the same products through another eBay account
Those situations erode eBay’s reputation just as much as poor metrics, and eBay will address them when they are discovered.
If you contributing to below-standard buyer experiences or providing poor quality merchandise, you are not building a viable and healthy business on eBay, no matter how great your metrics are or how much money you are turning over.