I think this is the best way to do it. Is it perfect? Absolutely not but I think it the lesser of two evils.
A lot of people are shy and/or anti-confrontational especially other cultures and won’t participate if it is not anonymous. I know people that have been members on CR for years and years that have never posted and only became members just so they can PM and buy stuff from the buy & sell forums.
What was stopping people from vendettas and grudges in a PM? They are basically anonymous, only the person receiving them can see them not the vendors or anyone else. At least this way it is monitored to some extent.
If anything I would think this may be more accurate than starting a thread, “PM me with your experiences with vendor X”. A lot of people might not take the time to reply with positive or negative feedback.
IMO
