Okay. I have been "yelping" since yelp existed. Literally, since it first appeared online. I have reviews going back years and years. I review for good service, bad service, and in-between. I think yelp is an excellent source for information.

There are no legal ramifications for what you write on yelp. NONE. Zero. Yelp exists so people can give reviews for businesses and services. The site is not only for *nice* reviews, it is for honest reviews. If you patronized a business or received a service that was bad and you reviewed it, you have done exactly what yelp is there for.

You do not "have to" respond to anyone unless you want to respond. If you've left a bad review and a business owner is smart, the person will attempt to contact you to rectify the situation by, for example, offering you a discount if you try their business again. Or the owner or manager might offer an apology. Or whatever. Sure, communication is usually better than not communicating...but it's up to you whether you want to respond, or not.

If your review was based on an experience you had that was not good, I give you credit for getting on yelp and letting potential customers AND the owner know that something needs to improve.

By the way, I once reviewed a sandwich shop, a bad review because the place was terrible. The owner contacted me and was horribly rude, immature, and just a general JERK. So I posted the message he'd sent to me on my review so anyone could read it. The man had no diplomacy and deserved to have his business hurt for being such a terrible business owner.