Money Back Guarantee is not Guaranteed; PayPal Buyer Protection is a Lie

[malmacd-62]

I recently purchased an AM3 motherboard on eBay and received a socket FM2 motherboard instead. I messaged the seller. At first we were discussing a replacement, but the conversation was going nowhere. The seller claimed he could not create return shipping label in my country (skeptical). Presumably, they refused to do so because the cost of shipping it back is too high. Eventually, I asked for a refund and the seller did not respond. I figured it would be faster to deal with PayPal to get my money back rather than eBay- so I filed a claim. Indeed, the response was quicker but not what I expected. My claim was denied becasue the items are "materially similar" despite having completely different CPU sockets and features. eBay deleted my negative feedback from the seller's feedback page, which is kind of a good thing for two reasons: firstly, the seller responded with an outright lie "the buyer was refunded and kept the item." Secondly, I actually purchased two items from the same seller, so it gave me an opportunity to call them out on their BS. I contacted eBay twice, and they refused to step back in to help me receive my refund because I went to PayPal for help. Had I known this would happen, I would have just waited for eBay. I have since filed an appeal with PayPal and I am still waiting for a response. I am deeply saddened by my experience, and can no longer buy or sell on eBay with any degree of confidence. I've heard many stories about sellers being ripped off by buyers, but my story just goes to show you it's not always safe for buyers either. It has been an entire month of dealing with the seller, PayPal and eBay so all I can likely do at this point is contact my bank. The way PayPal and eBay have treated me makes me feel like a worthless piece of garbage. I just wanted to share my story to vent, and warn others not to bother with PayPal. On top of all that,  UPS charged me brokerage fees for the incorrect item and I have no real way to contest them (as far as I know) so I just paid instead of letting it go to collections. Be careful out there and thanks for reading.

[reallynicestamps]

You were shipped the wrong product.

The seller refused to send Return Shipping.

The seller refused a refund without return of the unwanted thing.

You did not file an eBay Dispute.

• EBay insists that the seller send return shipping. If he doesn't the buyer keeps the purchase and gets a refund
• EBay can send a Return Shipping Label and charges it to the Seller.

You went to PAYPAL.

Paypal denied your Dispute.

• Paypal insists that the BUYER pay the return the unwanted product (not the seller) before refunding.
• You did not return the motherboard as required, I gather?

EBay will not entertain Disputes if the buyer has already been turned down by Paypal.

PP will entertain Disputes if the buyer has been turned down by eBay.

eBay deleted my negative feedback

Normally this only happens when inflammatory language is used.

UPS charged me brokerage fees for the incorrect item

Well, yes.

They delivered "a" motherboard, if not "the" motherboard.

Their fees are made up of Canadian duty on items valued over $150, Canadian sales taxes on items valued over $40, and their own service charge which starts around $25 for customs brokerage.

When you return an item, you can call CBSA and have the duty and sales taxes refunded... eventually. You will have to provide proof of return.

TL/DR

You went to Paypal first.

That was your error.

so all I can likely do at this point is contact my bank.

If you back your PP account with a credit card, or paid directly with a credit card, go to the 1-800 on the card and ask about a chargeback.

If you used a bank balance, a PP balance, or a debit card (which draws on your bank balance) your bank is unlikely to help.

[pjcdn2005 · Accepted solution]

I'm sorry this happened.  What type of dispute did you open in PayPal?  If you opened an item not received claim you would have lost if tracking showed that the package was delivered to your address.   If you opened an item not as described claim,  (which is what you should have opened) I'm surprised that they would rule against you. Normally you would be told to return the item and then you would be refunded once rather item was sent back.  If you opened the first one mentioned, you may still be able to open a not described claim at PP.  Please do try!

You mentioned that you should have waited to open an eBay claim ....a return request claiming  that the item was not as described could have been opened right away and the seller would have been required to send you a return label OR money for a label.   If you were told that you had to wait to open a claim, then you were trying to open an item not received claim which requires you to wait until  after the expected delivery date.  But as you know now, eBay won't open a claim once you have already opened one with another source.

Although it happens,  it is rare for a buyer to lose an item not as described case on eBay but  they do have rules that need to be followed.  I'm so sorry that it did not work out for you.

[pjcdn2005]

eBay deleted my negative feedback

Normally this only happens when inflammatory language is used.

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Negative feedback is often removed when the seller wins the case which is what happened in this case.