Is it legit for a seller to ask me to pay a shipping fee so that he can send a replacement product?

[marcfrancoiscl]

Hi,

I bought a Nexus 5 screen. I paid and received it. I replaced the cracked screen on a Nexus 5. The problem is that the new screen doesn't work.

I contacted the seller and he agreed to send me a replacement without requiring me to send the original part, but he asked me to pay for the shipping through PayPal ($9). He gave me an email address. I don't know what to do. It's outside of eBay, but within PayPal.

I would like to know if this is legit. Am I protected if the seller doesn't send anything? If not, how should the seller accept my payment?

Thank you

Marc

[reallynicestamps]

First off: Where is the seller?

There is a fairly new common scam out of China*, where when a complaint about non-delivery or poorly described items is made, a replacement if offered.

The scam is the replacement never arrives. Meanwhile the time during which an eBay/PP Dispute could be filed passes.

Are you covered?

You have up to 45 days to open a Dispute. So yes. But if the seller then wants the item back, you will have to pay for a Confirmed Delivery service in order to win the Dispute.

You have 60 days to leave feedback. At the same time you will be asked to leave Detailed Seller Ratings. The normal rating is Five Stars. The lowest Rating is ONE Star. (No stars is a free pass.)

If more than 45 days pass, and you haven't opened a Dispute, you can still go to the credit card you really paid with (PP is just a mediator) and start a chargeback.

The $9 postage is probably cheaper than the cost of returning the non-working screen with Delivery Confirmation, so it's a good deal. Think over your options.

*Other scammers have caught on to this, however, not just China.