PayPal Payment Protection - A waste of time.

MrX

Just wanted to share this with you as I think the PayPal payment protection scheme is a waste of time and gives a false sense of security.

I bought an MP3 player for my daughter from a seller in China. Item arrived but was the wrong colour. I e-mailed seller but did not get a reply. I could see he was still in business as other items were being sold daily. So assuming I would never get a reply I left a negative comment on his feedback and convinced my daughter that the fact that it was not pink should not affect its performance. However, as I went to demo it to her I found that it was not only the wrong colour but was also broken. 2 of the buttons and one ear piece did not work. Coincidently, the same day I received an e-mail from the seller saying that he found my e-mail in his trash but now he has seen it I could return the item to his UK address. I informed him that the item was also broken, and that I wanted a refund rather than a replacement as I had lost faith in him and the player. He agreed provided I withdrew the negative comment first and retuned the item at my cost. It was obvious I was being conned and so I filed a dispute with PayPal. However, PayPal insist that I must return the item at my expense (and this cannot be recovered) and also that they will only refund the original cost IF they can get it from the seller. So quite simply, if he refuses to pay (closes account, disputes item arriving in same condition etc) then I'll get nothing. Now, seeing as the item cost £20 and it costs me £10 to return it. At best I can only get £10 back. So, my gut feeling about this seller (also based on others feedback) is that he knows I won’t risk returning it because I have little to gain and more money to lose.

So in short, maybe you already knew (I didn't) but the PayPal protection scheme is not like the Credit Card protection scheme. It doesn't really GUARANTEE any protection at all.

Interested to hear other views and experiences in successfully making a claim and whether it was worthwhile.

frivolous_fay

Paypal buyer protection is certainly worth it on expensive purchases - anything where the postage is half the price of the item, or overseas purchases... well, that's a judgement call.

You say the guy is still in business - so it's not that likely he'll close his account, or empty his paypal account. The fact that he's even willing to offer a refund after getting a neg (however empty you think his promises are) suggests he's not just a casual rip-off merchant.

MaddenLover85

" he has seen it I could return the item to his UK address. I informed him that the item was also broken, and that I wanted a refund rather than a replacement as I had lost faith in him and the player. He agreed provided I withdrew the negative comment first and retuned the item at my cost."

I'm sorry but this seems very reasonable, he provided a uk address so you wouldnt have to pay to send to china, and offered a full refund of what you paid him. Even after you left a negative feedback. If you returned the item to anyone you would have to pay the return postage. I'm sure your speedy opening of the paypal dispute will just anger him as he seems like a reasonable seller willing to rectify the mistake.

stolt

how would the uk address work with paypal, ie you have to prove that you have trackable means to his address, i'm sure someone when you go into paypal it shows the address on the screen where it should be sent back to, could be a ploy, you remove the feddback, and send it to a uk address, whereas paypal wanted you to send it to china or where ever, it could mean paypal find in his favour.

follow up the feedback you left, and if you paid via credit card i'd speak to them.

netwalker

It is not reasonable that buyer is responsible for the return postage as item is not as described.
But there is no better way to sort out such problems(item not as described) according current paypal policy. So you have to take the risk of buying items on ebay. This seller has given resonalble ways.

stolt

bt why should the op pay for the sellers mistake, it wrong item sent, if the OP spoke to his credit card about this and explained that the merchant was demanding money to return the item, they will return the money to the OP. I would understand it if the Op no longer wanted it, but the seller should pay to return the item if its not as describe, i know thats not how paypal see it, but its doesnt make i right.

MrX

Re: frivolous_fay - Strangely he is no longer selling items. So I wonder if others have been duped as I have. I can see some people have left negative comments but with a positive rating! So maybe he has got them to do what he asked me to do.

Re: MaddenLover85 - When I asked for the UK address I was told that it could not be revealed until my feedback had been removed. Does that sound fair and genuine to you?

I appreciate your comments, as a neutral, I would probably see things your way too, but just really wanted to highlight the fact the PayPal guarantee in most circumstances is not worth a thing. As frivolous_fay said, it's a judgement call just don't assume it gives the same rights as the Credit Card scheme and UK Consumer Protection Rights.

Personally I've written the money off this time and won't take the risk again.