ebay seller lied and won the dispute

bobeh110

Hi,

I bought a phone off ebay for £100. When it arrives it comes with a broken charger and the iphone would switch but would cut off after 5 seconds of being on.
I emailed the seller telling him this and he said that the phone was definitely working when he sent it and refused a refund.
I contacted paypal and they raised a dispute. They said to post him the phone back and get proof of postage and that it would be fine after that.
The following day I got an email to say that I had lost the dispute because It was not his phone in the parcel and I lost the dispute.
I am absolutely devastated that I have saved for £100 for an iphone only for the ebay seller to get his faulty iphone back as well as my money.
I phoned paypal multiple times and said they cant do anything and I had to contact the the police . I phoned the numerous times and they said they cant help me and I can only go to citizens advice.
What can I do ? Thanks so much for any replies

unholyangel

So you have the sellers name and address?

Were they a private individual or acting in the course of a business?


I'm assuming he's told paypal that the IMEI of the phone he received does not match the IMEI of the phone he sent, and is claiming you have returned your old broken phone to him and kept the new one (so technically getting it for free since you asked for a refund).

Small claims (after sending the seller a letter before action) may be your only hope. Were you using his sim card or your own when you tried the phone?

The reason I ask this is because your network operator logs the IMEI of your handset. IMEI's are unique, so its basically like a phone's dna/fingerprint.

bobeh110

Yes I have his name and the address. I think he is a private seller. I took a photo of his phone with the imei on show but i cant prove that i actually gave him the phone. I asked the police could he not possibly track it as it would be with him but they told me its nothing to do with them

Wywth

... and the seller will probably report the IMEI of the handset he supplied as lost/stolen now, just to prevent anyone using it in this country

:cool:

bobeh110

No I didnt use his sim. He had the sim in his phone but the phone would cut out before I could do anything with it.

bobeh110

I hope he is stupid enough to block the phone, that means he will be unable to use his own phone which I gave back to him.

Wywth

bobeh110 wrote: »

I hope he is stupid enough to block the phone, that means he will be unable to use his own phone which I gave back to him.

That's if the seller was lying. We only have your side of the story.

My response was based on unholyangel's response/assumption.

If you are to be believed, then the phone is no good to the seller anyway as it turns off after 5 seconds :cool:

unholyangel

bobeh110 wrote: »

Yes I have his name and the address. I think he is a private seller. I took a photo of his phone with the imei on show but i cant prove that i actually gave him the phone. I asked the police could he not possibly track it as it would be with him but they told me its nothing to do with them

Have you asked paypal if the IMEI of the phone he claims you sent back matches the pictures? It may not be enough for them to reopen the dispute but it may provide useful if you have to take him to small claims.

Contact your network provider and ask how long they will keep the IMEI of your handset. I know you didnt use your sim but again, it may prove useful if you need to go to small claims. After all, if you can show that your own account is linked to say a samsung galaxy and has never been linked with the IMEI he says he received, then on the balance of probabilities, the phone you sent back was not your broken one and belonged to the seller. And that is what small claims goes on. The balance of what probably happened.

Was the IMEI listed in the ebay listing at all? Did this IMEI match the one of the handset you received? Has the guy had any similar complaints in his feedback?


If you havent already done so, please take a screen shot/capture of the listing and save it. I think ebay only keep them for 6 months (may be wrong on that).

bobeh110

He is a reputable seller this is what has astounded me. I just cannot believe why he has done this. I am honestly just gobsmacked to say the least more than anything. He has around 500+ good feedback but I am the same and have never disputed anything before.

It was his sim that was in the phone when I got it which I sent back to him with the phone.
Paypal actually wont tell me what he said I gave him back. I assumed it was another phone.
If I knew what it was at least I would proof of the weight I paid with the royal mail.
The IMEI was not on the listing.
I think this is just my own stupid fault. I have sent paypal a complaint about the dispute because i do not understand if i sent him his item back how on earth he has proof that i didn't

wealdroam

bobeh110 wrote: »

...i do not understand if i sent him his item back how on earth he has proof that i didn't

I think the seller is just claiming that the phone you have returned is not the one he sent you.
He claims he sent you a good phone and that you returned a rubbish one.

Pretty sure he won't be able to prove that.
Clearly either you or him are not telling the truth.

bobeh110

do you know how much it costs to take someone to a smalls claims court and how i manage to this? and how can i track the iphone