Making a Direct Debit Indemnity claim

hels2308

Hi, looking for a bit of advice please! I foolishly purchased an item off gumtree which I paid for via PayPal, but said item has sadly not shown up. The email address the seller provided bounces back, and he is not responding to any communication via the gumtree messaging service. It's only been a week, but I am not hopeful of the item ever arriving. I have spoken to gumtree, who are investigating the seller but have advised me to wait a few more days before taking action. I have also spoken to PayPal, who inform me that as I paid through the friends and family option that it is not possible to open a dispute over the payment. I know, I know - amateur error. They have, however, advised me to open a Direct Debit Indemnity claim with the bank to have the money returned. I've looked into this option, and there seems to be some mixed advice. I understand that the guarantee only covers payments taken in error - which this wasn't, but I've also read of a number of people who have made a claim and said the bank pretty much refunded the many no questions asked, as they don't accept any responsibility should the other party dispute the DD being returned. In this case, PayPal are the ones instructing me to make the claim, so I don't anticipate any fall out. I'm thinking that if I still haven't heard from the seller by next week then it's worth giving it a go, but I'm wondering if anyone has any experience or info regarding making these claims. Is there a particular type of wording to use to satisfy the bank that I could fall under the necessary criteria for a refund? Any wisdom would be greatly appreciated!

~Beanie~

I can't see that working. Whilst the bank will refund you straight away, they will then claim the money back from PayPal. Surely PayPal will dispute this as they are saying you used friends and family? In that case, the bank will pretty quickly take their refund back.

hels2308

~Beanie~ wrote: »

I can't see that working. Whilst the bank will refund you straight away, they will then claim the money back from PayPal. Surely PayPal will dispute this as they are saying you used friends and family? In that case, the bank will pretty quickly take their refund back.

Thanks for the feedback Beanie. I would have thought the same, except it was a suggestion directly from PayPal to submit the claim. Surely they wouldn't then refute it if the refund is successful? I even have the recommendation in an email from one of their customer service reps!

diamonds

hels2308 wrote: »

I even have the recommendation in an email from one of their customer service reps!

Well go for it, PP kind of have accepted liability by the email. If the bank want to recharge you, send them the email

pmduk

I'm not certain Paypal know what they're talking about, certainly their advice in this case seems very dubious.

Krash420

Why not ask paypal to send you that in email, then when the bank says "Paypal said this" you can send them the email to show that they agreed to the chargeback.

hels2308

Krash420 wrote: »

Why not ask paypal to send you that in email, then when the bank says "Paypal said this" you can send them the email to show that they agreed to the chargeback.

I have the instructions from PayPal in a message they sent me via their message center, so I can always forward it on.

Thanks for the feedback folks! Any advice on how to approach the bank? Do you think I should give them the whole story, or do you think less is more in this case? Obviously, I have no intention of being dishonest, I just wonder if there's anything I should/shouldn't be saying to encourage them to agree to issuing the refund! Thanks

Futuristic

~Beanie~ wrote: »

I can't see that working. Whilst the bank will refund you straight away, they will then claim the money back from PayPal. Surely PayPal will dispute this as they are saying you used friends and family? In that case, the bank will pretty quickly take their refund back.

Most banks don't care what the merchant says if you have enough proof (take a look at AMEX for example instant chargeback is possible). This is not always the case of course and depends on the bank/customer service advisor.

agrinnall

You haven't paid by Direct Debit so I can't see any way in which a DD Guarantee claim could be successful, the bank will throw it out straight away.

Futuristic

agrinnall wrote: »

You haven't paid by Direct Debit so I can't see any way in which a DD Guarantee claim could be successful, the bank will throw it out straight away.

PayPal setups up direct debit when you add bank account, I assume funds came via bank to PayPal to seller

hels2308

Futuristic wrote: »

PayPal setups up direct debit when you add bank account, I assume funds came via bank to PayPal to seller

Yes, that's how it was explained to me.

The message I have states very clearly that I should be able to reclaim the money, so I wouldn't have thought PayPay would be an issue. At this point, I'm more concerned about the bank not entertaining the idea to begin with!