Paypay Ebay - stolen item - paid credit card

TomTomTomTom

I bought a bike 2nd hand from ebay. paid with my credit card- but think it may be stolen.
Obviously i need to make sure that it is actually stolen.
But assuming this is decided - what's the best way to try and get a chargeback.
I can use ebay procedure
or paypal procedure
or try for a chargeback with barclaycard



unfortunately, i now understand that a section 75 claim on the credit card company isn't possible when you pay via paypal.

eco_warrior

Buying and receiving a stolen bike wouldn’t give you any chargeback rights under MasterCard or Visa.

I have no idea about ebays procedures tbh

Ben8282

Why do you think the bike may be stolen and how do you intend to go about verifying if it is stolen or not?

boo_star

Find out if it's stolen before you do anything else.

PixelPound

There are plenty of sites out there to check if the bike comes up as reported stolen. The caveat as always is if it isn't on doesn't mean it's not stolen.

https://checkthatbike.co.uk/

18cc

The way to do it is by eBay you do a return and I believe one of the options is that the item is counterfeit or stolen. You can also do a return with the status item not as described

in any case you don't need a reason to return an item on eBay and that is where you will get a Paypal refund

TomTomTomTom

The bike isn't listed on checkthatbike.


Why do i think it's stolen?
Someone approached me in a public space, saying : I think that bike is stolen, and the original owner was going to give it to me. Not soooo believable, but i gave my contact details.

I've since received contact from the possible owner, and they've shared photos of the bike and a receipt. The photos correspond - with a few stickers placed in the same locations. The handwritten receipt includes a frame number, which is one digit different from my bike's frame number. Could be typo or could be a different bike.

PixelPound

Why did you give contact details if so not believable? Someone was going to be given the bike but the bike was stolen from the person who was going to give it away. Has that person been to the police and reported it stolen, if not why? May be that person is genuine, but maybe not. A hand written receipt isn't much and the bike number could easily have been found out if the bike had been tied up somewhere.

Of course it might have been stolen and in addition to going for an ebay refund you may want to report it to the police yourself in case the seller is selling other bikes.

Emily_Joy

OP: I have been there.

First and foremost the bike is considered to be stolen if there is an actual police crime reference number. You need to contact the person who claims this is his bike and request to provide you the Crime Reference Number. You then call the police non-emergency number 101 and check that this Crime Reference Number actually exists. (They will redirect you to the relevant police force). Once it has been established that the actual crime number corresponds to the bike you have, you should take the bike to the nearest police station. The police officer will then seize the bike and issue you a copy of the report of the incident stating all details. With this report attached you submit a request to PayPal, and provided you within the PayPal timeframe, the PayPal will issue a full refund.

Terry_Towelling

Perhaps best to do as 18cc suggests and get your money back through the Ebay process.

It sounds to me like someone is trying to con you - it's just too unbelievable. Do you have the contact details of the person claiming to be the original owner and the person who approached you and the person who sold it to you? You may be able to tie all three of those people together by checking their social media.

A handwritten receipt can't contain a typo - but I know what you mean. If the frame number is different, tell them so, but don't tell them what the actual frame number is.

Now take care. If they know your address, you could find them calling on you in the night to steal it back and then sell it on to someone else and then pull the same con again.

18cc

Very good advice from Emily joy and something I had not considered which is of course that if you knowingly hang onto items that are or that you believe to be stolen then you are of course yourself committing a criminal offence and getting a refund may well be the least of your worries!