PayPal removed my buyer protection

Kaipa88

They are all high value purchases (£1000 +). I didn’t get any soft warning from PayPal before so this has come out of the blue. I’ve only ever opened cases via PayPal for “items not as described” and always won. I’ve never done a chargeback through my bank but the issue is I’ve now lost a case worth over £1000.00 due to PayPal taking the buyer protection away during reviewing the case so failing the appeal which I’m almost certain will be rejected the only other option is a chargeback. I’m assuming at this point they may perm ban me?

Also how can I actually speak to someone at PayPal specifically about this issue. I remember when you used to be able to get through to someone occasionally who worked in the back office based in Dublin who seemed to have some authority whereas thesedays the only people you can speak to are agents based in the Philippines reading off scripts.

soolin

Kaipa88 said:

They are all high value purchases (£1000 +). I didn’t get any soft warning from PayPal before so this has come out of the blue. I’ve only ever opened cases via PayPal for “items not as described” and always won. I’ve never done a chargeback through my bank but the issue is I’ve now lost a case worth over £1000.00 due to PayPal taking the buyer protection away during reviewing the case so failing the appeal which I’m almost certain will be rejected the only other option is a chargeback. I’m assuming at this point they may perm ban me?

As I’ve just paid for something by PayPal it made me think about how PayPal works. You say only 3 cases out of 11 purchases but that is abnormal. Do you open cases as all other methods have failed, are you playing fast and loose buying from potentially dodgy sellers, perhaps going forward you need to look at where you buy and from whom.

if you are buying from websites then why are their own T and Cs not covering you ? If from private individuals how are you finding these people , can you perhaps get someone to cast an eye over a profile or sale before you commit ?

My own PayPal account shows around 55 purchases in about a year , some companies some private individuals . I’ve had a few damaged items , maybe 2 which have been returned and replaced by the shop. I’ve had an INR  a private individual they did hold out thinking that sending me proof of postage was all they needed to prevent me getting a refund. I spoke to that person again, explained I was due a refund but promising to pay again if the goods did turn up but she wouldn’t budge, and at that point I opened an INR - and she refunded me within 24 hours. Interestingly that person was on a site I use a lot and she was removed by admin after a couple of complaints were made. 

Kaipa88

It’s been a mixture of eBay purchases and through websites. If I’ve received an item not as described via eBay I’ve just opened a case directly through PayPal. If it’s through a manufacturers/retailers website I’ve always contacted them first and let them investigate. If they’ve come back to me and said they’ve investigated and not going to refund then I’ve gone to PayPal to open an item not as described case. 

QrizB

Kaipa88 said:

If I’ve received an item not as described via eBay I’ve just opened a case directly through PayPal. 

Normally you'd dispute an eBay purchase through eBay. Is there any reason why you're choosing to go through PayPal instead?

Kaipa88

eBay are absolutely awful to deal with if you need to speak to somebody so I’ve always found PayPal to be a swifter way of resolving things 

Hoenir

Kaipa88 said:

eBay are absolutely awful to deal with if you need to speak to somebody so I’ve always found PayPal to be a swifter way of resolving things 

Had issues with Ebay as well in the past? 

Kaipa88

So is there a way to email/speak with their back office about my account restriction? Speaking to their agents in the Philippines is getting me no-where as they can’t give any concrete information. I’m getting a different story with every agent 

soolin

Kaipa88 said:

So is there a way to email/speak with their back office about my account restriction? Speaking to their agents in the Philippines is getting me no-where as they can’t give any concrete information. I’m getting a different story with every agent 

Why do you need to speak to anyone at eBay, unless there’s some reason your buyer guarantee has been withdrawn there as well?

it’s simple, you go to your purchase , open a dialogue and report the issue as item not as described/damaged whatever, and PayPal automatically find for the buyer * and seller either supplies a pre paid label, or if they refuse then eBay do and charge the seller. 

* the only time they find for a seller is where a claim is spurious or completely wrong. In the past couple of years for instance as a seller I won a SNAD case where someone complained they had received a blue item but wanted a green one . I pointed out to eBay that the item specifics showed the colour as blue, the description said blue and the title said blue. I also won one where buyer complained they didn’t realise it was brand X when they had wanted brand Y, again item specifics, description and title showed the correct brand. 

I can’t off hand think of a single case where a simple eBay case wouldn’t be easier.

Kaipa88

The point about eBay is irrelevant at this point - my query is with PayPal not eBay. 

soolin

Kaipa88 said:

The point about eBay is irrelevant at this point - my query is with PayPal not eBay. 

As they gave no warning then your only hope is to find the original transaction and go back to PayPal pointing out that at the time you made the purchase the transaction showed you had buyer protection, and it can’t be removed retrospectively. 

Then going forward, either start using a different payment method, or do as has been suggested and be more careful going forward and try to build up a credible history again and hope they reinstate your buyer protection at some point. If you do the latter then be careful to be more cautious when buying from individuals and if buying on eBay use the eBay route for protection. Hopefully though if you are more cautious you should t have to make more claims.