I ordered an allegedly custom made costume off Etsy. I gave the seller all my measurements prior to closing the sale. Unfortunately the item didn't fit...at all. After my money was taken, I emailed the seller and discovered without warning, they had been removed from Etsy.
I had to open a dispute with PayPal before the seller bothered responding and at which point finally shipped the item and provided a tracking number.
I purchased this item through Etsy in good faith, knowing that like Ebay, Etsy is a major and well established market place, which prides itself on protection for both buyers and sellers.
Etsy's response:
..."Taking a closer look at your order, I noticed that your payment was sent directly to the seller’s PayPal account. Some sellers opt to receive funds into their own PayPal account. This means that PayPal, not Etsy, is the only party that has access to those funds. As you may already know, PayPal's policies state that buyers have a specified amount of time to file a claim for a refund. This eligibility window may differ depending on your location, so at this time we would recommend that you get in touch with PayPal directly for more information.
I'm including the contact information for PayPal below:
Help Center and Contact page: https://www.paypal.com/selfhelp/homeSupport by Phone: Login, Click "Help", Click "Call Us" (US), Login, Click "Help", Click "Call Us" (if calling from outside the US)
If your date to file a claim with PayPal passes, we'd urge you to contact your credit card issuer or bank for further assistance in pursuing a refund.
You may also want to consider taking these steps to protect yourself and others:
File a complaint with the Internet Crime Complaint Center: https://www.ic3.gov/default.aspxContact a law enforcement agency in your location or the seller’s location"..."
In other words, I was pawned off onto PayPal and/or my credit card company.
As far as i'm concerned I am covered under Etsy's buyer protection, as the transaction occurred through their governing body of regulations and guidelines.
Although proceeding to open a case with PayPal, I discovered the following:
13.3 Ineligible Items. PayPal Purchase Protection only applies to PayPal payments for certain tangible, physical goods. Payments for the following are not eligible for reimbursement under PayPal Purchase Protection:
6. Custom made items
Though on the contrary, the following is also in their policy:
"If a claim is filed, the seller is asked to respond within 10 days. If the seller doesn’t respond, the claim will automatically close in the buyer’s favor, and a full refund will be issued. If the seller does respond, PayPal will work to evaluate the information provided and determine the outcome of the claim. This process usually takes about 30 days, but more complex cases could take longer than 30 days."
According to PayPal's policy, they do not cover custom made items. However, according to their blanket claims policy, by default, they would.
Any one else scratching their heads?
