Bought an iPhone and received an empty box

[irreverent13]

So I bought an iPhone on eBay, when the item was shipped, the seller did message with the package has shipped and packed with "surveillance video" that was first time I ever heard from a seller, bought iPhone, laptop and other phones before, but never did received as such message.

Surprisingly, what a coincidence that I received an empty box! No iPhone on it!

I checked back the eBay Listing page and filed a case, I provided evidences that I found out some red flags on the listing. The Serial Number of in the listing does not match of what the seller is selling. He listed iPhone X for bidding and I found out the the photos shows a serial number of different phone which is an iPhone XS.

eBay just closed the case on email saying I reached limit from Buyer Protection so I called customer service and said file a claim on PayPal.

Anyone experienced this? This was a horrible experience for me.

[kernowlass]

@irreverent13 

How do I open a dispute with a seller when a purchase goes wrong?

You can open a dispute in the Resolution Centre of your PayPal account within 180 days of payment if:
•You don’t receive the item
•You receive an item but it’s significantly different than the description on eBay or on the seller’s website

By opening a dispute, you can communicate directly with your seller to work out a problem transaction.

If you reach an agreement with the seller you can close the dispute. If you're still not happy with the result, you can escalate the dispute into a claim. We'll review the claim and decide on reimbursement.

These steps apply to Personal accounts. If you have a Business account, please log in to see the steps that apply to you.

To open a dispute:
1.Log in to your PayPal account.
2.Near the bottom of the page, under 'More about your account', click Resolve a problem in our Resolution Centre.
3.Click Dispute a Transaction.
4.Select the button beside the transaction you want to dispute, then click Continue.
5.Select ‘Item dispute’, click Continue and follow the on-screen instructions.

Note:
•Generally buyers must wait at least 7 days from the date of payment to escalate a dispute for an item not received
•Where an item has not been received, please ensure you have given the seller enough time before opening a dispute

https://www.paypal.com/webapps/mpp/first-dispute

DO NOT CLOSE THE DISPUTE UNTIL YOU HAVE A CLEARED REFUND OR YOUR ITEM WHATEVER THE SELLER SAYS. ALSO DON'T FORGET TO ESCALATE THE DISPUTE TO A CLAIM WITHIN 20 DAYS IF THE SELLER DOES NOT REFUND.

If that does not work then if you funded your paypal payment via a card then contact your card issuer and see if they will do a chargeback for you.

[okayharlen101]

I'm having the same problem too, did you end up getting a refund? 

The seller sent me an empty box with UPS shipping. Problem is he put the weight as 1 LB, and it's automatically rounded up to the nearest pound either way. So PayPal might think the phone was sent and I'm lying, because of the weight.