I sold a 30-foot 88’ Sea Ray Weekender 300 to the buyer via eBay on October 8. The buyer completed the deposit payment of $500 within 24 hours of the sale, per auction requirements. The buyer agreed to the auction terms and conditions (to pay remaining balance of $525 within 7 days, and remove the boat from storage within 20 days) by purchasing item via eBay and submitting his deposit via PayPal. Buyer did not make the final payment within 7 days. I offered a 24-hour extension as courtesy, but the buyer did not pay within 24 hours. I filed unpaid item dispute and relisted item at the recommendation of eBay. The buyer completed final payment of $525 via PayPal on October 17, after unpaid item claim was opened and the item relisted at the recommendation of eBay (and also as explained in the auction terms and conditions). eBay closed the unpaid item dispute after payment was received, so I drove to the marina storage lot and placed the title on the table in boat’s cabin for the buyer. The buyer arrived on Sunday when the marina was closed to inspect the boat and claims they “checked every secret place, but could not find the title,” then refused to remove the item from storage because it “did not have a title.” The buyer locked the cabin with a master-lock and removed the keys from the ignition, effectively taking possession of the vehicle. I contacted eBay and asked for advice, to which eBay recommended sending an email that the title is with the boat and all the buyer has to do is remove the boat from storage. eBay and I both sent the following message to the buyer: "Hello **********, We are getting in touch with you from eBay customer service on one of the transaction you had for the item **** Sea Ray Weekender *** (113286954929) you bought from "uswebdev". Your seller reached out to us about the item that he sold and want to let you know that the item is available for claim in the Marina and all you have to do is to pick it up. [...] Thanks, eBay" The buyer filed two separate ‘item not received’ disputes with PayPal (PP007454004798 and PP007454004567) for a total of $1025, and then escalated both disputes to claims within 30 minutes. I was unable to reply to the dispute because of an error on the PayPal website, so I called PayPal phone support. I waited on hold with PayPal for one hour before contacting online chat support. I was told that chat support had submitted the included reply for review. I waited on hold with PayPal for one additional hour before contacting online chat support again, and was told, “The case had been updated by a colleague.” I tried to submit a PDF document as evidence for review, but PayPal would not allow the seller to respond to the dispute without a shipping tracking number. I explained the auction was for a boat, so there would was no tracking number (and the auction terms clearly stated the buyer was responsible for removal within 20 days and shipping costs). I waited on hold with PayPal for two additional hours before contacting online chat support a third time and was told to “attach the documents in an email to PayPal complaints ” I sent 63 pages of supporting evidence to PayPal complaints via email attachment within 24-hours of the dispute first being filed. PayPal responded: “You have not provided valid evidence so the case closed in buyer favour thankyou.” PayPal closed both disputes and refunded the buyer the full amount of $1025. The buyer locked the vehicle and retained the keys, title, and full payment. I am obligated to remove the boat from storage no later than October 31 (at the request of storage facility owner). The buyer sent an email via eBay messages taunting and harassing me for losing both PayPal disputes: “Now you only have one day and half to remove the boat out of there in RAIN. Enough of your BULL **bleep** about STD business practice crap.
Thank you for your business 🙂 !” I am still unable to file an appeal for both cases, as shown in the attached photos… I informed eBay of this issue, to which eBay recommended filing a claim with the vehicle purchase protection program and contacting the police. I am now providing the above text, 63 pages of evidence sent to PayPal, and an additional 18 pages of new evidence (attached for review). I am also contacting the local police at eBay’s recommendation. My question is... how do I win this? How do I get my money AND my boat back?! Right now, the buyer has my money, my boat keys, and my title... and PayPal is asking for a tracking number. They awarded the claim to the buyer because ‘I don’t have a tracking number’ - but it clearly says in auction terms ‘buyer responsible for shipping’. Please help me. Please!
