How can I contact someone at paypal about a lost refund when the message center does not help

[egavas]

I had a defective product on ebaly and the seller promised to send another and strung me along for months as it was coming from China. Now they tell me that they issued a refund and gave me a transaction number but I never received it and have not been able to get answers from the automated system. Is there some way to get help to locate what happened?

[kernowlass]

@egavas 

If you funded the original Paypal payment to the seller from your bank account or a card then once marked refunded/completed it will automatically go back to that bank account or card.
Normally it can take a few days up to a week to go back to a bank account and a bit longer for a card, Paypal say allow 30 days for a card (1 billing cycle) but its rarely that long.
(Can vary according to country though).
https://www.paypal.com/us/smarthelp/article/FAQ1212

If you didn't get it then.............

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 OR service
•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. Paypal will 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. Click on the transaction and use the resolve a problem option at the bottom of that details page.

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

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 you lose because seller provides a fake tracking number (likely) then post back for more advice.
If the item arrives and its tat the make sure you CHANGE the dispute quickly before it closes to 'not as described'.
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.

Also make sure you have activated the below link in case you have to return it.
https://www.paypal.com/us/webapps/mpp/returns