I have been scammed by a seller, and paypal decided in his favour, what should I do? (Sotel.de)

[seanthefinn]

Here is a brief story of my purchase

I ordered at the end of August a phone from a german company, Sotel.de, which was supposed to ship a XIAOMI MI 10 dual sim. The phone arrived but was single sim. I contacted the seller and he said that it was my problem, I had to change by myself the firmware and buy a special simtray from china! This was absurd. I took even screenshots of his seller page, where he was stating that the object was dual sim. Of course, after I reported him, he rushed to delete the page. 

 And guess what? The seller couldn't receive emails... 

Well , I contact Paypal, and finally we can discuss the issue there. Basically the seller refused the return at the beginning, but at the end he had to accept. I pack my phone and ship it...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v-frkeCl_SY&ab_channel=SeanEamonCappone

And after two weeks, after paypal asked me to escalate my case, I receive this wonderful email from sotel!

He is claiming that I have been scamming him and he was reporting me to the police! The trick is done! Another seller that doesn't want to get returned items after misleading customers.

And after 2 months, 2 months! where PayPal has been pushing forward, 3 days at the time, my case, I receive the decision that my case has been closed in favour of the seller! This is crazy.

Now PayPal doesn't answer the phone. I have been trying since september to call them but it seems like their call center are closed. After a long wait you get redirected to the London call centre where an automated message tells you that the offices are closed for a bank holiday and they will open again on september the (something, I don't remember).

How can I protest for this decision? I ended up losing the money, the phone and the shipment costs. I'm super angry

Thank you

[sharpiemarker]

@seanthefinn 

Was the phone actually returned? The tracking says that the item arrived in the Country of destination but does not say it was "delivered". PayPal wants proof of delivery of the return. That is why you lost the case. Find out what happened to the package and see if it was delivered or not and make sure shipment status is marked as delivered.

https://t.17track.net/en#nums=CE504613679FI

https://www.dhl.de/en/privatkunden/pakete-empfangen/verfolgen.html?piececode=CE504613679FI

If the tracking is updated to "Delivered" then you can appeal because that is proof of delivery but without that, there is no point in trying to appeal. With the pandemic and slow shipping, who knows how long that will take. If you insured the shipment, you can file a claim with post office.

[seanthefinn]

Thanks, I'm trying to contact now DHL

Let's see what happens

[seanthefinn]

Hello everybody, thank you for your help.

I had an answer from the FInnish Post Service (POSTI) about my parcel. Officially it has been lost by DHL in Germany. Nice.

Posti refunded me just 552€, which is the maximum refundable for my shipment (what!? then why I paid to insure 800€ of value?).

In this case, can PayPal refund the difference of value? 

If the seller would have not sent me a product not conform to the description, there would have been no problems at all with the returns. The seller is from this perspective co-responsible for the damage that I suffered.

How should I proceed on from here?

Thank you

(follows the document sent me as pdf)

________________

Dear Customer
We have handled your claim
Date: 29.12.2020
Compensation
Claimed: 800.00 €
Cause of
Indemnity: Loss
Date of Dispatch: 11.09.2020
Sender: Address:
Sean <removed>
<removed>
We will pay you compensation of EUR 552,42 for the loss of the item.
According to the legislation concerning transports, the carrier's responsibility for damage is
limited to the maximum compensation. In this case, the maximum compensation is higher than
that specified in our terms of service, SDR 450 pursuant to the contract between us and the
destination country. SDR is an international currency unit that fluctuates in value based on
exchange rates.
Our compensation policy concerning international postal items is based on the Universal Postal
Convention as well as on our terms of service/terms of contract.
We apologize for any inconvenience caused.
If you are unhappy with the decision, please first contact Posti.
Consumers may take the case to the Consumer Disputes Board (www.kuluttajariita.fi) for
resolution.
Before taking the matter to the Consumer Disputes Board, the consumer should contact Finnish
Competition and Consumer Authorhity's Consumer Advisory Service (
www.kuluttajaneuvonta.fi).
The compensation case can also be taken to the District Court of Helsinki. Consumers may also
start a lawsuit in the general court of first instance in their location of residence.
We pay: EUR 552.42
Bank account:
<removed>
<removed>
Best regards,
Posti <removed>
Customer Service
Marja-<removed>

____________