I returned item to a different address, now asked to ship to paypal registered address

[offrancisco]

I filed a complaint Jan 6 for an item I purchased and the seller immediately offered a refund if I ship the item back to a given address. I was able to return ship the item after a couple of days (because of holidays) so it almost reached the 20-day paypal deadline for escalating it to a claim. Since the deadline was almost there, I had to escalate to a claim (even if I was already offered a refund!). When I escalated however, paypal's instructions was to ship to another address. I asked the seller why the address in paypal is different from the one he provided and he said that that was okay. Now my deadline to provide a new tracking number is fast approaching and I do not know what to do. The item is already on its way back to the seller and I have no way to get the items back to ship it again to a new address. 😞 I have reached out to the seller and he said he will wait for the items before he refunds. His account is already blocked. It is very hard to reach paypal's customer hotline so I do not know what to do at this point. I have returned the item and I'm not even sure if I will be able to get a refund because I shipped it to a different address. It seems I've been robbed twice!!! :((

Can someone help me please on what I should do? 

[sharpiemarker]

@offrancisco 

Was the conversation about a return, the given return address and offer of refund upon return in the dispute? If so, provide that tracking number anyway. If PayPal rules against you, you appeal by contacting customer service and pointing to the fact that the return was made before escalating to PayPal claim so the case doesn't run out. Its the best you can do. If PayPal refuses, you can appeal again and again until you get a refund or exhausted # of appeals and if you paid with credit card, do a chargeback with your card issuer as a last resort.

1. Go to: https://www.paypal.com/smarthelp/contact-us
2. Click Disputes and account limitations
3. Click Disputes
4. Click Dispute a payment
5. Click Call Us, after the "This information might help" box or on the green box that pops up