Payment on hold - do we release the item for collection?

[Samantha67]

Briefly we have sold a motorcycle privately to a buyer who is quite literally the other end of the country, and who has paid by PayPal and is arranging a courier collection – it was advertised as buyer to collect. That's fine except PayPal have the payment 'on-hold' which suggests that there may be a chance that we may not get full payment, else why not simply release the payment? We are not keen to let the courier collect the motorcycle unless or until we have been paid in full – once it's gone what evidence do we have as to condition etcetera!? Any idea how we resolve this?

[kernowlass]

@Samantha67

2 issues here.

1. If you are subject to the new seller hold and funds are pending then you are at no more risk as paypal hold the funds and the buyer can only get them back if he opens and wins a dispute...........no difference than if the funds were in your bank account and you lost a dispute and had to refund.

HOWEVER YOUR TRANSACTION RAISES ANOTHER ISSUE.

2. You should never use paypal for an item that is to be collected or personally delivered OR any motor vehicle as you have 0 seller protection.
Your buyer can collect the item and then file a dispute for non receipt of item. As you would have no tracking number to prove delivery of the item to him then you would lose the dispute.

That is why Ebay give you the option of 'cash on collection' and you can state in your decription that that is the only payment you will accept. If a buyer pays with Paypal then you are allowed to refund that payment and re-state 'cash on collection'.

That way you have cash in hand / no wait / no fee / no risk of a dispute.