Disputing payment for art commission

[haste17]

I paid an artist I found on etsy who had a listing there about getting an illustration done - it's been a month and there has been little to no progress on it. I see the artist posting 2 full illustrations of non-commissions on their personal twitter, since I paid them and I thought she would at least be close to done (2-3 weeks out), but she says she has been feeling sick for 4 weeks now. I asked her how long it would take to finish the commission and the answer was April.

Needless to say I was shocked, so I politely asked her about getting a refund, only to find all her etsy listings taken down and her claiming she has a no-refund policy (which I cannot find anywhere now, written at any point) when the payment is done. I deposited one half. It is 700USD, which is a lot of money that I cannot just let go - I would have given her a lesser sum for giving me 2 sketches (over 4 weeks), but she refuses and has been trying to negotiate to either rush the work (and still pay her the other 700usd, on top of the first half I gave) or give her time to pay her back through "installment plans". On top of which, saying she doesn't have the money to pay me back.

I have opened a case and have since escalated the claim to paypal, but I am worried because this was not a product that is tangible and is an art commission, which I have not even received at all to any extent to the agreement of wanting a full illustration - having only gotten 2 sketches which were done over 3 weeks ago.

[haste17]

this was the last response , I'm flabberghasted how someone can have no money while taking my money and then expecting me to sit around until April at their whim, just because they don't have the funds to pay me the money I gave them 4 weeks ago.

[PayPal_Meghan · Accepted solution]

Hello @haste17, 

Thanks for joining the PayPal Community! 

I'm sorry to hear you still haven't received your commissioned illustration. I understand you have filed and escalated your case to a claim already, and I'm very happy to hear that. Physical and digital art can still be covered under PayPal's Buyer Protection Policy for Item Not Received cases. After escalating your dispute to a claim, we will give the merchant ten days to respond. If they do not respond, a refund will be automatically issued. If they do respond, we will review all information provided before making a decision. Our goal is to have all cases resolved within 30 days; however, it can sometimes take longer if we have to request more information or monitor tracking. You can check the current status of your case in the Resolution Center. For any detailed questions, though, don't hesitate to reach out to our Customer Support by clicking 'Contact' at the bottom of any PayPal webpage. 

I hope this helps and that you receive a refund or the illustration soon! 

- Meghan