Injustice with PayPal Buyer Protection After Falling Victim to a Fraudulent Seller

[Danlan]

Last month I purchased a camera via buyers protection over PayPal (14.5). The person seemed legit and all, and promised me to send over the package the following weekend. The day after the purchase I received more than 2000 spam emails. I checked the status of my Payment and saw that there was a shipment number attached that was already shipped out *a week prior to my purchase*, that already had arrived and been signed according to the shipment by FedEx. (15.5) I opened a buyers protection request (dispute) reported the incident to the police, and uploaded all proof of chats plus the police report to PayPal. I communicated frequently with the PayPal support to assure they had all proof they needed and was told that there is no reason for me to worry. Today (10.6) after one month of eagerly waiting I was told that PayPal declined my buyers protection request, even though there is obvious evidence of a fraud. I contacted support again, and they said it’s a shame that they decided my case that way. (According to him it might just have been a blueprint decline.) Now I ask myself what even was the purpose of investing that much time for a month to be told of and find out that I lost 2 months worth of salary, because no one properly looked into my case. I am really frustrated, and I’m not sure what else I can do to get my money back. Kind regards Daniel

[kernowlass]

@Danlan 

Paypal is just a payment processor that gives you 'some' buyer and 'some' seller protection.
So disputes for non receipt of item are mostly automated. Seller provides tracking that shows delivery = seller wins.
So then its your turn to do some work to assist Paypal in recovering your purchase price from your seller.
 APPEAL
To submit an appeal on the dispute that was closed, PayPal asks that you obtain a detailed report from the shipper/courier (on their letterhead or some other form of official stationary) that includes the address the seller gave them for the shipment. Or one that includes a statement mentioning your address and saying the item was delivered to a different address. THEY DON'T HAVE TO SAY WHICH ADDRESS IT WAS SENT TO, JUST THAT IT WAS NOT DELIVERED TO YOUR ADDRESS.

Check tracking in below link to see where it went.
https://www.17track.net/en

When you have that, contact PayPal via phone (log on to your account and click contact at the bottom of the page, or via Facebook (send a Private Message to PayPal) or via Twitter (send a Direct Message to @AskPayPal) and say you want to appeal the denial of the dispute based on the shipper saying the item was delivered to a different address. Once it's submitted (you will be provided with directions on how to do that), the dispute will be reviewed further and a determination will be made.

You also have the option to contact your card issuer if you funded your Paypal payment that way and see if they will do a chargeback for you?

[Danlan]

@kernowlass 

Firstly, thank you for your detailed response. I appreciate the time you took to explain how PayPal operates.

I contacted PayPal support, and they have reopened my case. Unfortunately, the customer support representative who responded to the dispute did so in very broken English. Consequently, I decided to add a statement emphasizing that shipping the package a week before the purchase is clear evidence of fraud. The case is expected to take another week for a resolution.

Following your advice, I also reached out to FedEx, the parcel sender. They confirmed that the tracking number provided had no connection to me or my shipping address and supplied me with a letter of proof. Although the letter is in German, I hope PayPal’s back-office will review my dispute thoroughly (in person) this time and understand the evidence.

Lastly, I contacted my bank, but they were hesitant to withdraw money from PayPal. They indicated this could only be a last resort, requiring the police report. But I will see how the dispute turns out first.

I’ll keep you updated on the progress.

Kind regards,

Daniel