Scammed using fake tracking number by the seller.

[Hetyboi]

Hello Paypal community,

I would like to bring attention to my situation. First of all I feel humiliated, getting scammed so easily by an old textbook scam. I recently bought a MacBook Pro online through Paypal, I asked paypal to check the invoice seller sent me and they said it was okay to go ahead with the transaction as I was protected. After I paid $2000 to the seller, I was provided with a USPS tracking number, few days later it said the package was delivered but I never received the package. I contacted the local post office, they said it was delivered to Walgreens nearby with same zipcode. Basically what seller is trying to do here is exploit paypal and its users providing that false tracking number and showing that it was “delivered”. 

I have an ongoing dispute and claim going on about this paypal, I have provided all the evidence paypal will need to look at the facts of this situation. I got a detailed USPS tracking report showing the exact delivery address and how it is different from mine. I also got USPS  package weight info which was only 1lbs while we know MacBook Pro weighs more. I also have screenshots of conversations with the seller proving that its a scam and a fraud. 

I hope Payal looks at all these facts and help me get a refund. I also want to warn other to be careful. I have read many discussions where Paypal sides with the seller because the tracking says delivered (even though it’s not delivered to the buyer), hence I provided all the factual evidence to strengthen my case. 

I still have hope in Paypal @PayPal_DerrickD  @PayPal_Roy 

[oibmoose]

PayPal Community,

Thought I would share my experience as well.  I placed an order with rtic-outlet.com believing it was an outlet store for RTIC.  Website looked legitimate but was searching from my phone(an ad actually popped up which took me to the rtic-outlet.com site).  After placing an order from my phone with the ease of PayPal,  I received an email from a non-rtic email address.  I then began researching online to learn about the scam.  Called RTIC HQ office in Houston and they advised it is a scam.  Called credit card company who stated they have to wait for the order to "complete" either with or without delivery before they could do anything and to contact PayPal.   Raised the dispute with PayPal and the scam of the fraudulent party supplying the bogus tracking # made it so PayPal "believed" order was delivered.  Found an article online about this practice where PayPal was asked to comment:

https://www.freep.com/story/money/personal-finance/susan-tompor/2019/12/12/tracking-code-paypal-scam...

I also opened cases with the FTC, AG in the state of Maryland(where the sender is located) and USPS. Having read online and replies on this thread I believe zero will come of it but if I can help one person to not fall victim then the time I have been taking will be worth it.  Fortunately mine is not a big money loss and I feel terrible for those that have lost more.  I appreciate PayPal cannot stop every fraud/scam that exists but when consumers file claims in this manner there should be a method to begin tracking the seller to see if other cases correlate then ban them from using PayPal.   

[kernowlass]

@oibmoose 

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.
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, however that may not be an option at the moment due to covid), 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.

[Rebekah_K]

@oibmoose, good article. The link doesn’t take you to it but you can use search bar in link. Search title: “PayPal loophole makes it easier for scammers to trick you into fake goods.” Interesting that PayPal basically blames buyers as being “lazy” and not doing enough site research before buying. You’d think PayPal could follow their own advice and have SOME criteria for allowing people to use THEIR payment options. If you’re listening PayPal, why don’t you give sellers a rating. How long in business? How many negative transactions? Once the words “PayPal” were synonymous with some sort of trust. Not no more.

[Cat345bl]

Agree! Credit card companies refund fraudulent charges. All PayPal does is close the fraudulent claim and does not allow you to reopen. Instead of protecting their clients from fraud, they are assisting criminals in their theft of innocent people. PayPal needs a nice big, fat lawsuit against them. Crooked!

[tabbygreye]

I fell for a scam as well. Bought a laptop online, and thought that by going through PayPal I'd be safe. Well, PayPal has denied my claim, because there's a tracking number showing my laptop was delivered, which it wasn't. I had no idea fake USPS tracking numbers were a thing until now. Hope i can get PayPal to help me out.

[Chmanzi]

Sorry to hear that! It looks like it wasn’t clear in my original post but <removed> is the ticket here. They won’t let me put an actual email on the post (ironically enough I’m the spammer?) lol.. Hopefully your post office cooperates, usually it takes a manager to get you what you need. If not the informed delivery app will let you enter the tracking number that pay pal will send as proof and you should be able to get the class they used to send it which likely won’t match the weight of the product. Good luck, keep at it, it took me 4 appeals to get it resolved. Maybe enough claims will force PayPal to reevaluate their vetting process for vendors.

[Cat345bl]

This exact same situation is happening to me right now! I am so angry! True, PayPal not refunding because it shows delivered. I am filing a police report as I have already been back and forth with the post office. I never would have thought this was a thing, but apparently it is. Angry!

[Rebekah_K]

Sorry that this is happening to you. But don’t give up. That’s why I posted this here because PayPal knows this happens but they reluctantly do nothing about it. They should be getting their sellers vetted better and hold them to a higher standard. Someone else just posted to check Tracking 17 at https://m.17track.net/en Good luck! Don’t give up! You have more info now to fight for what’s right. 💪

[Chmanzi]

After a couple weeks of back and forth I’m happy to say I was able to get this resolved with PayPal! Thanks everyone for the replies, and hopefully this thread can help anyone else in the same situation. I saw an ad for a similar webpage on Instagram a couple days ago so this is obviously a popular scam right now. Here’s how I would recommend going about this if you’re stuck. First off you should download the Usps app if you’re doing a lot of online shopping. Sign up for informed delivery, it’s very helpful and Helped me get the evidence I needed. The tracking number they used did not show up automatically but you can add it manually before going to the post office to show that it was tracked to your address. 1) Open a seller dispute with PayPal. Your claim will likely be denied and they will not provide an email address to respond. This is the most frustrating part because you cannot attach any evidence when you submit the claim. I managed to find that paypal has a direct inbox at claimappeal with the symbol and PayPal com after that you can email. As soon as you get the denial respond with the dispute number and attach the below evidence and repeat your explanation of the issue. 2) Go to your local USPS office and request to speak to a manager. Explain the situation and show them the tracking number from the transaction and your address. They should be able to provide a photo of the package which will likely have a photoshopped label to another nearby address. In my case they sent it to a nearby CVS. They used an Amazon padded mailer and fulfillment center as the return address. This was a mistake because it was also from a completely different state than the tracking origination. 3) I grabbed a screenshot of the item, in my case a BBQ (campchefoutlet.com was the site that got me) 4) I attached the emailed “receipt” showing the item I supposedly purchased. I made sure the screenshot item was the same as listed on the receipt. 5) I added a screenshot from the informed delivery app showing that they used “parcel lightweight” service (obviously not a BBQ) All of this was enough to get the original denial reversed in my favor. It took several tries of submitting claims through the app before I found this email address, so don’t get discouraged. Keep on until they side with you, the above evidence should be more than enough. Good luck!

[Cat345bl]

Thank you for all of this useful information that you have so graciously outlined. I am going to try this tomorrow.