PayPal Community

I've been a buyer and a seller on eBay since 1997, and the only time I was scammed was in 2007 by a seller who never sent the item I paid for.  The item was a used textbook, and the total purchase was about $30.  This particular seller displayed PayPal's "guarantee" that they were legitimate (I think PayPal must sell this guarantee to anyone who wants to buy it, because it apparently has nothing to do with the seller's trustworthiness OR with PayPal's willingness to grant refunds to people who are subsequently scammed).  I tried for weeks and weeks to resolve the matter with the seller, but they never responded to my emails and stopped selling on eBay - they simply disappeared.  When I asked PayPal to get involved and help resolve the matter, they told me that there was nothing they could do since they were unable to contact the seller.  What kind of a guarantee is that?   Anyhow, I've noticed that both buyers and sellers have gotten a lot less trustworthy over the last few years.  In the beginning (like a lot of things), it was really great. ... View more

I agree.  Back in 2007, I purchased a used textbook through eBay. The person selling the book had some kind of preferred security status with PayPal which "guaranteed" that they were trustworthy (I forget exactly what this status is called, but I remember it included the word "guaranteed").     Because PayPal vouched for this seller, I felt safe paying in advance for the book.  The book never arrived, and the seller never answered any of my emails.  After several weeks of failed attempts to contact the seller, I filed a grievance with eBay.  eBay referred me to PayPal to pursue the matter, but PayPal refused to do a single thing to resolve the matter, and they refused to refund my money, even though they had "guaranteed" this seller was legitimate.  PayPal's only reply to me was, "we are unable to reach this seller."   I still can't believe that PayPal/eBay gets away with this kind of thing - it's so unethical.  I went online later and learned that this was a very common thing for PayPal/eBay - it was their standard business practice to absolutely ignore their customers when the sellers they "guaranteed" ripped them off.     Thank you very much, Meg Whitman.  Good luck running for Governor of California (where I will be voting for your opponent in a few weeks. ... View more