eBay problems, anyone?

[Dolebludger]

Well, I've got one. My wife listed an iPhone on eBay in early December In mid December she received a notice that it was sold, directing her to ship it to a designated person at a designated address. She did, and it was received, but she never got paid through Paypal. A month later now, she started calling, and was told over the phone that the seller never paid, and she should file a fraud complaint at a web address she was given. She attempted to file the complaint, but was instead was given a screen showing that the seller paid on December 16. Another round of phone calls produced no help. Only the accusation that SHE had marked the account "paid". (She doesn't even know how to do so.) Paypal refused to provide any evidence that my wife had marked the account as "paid". She was advised to file a claim with the FBI, and she did so. But I feel that the seller actually did pay, and eBay/Paypal are stealing from us. If nothing happens in a month, my present intent is to sue eBay and Paypal here in Durango CO where my wife made her contract, not only for the amount, but for punitive damages as well.

But before I go further, I though I'd ask you guys about your problems with eBay/Paypal (if any) and who you resolved them.

Thanks in advance.

 

[bulletproof]

Wow,brother...I have never had a problem like that. I do hope y'all get it sorted out...

 

[sk8rat]

log on to paypal and go to account activity, history or overview and go to the date they claim she accepted payment. if there is no activity then screen shot everything. that is proof that the payment never went through.

I haven't used ebay in a while but I don't recall ever having to mark that I had been paid. it always did it automatically.

when ever I do online transactions I screen shot everything. you can never be too safe.

 

[TheX]

I seriously doubt that eBay or Paypal are doing this on purpose.

 

[THDNUT]

It's a good thing your wife is married to a lawyer.

 

[kevinpaul]

I bought a lot off of EBay in last few months, I don't sell. I had minor things but nothing like that.
I pay then they send my goodies. I thought that is how it the game worked. I pay fast so my treasures get.

 

[sk8rat]

I seriously doubt that eBay or Paypal are doing this on purpose.

they may have made a mistake and don't realize it. is it logical that two billion dollar businesses are out to scam her for what, $400? no. but the people who try to solve these problems are only human often overlook things.

 

[teame1]

I don't get this?
If she was paid via paypal then the money would be in the paypal account.
If the money is no longer there, need to work out where it is gone.
Did she buy anything after that date as paypal will use this money rather than draw from credit/bank card?
Very strange.

 

[Fritz]

PayPal has lost a few Class Action Lawsuits in recent years, most recently for this.

 

[Dolebludger]

Sk8rat,

Her account shows that the seller paid through Paypal to eBay. eBay denies having received payment. When my wife gets on the phone with them, she gets the run-around. The amount is only about $250, but I have an "attitude" -- nobody screws with us! (No, I don't screw with anybody else either -- I am a nice guy until you show me you are not.) She has most records of this transaction on her computer -- except for the name and address of the buyer (wish I had that). But we have Paypals record of payment to eBay.

 

[Dolebludger]

And thanks for the link about the Paypal class action suits. I'll check it out over the weekend. And any further info would be helpful. My wife just wants me to let this matter go, but I just can't do that. You see, perhaps a $250 loss isn't a big deal to us. And I'm a retired lawyer, my daughter here in Durango is a lawyer, My son-in-law here is the DA, and I'm friends with our sheriff. So with a little more info, I can take these SOBs down. But I think about all the people who don't have the resources I have, and I worry about these corporations stealing from people. Depending on the outcome of this situation, I may contact the Administrator of this forum with all the info and recommend that he warn all members about selling guitars and gear on eBay with payment via Paypal.

Ironically, at this same time, another of my adult daughters who lives in the Dallas suburbs had a similar problem with Amazon, but as a buyer. Product was defective and was subject to a fire hazard warning. But at least, she did get her price back -- after much hassle.

We will just have to see what develops, but we will just not let this situation go.

 

[Dolebludger]

Liked at the class action link. Unfortunately, there was a time window for transactions to be covered, and ours was one month and one day too late! This net week, will do some checking on what remedies (if any) we might have. The amount is really too small to justify suing in court. But my son-in-law is our local DA, and e are fiends with the local sheriff. We don't have a BBB anywhere around here.

 

[jtees4]

So it never showed up as paid? And she shipped? Or am I missing something? If that is the case, I don't see why PayPal or EBay would have any reason to get involved at all. They did nothing wrong.

 

[Dolebludger]

It showed up as paid, but Paypal accused HER of marking it as paid. Neither she nor I know how as seller can mark an order as "paid". Also Paypal and eBay customer service was horrible. She was blocked from the Paypal complaint form, and given an option only of filing a report with the FBI.

Maybe we did screw up somehow (though I don't know how). And if we did, we'll just write the matter off. But nobody on their end does a very good job of explaining how this is our fault. My wife has just received a communication from them asking her to rate their customer service. That thing is going to go back smoking'.

So one purpose of this thread is to warn MLP members against selling their gear on eBay.

 

[OldMike]

Sk8rat,

Her account shows that the seller paid through Paypal to eBay. eBay denies having received payment. When my wife gets on the phone with them, she gets the run-around. The amount is only about $250, but I have an "attitude" -- nobody screws with us! (No, I don't screw with anybody else either -- I am a nice guy until you show me you are not.) She has most records of this transaction on her computer -- except for the name and address of the buyer (wish I had that). But we have Paypals record of payment to eBay.

I sold a guitar neck today, through eBay.
The buyer paid me via PayPal, it went to my PayPal account.
eBay is linked to PayPal and knows money was transferred, eBay marked the ad as paid.
Now I ship the guitar neck to the buyer (since I have the money).
eBay charges me every month for any of my activity using their site.
This puzzles me: "Her account shows that the seller paid through Paypal to eBay".

 

[Heisenberg]

Sounds like a system error of either ebay, PayPal, or both. Since they cannot find the error, or don't want to admit to it, they are accusing your wife of marking the item as paid.

Marking as paid only comes into play if the buyer pays with cash or check. If they paid with cash, that means it was a local pickup. You wouldn't ship it if it was a local pickup, or if you were expecting but never received a check, so perhaps use the tracking to help prove that cash or check wasn't used as payment. She only shipped because their system(s) jumped the gun and misinformed her.

Also, marking as paid updates the ebay status in the seller's account and is used only to remind the seller, with an updated icon, that the buyer has paid using something other than PayPal. To my knowledge, if you mark something as paid in ebay, it does not go into PayPal and update their system. Get a screenshot of the PayPal transaction and also the message/prompt that told her it was ready to ship (if you still can).

 

[cherryles]

Don't know about you but i never ship anything until the agreed sale price shows up on my paypal account, then i ship. I also do not touch those funds until the "returns" time period has lapsed, and after hearing about the guy on here who likes to return things that he buys, systematically, i sure am glad i do lol

I hope you get to the bottom of this and whoever is responsible shall pay dearly.

 

[Dave_W]

Your first problem might be that you keep saying "eBay/Paypal" as if they're still the same company. They're not. eBay spun off Paypal, and as of last July they're two independent companies. Knowing this might help you figure out which one is responsible.

When a buyer pays with Paypal, Paypal always transfers payment directly to the seller's Paypal account. Paypal does not transfer money to eBay. So if your buyer did pay through Paypal, then eBay has nothing to do with the missing payment. Is there a detailed record of the transaction on the Activity page of your wife's Paypal account online? If so, then you will see the buyer's name and address along with proof of the buyer's payment credited to her Paypal account. If that information isn't there, then the buyer didn't pay through Paypal. No ifs, ands or buts. OTOH if the information is there, then you'll be able to see what happened to that payment.

Now, when you buy on eBay, you can still pay through Paypal, but the first option you're given is to pay by credit card directly through eBay (edited to add: if the seller has a merchant account). If the buyer paid your wife directly through eBay, there will be a full record of it on her eBay Seller Dashboard, including the buyer's info and what happened to the payment. If this is the case, then Paypal has nothing to do with your missing money.

I hope you get it sorted out.

 

[jtees4]

It showed up as paid, but Paypal accused HER of marking it as paid. Neither she nor I know how as seller can mark an order as "paid". Also Paypal and eBay customer service was horrible. She was blocked from the Paypal complaint form, and given an option only of filing a report with the FBI.

Maybe we did screw up somehow (though I don't know how). And if we did, we'll just write the matter off. But nobody on their end does a very good job of explaining how this is our fault. My wife has just received a communication from them asking her to rate their customer service. That thing is going to go back smoking'.

So one purpose of this thread is to warn MLP members against selling their gear on eBay.

Not trying to accuse you of anything, just trying to understand....and warnings are always appreciated. I agree that they could explain better what happened. I have bought and sold close to 300 items and never had a problem....so it just seems strange. Good luck.