The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

I sold a Columbia phonograph for £695 on eBay before Christmas, the seller opens a dispute asking for for refund, even though the item was tracked, so PayPal held the money until the item had arrived, i waited about 2 weeks and withdrew my money to buy Christmas presents for the family, l then went to stay around and aunts house over Christmas and new year, I have come back and my PayPal balance is negative £695.

They have issued a refund after he received the phonograph, i am 17 so Currently i am still in college (UK) and i have no way of paying the money to them, i was selling this using a grandmothers eBay and PayPal account.

Is there any hope that PayPal will refund me, i have been scammed and I fell very unhappy with how PayPal have treated this.

Did you contact paypal directly or via email about this matter? Why would they issue a refund if it can be proven that the seller received the item?

Garret

Did you ship it to another country? Usually Paypal or Ebay requires the item to be returned to the seller before a refund is given to the buyer.

CALL them directly and explain the situation... As stated previously, they won't issue a refund without a return... IF they did, they are responsible.

Did the buyer open a disputed with eBay or PayPal? You need to know that so you know who to contact? You can follow the dispute process on PayPay and see what the buyer says was the reason for return. PayPal seems to always side with the buyer. I know PayPal automatically deducts the seller’s account and holds the money till the dispute is resolved. PayPay requires the buyer to provide a tracking number for the return within a certain amount of time, otherwise they will side with the seller and return the money back into your account . Fyi, eBay allow buyers 30 days to open a dispute and PayPal is 90 or 120 (I forget which). Also note, from time of sale, you have 60 days to give feedback and 90 days to give a follow-up comment to a feedback. Good luck.

I recently had a similar issue with paypal-- In August I sold an antique wooden flute ($52)-- Clearly described as missing a key and a crack in the head joint-- along with very detailed pictures showing the damage and missing key. After he received it, the buyer sent an email saying- "Hey- it's missing a key"- "I can't use it". After many back & forth emails (over a month), he filed a dispute with Ebay, claiming "not as described". I had to call Ebay and speak to a 'supervisor'-- They finally reviewed the listing and ruled in my favor-- The flute was accurately described. Ebay closed the case.

Fast Forward two months-- Paypal notifies me that buyer filed a dispute and that they had "investigated" and found in the buyer's favor. My account was debited the cost of the flute and shipping, and I was told that the buyer had been instructed to send the item back to me. It took several attempts to get past the first round of Paypal phone reps. The first one was particularly arrogant-- "We've made our decision-- it can't be appealed." They kept saying "But you're getting your item back." I finally talked with a 'supervisor'-- The file was reviewed and they closed it in my favor.

The point is that the DEFAULT position Paypal takes is that the buyer is always right--They hadn't even reviewed the actual listing or considered that Ebay had already closed the case in my favor. It takes time and perseverance, but if you can finally talk to the right person, you may be able to get it straightened out.

I hope this turns out well for you.

Brad Abell