PayPal's Buyer's Protection Policy (yeah right!)

Howdy fellow coin peeps, :thumb:

A few weeks ago, I made a claim with PayPal over that counterfeit $20 Liberty I posted earlier. I contacted the seller and offered to keep it for a reduction in price but since they never responded after 3 attempts to contact them, I filed a dispute. After a couple of weeks, the seller finally requested I send the item back for a full refund, so I did. The item is currently sitting in Customs (Italy) and they may have problems delivering it since PayPal eliminates line breaks in messages and I had to try and figure out how to write the address, since their address structure is different than in the US.

Today, I received an email from PayPal (dated 11:25 AM the 4th) requesting I fax them proof I mailed the item and that I must do so by the 6th. WTF? Today is the 4th of July and the 6th is Sunday. What would have happened if I was out of town for the entire 4th holiday, to return Sunday evening? I would have been SOL and that isn't right! In the US, there are lawful requirements to give peeps so many days to comply with certain "orders" but those requirements require those days to be working days and not to include holidays or weekends, unless it's something like 30 days, which can include holidays & weekends but if the deadline falls on either, the deadline becomes the first working day afterwards.

I have had so many problems with PayPal, I am getting very perturbed at them. They constantly work against the buyer in a case like this and their protection policy isn't worth the paper it's written on! So while they do a good job on items not received, they are pathetic when it comes to receiving something not as described and if it isn't an Ebay item, forget getting your money back.

I thought I'd post this as a warning to other members. Do not buy something thinking that if it's fake, it's easy to get your money back, it isn't! :goof:

Ribbit

 

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I have found them more than amicable on the phone and they were willing to back fix problems. i.e. you were out of town. However, I have never seen a response required in less than a week.

 

this happened to me also Toad. They forced me to act in a very small amount of time and if I didn't, I lost. I barely made the deadlines and won minus shipping (still angry about).

 

I have been told, on another item, that once a claim is closed they cannot re-open it and since they said they would close the claim if I don't reply by the 6th, they won't back-fix it.

Here's the actual message I received today:

Sent: Friday, July 04, 2008 11:25 AM
Subject: Your Claim PP-XXX-XXX-XXX

In order to continue with the investigation of your claim, we must request documentation that shows the item was returned to the seller. To help us resolve this matter promptly, we request that you provide proof of postage for the package associated with this claim.

The document should be faxed to PayPal at (402) 537-5760 (please note this is a United States phone number, if you are faxing from outside the United States, you generally need to dial 00 1 before the number). Please include a cover sheet with your fax that includes the email address registered on your PayPal account and the ID number of the claim (PP-XXX-XXX-XXX) so we may attach the document to the claim as quickly as possible.

Failure to provide PayPal with the fax will result in your claim being denied. The tracking information needs to be received by 07/06/2008

Thank you for your patience and cooperation.

Sincerely,
Guglielmo
Protection Services Department
PayPal, an eBay Company

With that, the PayPal Buyer's Protection Policy comes with requirements, you MUST own a fax machine and printer, and be willing to make long distance phone calls at your cost. Since Ebay is a digital world, why don't they allow pictures to be emailed to them? I could easily take pics of the USPS forms and email them, at no cost, but now I have to fax the documents instead. That isn't right!

Ribbit

 

I'm writing a detailed letter to them, to include with the USPS forms, and will fully explain to them the errors of their ways. Although, it may fall on deaf-and-dumb ears. :goof:

Ribbit

 

Here's a tip when dealing with paypal. Call them up, ask to speak with executive escalations, and don't take no for an answer with anything they tell you.

They will insist that something can't be done, but if you annoy them to a certain point, they will give in.

They claim there are certain policies that cannot be broken, but it is just smoke and mirrors. The executive escalations department has the power to do pretty much anything they want.

That being said, I'm done with paypal and will never use it again.

I got cheated multiple times over the past 6 months, I ended up losing the coins and the money.

 

Toad,
They reopened my case against wlmsjewelry. They first denied it claiming my tracking number was invalid (their mistake). Then they corrected it in my favor. Granted, a little different circumstances, but I asked what would have happened if I had mistyped the tracking number. They said they would have reversed it as soon as I gave them the correct tracking number.

I am just guessing, but if you spoke to them, I would think that they would accommodate you with some extra time and I have no reason why they would not allow pictures to be emailed.

 

WOW
It never ceases to amaze me, Toad, you guys buying raw gold that your not experts in the series, and from a foreign country on top of that.

I hope you both get your money back, AND learn your lesson.

 

i agree even i dont buy world gold coins with things i am not familiar with (well granted there is not much that i dont know about) but still you get the idea

 

I bought it back when I also thought I was protected by PayPal but this one taught me how poor that protection is. Now I don't take chances but that doesn't mean I stopped buying from overseas. I've had more problems buying from peeps in the US, than overseas, and their location doesn't help me get a refund so I will continue to buy from overseas but I run from anything that doesn't look right :kewl: no matter where it is located.

Ribbit

 

You're right. Paypal protection is a joke. A few years back, I won a pair of Oakley's from a guy in California. Good price but they were still over one hundred dollars. Was going to be a present for my then girlfriend, for her birthday.

Anyway, I sent the money paypal from my checking. Then waited and waited. Long story short, they never came. Wrote a complaint to ebay. They removed the guys account and directed me to paypal for a refund. Paypal directed me to contact ebay. Since I didn't use a credit card, (so the card company could back charge the seller) nobody would do anything. I simply lost out on the money and the guy got away with it. And I ended up having to purchase another pair.

 

I just got my money back from a seller that never shipped a gold coin that I purchased via Paypal.

If you provide them with all of the information, they are very easy to deal with. If you run into an issue that needs more attention, hit the Contact button at the top of the page and it will issue you a PIN number that is good for an hour along with a telephone number for you to call them.

I have never gotten anything but polite people on the phone when calling them. They have always been very wiling to help and offer suggestions and spend as much time on the phone as I needed.

The only gripes I have with PayPal is the fee's and the fact that someone can file a complaint that I did not ship an item within an hour of paying for it. I think there should be at least a 3 day waiting period before someone can file a dispute for not receiving an item.

 

Amen. Truer words were never written.

 

True but Paypal will hate you for it.

 

And I should be upset about that because...???

 

But Paypal if your friend.:whistle:

 

paypal can suck a lemon