Not 'motor' related, but advice sought...

[johnnywb]

Two years ago i bought tickets for the Reading Festival off Ebay. Circumstances changed and as iw ouldn't be able to go, i sold them on, via Ebay again. This was a few months before the festival, so i never had physical possession of the tickets, as these are typically released just a few weeks before the festival.

A few weeks before the festival i was awaiting two tickets from a seller. Alas, (surprise, surprise...) they never arrived. I refunded the money to my buyers and was left £350ish out of pocket.

I paid via Paypal, but due to the time elapsed between paying for the tickets and making my complaint, they were of no use at all, as were Ebay.

I contacted the BiB and gave them all the info i had. Now, it should have been easy to trace the to$$er who stole my money as you need a bank account or confirmed address to use Paypal, wouldn't have been too hard to trace the scrote would it?

So this was August 2005. Now we're Feb 2007. I've heard nothing. The only time i ever hear anything from the BiB is if I phone THEM. The guy dealing with my case has NEVER returned my calls. Whenever i speak to them, they just say Ebay haven't got back to them.

I'm now getting a little peeved to say the least. i'm looking for advice as to what i can do? Can anyone offer me some advice?

[justinp1]

Trace him yourself them take small claims action.

When you won the tickets ebay should have sent his address on the invoice, maybe paypal too.

Your best bet will be to write to ebay and paypal, explain the situation and that you are taking legal action, and to release the information they have.

The Data Protection Act gives special exemption for information needed for legal action.

Once you have his current address doing the court forms is easy, and if he doesnt pay you can then instruct bailiffs, so you will eventually get your money.


Edited to add: Did you pay through paypal with a credit card?

Under the Consumer Credit Act where goods are bought on credit the credit provider has a joint responsibility for their supply. Not many people know that!

If the goods you have bought dont arrive, are faulty, etc they must give you a refund if the shop refuses.

Edited by justinp1 on Friday 9th February 23:12

[bigdods]

justinp1 said:

If the goods you have bought dont arrive, are faulty, etc they must give you a refund if the shop refuses.

Not strictly true , I had cause to try this with a credit card company and they told me that they accepted that they had joint liability in this case BUT if I wanted to get my money back from them I would need to go to court and name them AND the offending party as joint defendants.

[justinp1]

bigdods said:

justinp1 said:

If the goods you have bought dont arrive, are faulty, etc they must give you a refund if the shop refuses.

Not strictly true , I had cause to try this with a credit card company and they told me that they accepted that they had joint liability in this case BUT if I wanted to get my money back from them I would need to go to court and name them AND the offending party as joint defendants.

Not the most helpful credit card company then!

Thats a great service - we know the law and we know you wont be bothered to sue us, but if you do we will fulfil our obligations under the law... hmmm.... thats customer service for you!
I wonder what they would say if you told them you would pay your bill, but... they would have to take me to court to do so!

Still, it would still only cost £30 which you would claim back from them when the judgement comes through.

Edited by justinp1 on Saturday 10th February 01:02

[johnnywb]

There was no address on the invoice. Not sure why, but it didn't cause concern at the time as everything seemed fine.

Would i be able to request his address and information under the freedom of information act, or can i take private action against ebay / paypal to get his details as it would appear they won't supply them to the police.

[jasandjules]

johnnywb said:

Would i be able to request his address and information under the freedom of information act, or can i take private action against ebay / paypal to get his details as it would appear they won't supply them to the police.

FOI only applies to Govt agencies.

It can be a Data Protection Act request, as Justin states, there is an exemption to allow for legal proceedings. I don't expect Paypal/Ebay to be helpful though I am afraid. You can, in the alternative, ask the court if Ebay/Paypal will not play ball, for an order of disclosure of the name of the "defendant". Most people obey court orders.......