PayPal - should I be worried?

[pauljdh]

I've just sold a hifi component for just under £300 on ebay and been paid immediately via PayPal.

The goods must be collected and cash on collection was my preference.

The guy rang me and said he bought them on behalf of a friend who doesn't drive but the friend will collect in a few days. The trip is approx 500 miles round which seems a lot for a relatively low value.

I know pp protection is negated for stuff that isn't sent by a postal service.

Whats to stop him collecting then cancelling the PayPal payment? The buyer has decent feedback, 300 plus.

What should I do to protect myself?

I need to tie the friend to the ebay purchaser somehow and perhaps photos would help at collection?

Any advice appreciated

Cheers.

[randlemarcus]

PayPal refund, and remind the buyer it's CoC only. If they choose not to proceed, a pain, but probably better in the long run.

[DSLiverpool]

YOU CANNOT ALLOW PAYMENT BY PAYPAL AND LET THEM COLLECT!
You need proof of shipping which you won’t have and NO ANOUNT of selfies with the buyer, written receipts and text messages will stop you being scammed (which this is)

[mikees]

What he said

[blueg33]

randlemarcus said:

PayPal refund, and remind the buyer it's CoC only. If they choose not to proceed, a pain, but probably better in the long run.

This is the only solution

[Narcisus]

Happens to me all the time. People either trying it on hoping I will post or just don’t read the listing.

I just refund them and say thanks for buying but as stated in the listing this item is cash on collection only. If you could let me have a few dates so we can come to an mutually convenient time for collection.

They usually say sorry I didn’t realise I had to collect and and I cancel the transaction or they show up with the cash.

Never had anyone insist on collecting and paying by Paypal. If they did I would refuse to sell eBay rules be damned I’ll not lose a few hundred quid for the sake of a neg.

[Wacky Racer]

DSLiverpool said:

YOU CANNOT ALLOW PAYMENT BY PAYPAL AND LET THEM COLLECT!
You need proof of shipping which you won’t have and NO ANOUNT of selfies with the buyer, written receipts and text messages will stop you being scammed (which this is)

This.


I was scammed for £600 because I had not followed their rules to the letter.


My fault entirely.

[rfisher]

Just as a further warning re Paypal.

I recently bought an item off Ebay which I later found out was stolen.

I then tried to go through Paypal's absurd resolution system to get my money back.

For stolen items they require you to send them a very specific document, the details of which they explain very obscurely in their email.

They gave me a week to produce this mysterious document and then closed the case 4 days earlier than this deadline.

I managed to get them to reopen the case after mucho fecking about.

I sent them further documentation, including proof from the manufacturer of a Police crime reference number for the stolen item, together with details of the time and place of the theft.

They closed the case against me again as it wasn't the specific document that they wanted.

I still don't know what this document is or how to get hold of it.

Fortunately my cc co are actually interested and helpful so I have received a chargeback.

However, I think that Paypal may still have devious ways and means to screw me out of this money so I won't be surprised if I actually end up out of pocket here.

In short - STAY AWAY FROM PAYPAL WHENEVER POSSIBLE BOTH AS A BUYER AND A SELLER.

I now just use cc checkout for Ebay purchases not Paypal.

Selling is a bit more difficult but I'm working on that.

[JapanRed]

I’ve also been scammed on PayPal/eBay and won’t use either again.

[anonymous-user]

rfisher said:

Fortunately my cc co are actually interested and helpful so I have received a chargeback.

This is the way to do it. I link my Amex card with my Paypal account.

I was conned for a few hundred pounds. I had paid with paypal. Fraudster "sent" the item, but in fact he just sent an empty box containing a few old catalogues in order to get to the correct sending weight.

When challenged, he just ignored my emails. I raised a dispute with Paypal - they closed the case initially in his favour as he had provided them with "proof of sending"....

I phoned Amex and explained the situation. They said they would be very happy to make the chargeback against Paypal. So then I phoned Paypal, spoke with a manager and gave them a choice; either deal with my dispute properly or they could argue the chargeback with Amex.

Soon after they refunded the money in full....