Thread: paypal charegback long read please give me some advice. im being scammed and paypal wont do anything about it

Hi guys. I have been selling on ebay for quite some time and have had 100% feedback until this one incident.


I sold an iphone 4 for $530 to a buyer who paid me through paypal. i shipped the phone and buyer sent me a message saying he received the item and the phone was not as described.



I tell him how so. and he responds that the phone is not unlocked. mind you I have used the phone personally through t-mobile. I tell him how to use the gevey sim I have gave him which i tested right before i sent it personally with my sim card. the buyer sounded like an older gentlemen so i went as far as sending him a detailed message how to use the phone. it was very simple process which takes me 2 minutes at most.



well then later he doesnt respond and makes a ebay case against me. I respond with evidence that the phone is 100% as descibed as unlocked and with pictures. well here is the buyers argument in the ebay case



"The phone was discribed as unlock phone since I received the phone I'm in contact with the seller and last email I got from the seller he stated that phone can't be unlocked only jealbreak it by gevey sim card, I asked him for refund, he refused after admiting that phone can't be unlocked, I could keep the phone but he has to refund me any cost to unlock the phone."



Ok first of all he lied on several occasion which i found funny. but ebay did not and beileved everything he said without any evidence of emails or anything really. I had evidence on my part.This is not the first time i sold an iphone on ebay. Will I gain anything from selling a unlocked iphone from a locked iphone, not really.



after a while the case was in the buyers favor and he was to ship the item back to me.

well he didnt so th case was closed in my favor.



ohh heres a description from my ebay ad. the phone was basically new.



white iphone 4 16gb unlocked. This iphone is ready to use, only reason im selling is i got a new phone . i bought this phone new and only used it for a couple weeks. it shows minor signs of use but it has always been taken care of. see pics for more info on condition, i have included large pictures. The iphone is jailbroken meaning you can download almost all apps for free including third party application and themes/backgrounds. I am including many apps and games i have downloaded. also comes with 5 icon dock. I have been using the phone with t-mobile(see pics). and the phone will come unlock ready meaning all the hardware(gevey sim) will come with the phone and all you have to do is plug your sim in and use it. Everything works perfect. absolutely no defects.

Iphone comes with

-Case
-brand new usb-wall charger
-bran new headphones
-usb cable that has been used.
-manuals, sim extractor, and whatever comes in the box from the factory
-gevey sim adapter(it was never used just tested)



ok so after a couple weeks i think everything is fine i got my money and he has the iphone. well no

I get a paypal chareback of $530 or whatever the item i sold for.

So I call paypal and they say i cannot do anything about it. They said they are going to deal with it and i have to wait.



I provided evidence that he sent me a message stated he received the item and that the item was delivered.



now i call paypal and they basically told me to that i am going to lose my money and the item. and in a direct way.

I ask if this is fair and how I can just buy a high dollar item and issue a chargeback. The lady on the phone said ys you could do that since the credit card company makes the desision and i is always favored on the buyers side. and I dont want to sound full of shit but that is what she told me.



I find it incredible people can just scam people without any consequences and ebay nore paypal will do anything about it. if you are a buyer on ebay and use a credit card paypal is saying you can buy any item. recieve the item. call your credit card company and they will take the money and case closed. buyer is out the product and money

the lady on the phone also said I will have to talk to the buyer about getting my item back. how am i going to get the item back from the buyer if he just scammed me out of $500 and an iphone i sold him. really

what are my options

She is correct. The credit card companies nearly always side with the buyer's. Technically, paypal fights the chargeback for you by sending in the evidence you submit, but the chargeback is actually initiated by the credit card company and it is most common to see the buyer prevail in these if there is any kind of case.

It's really difficult to combat friendly fraud, and the best you can do is take impeccable records in case you do have to deal with a dispute, and be 100% on the details on the product you're selling.

Not much you can do really. You could dispute it as a civil matter, but good luck with that. This is inevitable if you're selling products online.

However, you mentioned you were in communication with the buyer prior to receiving the chargeback. Did he ever request a refund? Did you ever suggest it?

Mr. Kennedy is correct. Almost always paypal or ebay are going to side with the buyer if there is a dispute. Happened to me once as well. i sold a phone, it was perfectly fine and as described. The buyer gets its, then 3 days later files a complaint saying it doesnt work properly, the speaker is bad. I knew everything worked fine. i used the phone for 2 months with no problems. Ebay sided with the the buyer and I had to give him the money back. But the real crime in the situation above is paying $530 for a iphone 4. Even unlocked and jailbroken thats a bit much. my friend bought on Craigslist 2 months ago unlocked for $350

This is a very complex situation, but I suggest you to be calm. First, have a talk with the buyer, better use phone call. Ask him to speak clearly and you should make a record from your conversation. This will make you have a stronger evidence if the buyer want so get free products and his money back. Give this evidence to paypal