So I returned an item on Ebay because it wasn't fully functional, now the seller say his accounts are locked and can't refund my CC

harddriver

Well-known member
Is this even possible true, I simply asked for a refund I have not filed a PP dispute. When I found the unit not 100% functional I told the seller the day I received it. He immediately said try this and that and I did and it still had issues and asked to return it. He reluctantly agreed so I sent it back return service packed even better and took pics to prove it wasn't damaged. He immediately contacted me through ebay and said he the unit just powered up and works just fine. I said that not what I observed so if it works that's great you should have no problem reselling it as I don't want it for the reasons I found. He then almost tried to imply that maybe I broke the unit or just didn't understand how to use it. I told him I read the manuals and watched alot of youtube tutorials and it was not working as shown on those videos.

So he has now informed me that both his Credit Card and Paypal accounts are frozen because he has a negative balance because he transfered the money immediately and now he can't issue a refund until I terminate the dispute. He wants me to terminate the refund request so his accounts unlock and he will refund my money quickly but he already has the item returned to him in hand.

I haven't heard of PP and C/C companies freezing peoples account unless something fraudulent was going on, this guy has great 100% feedback for 20 years he seemed like a good seller? What do you guys think is going on here?

I also recently purchased some oil filters that were rusted beyond use and the box had old water stains on the box. I sent the guy pics of each filter and box and I asked for a return label and refund and the guy agreed and said don't ship them back they are useless since rusted, he apologized for not noticing it and refunded my credit card through Ebay, his accounts were not frozen in any way. So something just doesn't feel right here. The seller and I are keeping things civil for now and he appears to be having all kinds of trouble contacting PP and EBAY and he continually is pressuring me to terminate the dispute saying that will unfreeze his accounts and then he will refund me immediately. I can't help but be suspicious at this point good feedback or not.

I notified him I can contact my CC company to claw my money back if he would like , I also told him I'm not going to terminate the refund process and get burned because I already returned the item to him in the same condition he sent it to me in.
 
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Yeah, dont cancel the refund request. Just tell him you are patient and know Paypal transfers only take a day, so by Friday he should easily be able to send you the proper return. This makes you look netter in everyones eyes. Of course if he continues to F you, just do a charge back.
 
If no funds are in the account he can still issue a refund, although it won’t be instant. It can take up to a week
 
That's a bummer man. Hope it works out. It's frustrating being in limbo like that.

Been A LOT of these types of issues lately. Seems people are exploiting the Paypal/ online marketplace system. I've seen some horrendous ones.
 
Did you file a dispute or ask for a refund?
I have not filed any dispute with PP or Ebay. I notified the seller prior to initiating the return process. After going through the machinations of trying to reset the device per the customer service email from the manufacturer that the seller just so happened to have ready to send me to reset the unit when I told him what wasn't working on the device. When the reset did not work initially, it did activate and work briefly but when I powered it down for the afternoon and powered it back up to see if the reset took it the parameters control were again locked out and non-functional so I see it as an intermittent issue. I then told him that I would like to have a return label sent and then refunded once he received it back into his hands. He agreed so I clicked "return the item" pulldown ebay has in the purchased items section, then the seller sends you a return label for return shipping and,when he gets the return he issues a refund and then it's closed out. Only on the day he received the return does he start saying it locked his accounts an unable to issue a refund.

I have used return item before on Ebay and no seller ever complained that doing so locked their accounts. I guess it is a dispute and rightfully so at this point.
 
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Tell him to send you a USPS postal money order for the refund amount. Tell him to email you a pic of the mo made out to you before he mails it. Simple.
 
Tell him to send you a USPS postal money order for the refund amount. Tell him to email you a pic of the mo made out to you before he mails it. Simple.
The USPS money order is ALWAYS the great equalizer in these situations. Anyone can get one and they are certified. I actually prefer doing money order deals all around. I can wait the 2 days knowing they will have cash in hand and less fees. I like it for the same reason. This is talking about dealing with trusted people...but in terms of refunds there is NO excuse someone can make to not be able to get a USPS money order (if they live here and don't live in BFE)
 
I told him I would even be willing to compensate him the return shipping but I already paid $16.00 in addition to the price of the item for shipping USPS priority in the first place. I feel I have been quite reasonable over the whole thing.

I'm gonna let things ride as Racerxrated stated and wait until either he or Ebay issues the refund. I think he may attempt to close his Ebay account/PP if I rescind the refund process at this point, I get the feeling that's why he is pushing me to do so. I said if the unit is fully fucntional and undamaged please just refund me and then resell it. I get the feeling he knows there is an issue with it but he can't say so at this point.
 
Ughhhh. EBay and reverb are going to hell with this kind of shit, nobody can be decent or honest any more and will exploit everything and everyone they have an opportunity to.

I would give him 48 hours to get you a refund, then go through and file a dispute. It sounds shitty but you have to draw a line.
 
Yeah, dont cancel the refund request. Just tell him you are patient and know Paypal transfers only take a day, so by Friday he should easily be able to send you the proper return. This makes you look netter in everyones eyes. Of course if he continues to F you, just do a charge back.
I told him I would even be willing to compensate him the return shipping but I already paid $16.00 in addition to the price of the item for shipping USPS priority in the first place. I feel I have been quite reasonable over the whole thing.

I'm gonna let things ride as Racerxrated stated and wait until either he or Ebay issues the refund. I think he may attempt to close his Ebay account/PP if I rescind the refund process at this point, I get the feeling that's why he is pushing me to do so. I said if the unit is fully fucntional and undamaged please just refund me and then resell it. I get the feeling he knows there is an issue with it but he can't say so at this point.
I'm thinking the same thing.
 
Sounds like a load of s%# to me. He can’t offer a refund outside of eBay or he’ll lose seller protection. But that said, what does PayPal have to do with the transaction on his end?

You can still use PayPal to pay (for now), but didn’t eBay force all sellers to move into their own managed payment system (where they directly process and deposit money into sellers bank accounts)? They spammed me multiple times per week about updating my seller account.

I guess if it was a purchase before the transition was mandatory, he could have used PayPal, but I don’t think I’ve ever heard of PayPal and a CC company simultaneously freezing accounts. And, how are those even linked by his mention of a transfer? A transfer should go to his bank account, not to a CC. The whole thing makes no sense.
 
I once sold a piece of rack gear on Ensy. Think was a eq or some type of phaser. Really easy to hook up.. guy kept complaining to me it didn’t work. Hissy mess he said. Idiot did not know how to run it in a signal. Just plugged his guitar into it. Hooked up backwards to the amp. What a waste of time. Like a month going back and fortjh. He sent it back. I tried it. Worked perfectly. Refunded him within 10 minutes. Jeez. What a headache.
 
Personally I would contact eBay and explain the situation and have them clarify what "should" be happening here. This is an interesting post from last year from a seller who seems to have run into something similar with issuing a refund, so there might be some confusion on what your seller needs to do (though I would personally still err on the side of caution and let eBay direct things) https://community.ebay.com/t5/Selling/Refunds-Through-PayPal-with-Insufficient-Funds/td-p/31022340
 
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