Fraudulent Seller But Item from 4 Months Ago

[bdo21]

I bought an amplifier in December but wasn't able to set it up until recently given it needed more components.  I have now setup the system and found out that the amplifier is faulty.  Given the amplifier should still have been in warranty, I went to the manufacturer who said it was an item they had received back as faulty in a previous warranty claim and had sent it to be destroyed.  The seller clearly acquired it from somewhere in the chain when it was due to be destroyed and is fraudulently selling defective goods.  The problem is that because I bought it in December, I no longer have any ability to raise this issue with ebay.  Does anyone have any advice?

Thank you

[rusticrye]

If you have no luck persuading PayPal (which is likely, as their 180-day buyer protection is that long in order to cover international transactions, where items can take months to arrive), then do bear in mind that Ebay's Money Back Guarantee and PayPal's Buyer Protection are generous extras to your consumer rights - they don't replace them. So if the seller is a UK business seller (or a business seller illegally trading on a private account), go to the CAB's website to learn what to do, just as you would if you'd bought the amp from an unhelpful High Street store.

@bdo21 

[red_magpie]

Does anyone have any advice?

You can still file a dispute under Paypal's longer, 180 day buyer protection policy, see: https://www.paypal.com/uk/smarthelp/article/what-if-i-didn%27t-receive-my-item-or-it%27s-not-as-adve...

However, you will have to persuade PP that the item was faulty on delivery, as they do not cover faults that develop in use. It's worth a try, especially if you have independent evidence from the manufacturer that the item was faulty, and was sent to be destroyed.

Unlike eBay, PayPal requires buyers to return items at their own expense, unless you're eligible to activate "Return shipping on us" before filing the dispute, see: https://www.paypal.com/uk/webapps/mpp/refunded-returns

[**peaseblossom**]

Try a case with Paypal, their deadline is 6 months.  Log directly into your Paypal account and click on "Resolve a problem in the Resolution Centre" on the lefthand side. Open a case and escalate it asap within 20 days.   Or if you used your credit card, with or without Paypal, ring your CC company and ask to do a chargeback.