Possible scam? Advice appreciated.

[michael.p.ross1]

Hello All,

I purchased an "opened - never used" item from a private seller for ~£800 on 12th October. The seller has a 100% positive feedback score of 300 and has been on ebay for over 15 years. 

I contacted the seller on the 13th to ask for tracking details and they responded politely, saying that they would post on the 14th.

On the 15th, I asked again for tracking details but have received no response as of the 16th. The estimated delivery date is 16th-17th October.

Becoming suspicious, I did some digging:

• They've only sold one item in the last year.
• They are currently selling 10 items, all under £100 and all "new" or "new other" condition.
• 4 of the items for sale have photos taken on a plain blue table which, to me, puts a tick in the "probably not a scam" column
• The photo used to list the item doesn't appear to be a stock photo and I can't find it anywhere else using a reverse image search which, again, swings me away from thinking this is a scammer using a hijacked account.

How would you proceed if the seller fails to provide tracking information by the 17th (the expected delivery date)? I paid by credit card so I could issue a chargeback or report this to ebay. I'd prefer to make a chargeback as I trust my credit card provider more than eBay to make a swift decision but I don't want to risk the seller incurring fees if it does turn out to just be a misunderstanding.

Thanks in advance for any help.

Edit:

The item finally arrived - it was dispatched 2 days after it should have arrived. The seller had a sob story that he thought he might have Covid. I was willing to give him the benefit of the doubt on that but the item was listed as "opened never used" and is obviously not new.

There's evidence of wear on the item, some damage, a manual for a peripheral that is only sold seperately, the box has a sticker with a previous shipping address that doesn't match the seller's and another warranty return sticker on the box states that the item was returned "DOA".

I'm going to return the item for a refund. My question is - who is responsible for return postage? Me or the seller? The item has obviously been misrepresented so I would think the seller should pay.

[michael.p.ross1]

My other comment seems to have disappeared so apologies if I'm being repetitive:

I paid directly by credit card on the eBay checkout page specifically to avoid issues with going through paypal as an intermediary. If I understand you correctly, my attempt was in vain because the seller will be using paypal as an intermediary (the credit card statement does say paypal).
That's disconcerting if true. My thought would be that all payments with a credit card go through an intermediary providing a "financial service" - be it paypal, a bank, a building society. At no point did I use paypal at my end, so I would think they would find it hard to argue that my statutory rights don't apply.
But I wouldn't be surprised if what you're saying is true.

Edit: and now this comment has appeared in the wrong place. Eurgh.

[sean_935]

paid directly by credit card on the eBay checkout or used paypal

[red_magpie]

I paid by credit card so I could issue a chargeback

Oh no you can't. Not if you paid by PayPal, and if this was a private seller they won't have a merchant card account to pay them directly by credit card.

When you use your card to pay for an item through PayPal as a third party, your statutory card purchase protection doesn't apply. What you use your card to pay for is simply a financial service from PayPal, which they have provided. Your card issuer has no relationship with the eBay seller, and no iability if you don't receive the item you bought. Unless they have some purchase protection of their own which might cover it.

When you pay by PayPal, your options for claiming a refund are to use eBay's money back guarantee or PayPal's buyer protection policy.

[michael.p.ross1]

The transaction didn't go through paypal. I made sure to pay directly with my credit card for exactly the reasons you've outlined.

Edit:

Re-reading, you're saying that the seller will have received the payment to his paypal account, and because of that I have no direct relationship to the seller?

That's disconcerting if true but is that any different to any other credit card payment? When making any purchase, the money goes into some sort of account - paypal, bank, building society which provides a "financial service". You never have a direct relationship with the seller.

The contract I entered into was for the provision of a product without any contact with, or mention of, paypal. I would think a section 75 chargeback would be unlikely to be refused on the grounds that I was paying paypal to pay the seller.

[papso22]

A chargeback is the last resort after all other options have been exhausted.  As you must have paid through eBay checkout you should start with an item not received case in eBay, perhaps waiting until a day or two after the estimated delivery date. 

If the seller can't provide tracking showing delivery within 3 working days of the case being opened you get a refund.   That's much quicker than a chargeback.

[michael.p.ross1]

Thanks very much. I didn't realise that the process could be so quick when tracking information hasn't been provided.

[john1297576]

The only time you can do a chargeback is if you did not authorise the payment. Even then if the seller can prove they posted to the address provided on the Paypal Payment you would lose. Paying by Credit Card DIRECT to te seller would require you to provide the Card Details direct to the seller by phone or on line. That is assuming they have a Merchanting Account and could accept payments that way. As you suspect it is a scammer and it certainly sounds as if that is the case, would you really want to give your Credit Card Details to them, which would include the number on the reverse of the card. They could then have a wonderful time using your money, and as you gave the information away yourself, not cloned or stolen, your Card Company might not even pay any compensation.

[rusticrye]

You simply open an Ebay Item Not Received case two days after the delivery estimate on the order. The seller then has 3 full days in which to refund you. If he doesn't, escalate the case to Ebay, and they will force the refund. Do not close the case on a promise. Closed cases cannot be reopened, and you can't open another.

So that you know what to do in future, read Ebay's Money Back Guarantee. It's on every listing, and in various other places across the site.

@michael.p.ross1