posted on September 11, 2000 04:41:54 PMFrom the Article: Marshall had paid with a credit card and tried to rescind the deal. But the credit card company refused because it had conducted a legitimate transaction with PayPal.com, a Web-based third-party payment service that Marshall had used to pay for the laptop. Customers enjoy limited protections when they use a credit card at PayPal. The company now reimburses defrauded customers--if the seller had previously passed PayPal's verification process. If a seller wasn't verified, however, customers aren't covered.
posted on September 11, 2000 06:51:10 PM
The reason the question cant be answered clearly, not by Paypal or anyone, is because different banks have different charge back rules. The decision will be made by the bank that issued the card used in the particular transaction. Some CC do not allow you to use a third party like PP at all. If you use PP, you can not CB for any reason at all. Some only let you CB if the seller sent NOTHING, but if he sent a brick you're out of luck. Some will ask you to show what the seller's terms of sale were. If the seller's terms are "no returns," you're stuck. Since the first "contract" was made between the buyer and his CC, that one will take precedence and PP can not change those terms.
When I accepted CC directly, I had three CB attempts and each time the rules were different. Fortunately for me, I kept accurate records and won every time.
As an FYI, the person within the article could have filed a charge back. These rights are still valid. Our verification is program is to guarantee the transaction.
posted on September 11, 2000 08:11:23 PM
Question, would you buy an expensive item online be it from eBay, Yahoo etc. Looks to me like the person who bought the hand camera isn't a novice.
We can do our homework but one never knows. I don't mind buying inexpensive items but right now I am looking to buy 3-4 computers for my business & about the only place I would seriously buy from is egghead.com
posted on September 11, 2000 09:23:07 PM
Paypaldamon,
Are you saying that the article is not accurate when it says:
Marshall had paid with a credit card and tried to rescind the deal. But the credit card company refused because it had conducted a legitimate transaction with PayPal.com
Did this happen, or not? It's not a theoretical question. It's not a matter of what "could have" happened. What did happen?
Moreover, is it not true that at the time of this transaction, that when the buyer filed for a chargeback, all funds currently in his account could (would) have been frozen?
I know this has changed since then, but unless your name is PaypalStalin, you can't rewrite history.
Please see below about the comments.
Are you saying that the article is not accurate when it says:
Marshall had paid with a credit card and tried to rescind the deal. But the credit card company refused because it had conducted a legitimate transaction with PayPal.com ( Charge backs are allowed under the terms of use and that decision is rendered by the credit card company)
Did this happen, or not? It's not a theoretical question. It's not a matter of what "could have" happened. What did happen?
( I don't have the customer's account address to see what actions were taken on our end)
Moreover, is it not true that at the time of this transaction, that when the buyer filed for a chargeback, all funds currently in his account could (would) have been frozen?
(There was a possibility, but I don't have the customer information available to comment on the actions. My main intent was to advise that charge backs are allowed, but the final decision to allow a charge back is within the credit card company's discretion)
I know this has changed since then, but unless your name is PaypalStalin, you can't rewrite history
posted on September 12, 2000 06:44:09 AM
Comic123: You think Egghead/Onsale never pulled a fast one on its customers? They screwed up some of my deals. I was charged for two digital cameras that were never sent and it took months to get my money back. I was charged for a camera that got sent out four months later with no notice after I had cancelled the purchase. I was charged shipping for an item that clear said FREE SHIPPING. When I complained, they said it wasn't shipping, it was handling. However they made one really big mistake in my favor which evened it all out in the end.
General:
As for the charge back issue, there are CC whose terms state that you can NOT use a third party such as PP. If you do, you can NOT CB anything for any reason. Even if the seller takes your money and sends nothing, there is nothing you can do. In that case, unless PP steps in, the buyer is stuck. It is up to the buyer to:
1- read the terms of his CC agreement
2- check the seller's ratings carefully (dont just look at the number, read the actual comments)
3- make sure that both he and the seller are PP verified
I have heard too many sad stories about buyers getting ripped off. One common thread in almost all of them is that they were dealing with a seller that had no ratings or bad ratings. Don't assume that using a CC or Paypal will protect you from your own mistakes.
