I shipped a beautiful Fenton Glass Vase to Canada (first mistake). The buyer complained that the vase arrived damaged in shipment and immediately placed a claim with PayPal, who of course automatically holds the funds of $150 without first contacting the shipper about the problem. This item was insured and well packaged when it was shipped. It took two weeks to reach its destination, and along the way the box was crushed and the vase was broken.
I repeatedly asked the buyer to take the item to the Canadian post to have the damage verified. That is the only way to get the United States Post Office to send out a claims packet to the recipient. The buyer refused to do that and kept telling me I had to do it. I made a half dozen calls to the Post Office after initially starting the inquiry, and was told each time that the recipient needed to follow through at their end with the damage verification. I even sent the buyer full instructions on what had to be done and what form needed to be completed. I also attached this information on the PayPal Resolution form.
I contacted PayPal Customer Service and informed them of the procedure that had to be done in order to get compensation from the Post Office for their mishandling. I called on 4 different occasions, and each time the agent agreed that the buyer needed to do some self help.
In the end, PayPal authorized the buyer to return the item to me and refunded the total amount. The buyer returned the item in a different box (essentially a smaller box of broken glass is all I got) without any kind of protection. Since it was returned to me in this condition, without any of the original packaging, I could not prove to the Post Office how I had shipped the item, so I had no recourse.
I have complained to PayPal and they have done nothing. I am out the funds and the item. If they had insisted the buyer follow through with the Post Office claims procedure, I would have been reimbursed by now and would not be out everything. I have sent PayPal many messages regarding this situation and want to know what else I could have done. They have just blown me off. I wish BidPay still existed, as I would shift all my business to them. Someone else please start another online payment company, or if anyone knows of another way to do online transactions, please tell me!
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