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Damn that sucks

Doubt you will use PayPal again

No PayPal will be the saving grace here ... If he had done a bank transfer to the seller he would be totally out of luck.

With PayPal he is safe and even if they don't refund (they will) his CC company can do a 'trace-back' and will reimburse. However you may have to report the seller to the police and get a crime iD when dealing with your CC company and keep a copy of all communication between yourself and the seller until the point they stopped communicating.

I've had to go that route in the past too. It's a little longer than a PayPal resolution case but you still end up getting your money back.

If anything it's more a case of being turned off swappa in the future.
 
No PayPal will be the saving grace here ... If he had done a bank transfer to the seller he would be totally out of luck.

With PayPal he is safe and even if they don't refund (they will) his CC company can do a 'trace-back' and will reimburse. However you may have to report the seller to the police and get a crime iD when dealing with your CC company and keep a copy of all communication between yourself and the seller until the point they stopped communicating.

I've had to go that route in the past too. It's a little longer than a PayPal resolution case but you still end up getting your money back.

If anything it's more a case of being turned off swappa in the future.
It's why I only sell devices with companies and not random people.
 
It's why I only sell devices with companies and not random people.
Thankfully because I've had so many devices (16 alone last year) I've developed a small network of very reliable likeminded enthusiasts I can sell and trade with which takes a lot of the stress out of it for me.
 
He will be completely protected by paypal. He will get is money back pretty quickly. I always use credit cards when using paypal, extra layer of security, and it doesn't withdraw directly from my bank...nice is these types of situations.

I once sold my iPhone 5s to some guy on swappa. I have used swappa many times, but this was my lone bad experience. He was angry that the serial number didn't match the box (camera problem, apple had warranty replaced it). I had also included an elemental case (gifted) that I had for the iPhone 5s. He wasn't happy, so I had him send it back. He sent it back, the case was mangled beyond repair (guy wasn't smart enough to figure out how to remove it correctly), and the iPhone had been scratched and dented up (probably trying to remove the case).

Apple replaced the iPhone without question, even when I told them the full story...which was nice.

It was a bit of a pain going through paypal, had to notarize documents and etc. They randomly denied my complaint, and so I called them. They review it again and gave me $550 for the damages caused.

It was a pain, but they came through. This is not usually the case, though, for the seller. Buyers are better protected, and thus able to abuse the system if they so choose.
 
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Thankfully because I've had so many devices (16 alone last year) I've developed a small network of very reliable likeminded enthusiasts I can sell and trade with which takes a lot of the stress out of it for me.

That must be nice. Ever need an extra enthusiast, count me in.

I have given up trying to keep count the number of phones I have owned in the last year.
 
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Damn that sucks

Doubt you will use PayPal again

Depends if they reimburse me even though the guy left town. I suspect that's the issue as he stalled me with a tracking number that was just a placeholder from USPS for receiving a shipping notification, really slick strategy to hold me off until they clear out their account. Anyhow I blame myself for buying something from a seller with 0 feedback, if it's too good to be true.... I may snatch one at Walmart though, they have the 16gb plus on sale for $569 for a refurb one.
 
Depends if they reimburse me even though the guy left town. I suspect that's the issue as he stalled me with a tracking number that was just a placeholder from USPS for receiving a shipping notification, really slick strategy to hold me off until they clear out their account. Anyhow I blame myself for buying something from a seller with 0 feedback, if it's too good to be true.... I may snatch one at Walmart though, they have the 16gb plus on sale for $569 for a refurb one.

They (PayPal) will reimburse - they have indemnity and insurances for these things themselves. I would have no fear there. It makes no difference if they clear out their bank account, the refund comes from PayPal - not the seller. PayPal will then try and get the money back from the seller through their own avenues - but that's not your concern. That's one of the major benefits.

As long as you didn't send them the money as a 'gift' ... Doing so severely cripples your ability to get it back through PayPal and that's when you would go to your credit card company and proceed with a trace back.

If you have details of the seller, I would also report them to the police even if they've done a runner.
 
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