Case sparked a four month investigation
During the holiday season, Mike Spisak of North Royalton decided it was time to sell his Honda motorcycle. Spisak placed a listing on Ebay Motors, and within several days a buyer paid him $800 for his well kept bike.
"The buyer used Paypal, picked up the bike and I thought that was the end of it," said Spisak. "But a month later, I was contacted by PayPal, I was told there was a charge back, and that they were taking my money back."
Spisak lost the $800 payment and his motorcycle because the buyer fraudulently told PayPal he never recieved the bike.
"PayPal would not restore the $800 payment made by the buyer until I could produce a third party shipping receipt," said Spisak. "But I didn't have to ship the bike, the buyer simply drove it away."
Spisak contacted North Royalton police and investigators have been looking for the suspect for the past four months.
5 On Your Side contacted Paypal about this case, and Paypal responded immedately. Paypal agreed to look into what went wrong and will evaluate its "charge back" policy.
When selling a vehicle consumers should collect all contact information from a buyer before the transaction is completed. Sellers should collect the buyers license plate number and drivers license number during the sale.
The seller should also create a receipt that includes the date, the terms of the sale and signatures.
More tips on selling vehicles can be found at:http://www.accurateautoadvice.com/selling/tips-for-selling-your-car/
CONSUMER WATCH COMMENT: It is about time PayPal introduces serious checks and balances to stop these rip-offs of genuine traders. Why should individuals have to suffer from PayPal TWICE such as in this case where the owner lost his bike AND his money thanks to to the despicable actions of both the fraudster and PayPal. Government consumer agencies across the world must address the activities of organisations such as PayPal and eBay, where corporate greed seems to rank more importantly than a fair go for their customers.
