Ebay Disputes - lost not found

[Marigold]

I have a question relating to being a seller.  If you sell something, send it, and it IS covered under paypal's seller protection, but it gets lost in the mail or damaged do you know what happens?

That is, I know that the buyer usually gets refunded especially if they open a dispute, but how does the seller get protected?  Do they get to keep the money if they have proof that it was sent? 

When paypal refunds the buyer, do they always take it out of the seller's account or do they pay them back and leave the seller's money alone? 

Here is an example:  I bought a heavy dress and the box arrived sans dress.  It was obvious the seller tried to ship it but they did a horrible job at packing it and the dress fell out somewhere along the way.  The seller refused to believe that I got the box minus the dress so I had to open a dispute.  I had pictures of the box including post marks stamps saying "content missing" so I won the dispute and was paid back.  BUT, I firmly believe the seller did send the dress and they deserved to be covered under paypal. 

So, in a situation like that, was the seller out of his money AND the dress?  Or would paypal cover us both?

[GoldenLambPony]

It is the seller's responsibility on eBay to get the item to you safely. If they want to cover themselves against lost or damaged items, they have to buy insurance. Here is the seller policy from eBay:

Insurance: You can't charge a separate fee for insurance, although you still need to make sure your item arrives as described.

Tip: You should incorporate any insurance fees into an item's price or handling cost.

I once had a package sent to me with tracking, and it was tracked right into dead mail. The seller had to refund me and then try to get the package back from the postal service.

[ponylady]

A seller is protected as long as they do the following during a dispute:
~It shows they have communicated throughout the dispute.
~They ship items within 7 days of the stated handling time on their listing.
~They use a shipping method that provides tracking information and/or valid delivery confirmation to the address in the PayPal transaction details or eBay order details page. 
~Retain their shipping documentation and respond to the eBay resolution process in a timely manner.

Unfortunately, in your case the item is missing from the box with out insurance.  And proof from PO that the contents are missing. So I am pretty sure it is going to come out of the seller's pocket in the end.

Here is from ebays help pages on how reimbursements work.

Reimbursement from sellers

We require eBay sellers to comply with our resolution process. Sellers permit us to make a final decision, in our sole discretion, on any case that a buyer opens with eBay under the eBay Buyer Protection Policy. For seller unresolved cases, we will refund the buyer for the full cost of the item (including any applicable sales tax) and the original shipping, and we will require the seller to reimburse us for the amount due the buyer. Without limiting the foregoing, sellers may not have to pay a reimbursement for an eBay case if they provide the documentation (for example, delivery confirmation or proof that the item was as described) indicated in the section above. Other requirements for sellers:

Sellers must have a reimbursement method on file with eBay.

Sellers agree to allow us to remove funds from their PayPal accounts for amounts due to buyers. Sellers may change this reimbursement method by contacting eBay. However, we reserve the right to continue using the sellers' PayPal account for eBay Buyer Protection cases associated with eBay transactions paid for before the change.

If there are insufficient funds in PayPal accounts or if PayPal is not the reimbursement method of a seller, we will require another reimbursement method.

Sellers agree to allow us to charge the payment method they designate for amounts due buyers.

Changing a reimbursement method will not affect eBay's use of a payment method on file for other purposes (such as payment of eBay fees). If sellers do not provide eBay with a valid reimbursement method, we may collect amounts owed using other collection mechanisms, including retaining collection agencies. We may also suspend or restrict sellers from trading on our sites until payment is made.

[Marigold]

Thank you!  So it sounds like in my case the person probably did loose out on the dress and shipping because they did not put insurance on it.  I was hoping they would be covered too, but I guess it means getting insurance is always a good policy. 

[lovesbabysquirmy]

It's the seller's responsibility to protect their shipments with insurance.  If they don't, it's their loss and the onus is on them to make good with the buyer should the contents be destroyed/damaged/lost.  Just one of the costs of doing business! 

[Ringlets]

Probably the seller was out of money in this case, but occasionally ebay will refund the buyer themselves and the seller doesnt lose out. I had this happen when a  parcel of 3 ponies I bought from someone on ebay UK went missing  in the mail. The seller had all positive feedback, and I didnt doubt she had sent the items.. so after opening a case (the seller hadnt responded at first through normal messages but that was cos they hadnt gone through) , ebay refunded me. I talked to the seller and they hadnt taken any monies from her - perhaps she had proof of shipping . In the end the ponies did show up, so I had to send the refund back to ebay rather than my seller.
Thats a rare occurance though. If your seller didnt pack the dress properly, and there wasnt any insurance,  then there is a good chance she lost her monies

[Marigold]

I feel badly if that is what happened and my seller lost out, but I am glad to hear there are some situations where the seller did not lose money.  I will hope that is the case.