sold a code on ebay....

iNFiNiTE HORiZON

iNFiNiTE HORiZON

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so, I sold a code I forgot I even had, on ebay. I came across a Dead Space 2 Rivet Gun code and have already beaten and sold off that game. Anyways, I sold it on ebay, and sent the code via private message. few days go by, I get positive feedback "thanks u saved my life, best price!". few weeks go by, and randomly I get hit with a chargeback on paypal (mind you I just started using ebay a few months back and have 46 positive feedbacks, and about 10-15 of those are codes), I've never had a problem selling off codes this way.

the paypal chargeback says unauthorized charge or whatever, if this was true why would the buyer acknowledge he used the card, by leaving me positive feedback saying "thanks this is the best price", obv. he knew what he was doing right? so i dispute it with paypal, it's being reviewed. i also had messaged him on ebay about it a few days ago.... just now i finally get a response:

"Dear 234i209jfldskxxxx,

dude listen wat i did waz wrong cause my father find out that i waz using his credit card without lettin hime know then he called paypal about it and he bloked his credit card thinkin someone else was stealin his credit card but it waz me and yeah i just do not knoe w wat to do man i know how u feel about that fuckin sorry im stupid by the way really im no one in this planet im just a bum that do not know nothin i dont know why i go to school for fuck

- xxxx932042jflds"


Unfortunately, I already sent out my dispute with paypal, citing that he acknowledged he used the card, left positive feedback, my item description said that the non refundable code would be private messaged. he already redeemed it, and so on. I'm betting I'll lose the dispute because I've heard of people not selling codes this way without shipping them directly, otherwise there's no solid evidence. I guess we'll see though. obviously $5 isn't gonna make or break me, but I just thought it all was a little funny. still disappointing I'm now out a code and $5 :(
 
it's also looking like his history on ebay is short, and he's bought all codes for all 7 of his feedbacks, some expensive codes too. i wonder how many other people he's done this to ._.
 
Selling codes on ebay is a risk. There is nothing much you can do if a chargeback hits, and paypal always sides with the buyer in this case.

When a chargeback hits and should you lose, you'd lose the money plus the chargeback fee (~$10).
 
oh great... since I'm out of funds on my paypal account will they just pull the $10 right off the card I have attached to the paypal account? cus I'm pretty sure my funds are really low on that too... this could prove to be a much bigger headache than I had expected.
 
[quote name='eau']Selling codes on ebay is a risk. There is nothing much you can do if a chargeback hits, and paypal always sides with the buyer in this case.

When a chargeback hits and should you lose, you'd lose the money plus the chargeback fee (~$10).[/QUOTE]


This is not completely true. I sell on eBay every once in awhile and have been hit with chargebacks before.

To win an "unauthorized" use chargeback all you have to do is provide PROOF of shipment.

This of course means you have to SHIP your codes. You are lucky eBay didn't pull your listing as they are known to if you mention anywhere in the listing that you will e-mail the buyer/winning bidder the code directly.

Typically what I do if I'm selling DLC/PSN/XBL cards worth more then $10 is I"ll send the code via eBay messaging if they want it immediately but I'll also mail the code out with Delivery Confirmation to protect myself against an INR/SNAD/Chargeback.


It does suck though but that is the reality when doing business on eBay.
 
Always ship the physical card, otherwise you have no "paper-trail" of proof. I know some people like to keep the cards, but you are just asking for problems. I cant tell you how many times I have seen this situation before: a seller sells a code on ebay, messages the winner the code (instead of mailing it with delivery confirmation), then gets charged-back and screwed by an unscrupulous buyer... I have seen this same story play out more times than I can count and I hope sellers start getting a little wiser. I dont want to say that you brought this on yourself...but you definitely should have mailed the card.

I hope others see this and take this as a warning. If you sell codes on ebay, mail the physical card (or at the very least the code written on an index card!) to the buyer. NEVER PM CODES! At least this way you have proof that you sent something! Never trust a buyer you dont know, or who has little feedback...especially on ebay. People get ripped off every day on ebay I am sure, so you have to protect your ass, even if it means you have to pay for a freaking stamp.
 
Note: I contacted ebay about a guy in mexico that bought a code from me and wanted me to PM it to him through ebay. Ebay CS said that if I sent the code through ebay messaging and not through email, there would be a record of it to cover my ass.

So if you do have to message a code, do it through ebay's messaging system so they have a electronic trail in case of this happening.
 
Paypal should have provided you a shipping address, since the item was bought over eBay... see if you can get a phone number for the address and call. Either you'll freak the guy out and he'll cancel the dispute (well, maybe) or- if he's telling the truth- you can rat out to his dad that his kid used his card to buy videogame codes on ebay. Maybe Dad will pay you and make him work it off.
 
when I sell codes I physically mail the card with DC#. Funny I have a code on EBay right now with a question from some guy asking if I would sell to Mexico. The grammar was REALLY bad so i didn't even respond.
 
This happened to me awhile back. Sold a World of Warcraft card (I don't play) to a guy. Left good feedback and everything was fine. 2 weeks later he wins another World of Warcraft card. I sent it, he left good feedback. 2 weeks later PayPal took the money back on the 2nd one.

Is them leaving positive feedback not good enough proof?
 
i sold a war of cybertron code when the game came out. The guy wanted me to send the code through email, but i made sure I mailed it out to his house, just so something like this wouldn't happen. Unfortunately to many scammers on ebay to trust someone over emails only
 
[quote name='dabamus']Note: I contacted ebay about a guy in mexico that bought a code from me and wanted me to PM it to him through ebay. Ebay CS said that if I sent the code through ebay messaging and not through email, there would be a record of it to cover my ass.

So if you do have to message a code, do it through ebay's messaging system so they have a electronic trail in case of this happening.[/QUOTE]

This. I've always done it this way and I've never had a problem. You can send a copy of the message to yourself as well.
 
[quote name='bob101910']This happened to me awhile back. Sold a World of Warcraft card (I don't play) to a guy. Left good feedback and everything was fine. 2 weeks later he wins another World of Warcraft card. I sent it, he left good feedback. 2 weeks later PayPal took the money back on the 2nd one.

Is them leaving positive feedback not good enough proof?[/QUOTE]

I sold a game on ebay. Sent the game to the buyer. Buyer left feedback that he got it in3 days and that it was amazing. 90 days later I get an unauthorized chargeback on paypal. I had already thrown away the tracking number because of the feedback being left and him saying that he got it. I argued with paypal and ebay for over an hour about the guy because he had 3 other unauthorized chargebacks all for games at the same time as well despite everything on his side being verified and linked. Eventually I got them to take the $20 fee off but then was banned from ebay for a month for swearing at the customer service agents. I haven't sold anything on ebay since.

[quote name='dabamus']Note: I contacted ebay about a guy in mexico that bought a code from me and wanted me to PM it to him through ebay. Ebay CS said that if I sent the code through ebay messaging and not through email, there would be a record of it to cover my ass.

So if you do have to message a code, do it through ebay's messaging system so they have a electronic trail in case of this happening.[/QUOTE]

Not true. Ebay's policy is very clear you can not send codes via their message system. Your not allowed to sell "digital items" on ebay anymore so when you sell dlc technically your selling the paper with the code on it or your claiming to be an authorized reseller from ea or whatever company the game belongs too. They however don't enforce it unless someone flags your or you sell the item and the person claims it didn't work then your sol.


You may by some chance win the case because he responded on ebay but because ebay and paypal are "separate companies." Your probably going to end up loosing the money + $20 chargeback fee. In short Ebay and Paypal will always side with scammers and on the occasion you can jump through their 35 hoops to prove you did everything they eat it as a loss.
 
I have been selling on ebay for about a two years and just now have been running into a bit of a bad streak with chargebacks and disputes for items significantly not as described. Its not just with codes its also with tangible items as well. For example, a person bought a game that was in mint condition i sent it with a tracking number. Also this guy had about 50+ positive feedback rating and no negatives. So i never thought twice about it sending the game. About 2 weeks later he files a SNAD dispute with ebay saying the game wasn't in the case. Paypal decided in my favor but the SOB went and filed a chargeback with his CC and got his money back and also got to keep my game. Which trust me was in the case when i sent it out. The fact of the matter is paypal cant help you when it comes to chargebacks because its up to the persons CC company who decides. Even if paypal agrees with you you still may lose the chargback if the CC company issues one. Ebay really needs to protect the sellers more. Hell you cant even leave a negative anymore to warn other potential sellers of scammers. Here's a video that made me think twice about selling anything over 100 bucks on ebay anymore.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lr_7--e5A1g
 
I once had an issue with a buyer that had paid for a Mortal Kombat code with an expired debit card. The bank did a chargeback through Paypal and the buyer acknowledged he messed up on his part. I sent the code with delivery confirmation so I was covered in the end. It just took weeks to get my money. Selling codes is risky on eBay but overall I still think it's worth it. So like everybody in this thread has mentioned, always ship through snail mail. Paying up the $2 for shipping out the code is worth the insurance as proof of delivery.
 
Call paypal and tell them that it is about a code. They aren't covered. The dispute will be closed in your favor immediately. It just takes talking to a real person to get these things done properly sometimes.
 
[quote name='Zaku77']Call paypal and tell them that it is about a code. They aren't covered. The dispute will be closed in your favor immediately. It just takes talking to a real person to get these things done properly sometimes.[/QUOTE]

Both yes and no. Yes to the fact that they aren't covered. No to the fact that they will close the case in their favor right away. If you tell them its a code their going to say that its not covered and that your sol not that you will get your money right away. To sell codes you are supposed to have the intellectual rights which the op doesn't have. Some can try and argue that they bought the game and it came with it therefor they can sell it if they want but if you read the bottom of every single code you have they all say no value and not transferable.

If you have ever called paypal and had a person say oh its over a code and closed it in your favor then you got an employee that either doesn't care about their job or doesn't know how to do it. When a cc chargeback is done paypal has no control over the issue unless you show them rock solid proof (buyers ebay acct linked to paypal, you sending the item to a confirmed address, that address matching the credit card and you have delivery confirmation). If you can't show that with 100% accuracy you will lose every single time.
 
You think thats bad, I had a chargeback attempted like 6 months after purchase on 2 separate orders of games (about $180). I didn't even realize I sent two packages to the same guy because I did alot of orders in one particular month, and these were sent out on separate days.

Anyway, Ebay sent me an email that if I did not respond with proof of shipping within 7 days that it was presumed that I didn't complete the deal and and therefore would be charged back for BOTH transaction. I only checked my email on the 6th day because I was out of town. Seriously , I would have been so incredibly pissed to have had that chargeback happen to me just because I didn't check my email in time - and for an order that was so old. It's like they have no common sense. Fortunately I did keep my confirmation that long so I was able to provide proof at the very last minute to avoid chargeback.

I found it ridiculous how they only gave me 7 days to respond, and had me send "proof" of shipment even though delivery confirmation is not necessarily required (and not even an option on half.com). What was worse is this guy's feedback had NO NEGATIVES, because ebay changed their policy to not allow sellers to give negative feedback. However once you started reading his feedback history in detail, a huge chunk of his "positives" were actually sellers getting ripped off that just wanted to leave *SOME* form of warning on the record. Ebay really messed up some of their policies and for that reason it's hardly worth dealing with them anymore, at least not anymore than I have to just to get rid of some games I don't want...
 
yea it just sucks that some users use it the right way, like i sold off 40+ codes before running into this idiot, and all of them went thru fine... tho i suppose any of them could open up a chargeback in the future? if this is the case i think i better take my credit card off my paypal or something, cus i can't afford to keep losing money.....

by the way, how long does it usually take for them to finish the review on a charge back?
 
I sold my 360 DLC codes with only e-mailing the buyers the codes. Even though I was never scammed from the sale I was worried about a possible scam and just shipped it out with confirmation on my third DLC sold.
 
uh, so the charge back is finally "settled" and I'm now $24.99 in debt, to paypal I think... that's right, I got charged a $20 "fee" for a $5 charge back..... I have no money right now to pay this. Will I continue to be charged late fees or something the longer I put this off? this is absurd. I would have much rather this person just contacted me and I would've refunded the money. Now they have no negative on ebay, and put me $25 in debt and get to keep my code............

can someone please give me some advice as to what to do? this is the first time I've ever had to deal with something like this (I'm 19 and only just set this paypal account up a few months back to sell things on ebay)... I don't have the money to pay this and am currently unemployed, do I really have to pay the $20 fee on top of the $5 charge back?

I also want to have my card removed from paypal and just wipe my hands clean of all this so that other people don't file charge backs on other codes I've sold, but realize I have to pay before doing that
 
[quote name='iNFiNiTE HORiZON']uh, so the charge back is finally "settled" and I'm now $24.99 in debt, to paypal I think... that's right, I got charged a $20 "fee" for a $5 charge back..... I have no money right now to pay this. Will I continue to be charged late fees or something the longer I put this off? this is absurd. I would have much rather this person just contacted me and I would've refunded the money. Now they have no negative on ebay, and put me $25 in debt and get to keep my code............

can someone please give me some advice as to what to do? this is the first time I've ever had to deal with something like this (I'm 19 and only just set this paypal account up a few months back to sell things on ebay)... I don't have the money to pay this and am currently unemployed, do I really have to pay the $20 fee on top of the $5 charge back?

I also want to have my card removed from paypal and just wipe my hands clean of all this so that other people don't file charge backs on other codes I've sold, but realize I have to pay before doing that[/QUOTE]

Don't worry I've been neg $250 before. Worst they'll do is send it to collections but for $25 they won't bother.

What you should do is file a complaint at the BBB they usually are quick to refund/forgive charges under $100. The $20 charge is ridiculous. So yeh file a complaint about that charge. But you did break policy by emailing so I'd say your out $5 for sure.
 
[quote name='TiKi2']Don't worry I've been neg $250 before. Worst they'll do is send it to collections but for $25 they won't bother.

What you should do is file a complaint at the BBB they usually are quick to refund/forgive charges under $100. The $20 charge is ridiculous. So yeh file a complaint about that charge. But you did break policy by emailing so I'd say your out $5 for sure.[/QUOTE]

I'm still confused, should I ask paypal to take off the $20 "fee"? I'm still unsure what the fee is even for, bad enough I have to pay them money out of my sales as is, now they're charging me $20 because some asshole little kid stole his dad's credit card? ....wtf

also just noticed my paypal and ebay accounts have both been frozen... I don't feel I've done anything to receive this kind of treatment, I ripped no one off, I got ripped off and am now being punished and charged for it? wtf. I also haven't even received so much as a call or email telling me why they're doing all this, I'm assuming just because I'm negative and haven't paid it off, and also haven't been able to pay my $6 or so in ebay fees because of this paypal fiasco, I'd be able to pay it, if I wasn't -$25, If I put money into paypal to pay my ebay fees it's just going to be taken away from me... what a mess.
 
Ouch. That sounds pretty ridiculous. Is there a number you can call paypal at and talk to a human being? And yes I'd ask about the $20 "fee".

edit: I guess it's a chargeback fee. Paypal charges $20 for it if you lose I think is what it's saying.
It's in the paypal user agreement section 8.7
 
[quote name='iNFiNiTE HORiZON']I'm still confused, should I ask paypal to take off the $20 "fee"? I'm still unsure what the fee is even for, bad enough I have to pay them money out of my sales as is, now they're charging me $20 because some asshole little kid stole his dad's credit card? ....wtf

also just noticed my paypal and ebay accounts have both been frozen... I don't feel I've done anything to receive this kind of treatment, I ripped no one off, I got ripped off and am now being punished and charged for it? wtf. I also haven't even received so much as a call or email telling me why they're doing all this, I'm assuming just because I'm negative and haven't paid it off, and also haven't been able to pay my $6 or so in ebay fees because of this paypal fiasco, I'd be able to pay it, if I wasn't -$25, If I put money into paypal to pay my ebay fees it's just going to be taken away from me... what a mess.[/QUOTE]

I think you are suspended. Ring them up and find out what's going on.
 
[quote name='IAmTheCheapestGamer']Since codes aren't covered , then what's to stop someone from doing like I think some do and selling a tangible item and throwing in the code 'free'.;)[/QUOTE]

This. My friend bought a script of Reservoir Dogs that came from a magazine or festival or something and was marked on it "NOT FOR RESALE", etc. They made i clear they were selling a hand drawn picture of Tarantino and throwing in the script free. He ended up with the script and like a stick figure drawing on a post-it note.

I recently saw it again with Mortal Kombat DLC with a picture of Mileena.
 
[quote name='iNFiNiTE HORiZON']I'm still confused, should I ask paypal to take off the $20 "fee"? I'm still unsure what the fee is even for, bad enough I have to pay them money out of my sales as is, now they're charging me $20 because some asshole little kid stole his dad's credit card? ....wtf

also just noticed my paypal and ebay accounts have both been frozen... I don't feel I've done anything to receive this kind of treatment, I ripped no one off, I got ripped off and am now being punished and charged for it? wtf. I also haven't even received so much as a call or email telling me why they're doing all this, I'm assuming just because I'm negative and haven't paid it off, and also haven't been able to pay my $6 or so in ebay fees because of this paypal fiasco, I'd be able to pay it, if I wasn't -$25, If I put money into paypal to pay my ebay fees it's just going to be taken away from me... what a mess.[/QUOTE]

You might as well find a way to pay it, considering you did break ebay guidelines, and if you don't pay it I'm pretty sure it's going to keep building up. Cut your losses now and pay it and just forget about the whole thing, you've obviously been scammed by some punk on ebay from now on if you're going to sell codes it would be best if you sent the code through mail rather than e-mail. Sure they will have to wait but it beats getting jammed up in this mess.
 
[quote name='exaznkid']You might as well find a way to pay it, considering you did break ebay guidelines, and if you don't pay it I'm pretty sure it's going to keep building up. Cut your losses now and pay it and just forget about the whole thing, you've obviously been scammed by some punk on ebay from now on if you're going to sell codes it would be best if you sent the code through mail rather than e-mail. Sure they will have to wait but it beats getting jammed up in this mess.[/QUOTE]

yeah I'm about to get some sleep and gonna call ebay and paypal first thing when I get up and explain everything. if there's nothing they can do I'll just cut my losses and pay it, seems there's not much else I can do about it. thanks to everyone for the advice thus far though!
 
I had a DLC code for The Naked City Case on LA Noire. I listed it as such, saying it was the DLC only, not the game. I had someone pay $15 for it, and I sent them the code via message. I get a reply that says 'So I guess I don't get the real game then?', to which I replied 'Yes, this was for the code for an extra mission ONLY.' A couple weeks go by, and I get a neutral feedback from him, saying 'I still don't know how to figure this out'. The idiot actually thought (this was shortly after the game came out, like a week or two later) he was buying the game for such a low price, couldn't read the damn listing, and then didn't even know what the code was for or how to use it. People are pretty damn stupid on eBay.
 
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