There are two types of protection offered by paypal for buyers. There is Buyer Protection When you shop on ebay AND Buyer Compliant Policy
for when you shop outside. There are differences, of course.
Under paypal's Buyer Compliant Policy when you shop outside ebay you have some redress now. Not a guarantee for a buyer but...
13.5 PayPal Buyer Complaint Policy
1. What is the PayPal Buyer Complaint Policy?
It is PayPal’s process to help you resolve a problem directly with the seller through the PayPal Resolution Center for purchases that are not eligible for PayPal Buyer Protection.
The PayPal Buyer Complaint Policy is similar to PayPal Buyer Protection in that it enables buyers to file Disputes for Items Not Received (INR), or for items that are Significantly Not as Described (SNAD). By filing a Dispute, you can communicate with the seller and attempt to resolve the problem. If you are unable to resolve the problem, you may escalate an Item Not Receive (INR) Dispute to a Claim – but you may not escalate a Significantly Not as Described Dispute to a Claim.
Even though you may escalate an Item Not Received Dispute to a Claim, you are not guaranteed recovery. If the Claim is decided in your favor, your recovery is limited to the amounts that PayPal can recover from the seller’s Account.
2. What is the process for the Buyer Complaint Policy?
Similar to PayPal Buyer Protection, you must file a Dispute in the PayPal Resolution Center within 45 days of the date you sent the payment. Once you have done so, you should attempt to resolve the Dispute directly with the seller.
3. What happens if I am unable to resolve the Dispute directly with the seller?
You may escalate the Dispute to a Claim within 20 days of the date you filed the Dispute. PayPal will make a final decision for some - but not all - Claims. You should not escalate a Dispute for Significantly Not as Described (SNAD) to a Claim because PayPal will not make a decision on a SNAD Claim under the PayPal Buyer Complaint Policy.
4. What if PayPal makes a final decision in my favor?
If PayPal makes a final decision in your favor, we will collect any available funds in the seller’s PayPal balance at that time. However, recovery is not guaranteed and is limited only to the amounts that PayPal can recover from the seller’s Account. Any amounts collected from the seller will be placed in your Account.
This is slightly different from TOS that existed say 9 months ago. It would be worthwhile to read thro' current terms to keep in touch with paypal
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