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Problem Solved: The steam cleaner didn't arrive, but PayPal took my money anyway

Christopher Elliott on

Barb Weyer orders a steam cleaner online and uses PayPal to pay for it. The steam cleaning machine never arrives, but she's charged anyway. Can she get a refund?

Q: I ordered a steam cleaner through a site called Tanagas.com. I paid $127 through PayPal. I never received the item. I have tried to contact the seller and the only response that I got was 'address not found'.

The receipt email that was sent to me from PayPal on that same day, had a tracking number from UPS. This tracking number says the package was delivered on that same day to a different address than mine.

The last person that I had chatted with confirmed that the package belonging to this tracking number came from Lenexa, Kan., which is not the location my package was supposed to come from. Also, the order date and delivery date are the same day.

I have also just received an email from UPS saying, “Please note that our records show that this package was not sent to your address.”

PayPal has denied my claim for a refund. PayPal says I received shipment tracking from the merchant confirming the merchandise was delivered. But the tracking number is not correct. I would really appreciate it if you could review my claim and help me get a refund. -- Barb Weyer, Whitehall, Mont.

A: Hmm, this one's a little weird. I reviewed your screenshots and it looks like Tanagas.com claimed you placed the order and received it on the same day. That obviously didn't happen.

What did happen? It's hard to say. You kept a great paper trail of your order by taking screenshots. But when you tried to retrieve the online chat between you and PayPal, it had already been removed and your case had been closed.

 

Next time you do a chat online, remember to save everything to your computer. I know of some less reputable companies that make it difficult to access these important written records. You want to know what was -- or wasn't -- said by a company representative.

You could have reached out to an executive at PayPal about your case. I publish the names, numbers and email addresses of all the PayPal executives on my consumer advocacy site, Elliott.org.

I checked with PayPal. Its PayPal Purchase Protection should have covered a product ordered but not delivered. The company's records indicated that although the tracking showed delivery to the correct city and state, the shipment timeline was inconsistent with the payment date. So that package that Tanagas.com said had been delivered wasn't for you. The first appeal of your claim was unsuccessful. But it looks like PayPal honored your second appeal, and it has refunded your money, and it has refunded your money.

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Christopher Elliott's latest book is “How To Be The World’s Smartest Traveler” (National Geographic). Get help by contacting him at http://www.elliott.org/help

© 2020 Christopher Elliott.


 

 

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