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Payment Dispute Seller Protections

If a buyer files a payment dispute, the seller may be eligible for payment dispute seller protection.

When a buyer opens a dispute with their payment institution (for example, their credit card provider or PayPal), the payment institution will inform eBay of the dispute and initiate a process to resolve the dispute with the buyer. eBay will collect information about the transaction and help the seller build evidence to defend the dispute.

The final outcome of the dispute is decided by the payment institution. However, the seller may be eligible for payment dispute seller protections by eBay. For details on how these protections work – which transactions are eligible or excluded, and what sellers need to do – please read our full policy below.

Protections, eligibility requirements and exclusions

Payment dispute seller protections may apply when the buyer opens a payment dispute for one of the following reasons:

01.

They didn’t receive the item

02.

They don’t recognize the transaction or have an issue with the transaction

03.

The item they received doesn’t match the listing

For a seller to be eligible for payment dispute seller protections:

The transaction must meet the requirements specified in this policy

 

The seller must respond to the payment dispute and take action within the required time frames

 

If challenging the payment dispute, the seller must provide the required evidence

 

The seller may not be in violation of the User Agreement

eBay may automatically apply seller protections to a dispute without requiring the seller to respond or take action on the dispute. If we apply the protections automatically, we won’t charge a dispute fee or seek reimbursement from the seller if the dispute is resolved in favor of the buyer.

Eligible Scenarios

  • The seller issued a full refund to the buyer through eBay
  • An eBay Money Back Guarantee case of the same type was already:
    • Decided against the buyer or
    • Resolved with a full refund to the buyer through eBay

Excluded Transactions

Required actions and time frames

Actions
Time frame

Accept the dispute

Within 5 calendar days after the dispute notification is received

Challenge the dispute and provide supporting evidence

Within 5 calendar days after the dispute notification is received

When a buyer opens a payment dispute because they didn't receive the item or they don't recognize the transaction

When a buyer opens a payment dispute because they didn't receive the item or they don't recognize the transaction, sellers will be asked to provide:

  • Evidence of successful delivery to the address provided by the buyer at checkout, or
  • Proof that the buyer collected the item

If eBay determines that the item was successfully delivered or picked up:

  • We will not seek reimbursement from the seller for the disputed amount, even if the payment institution decides that the buyer is owed a refund; and
  • We will waive or refund the seller’s dispute fee

Evidence of successful delivery

Tracking information from a shipping carrier that shows all of the following:

01.

A delivery status of “delivered” (or equivalent in the country to which the item was delivered)

02.

The date of delivery

03.

The recipient’s address that matches the one found on the Order details page, including the city/county or zip code (or international equivalent); And

04.

Proof of signature confirmation uploaded as an image while challenging the payment dispute, for orders with a total cost of $750 or more. Learn more about our signature confirmation requirements

Evidence of successful pickup

For In-store pickup items, the identity of the person collecting the item must be validated with a photo ID. The seller must provide evidence that includes all of the following:

Order ID number

Item number

Item title

Amount paid

Date of collection

Buyer’s signature confirming collection

Address of pickup store or location

For items that are collected directly from the seller, evidence that the buyer has received the item may include:

A copy of the eBay order details, signed by the buyer at the time of collection, or

The seller used the eBay app to scan the buyer’s QR code or manually entered the buyer’s 6-digit pickup code at the time of collection

When a buyer opens a payment dispute because the item doesn't match the listing

When a buyer opens a payment dispute because the item they received doesn’t match the listing, sellers will be asked to provide evidence to challenge the payment dispute, such as photographs showing the item’s condition prior to shipment.

When determining whether to protect a seller, eBay will look for one of the following:
  • The seller issued a full refund to the buyer through eBay
  • The seller issued a partial refund to the buyer through eBay in accordance with our partial refund guidelines for an item that was returned used or damaged, provided that the seller is eligible to give a partial refund through Top Rated Seller protections
An eBay Money Back Guarantee case of the same type for the same transaction was:
  • Decided against the buyer, or
  • Resolved with a full refund to the buyer
If eBay determines that the transaction is eligible for protections:
  • We will not seek reimbursement from the seller for the disputed amount, even if the payment institution decides that the buyer is owed a refund; and
  • We will waive or refund the seller’s dispute fee

Dispute fees, payment holds, and reimbursements

When a buyer files a payment dispute, the seller will be charged a dispute fee if they challenge or don’t respond to the dispute, and they are found responsible for the disputed amount. If the dispute is eligible for payment dispute seller protections, the seller won’t be charged a dispute fee.

At the time the buyer files a payment dispute, the seller’s funds may be held by eBay as outlined in the Payments Terms of Use. The hold may be in place for up to 30 calendar days.

As described in this policy, eBay may determine that the seller is not eligible for payment dispute seller protections. If the seller is not eligible and the buyer’s payment institution decides that the buyer is owed a refund, eBay will seek reimbursement from the seller in accordance with our User Agreement and Payments Terms of Use.

We will seek reimbursement by:

  • Deducting the refund amount from the seller payouts that have not yet been disbursed, or
  • If the seller funds are not sufficient to cover the refund, we will charge the refund amount to the seller’s payout bank account

If reimbursement is unsuccessful, eBay reserves the right to seek reimbursement through other means.

Appeals and duplicate claims

If eBay determines that a seller is not eligible for payment dispute seller protections, the seller can submit an appeal by contacting eBay within 30 calendar days from the date the payment dispute outcome was communicated. As part of reviewing an appeal, we may ask the seller to provide additional documentation.

eBay reserves the right to make final decisions.

Buyers can’t use more than one resolution method to get a refund. If a buyer opens a payment dispute with their payment institution, the seller must respond to the payment dispute. eBay will close any open order cancellations, reports that an item hasn’t arrived, return requests, or eBay Money Back Guarantee cases for the same transaction.

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