Why is ebay not contactable about not receiving my item and then closing my case because I have not

[johnno-58]

Why does Ebay close a no show delivery case because I have not looked at my messages for 21 business days? I was waiting for a message from Ebay. The seller told me to go through Ebay for a refund and Ebay would handle it.. What action was I supposed to do to get a refund.. I bought this item on the 6th of June and NOTHING has shown up.. Contacted seller and told it was delivered , But no. Tracked item to somewhere in the USA and it was classed as delivered.. NO communication response from the seller after that.. Ebay said that they would look into it and ended up closing the case due to inactivity or something.. Is Ebay just a large computer that sends predetermined responses to us with NO human involvement other than Ai.. How do I get their attention to get my money back folks

[countessalmirena]

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@johnno-58 wrote:

Is Ebay just a large computer that sends predetermined responses to us with NO human involvement other than Ai..

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Well… yes. eBay’s dispute / refund process is automated. Actions are triggered based on input from the buyer and the seller.

If the seller doesn’t refund after you open an INR dispute (Item Not Received) within 3 days, and there’s no proof of delivery provided by the seller within the dispute (i.e., tracking showing delivery status of “delivered”), then an option appears within the dispute to “ask eBay to step in” (aka escalate the case). If you don’t do this within 21 days of opening the case, the dispute will automatically close without eBay stepping in, and that means NO REFUND.

All of this is explained step by step in eBay’s Help page for the MBG. I quote:

Actions & time frames when the buyer doesn't receive an item

Action	Time frame
The buyer reports that the item hasn't arrived or was not available for collection Report an item that hasn't arrived - opens in new window or tab	Earliest: Once the estimated or actual delivery/collection date has passed Latest: 30 calendar days after the estimated or actual delivery/collection date has passed
The seller responds to the buyer's report The seller is required to respond and provide either tracking information, delivery updates, or a refund.	Latest: 3 business days after the report date If the seller provided tracking details, eBay may respond to the report automatically and/or may close the request once tracking shows the item has been delivered.
Ask eBay to step in If the seller hasn't responded or if the buyer and seller can't reach a resolution, they can ask us to step in and help. eBay may step in without the buyer asking if there is no valid tracking information available.	Earliest: 3 business days after the report date Latest: 21 business days after the report date

You could try to contact eBay via Live Chat using whatever topic options enable you to speak to a supervisor, and explain that as per that last bit — “eBay may step in without the buyer asking if there is no valid tracking information available” — you were under the impression the refund would occur automatically without your needing to ask eBay to step in.

Give that a try. You may need to be inventive in choosing a topic in Live Chat - and be persistent in asking for a supervisor.

Otherwise, you’ll need to go through PayPal’s Buyer Protection if you paid via PayPal.

Failing either of these two options, as long as your payment was funded from your credit or debit card, and you’re within the timeframe for a chargeback with your card provider/bank, a chargeback would be your fallback option.

Try eBay supervisor first.

If that doesn’t work, use PayPal Buyer Protection. (Timeframe - up to 180 days from date of transaction if you paid via PayPal.)

If that’s not an option, ask your bank for chargeback. (Timeframe varies from bank to bank and from card to card, so check T&Cs for your card. Often 2 or 3 months from date of transaction, may well be longer; longest I’ve seen is 6 months.)

Could you post here with the outcome? It’s always helpful for other eBay members to see what’s worked. Good luck.

(And in any future case, remember to check within the dispute to activate the “Ask eBay to step in” if seller does not refund you in a dispute like this.)

[sandypebbles]

You get your money back back by opening and following through with an item not received dispute

Not waiting for the seller, not waiting for a message

The case was closed due to inactivity because you did not follow through with

By you doing nothing, that signals to eBay you have resolved things from the seller and are happy

You cannot reopen a case once it has been closed

If you paid with PayPal you have 180 days for a dispute there

No need to ‘involve eBay’ outside you opening and following through with the dispute