Paypal approves refund, then later declines refund

[puppoochi]

Bought a second hand iphone 4s $360.00 .

The phone was described as in excellent condition,however the battery was failing so I ordered another battery for it.

When I went to replace the battery there are 4 screws that need removing, 2 to open the case and 2 that hold the battery in. 

One of the threads of the screws to remove the battery had previously been damaged which made it impossible for me to remove the battery.

The seller told me to bring it to a shop to get it fixed, I asked who was to pay for that and that I could buy a refurbished model for under $400.00.

How can an item descibed as being in excellent condition have a failing battery and a wrecked scew?

I spoke to payal on the phone, they approved to refund with an email so I ordered another phone.

The seller contested it and I sent screenshots of the seller and my email conversations.

They then reversed their dececion.

I will be out of pocket, not only will I need to sell one of the phones, but the other I will need to pay to get repaied.

Where's the buyer protection? Should I go to VCAT? 

[puppoochi]

I'm not worried because if he decides to persue it further I will have evidence that the phone was returned in working order. How much will he be out of pocket at the end of the day? Even if he does take me to VCAT, he can only get back his out of pocket expenses if he happens to win. Legally I'm not worried, but he does have my address, that's my greatest concern.

[i-love-my-sheep]

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@puppoochi wrote:

Even if he does take me to VCAT, he can only get back his out of pocket expenses if he happens to win. Legally I'm not worried, but he does have my address, that's my greatest concern.

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As someone who was dragged through the courts by a disgruntled buyer, I can say with absolute certainty, if you got to court and lose and are told you have to pay his costs, you don't have to pay a red cent. Seriously! 

I won my court case, the buyer was told she had to pay all my expenses (solicitor, court costs, my couple of trips to Sydney before it was transferred to my local court, lost earnings from having to take days off work). My solicitor said straight up that trying to get anything out of her would be impossible. The only way I could possibly do it would be to take her to court and even then, there is no guarantee she would pay, so it would just cost me more in legal fees.It would just turn into a big revolving door and he would get his new car much sooner.

No-one chases you for money owed. Even if you get taken back and told you have to pay, still no-one chases you.

Having your address however, is a concern. Although, I'm not sure how concerned you should be. My buyers husband is of Cicilian descent, he's a debt collector, is used to getting his own way and also has ties to the Cicilian mafia. I carped myself for months thinking I'd be getting a visit from men in black suits, wearing dark sunglasses, in a black car with heavily tinted windows, but it never happened. I even went so far as to make a report at the local cop station of my concerns, just in case something did happen. Then they'd know who to go after.