I got Fake Chanel bag on Mercari

I haven’t opened the dispute yet because I have a balance on mercari and concern that Mercari will suspend my acct and hold on my money. I initiated a transfer that balance to my bank yesterday and it will take 3-5 days to transfer to my bank.

I have a balance in my Mercari acct and worry that they will close my acct and hold on my balance. I already transferred my money yesterday and hopefully I can get my transfer soon then I can open a dispute.
I can't imagine that it would be legal for Mercari to suspend you and steal money that is rightfully yours just because you open a dispute.

While their TOS may say they can terminate your account for any reason, they still can't keep money that is rightfully yours.

And IMO, rather than terminate someone who was sold an illegal item, they might be better served to suspend the seller who violated their rules by listing a fake!
 
And so you know, this is from their TOS:

Prohibited Items
https://www.mercari.com/us/help_center/article/318
  • Counterfeit goods or goods infringing on a third party's intellectual property rights such as:
    • Listings of non-brand, non-genuine, imitation, fake, or replica
    • Items in violation of a copyright, including handmade, or other items with copyrighted characters, brand logos, etc.
    • Note: For brand-name products, serial numbers or receipts must be available when listing the item.
 
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I can't imagine that it would be legal for Mercari to suspend you and steal money that is rightfully yours just because you open a dispute.

While their TOS may say they can terminate your account for any reason, they still can't keep money that is rightfully yours.

And IMO, rather than terminate someone who was sold an illegal item, they might be better served to suspend the seller who violated their rules by listing a fake!
Yes, I totally agree with you. I’m a victim who got scammed and lost the money. It’s not right for Mercari to keep my balance. But It’s possible they can do whatever to reserve their money first. Then I will get into another hassle fight to get my money back. That’s what I concern.
 
With A4U, the founder Lesley is accessible and will get the specific details as to why their specialists think the item is fake or real (but with quirks or inconsistencies). After all you paid for their service, they ought to give you a detailed summary when asked and not just yes/no thank you m’am
 
Pick one to file the dispute with - either PP or your cc. If you're a preferred client at your bank or big spender, do the cc. I prefer disputing thru my bank over PP b/c they get things handled quickly for me & they have always ruled in my favor. I get the money right away when I file the claim, then they investigate. If they decide not in my favor, they'd then take the money back out of my account or charge my cc for that amount - but that's never happened. If not, do PP. They def take longer though. Estimate it to take 30 - 90 days. You should have some sort of protection, unless the seller has disappeared. May be more difficult then
 
Pick one to file the dispute with - either PP or your cc. If you're a preferred client at your bank or big spender, do the cc. I prefer disputing thru my bank over PP b/c they get things handled quickly for me & they have always ruled in my favor. I get the money right away when I file the claim, then they investigate. If they decide not in my favor, they'd then take the money back out of my account or charge my cc for that amount - but that's never happened. If not, do PP. They def take longer though. Estimate it to take 30 - 90 days. You should have some sort of protection, unless the seller has disappeared. May be more difficult then
Even if the seller has disappeared, since mercari was the actual PayPal counterparty who initially received the funds they would have the money clawed back from them.
 
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Even if the seller has disappeared, since mercari was the actual PayPal counterparty who initially received the funds they would have the money clawed back from them.
Even better news then! I honestly have no idea what Mercari is or how it works. I've heard of it, but idk if it's just reg people selling their goods (like eBay or tradesy) or a business... I'm just basing my comment on my personal experiences. & never have I had an issue w/ being refunded when the item hasn't been described accurately.
 
Pick one to file the dispute with - either PP or your cc. If you're a preferred client at your bank or big spender, do the cc. I prefer disputing thru my bank over PP b/c they get things handled quickly for me & they have always ruled in my favor. I get the money right away when I file the claim, then they investigate. If they decide not in my favor, they'd then take the money back out of my account or charge my cc for that amount - but that's never happened. If not, do PP. They def take longer though. Estimate it to take 30 - 90 days. You should have some sort of protection, unless the seller has disappeared. May be more difficult then
While this would seem like good advice, with a Paypal transaction, going to your CC before trying to allow PP to resolve can backfire and result in the victim's account being suspended.

While a credit card dispute is always a valid dispute, it's understandable that you allow paypal to handle the resolution. That's why it's always recommended that a c.c. dispute should be the last resort, done after all other attempts are exhausted.

And as you (@Designer_Dreams ) stated, if the c.c. company finds against you, they reclaim the money, so in reality, you don't really "get the money right away when I file the claim" since the investigation hasn't been done.
 
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Thank you so much on everyone advice and comments. Just updated on my case. I opened a dispute on PayPal and Mercari customer service contacted me shortly after. Mercari recommended me to contact their customer service, not PayPal otherwise they could suspend or close my account. I contacted them and told them the same situation as I had told them before. I also added what BeenBurned recommended “ I’ll be taking whatever actions are necessary to get my money back” along with the written statement of inauthenticity from RA. Mercari refunded the whole amount to PayPal. The refund amount appeared in my PayPal account and the dispute case appeared close in PayPal resolution center. Do you know when the refund will get back to my credit card? Do I need to contact PayPal for the refund to be transferred back to credit card? Please tell me what to do next and what to follow up! Again thank you so much!
 
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They may not have refunded back to the c.c. You said that the refund appeared (as a credit?) on your Paypal account, right? So that sounds like the refund.

I've found that PP refunds when done back to a c.c. don't show as credits in Paypal since the debit was never done or shown in PP.
 
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They may not have refunded back to the c.c. You said that the refund appeared (as a credit?) on your Paypal account, right? So that sounds like the refund.

I've found that PP refunds when done back to a c.c. don't show as credits in Paypal since the debit was never done or shown in PP.
I haven’t seen the refund in my cc. In PayPal Activity, I saw one of the transaction was refund from Mercari (yes, as credit). When I clicked in, it indicates “completed”. Maybe the refund just happened yesterday. I’ll keep checking.
 
I’ve just read on PayPal. The refund will be issued to original form of payment. It will take up to 30 days if the fund is from credit card. With your experience, what is the estimated days of waiting?
 
I’ve just read on PayPal. The refund will be issued to original form of payment. It will take up to 30 days if the fund is from credit card. With your experience, what is the estimated days of waiting?

This has been my own personal experience dealing with PP & payment via CC (mine is debit which is the same I just use my own funds). I have seen my refunds within 3 - 5 working days - But because my payment has been a Debit card (not CC, I did away with CC's years ago!) it has always come back into my bank account which I funded the purchase with. I've never waited longer then 5 Working days. Again, you Might just have to wait 30 days - But personally, I think they are giving you the worst case scenario on waiting time.

I would give them a few days (I'm still suspect the 3 - 5 Working days) & let them process your refund & for your CC Bank holder to credit it back onto it.
 
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Thank you so much on everyone advice and comments. Just updated on my case. I opened a dispute on PayPal and Mercari customer service contacted me shortly after. Mercari recommended me to contact their customer service, not PayPal otherwise they could suspend or close my account. I contacted them and told them the same situation as I had told them before. I also added what BeenBurned recommended “ I’ll be taking whatever actions are necessary to get my money back” along with the written statement of inauthenticity from RA. Mercari refunded the whole amount to PayPal. The refund amount appeared in my PayPal account and the dispute case appeared close in PayPal resolution center. Do you know when the refund will get back to my credit card? Do I need to contact PayPal for the refund to be transferred back to credit card? Please tell me what to do next and what to follow up! Again thank you so much!
No way Mercari would have speedily resolved your case as quickly as they did unless the threat of PP dispute was looming over their head. So now you know, as well as everyone else that Mercari can and does refund in the case of fraud. Don’t let their customer service discourage you, glad to hear it all worked out.

PP refund to credit card takes a few days (3-5 but usually even quicker), never seen 30 days.