eBay won't refund forced eBay plus charge despite cancelling

OzBoganYeah on 10/11/2019 - 13:14

Hi

So I signed up for a free 30 eBay plus trial and cancelled 2 weeks before the trial ended. I got a confirmation on screen and thought nothing of it. I check my PayPal and I was charged $48.99 for a annual eBay plus subscription without my knowledge even though I remember cancelling.

Short story cut short; I just wasted almost TWO damn hours on eBay live chat for the chat agent to decline my refund. Best part is they admitted it was a "system glitch" multiple times (I took screenshots for my claim with PayPal, just opened it there) but then after I called them out for it-saying it's a technical issue and not my fault, etc-they backpedal HARD and shift the blame onto me, stating that they "assume there was no system glitch from eBay". I don't own nor have access to any kind of 'system' so how am I at fault if it was a system glitch? It doesn't make any sense.

I was in disbelief at first so I googled in search of what to do and found a TON of people who had had the same issue: got charged when they cancelled. I've used eBay for over 7.5 years, only have 1 account and have spent thousands and thousands there. This is ridiculous! It's the last time I'll spend any money there.

I have submitted an unauthorised charged dispute/claim via PayPal but have read a few people had their claims denied which is concerning. Last resort is a chargeback which I've never done before and don't really have any hope there either (because CBA). Any suggestions would be appreciated. I'm lost on what to do.

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Comments

        • Jebus on 13/11/2019 - 11:47
          +1

          I had the same thing, it said it was cancelled and told me the end trial date. I still didn't receive an email and it didn't stop them charging me :) When it came time to ask for a refund it was impossible to prove I'd actually cancelled because there was no paper trail.

          • Typical16-bitEnjoyer on 13/11/2019 - 11:55

            @Jebus: Oh wow, it said the end trial date but still charged? Ok I'm onboard now. Now I can see why there's so much rage. Sounds like an internal problem they are ignoring.

            • Jebus on 13/11/2019 - 11:59
              +2

              @Typical16-bitEnjoyer: I wonder if it's a bug relating to all the 'fake' cancellation buttons you have to go through before getting to the real one… maybe the final one isn't always wired correctly??? Anyway, I've sent OzBoganYeah my chat transcript so hopefully he can get his moolah back :)

    • OzBoganYeah on 13/11/2019 - 14:59
      +1

      Yes, I'm sure I cancelled. I set up a few reminders so I wouldn't forget. I logged in and chose the reason I was cancelling and confirmed cancellation. I got a on screen cancellation with an end date.

      • Typical16-bitEnjoyer on 13/11/2019 - 15:06

        That sucks. Just be cautious if you care about that PayPal account. From what you've said I'm not sure what other options you have :/

  • screensaver on 13/11/2019 - 12:18
    +1

    Try the Banking Ombudsman

    • screensaver on 13/11/2019 - 12:19

      for Paypal and bank complaints

    • OzBoganYeah on 13/11/2019 - 14:55

      Appreciate the suggestion, I'll try that.

      • Falbium on 13/11/2019 - 15:03
        +1

        For PayPal go to AFCA https://www.afca.org.au

        This is better than doing a chargeback because PayPal will just ban you from using their service, it's better to attempt resolution

        • OzBoganYeah on 13/11/2019 - 20:38

          Thanks for the info and link. Will PayPal actually ban you if you do a chargeback? Is that the same for disputes from the bank? The lady at the bank said they don't do chargeback anymore and it's merchants only. :/

      • gimme on 13/11/2019 - 20:29

        Have you actually lodged a paypal dispute?

        • OzBoganYeah on 13/11/2019 - 20:36

          Yes I have. I did a few days ago but it got declined only a few hours after I lodged it (seemed like it was automatically declined and no one actually read my claim description).

    • Typical16-bitEnjoyer on 13/11/2019 - 15:06

      Surely smalls claims court is the first step before Banking Ombudsman?

  • baskinghobo on 13/11/2019 - 13:14
    +1

    Had the opposite experience with ebay. Signed up to take advantage of the free delivery but forgot to cancel and was charged $50. I knew it was my own fault but i thought i might try my luck and ask for a refund anyway. Lady said usually they don't do refunds for my situation but since their was only one purchase on my account after joining ebay plus they will as a nice gesture. Was pleasantly surprised to have such a response from a big company like ebay. Maybe keep trying until you find a nice person who will process the refund for you.

    • OzBoganYeah on 13/11/2019 - 20:35

      Lucky you and good to hear you were refunded.

      I tried again with eBay CS a few minutes ago but besides not budging (the dumb "again eBay policy to refund" spiel again), I got transferred to the claims and appeals department-lady I spoke to said she couldn't (more like wouldn't) do anything because I needed to wait another 48 hours to hear from another rep for an status update. I spoke to him Monday and haven't heard anything yet sigh

  • Adamiam on 13/11/2019 - 13:55
    +2

    I had the same situation except I was previously a paying customer for a year of eBay Plus. I was cancelling because there was very few benefits for me and when I tried to use the refund system, it failed due to website issues on their side. I cancelled well before the expiry but then the day the renewal came round.. I was charged. I called and emailed multiple times but wasn't able to get it refunded, even though I hadn't use any part of the membership and it had only just renewed.

    eBay Plus is a scam and I hope ACCC gets involved at some point.

    • OzBoganYeah on 13/11/2019 - 14:57

      Were you able to get a refund eventually? I hope more and more people complain to the ACCC so they get involved.

  • T1OOO on 13/11/2019 - 15:12
    +1

    Yep. eBay is really just crap. No other way to put it really. I refuse to buy anything or have a pay pal account. It’s not worth the 3cents in savings over non criminal companies.

    • OzBoganYeah on 13/11/2019 - 20:30

      I feel the same way.

  • CHIEFMEGADETH on 13/11/2019 - 16:15
    +1

    I got eBay plus forgot to cancel it. rang them up and told and said so sorry. my mistake and may I please get a refund.
    And they gave me the refund.

    • OzBoganYeah on 13/11/2019 - 20:30

      Good to hear you were able to get a refund (sounds like had a sympathetic representative).

      • CHIEFMEGADETH on 14/11/2019 - 16:18

        I got very lucky. I did keep calm and was super polite.
        I bet the representative was feeling generous for sure. I've heard so many bad things about trying to get refunds. including this topic.

  • OzBoganYeah on 13/11/2019 - 20:51
    +2

    Update 5: just spoke to eBay chat and for the first time, I was transferred to the claims and appeals department (it gave me a tiny bit of hope). Lady said she couldn't help-told me to wait 48 hours to hear back from a representative I spoke to on 11/11. Asked her since she's from that specific department, if she could do anything to help. Nope. Refused to do anything because "I think you should wait back to hear from [rep's name] in the next 48 hours". That's a long time to wait 🤔

    I'm just about to give up. Seems I'm never going to see that money again. I have wasted SO much time and effort already. Such BS.

    • Ifoundabetterprice on 13/11/2019 - 21:35
      +1

      Completely understand how you feel. I experienced the same ‘get back to you within 48 hours’ when claiming a price guarantee. They never got back to me till this day.

      • OzBoganYeah on 15/11/2019 - 08:07

        Wow, that sucks that they just 'forgot' about it (doubt they actually did forget about it). Did you end up buying the item elsewhere?

        • Ifoundabetterprice on 15/11/2019 - 09:22

          The price difference was about $120 so yes, had to return the item and then bought from a competitor. The fact that they were denying my chat evidence confirming that the price guarantee was approved suggests that it is not 'forgotten' ;)

      • skido on 19/11/2019 - 20:27
        +1

        Same here. I contacted them about another issue. Their rep didn't respond to me within the 48 hours, was told to wait longer but still didn't respond. I followed up again. After a week or so, the rep was super apologetic and straight up offered me a $150 coupon code with no min spend! LOL

        • OzBoganYeah on 20/11/2019 - 18:02

          Haha, lucky you! That's great.

  • frewer on 13/11/2019 - 21:06

    These kind of things should be common sense to people when they deal with big corp. Regardless of whose is at fault the consumer always get the bad ends ( waste time, resources and headache to short it out ). I really hope it work out for you OP

    • OzBoganYeah on 15/11/2019 - 08:05

      Thanks and I totally agree: it's the consumers who get the bad end of the stick when it comes to these large corporations. Things need to change for the better asap.

  • Ifoundabetterprice on 13/11/2019 - 21:31

    Happened to me last week, eBay refused refund after admitting it is their fault. Managed to chase them for the $50 eBay gift card as promised for signing up to eBay plus. Not too happy with it but still better than a $49 loss :)

  • georgevl on 14/11/2019 - 22:41
    +1

    Omg I'm so glad to be reading this post, I literally went through the exact same thing. I swear I cancelled eBay Plus but then saw a charge on my CC. Tried talking with eBay rep and they were super unhelpful and insisted there was no system fault.

    Considering disputing the transaction but I'm a bit skeptical given that I have no evidence…

    • OzBoganYeah on 15/11/2019 - 08:03

      I felt the same way-no evidence because they never sent a cancellation email when I cancelled it. If you do get a refund, let me know. I think you should dispute it, better than to regret it if you hadn't.

      • georgevl on 18/11/2019 - 21:44

        Update: Tried talking to eBay again without any luck so decided to dispute through bank. Will be receiving the refund within 2 business days + get to keep the subscription.

  • T1OOO on 14/11/2019 - 23:10
    +3

    If enough people complain to the Accc something will happen eventually. eBay must run by the early management of msy but even they cleaned yo their act once hit with million dollar fines.

    • OzBoganYeah on 15/11/2019 - 08:01

      Agreed. I'm really hoping more people do.

      • TimApple on 15/11/2019 - 10:29
        +1

        I have also just lodged a complaint with ACCC. Let them feel the storm.

  • skido on 19/11/2019 - 20:24

    A few days ago, my friend got charged after the free trial. He contacted live chat on the same day, they checked his account (he hadn't purchased anything since the subscription was renewed) and eBay happily processed a refund request.

    May depend on the rep you spoke with or your account situation/purchase history..

    • OzBoganYeah on 19/11/2019 - 22:14

      I think it has a lot to do with which rep you chat with on chat. I've had no luck so far. Good to hear your friend was able to get a refund.

  • OzBoganYeah on 19/11/2019 - 22:17

    Well, PayPal are causing more issues for me. They suspended my account without even notifying me and I can't withdraw the small amount of money in my PayPal account. I regret signing up for the free trial. I may write another complaint to the ACCC regarding PayPal this time.

  • screensaver on 20/11/2019 - 13:56

    I would have been on facebook making complaints all along, Paypal responds there sometime. Also I would contact the banking onmudsman as this is probably about a chatgeback Catch responded to me yesterday (had problems with their Club Catch)

    • OzBoganYeah on 20/11/2019 - 18:03

      I sent them (both eBay and PayPal) a couple of messages on Facebook. Didn't really go anywhere though.

  • OzBoganYeah on 20/11/2019 - 18:10

    Final update: I got a refund, yay. I don't want to bore you with all the details but It was my Bank who refunded me since I lodged a dispute. I went and cancelled my dispute with PayPal (but they suspended my account).

    It can't be said enough, but I you use PayPal, you should definitely remove automatic payments as a few others have mentioned. Also I'd you've had this issue, go write s complaint to ACCC.

  • xecutor on 22/11/2019 - 19:10
    +1

    It is quite easy to be assuming that the membership signup (for free trial) is simple and not complicated.
    However, with respect to the original poster I only want to point out the signup process and facts. Whether the OP was aware of these terms and conditions I have no idea.

    Signing Up to Ebay (for a free 30 day trial) is simple and it will require you to confirm a payment option (so they can charge you at the end of the trial). Most will select Paypal as their option, although you can select normal VISA/Mastercard.

    Should you select Paypal - this creates an automatic renewal authorisation (at the end of your trial).
    You effectively are authorising Paypal to automatically renew at the end of the trial.

    To avoid this - read the terms and conditions (Paypal - relating to automatic payment/subscriptions).
    If you do want to avoid this then you MUST DELETE the automatic renewal. This is effectively, cancelling your subscription as Ebay won't be getting an automatic renewal. However you must still cancel the Ebay membership (prior to ending) as there still is an agreement that you are signed up and if it elapses then you will still be required to provide a valid payment option. To be safe, cancel before the end date.

    It is stated in the long pages of the terms and conditions relating to the membership and what you must do to 'cancel it'.
    If you blindly, hit accept and never actual read the legal T&Cs then expect to see the surprised Pikachu face when eBay play hardball and don't want to refund you.

    I don't agree with eBay being heavy handed when a cancellation request was completed but the automatic payment was not.
    However, eBay don't have access to your personal Paypal account and the agreement (you have) is with Paypal and not Ebay relating to payment.
    So eBay don't have to do a damn thing.

    • OzBoganYeah on 24/11/2019 - 07:04

      Agreed. I chose PayPal as my payment option and did everything correctly except cancel the automatic payment on PayPal's side. I'll admit I was ignorant about this. I think this is one of the main reasons so many people get caught out and charged without their knowledge (also because of when you cancel the trial on eBay, you get only an on screen cancellation confirmation and no email. Kinda of shady).

      I just checked my email and funnily enough, I got an email from eBay stating that since there's no payment for eBay plus subscription (since it was refunded), they've cancelled my eBay plus membership. Hmp.

  • mitcheo on 30/11/2019 - 13:33
    +1

    they are still scamming people.. wow

    • OzBoganYeah on 01/12/2019 - 06:14

      They are and it's unfortunate (and ACCC couldn't help me either, so good luck to anyone who unfortunately stumbles into this situation in the future).

  • Gerry H on 01/12/2019 - 11:17
    +1

    i used paypal as payment option too but there's no auto payment in my activity list. my trial is about to expire. should i just call ebay in person to cancel?

    btw thanks to OP for warning me.

    • OzBoganYeah on 02/12/2019 - 07:28
      +1

      No worries, I hope everyone gets told of what might happen before they sign up for eBay plus, even if it's just a trial.

      I think you may be ok if you don't see anything for automatic payment, though don't take my word for it. It's probably safe to call them just to double check. IMO, eBay (and to an extent, PayPal) are pretty shifty.

      • DoctorCalculon on 02/12/2019 - 22:14
        -2

        Care to elaborate why you consider PayPal to be "shifty"?
        It is easy to throw around labels.

        • screensaver on 03/12/2019 - 03:40

          simple, that how she was treated.

        • OzBoganYeah on 03/12/2019 - 06:35
          -1

          Well, at least in my experience, they're shifty because they seemingly had automatically declined my claim in less than like 7 hours after I submitted it. I wrote 5 or 6 paragraphs in depth, detailing everything from my commutations from eBay.

          Also I previously rang them twice before re-submitting my claim/dispute and spoke to them via their live chat asking how to cancel automatic payments, the reps I spoke to had no idea what I was talking about. The only paypal rep who knew was when I called them the third time and she sent my instructions on how to stop automatic payments (she also helped me re-open my dispute). I've also had bad experiences with them in the past as well.

          If you think PayPal are good then that's good and I wished I had nothing but good experiences with them but I haven't (but IMO eBay are a lot worse than PayPal)

          • xecutor on 04/12/2019 - 11:36

            @OzBoganYeah: I have to disagree.

            You had presumed that by cancelling your eBay Plus subscription would also invalidate the (separate) Paypal agreement you had accepted as part of the Paypal linkage when paying for the eBay subscription.

            It is clearly stated in the Terms and Conditions (by Paypal) when you enter into an automated agreement that you are agreeing to have your funds debited at the agreed date listed (in the automatic payment with eBay).

            The fault is not with eBay for to either remind you of your payment with Paypal as they don't have any information regarding your personal Paypal account or the contract you agreed to with Paypal. Note, that both companies are separate business entities and have been for a few years now.

            eBay have correctly removed you from any active subscription agreement with them but they have no control over your payment subscription agreement with Paypal.

            Paypal aren't being shifty if they are only carrying out the agreement you SIGNED (clicked on accept).

            The notation that Paypal would accept 'I forgot to cancel the agreement with you' is not valid hence why the onus is on YOU to manage your automatic payments correctly.

            Making sure that you READ and completed understand the TERMS and CONDITIONS prior to agreeing with any ongoing contractual arrangements is a must.

            If you are not sure of the agreement then call the Paypal customer support centre and they can go over any parts you are not sure of. Better still don't enter any financial agreements you don't understand and for simplicity sake don't use a 3rd party (Paypal) when eBay have offered the choice of paying with Credit Card directly with them.

            Start acknowledging and take personal accountability for your mistake and move on!
            Take this as a life lesson rather than continuing to claim you were poorly treated based on your misunderstanding of YOUR obligations to manage YOUR automatic payment agreements.

            Don't really care if I get negged to hell for this post as it is true and factual.

            • OzBoganYeah on 05/12/2019 - 06:56

              @xecutor: Er, my main issue is that I had cancelled the free trial on eBay and received on screen cancellation confirmation but I didn't get an email. Then after cancelling, I still got charged. My main beef is with eBay not PayPal (I've still bad bad experiences with PayPal in the past unrelated to this issue).

              I'm not the only one who has been charged for full subscription without their consent; just take a glance through this topic and you'll see plenty of other people who were caught out too (same thing: they cancelled and despite a confirmation from eBay on screen they were still charged money for a sub). And I had asked PayPal about cancelling automatic payments multiple times but the reps didn't know what I was talking about. And since I didn't even know where it was located, it was hard to explain to them what I wanted to do besides 'cancel automatic payments'.

  • ippy on 29/01/2020 - 15:39

    This thread has been useful for me so I thought I'd add my experience for anyone who will come across it in future.

    On 27th Jan 2020 I was charged for another year's worth of Ebay plus. Now I had screwed up last year and also forgotten to cancel before the trial ended (27th Jan 2019) and I asked for a refund over live chat and was denied. In hindsight, I should've fought harder. I still have the stupid google home mini, still unopened in its box. For the record, I signed up for the trial not for the google home mini but for free shipping on a purchase.

    Anyway so I screwed up again this year and was determined to get a refund this time. Came across this thread last night (after the ebay plus hotline closed) and tried to dispute it over paypal. Was denied a few hours later. Today I called up their ebay plus hotline and the guy sounded nice I suppose. I told him I didn't have much use for it and I forgot to cancel before I was charged. I told him I had only made 3 purchases over the last year. He said ok, you've called us during the 14 day cool off period (WHERE WAS THIS LAST YEAR HUHUHUHUHUH?!?!?), so it's ok, I can cancel and refund it for you. He said my billing cycle or something (?!) ends on 31st Jan so 5 business days after that, the refund should be processed. He said he would let me know when my refund was processed (hopefully within the first 2 weeks of Feb). I asked him to send me a message saying that he initiated a refund for my records but he gave me a service request number instead, I guess it's a ticket.

    Fingers crossed this works out.

    TL;DR: Screwed up, didn't cancel on time. Called the ebay plus hotline to initiate refund which seemed to work. Will have to wait 2 weeks for my money to be returned to my bank acc. (yes I screwed up there as well and used debit not credit).

    • ippy on 19/02/2020 - 01:17
      +1

      Oops forgot to update. Yes, I got my refund within the timeframe specified. Phew.

  • asa79 on 23/12/2021 - 12:21

    Is it just me or does eBay have the worst customer service

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