BC9696 - I understand where you are coming from. While I can understand the OP's frustration, put yourself in eBay/Paypal's shoes. They are in the middle of fraud which they have played NO PART. The scammer here is the seller. It goes on all the time. Now here is what bothers me - people want so badly to believe that they are getting a deal, that they will commit acts that are completely contrary to common sense and find someone else to blame. If a Prada purse is selling for 20% of market value, you have to ask yourself WHY? Typically it is because it is not a real Prada purse and someone is scamming you. It happens all the time. One has to accept that if you want to buy something remotely on eBay that involves trust in the seller - a person you do not know at all - then you have little recourse if it's likely a fake. The "trust rating" is not always an indicator and if you get scammed, it's still the same "buyer beware."
Another scam - phishing expeditions where notices are sent to people about their paypal account, in one instance a "power seller." He puts in his info not realizing that someone else is recording his user name and password. In the next day his account is used to sell all kinds of phony merchandise, he's a victim, the buyers are victims, but everyone blames eBay and Paypal. I'm not saying they are always in the right but imagine how much of this goes on and why they need to make ironclad cases against the real criminals here. So on that note, always use eBay or ANY AUCTION with GREAT CAUTION.
Note - this is the reason why I only use Craig's List and the like. I may not get as good a deal but I have the ability to inspect before the cash changes hands.
