Another UPS Horror Story

Hopefully you used PayPal, and just take your refund. You do NOT have to wait for the seller to get his money problems fixed, that is his problem. If PayPal balks or hesitates, just contact the bank of the credit card you used. I have found that is the quickest route. That leaves you and your bank out of the loop, and PayPal and the seller can fight out who pays for it.

Here is the way to handle a situation like this:

Seller does not release the product until he has been paid. If you get a damaged product, you do not release the product until your money has been refunded. No package moves, to or fro, without payment, unless negotiated otherwise.

Jarrett, so it sounds as if you paid with check, wire transfer or money order.
Next time use a credit card through PayPal and you won't have to deal with this issue.
Yes, you may still receive damaged goods, but you would have your money back by now.
Dealing with the shipping company and insurance is not the buyer's problem.

Who paid for the insurance? Normally it is the seller/shipper. Whomever paid for the freight/insurance and has their name on the claim form, that is who should be dealing with the claim and UPS.
The seller needs to refund your money yesterday!!
Let him and UPS handle their problem.

The seller's name is on the UPS paperwork, that means he is responsible for handling the claim. Which means that any money refunded will go to him.
As a buyer, what happens between him and UPS is not your business. The seller did not send you the T1500 before you paid for it, you should not have released the T1500 back to UPS until you had your money returned. That's the way the system is designed to work.
Fussing with UPS and the insurance is not your problem, it is the seller's problem. I have dealt with this from both sides, the seller is screwing you, not UPS.

Zd542, yes, the buyer should certainly help out the seller process his claim, and I have done that. However, the shipping company does not pick up the package and take it away until I have my money back.

Just as the seller doesn't ship until he is paid, the same process works in reverse. The package doesn't leave the buyer's care until his funds have been returned. It's really not that complicated.

04-03-15: Zd542
I didn't know you could do that. For the most part, though, I use Fedex Ground and not UPS, so they must have different rules. What do you do if the buyer doesn't accept the package? I'm guessing that you just wait until the box gets back to you first, and then file a claim.

Actually, the normal claim process you cannot take the box to UPS/FedEx and ship it back. They have to send an agent to your home to inspect it and pick it up. I had this happen just about two months ago. The seller made arrangements for FedEx to come to my house and pick up the damaged unit. I had the seller return my money before I agreed to wait around for hours for FedEx to arrive. After all, he would not have shipped the package to me if I hadn't paid him first. The process works the same in reverse.

So yes, I assisted the seller in filing his claim. I took photos of the box and unit, and spent 6 hours waiting for FedEx. However, I get my money refunded first. I have done this from the other end too. That is what being a good seller is all about. A buyer should not get screwed due to a shipping problem, that is the risk of the seller, who packed and took out the insurance.

If a buyer refuses delivery because of a damaged looking box, I would ask them to take photos for me, then I would refund their money before I received the unit back. The seller waiting to process a claim through his insurance should not tie up the buyer.

In my example, I received my money back a couple months ago. The seller received the item back, confirmed that it was malfunctioning, and sold it again, as is, stating that the left channel was malfunctiong, for just over half of what I paid for it. He is still waiting for the insurance claim to clear. Should the buyer be forced to wait 2, 3, 4 months or longer for a claim to process? I don't think so.

Next time use a credit card through PayPal. Problem solved.
I even got my money refunded when I bought from a crook and never received my purchase.
Paying with cash, check, money order is too risky these days, I only do it if I know the seller well.

04-03-15: Zd542
I just figured them taking possession of the item was a prerequisite for any type of claim to be paid to you.

Taking possession of the item is a prerequisite for any claim. However, the claim has nothing to do with the buyer. The claim is not paid to you, the buyer. The claim is paid to the seller, the person that bought the insurance. Crossing your fingers for the claim payout is only the seller's nightmare. The buyer had nothing to due with improper packing or shipping damage.

Congrats! Bob Backert is one of the best in the industry!
Enjoy!