Thanks for the congrats, Judy and Garry. It worked out this time, but........

The only suggestion Paypal offers is:

"In the future, you can help protect yourself against claims and reversals by following the guidelines of our Seller Protection Policy," which says, in part, "When you receive a payment, you are liable to PayPal for the full amount of the payment plus any Fees if the payment is later invalidated for any reason." For any reason. Sheesh! This must be the bane of existence for retailers the world over.

The Agreement goes on to say, "If the transaction is eligible under the Seller Protection Policy in section 11, PayPal will cover the amount of the Reversal or Chargeback and waive the Chargeback Fee, if applicable."

As I read it, the most pertinent qualification requirements are:

-- US, UK, Canada only.

-- Transaction Details page must say Seller Protection Policy Eligible (not sure what makes this happen; the way the buyer funds the payment?? or is it something the seller controls??).

-- Buyer's address must be confirmed (seems like about 50% of my buyers have unconfirmed addresses).

-- Must have trackable proof of delivery (I think about 3/4 of my things go First Class, so this would be the biggest drawback for me); for transactions over $250, a signed proof-of-receipt must be viewable online (I'm not even sure what that means).

-- And no local pick-up (which would pretty much exclude large pieces of furniture, vehicles, etc.).

Just too damn much trouble, seems to me. How 'bout you guys? Does anyone on this forum make use of the Seller Protection Policy?

Last week, I shipped a $600 painting. Transferred the money to my bank account and used it to pay the credit card bill. Sure hope it doesn't go POOF à la Garry (I'll have a grilled cheese and a poof à la garry )

Sue