Loss on refund from Ebay

[MikeSA]

I purchased a router on Ebay Canada and the Chinese Seller debited by credit card and informed me that he had shipped the item. However, a considerable length of time elapsed and, as I still did not receive the item, I complained to Ebay and got a refund from Ebay. Apparently the Seller had de-registered on Ebay and could could not possibly have shipped the item at all as he had alleged.

However I lost out on the refund from Ebay due to fluctuation in the exchange rate. Should I have requested my bank to effect a chargeback to my credit card instead and not have advised Ebay of non-receipt of the item? The bank would then have effected a chargeback to my credit card of the actual amount in Rands that was debited at the outset. All views and comments would be appreciated.

 

[Peon]

Eish too many moving parts. I would just accept the refund and chalk it up to a learning experience.

 

[tRoN]

But it’s a good question and can help others in the future.
I’m thinking the chargeback will be in the original currency.
Someone with experience can advise.

 

[reactor_sa]

You only have 45 days to request a charge back i think. Also locally, none of the banks willingly do charge backs, you have to insist and insist. I'd write off the difference, charge backs are very troublesome.

 

[Praemon]

The bank would affect the charge back in the original currency, so you may get hit with a poor exchange rate and the bank's conversion fee regardless. Perhaps if you used PayPal's dynamic currency conversion to be charged in Rands, it may work then? But at the same time, your bank may not want to follow through with the charge back if you have not exhausted all your options with the merchant directly, and Paypal may fight the charge back if you have not stated your case (in which case they'd do the refund their side anyways). So it doesn't look like there's a winnable solution here unless they offer dynamic currency conversion.