Jewelry business owner's PayPal refund hits roadblocks

Kia Johnson has her own jewelry business.  She sells ladies' and men's jewelry for $5 each, and children's for just $1 apiece.

She noticed a group -- called Exceptional Glam Events -- was putting two trade shows together, and she wanted in.  She rented booths for both shows, but as the first one got closer, it rained.

The event was postponed, so Johnson asked about the make-up date.

"I was, like, 'OK, so what's the date?' and she was giving me the runaround,” Johnson said, referring to the show’s organizer. “I said, 'You know what?  I just want my money back.'"

Johnson said she was owed $239 and the organizer agreed, but weeks passed and she found herself still waiting for refund.

Johnson had paid for the booths using PayPal, so she asked the company to get involved.  PayPal refused her request.

Here's why:

Johnson had used PayPal’s "friends and family" payment method, which is meant for sending a gift or splitting a bill with your roommate.  Johnson should have used the company’s "pay for goods and services" method -- it offers more recourse and is what people should always use if dealing with a business.

"A friend of mine said, 'Why don't you just email Action 9?'" Johnson said.

She took her friend’s advice.

Action 9 investigator Jason Stoogenke emailed the show organizer after hearing from Johnson and, a half hour later, she was refunded half of her initial payment.

About a week later, she received the other half of the refund, after trying to get the money back for months.

"If it wasn't for you guys, I wouldn't have gotten it," Johnson told Action 9.

Action 9 investigator Jason Stoogenke will have a full report on Johnson's experience on Eyewitness News starting at 5:30 p.m.

Cox Media Group