Double billed for one item

[Jaffee Gaffer]

I purchased an item on Marketplace and I was (1) charged for it in-world as expected, AND (2) I was debited for it in RL out of my debit account. First of all I don't need two copies of a copyable item, but worst, I don't want to pay three times as much for the second copy! I want my debit card transaction reversed immediately.

[MoiraKathleen]

Did you have enough L$'s in your balance to cover the full price of the item you were buying?  On the cashier screen did it say "using L$ balance of xxx.xx"  or did it say "using <payment method>"?   

If you were using your payment method to pay for the purchase, the amount of lindens needed is calculated (which also includes a L$ currency conversion fee) and then that is translated to the $USD amount needed to purchase that many lindens, and your payment method is charged that amount.   What I *think* happens, but can't confirm at the moment because I don't want to make a MP purchase this way, is that it may be a multiple step transaction where your payment method is charged for purchasing the lindens which go into your L$ balance, and then those lindens are used to complete the order processing. 

However, we are all users here, so you probably will want to contact Billing Support, particularly if you're asking for a transaction refund, or for further clarification on the MP purchase processing.  Here is the Billing Support info:

Contacting Linden Lab billing support

If you have a non-technical issue related to billing concerns, you can call the Linden Lab billing team at the following numbers:

• US/Canada (toll free): 800-294-1067
• Long distance (not toll free): 703-286-6277

Our Billing team is available from 6:00 AM to 3:00 PM PST, Monday through Friday.

 

[Ethan Paslong]

1 hour ago, moirakathleen said:

 Here is the Billing Support info:

• Long distance (not toll free): 703-286-6277

hope OP is in US/CA .. other wise it might get quite expensive to get that one dollar back.

[MoiraKathleen]

11 minutes ago, Ethan Paslong said:

hope OP is in US/CA .. other wise it might get quite expensive to get that one dollar back.

Unfortunately that could be true, however perhaps the OP could use Skype if that is the case. Those were the only two numbers I found listed for billing support now under Contacting Linden Lab Billing Support.

 

[Ethan Paslong]

1 hour ago, moirakathleen said:

Those were the only two numbers I found listed for billing support now under Contacting Linden Lab Billing Support.

yes, since a while the other numbers ( weren't in use anymore for some time ) were removed.

Sadly not only response times are a bit longer but also how to contact isn't getting easier.

Edited August 28, 2018 by Ethan Paslong

[Rolig Loon]

The basic point hidden in all of this is that if you are buying items in Marketplace, you should never pay for them by using your credit card or PayPal account.  When you do that, you will be paying not only the purchase price for your item but also the transaction fee for buying L$ through the LindeX.  That means that you will always be charged a flat fee of $1.49 per transaction regardless of the amount of L$ you purchase.  If you bought an item for L$250 (approximately $1 US) , that means you will have paid another 150% of the purchase price in transaction fees.  That's just dumb. It makes much more sense to make an occasional large purchase of L$ and use those L$ for your Marketplace purchases.  If you buy L$10,000, for example, the transaction fee will still be $1.49 but that only amounts to an additional 3.7% of the total.

In this case, the wisest thing to do is to contact the merchant who sold you the item.  Explain your situation and hope that the merchant takes pity and lets you have some of your L$ back. He's under no obligation to, since the double purchase was your mistake, but he might do it as a gesture of good will. Don't expect Linden Lab to refund your LindeX transaction fee, however.  That, also, was your mistake and is a separate matter from the double purchase. Chalk it up as a not-so-expensive lesson in how Marketplace and the LindeX work.

Edited August 28, 2018 by Rolig Loon