I’m dealing with a dispute over a ~$400 payment for an audio mixing/mastering service. I paid via PayPal Friends & Family for a second project that was never started (no stems sent, no work done, no deliverables). There were no written terms or agreement that the payment was non-refundable at the time of payment. It was all done over text messages.
After I requested a refund for the unused second project, the seller refused and later claimed it was a non-refundable “booking/slot,” but that was never disclosed beforehand.
I initiated a chargeback, initially got provisional credit, but the merchant responded and the credit was reversed. I’ve now submitted an appeal with my bank.
The seller is now messaging me saying their PayPal account is negative because of the dispute and is threatening to “file against me” or take legal action. They do not have my address or personal details.
They texted:
"Our team's paypal account has a negative balance until the financial institute refers the dispute in our favor, which is confirmed already we're just waiting on the processing. So in the mean time we are going to file against you for the negative balance that has been stagnant on the account in the meantime. So you'll be receiving a call from one of our team members in the next couple days.
I tried telling you brother, we should've resolved between the 2 of us. Now you're going to owe the same negative amount that is in our account, on top of the dispute going in our favor.
These guys don't play around."
What does this mean for me? Is this something I need to be worried about, beyond the initial dispute could I lose more money?
Does their negative PayPal balance have any legal implication for me?
Do they realistically have grounds to pursue me legally over this?
Should I engage with them directly at all while the dispute is ongoing?