Action against Loan defaulters ?

#0 - May 19, 2009, 1:01 p.m.

Hi,

Recently I loaned a sum of 5000 gold to a player i had known for a few months. He had borrowed and repaid couple of smaller loans before promptly. However, this time around, he dilly dallyed and blocked me on msn messenger and avoided replying to me on his toon for the last week or so before I decided to open a ticket to place it on record.

I screenshotted my conversation with him when loaning the amount which specified clearly for the logs that it was a loan I was giving him which was to be repayed in a week's time. Since 6 weeks passed and his behavior changed I opened a ticket yesterday and spoke to a GM and specified date time character amount etc etc as I have screenshots for ready ref. The GM however said that Blizzard doesn't cover loans amongst players.

"Hi, This is Blizzard. I refund you what another player took from you for promising you a spectral tiger but I won't refund you anything a player just borrowed off you although he promised to pay it back ?" IMO, they're both scams, but whatever floats your boat.

I'm not too worried about the 5k but what I'd like to know from a blue is, does Blizzard take any action against such players that default on loans ( which technically is a scam as they go against specified terms ). Isn't such behavior actionable when you have detailed information logs to prove it ?

Thanks,

Syndri

#24 - May 19, 2009, 5:53 p.m.

It's important to begin by understanding what is and what is considered as a "scam." As noted within our Scam Policy (http://us.blizzard.com/support/article.xml?articleId=20459):

Q u o t e:
This category includes:
Acquiring items or any other "possessions" from another player through misinformation, confusion, or fraud

To be more precise, a scam is most often defined as a situation wherein an equitable trade of virtual property is not adhered to in full. This equitable trade of virtual property must also be accompanied by an agreement which fully declares the parameters of the transaction prior to its occurrence.

Services rendered which do not include the exchange of virtual property will not be protected under our Scam Policy. Examples of such services rendered include instances run-throughs, provided portals, quest assistance, and loans.

To expand upon the latter category: as a loan does not involve the fair exchange of currency for items, they are viewed a bit like gifts. Thus, should another player simply renege on a promise to "pay another back," the Game Master department will not typically intervene, even if an agreement was established before any gold was traded.

Because of these distinctions, we encourage players to only provide services and loans to those they trust completely. Those who wish to provide services or loans may also consider asking for collateral prior to any trading of currency.

With that said, should you truly feel as though you were scammed and your petition handled inappropriately, yRasakins, you are welcome to email [email protected]. Similarly, should you feel as though the enforcement of loans is a service best provided by the Game Master department, please do no hesitate to post within our Suggestions Forum.

I understand this must be incredibly frustrating, so please do not hesitate to let me know if you've any further questions. I'm happy to assist in any way that I am able. :)