You seem to be under the impression that paypal takes your money from your bank account and gives it directly to the seller. In reality, this is three transactions. transactions. They transfer the money from your bank account to your paypal account. THEN, they transfer the money from your paypal to the seller's paypal account. THEN the seller must transfer that money to his bank account before he can use it outside paypal. When Paypal issues you a refund, they simply refund your money to your paypal account. It is YOUR responsibility to then transfer that money back into your bank account. If you don't understand how the service works, you shouldn't be using it.