Buyer protection for installment plan?

[Gnostiko]

I'm toying with the possibility of making a reasonably expensive purchase on Mercari - a laptop - and using the PayPal installment option. I have a couple of questions about this:

1) I'm assuming PayPal pays the amount to the seller, in full, and I am essentially repaying PayPal itself with these installments?

2) What kind of buyer protection does PayPal offer with installments - if the item turns out to be a dud/scam am I locked into paying the installments in full or can I cancel/dispute the installment plan?

[PayPal_Meghan]

Hello @Gnostiko, 

Welcome to the PayPal Community! 

It sounds like you might be referring to Pay in 4. With Pay in 4, we pay the merchant in full, and then you would repay PayPal in four installments. You can learn more about Pay in 4 by clicking on the hyperlinks I've included. They'll direct you to our Help Center. Purchases using Pay in 4 will still qualify for Buyer Protection.

I hope this helps! 

- Meghan