PayPal Issues

CptSternn

Anyone else out there user PayPal? Anyone else ever get burned by this crowd?

Ruu_Old

Been using it for years and happy with it, what problem are you having?

Shardlakes hump

Had a problem with an online payment to a website and paypal sorted it out within 24 hrs - I got my money back, they are legends - genuinely.

white_falcon

CptSternn wrote:

Anyone else out there user PayPal? Anyone else ever get burned by this crowd?

bought an ipod on ebay. seller was a fake. wasnt paypal verified which i didnt understand at the time. only got half my money back, which was a balls when i had no money being a student as it was.

still ur grand as long as u only buy from paypal verified people, and any problems u get make sure u state ur case properly and they'l reimburse u

Cabaal

Using it about 7 years now, no issues with them ever

nazoil

white_falcon wrote:

bought an ipod on ebay. seller was a fake. wasnt paypal verified which i didnt understand at the time. only got half my money back, which was a balls when i had no money being a student as it was.

still ur grand as long as u only buy from paypal verified people, and any problems u get make sure u state ur case properly and they'l reimburse u

problem is in many cases you won't know if a seller is verified or not until you get the email confirming payment.

Ruu_Old

Nope, before you confirm the payment on Paypal, it will show if there are verified or not.

CptSternn

Well, I have used them for about 10 years myself, and until recently I was a very happy customer. However in the past two weeks they have not only screwed me, but two of my clients as well.

I'll start with my issue. I was living in the states when I opened my PayPal account YEARS ago. I moved back to Ireland about four years ago and closed my bank account I had there when I moved. Now I have two credit cards on that account that I use on eBay. Three weeks ago, I go to pay for an aution I have won, and found my account 'frozen'. Now, I have been using my credit cards on that account since I moved back without any issue. I get a message telling me my bank account information is invalid. Well, of course it is - It was closed four years ago. That hadn't been a problem to date.

They tell me they need new bank information. I try and enter my Bank Of Ireland details, but it won't let me. I contact them, and they tell me they need an American bank account, in my name. I tell them thats not possible, as I now live in Ireland. They then tell me I have to open up an Irish PayPal account, which I did. Here is the crux - they then tell me I can't use my credit cards on that account because they are associated with another account. I can't cancel that account until I enter American bank details AND to top it off, I can't get out the funds until I provide them with American bank details.

I explain to them I no longer live in America, and they proceed to tell me thats a violation of the terms of service, therefore they are going to keep my funds, and I can't use any of my credit cards with my new account.

So I'm out all the money I had in my account, I lose the years of positive business transactions I had on my account, and unless I get new credit cards, I can no longer use my credit cards on PayPal because they are associated with the frozen account.

This all happened out of the blue - I had paid for many eBay auctions for four years with no issue - then they just froze the account, even though I have two valid credit cards registered with them.

Multiple emails have gotten me nowhere. They claim they can sieze any funds if you violate their terms. They claim closing the bank account I originally opened the account with violates the terms, therefore they can legally take all my money and bar me from using my own credit cards on a new account.

Now, I have a client who sells auto parts on eBay. He too has been doing so for at least 10 years - has a 2000+ Power Seller rating with 99% positive feedback. They froze his account the same week they froze my account. They told him a user complained they didn't get their order and they froze it to investigate him for fraud. Problem is, now he can't pay for things from his account, and many things he was bidding on eBay were coming up and he couldn't pay, so those counted against him - the freezing of his account set off a chain reaction with his buying/selling. So hes not getting paid for his auctions AND he can't pay for auctions. He explains this to the bidders, who still leave negative feedback. PayPal then claims they received more complaints, obviously, since they locked his account and he couldn't do anything, and now they took his funds and canceled his account.

Then last week I get an email from another client that has a web page for his shop in Richmond, Virginia (www.curiorva.com). He sells all sorts of bits and bobs - from handmade jewelry to tobacco pipes. He has been selling on eBay for about two years now with no issues. That being said, PayPal frozen his account last week because they claim pipes are a violation of the terms because they are illegal. Were not talking bongs or anything like that - just small wooden pipes here. He has them listed on eBay right now - they didn't stop the auctions, just froze his account and took his funds. They claimed that selling pipes of any kind is illegal, therefore violate their terms, and they froze his account. He asked where he could appeal this, they told him there is no appeal, that he is barred from doing business with them and they are keeping all the funds he had in the account from his eBay auctions. Ebay didn't even stop the auctions - he still has some online now, but PayPal took his money as well.

As I said, the three of us have all been doing business for 10 years with PayPal. We have great ratings, hundreds of verified transactions, and until recently, loved the service. Now it seems they are using any excuse to seize funds in the accounts - I am only out a few bob - but they took the lads I wrote about above for hundreds of quid each.

I was wondering if anyone else had a similar story or noticed them really taking the piss recently?

Ruu_Old

I don't understand how you were allowed to keep the American Paypal account open though, I had to close my Irish one when moving to the US. How were you still able to use the credit cards associated with the account? Were they not registered at US address for billing?

CptSternn

Oh they are. I pay online through my bank account - electronic funds. I also don't get paper bills - it's all electronic (email) and online. You can easily maintain American credit cards without any hassle anywhere in the world via the net now.

That being said I still have mates there who before I left I had all my mail sent to - they get the random post for me and just send it along to my Irish address. Credit card companies really don't care where you are, as long as you pay yer bill on time.

My cards are valid, paid up to date, and active. I closed my bank account as I wasn't going back anytime soon. I did that four years ago, they never said anything at all, and have been using my PayPal account with just my credit cards still on it for over four years with no issues, until now.

okidoki987

therefore they can legally take all my money and bar me from using my own credit cards on a new account.

Can you sue or at least threaten to sue them?
I'd love to see a court case with them as defendants.