Hi,

which experiences did you make with Paypal ? Personally I never had a problem with them after collecting more than $40,000 through them. However I am depending on this account and I am a bit concerned because so many people report that their account was closed for ridiculous reasons. My questions:

- Did you have any bad experiences with Paypal ?

- How much money did you collect through them (only answer if you don`t mind telling) ?

- Does anyone know how many large accounts that collect $100,000+ per year get cancelled ?

So far everything is smooth sailing. Received payments..made purchases..all seems ok to me.

Im quite concerned bout that too. Accounts being freezed for unknown reasons.

Im having a problem withdrawin the paypal funds into my local bank account though, not really a problem but kinda cautious. What if the info doesnt tally? like your name. Or address. Will it bounce back? or be "gone" forever...

Drop your thoughts and experiences in here guys! :)

I have only had good experiences with PayPal, but I have also heard horror stories from many people about them. Most probably the "horror stories" don't happen that often. Generally on most forums, including WHT, you most often see posts about companies when they are not doing their job well compared to the very few posts that talk about a company when they are doing a good job for them.

Shameful provider. I have to accept them on one of our sites but really will cancel ASAP. Just so you know, something that tells it all if they say they're harsh on merchants to protect users : I bought a $47 PHP script online with paypal, the guy sent a corrupt archive. When contacted the guy said oh, dunno anything about those scripts, hire a programmer to fix it. (I even suspect they were stolen or not scripts at all). So I just complained to paypal, situation seemed clear to me. After 3-4 weeks of debate they came back to say oh sorry, no paypal guarantee applies as this is a virtual good, period. I cannot even reply to that message to let them know what I think about a company openly encouraging scammers and crooks.

They can`t do anything if it is about virtual goods. I mean what do you expect them to do ? Look at your script and test it ? Debug it to find out if the programmer actually provided you with a working script ? You will surely understand that they can`t do that and I am glad they don`t because that would really mess things up.

I have been with PayPal since their beginnings. Never had a problem and I have received thousands upon thousands of payments and lots and lots of money. My company does however offer an alternative (regular CC processor) to using PayPal as a lot of customers do not want to signup for it and confirm their information, etc.

Originally posted by thomas.smith
They can`t do anything if it is about virtual goods. I mean what do you expect them to do ? Look at your script and test it ? Debug it to find out if the programmer actually provided you with a working script ? You will surely understand that they can`t do that and I am glad they don`t because that would really mess things up.

That is a very good point Thomas... The situation is just one of the pitfalls of the Internet and the "virtual world" it provides, and not necessarily PayPal's fault.

Paypal is a crock of $hit. I was hit with fraud for $2000 from a stolen account, and they refused to do anything to help. Why anyone would want to rely on them to do business is beyond me. With credit card companies you always have the option of a chargeback. With Paypal they can do whatever they damn well please.

And if you hook it up to your bank account, you're asking for even MORE trouble. I don't even think Paypal is FDIC insured. Good luck with your money.

Originally posted by Skeptical
Paypal is a crock of $hit. I was hit with fraud for $2000 from a stolen account, and they refused to do anything to help. Why anyone would want to rely on them to do business is beyond me. With credit card companies you always have the option of a chargeback. With Paypal they can do whatever they damn well please.

And if you hook it up to your bank account, you're asking for even MORE trouble. I don't even think Paypal is FDIC insured. Good luck with your money.

PayPal has FDIC pass-through insurance IIRC. Anyways, was this a onetime $2000 payment? If so, that was not pretty smart accepting that amount of money in one lump sum. Even if it was over time for that much you should've verified the account.

Had one bad experience with PayPal over the past 6 years.

Let's just say that if you're a seller and you're selling that you don't ship out... all the buyer has to do is file a complaint and they will give the buyer their money back, deduct it from the seller's account, and if the buyer paid by credit card and did a chargeback... same thing happens minus the fact that PayPal charges the seller a $10 chargeback fee... all this just because their buyer protection protects them with non-tangible goods.

Worst part is... PayPal neglects to look at any of my claims before clicking the "Refund + Chargeback" button on their end. Nothing.

If I was selling something intangible again, I'd make sure the buyer agrees that it will be treated as a shippable item and I can just mail him something via UPSP priority mail with confirmation to his verified mailing address... so if PayPal ever asks for proof of shipping - I can just provide it to them.

Other than that, I've had zero complaints about PayPal.

We have never had any problem with them. However, I may be in here tomorrow telling how I have been wronged.:stickout:

I will suggest that you keep a few personal notes concerning PayPal:

1) Never accept large single payments through PayPal.
2) Do NOT leave a large amount of funds in your PayPal account. If your account gets frozen, you have no access to those funds. Withdraw regularly.
3) Based on what I have seen of others' experiences, yelling at PayPal reps will actually set your cause back.
4) Having a debit card does not mean they are a bank. Don't treat them as one.
5) Be VERY sure you do not cross their TOS/AUP. Most complaints I have seen here at WHT (about having accounts frozen) usually are due to non-compliance with PayPal's AUP.

With PayPal having 64 million accounts in 45 countries, it is hard to say no to offering it as a payment option.:eek:

-Lamar

1. Despite the virtual goods rule we have had some payments reversed.
2. My emails to their support department have been ignored for over 1 year now.
3. My complaint email was also ignored.
4. PayPal does not allow me to block a sender from paying me. When I tried to refund the money it said his account could not accept money. A few days later the payment was reversed anyway (I had been trying to avoid it the whole time).
5. The reversal process is terrible if you are a seller. Any comments I made have been ignored. There is no option to offer a partial refund for a reversed payment.
6. Some of the fees they charge seem questionable.

Originally posted by Von Vonder
6. Some of the fees they charge seem questionable.

No lie.

I had two payments of $250 (one each day) and the fees were different. If I could only invent a way to slap someone over the INTERNET..

Lamar has given good advice.

So far I also have no problems with Paypal, but we must always be cautious and preferably have a 'backup' processor in case smt happens to Paypal or our own Paypal a/c.

So far no problem. But had seen so many complaints for them I would prefer to be cautious while all transactions. We are in India and they have recently started offering check withdrawal to India. During first three withdrawals I see lot of variation in exchange rate by them and delivery of check also varies. When I contacted them on exchange rate issue as they remitted at about one and half rupee less than market price there was no proper answer just pointing to fluctuation of currency market.

Overall they are good till now.

Originally posted by Opie
No lie.

I had two payments of $250 (one each day) and the fees were different. If I could only invent a way to slap someone over the INTERNET..

What fees were assessed in both cases? Did you contact them to find out why the fees were different?

Originally posted by Josh Stein
What fees were assessed in both cases? Did you contact them to find out why the fees were different?

http://www.entensity.info/hey/paypal1.gif

http://www.entensity.info/hey/paypal2.gif

Didn't even bother contacting them. They would probably need an ID, passport, proof of life, etc..

Originally posted by Opie
http://www.entensity.info/hey/paypal1.gif

http://www.entensity.info/hey/paypal2.gif

Didn't even bother contacting them. They would probably need an ID, passport, proof of life, etc..

The first is the standard 2.9% + $.30 which is the typical rate for domestic U.S. transactions. Maybe there is a higher fee for accepting a payment using a different funding source or accepting payment from a certain country? Don't quite know. You could try submitting the question to them and seeing what they say. You would only lose a minute of your time.

The second is 3.9% + $0.30 - it appears to be a cross-border transaction.

To see the table of fees for cross-border payments, go to PayPal.com, click on the "Low Fees" link under the Merchants list, and then click on "View cross-border transaction fees."

PAYPAL is a company with no email to contact with, all the emails are automatically generated and ask you not to reply them. nothing can be worst then Paypal

I've had one HUGE problem with Paypal. Its not really there fault but you be the judge.

I am a freelancer. I make 3d models for individuals and companies. I was sent the money for a model and I sent the 3d models. All well and fine. Then my computer messed up so I was out of commition for close to a month.

When I return, to my surprise, a paypal dispute was sent against me, from the person a I sent models to. He claimed he didnt receive them and I have some odd days to prove it.

One problem, the way I could prove myself was not an option in the dispute form. I could either return the persons money or give them the tracking number of the package. This transaction was sent as an attachment by email. So I didnt return the guys money and my account was limited.

So now I cant use my paypal account, I cant open another one, because I already have an account with the bank account I used. I am royaly screwed because of this person, and it slows down my buisness because, I can only receive mail by wire transfer/ Western Union.

If I could have just sent Paypal the emails of me sending him the information and the emails of him replying he has got them, I would be ok. Or even the conversations on Messenger as it keeps a record. But since not, I was screwed in the end.

This has made me not want to use any company like Paypal ever again, and its not a mistake I will make twice.

cg219,

Have you phoned PP and plead your case?

It's too bad your computer was out of service for a month. It looks like this might be one of those life experiences that you just have to live through.

Ya, they basically said they cant do anything about it. THey said next time send a cd or something so it can be tracked. So I rid myself of Paypal completely.

Originally posted by cg219
Ya, they basically said they cant do anything about it. THey said next time send a cd or something so it can be tracked. So I rid myself of Paypal completely.

Good to know the importance of a tracking number.

Are there any alternatives to Paypal?

Originally posted by cg219
Are there any alternatives to Paypal?

Merchant account? Mail-in payment (check, etc)?

If it were me, I'd just ride it out. It really doesn't matter which payment service you used you'd face the same problem. After all your computer was down for a month, which resulted in you being on the hook. In law ignorance is not an excuse. Sorry :~(

PP's suggestion is one to send a CD is a good one. That doesn't mean you can't let them download a backup at the same time.

Simply getting a new service won't solve the problem.

Yes I know, but my account is still frozen on Paypal, and to get it unfrozen, I would have to pay this guy, which I am not going to. So, if I want to continue receiving payments, I would need another provider. If anyone knows of any, please pm it to me.

Originally posted by cg219
I would need another provider. If anyone knows of any.

Third-party:
2checkout

Merchant accounts:
CDG
Paysystems

Gateways:
Cybersource
Authorize.net

Processors:
Vital

If someone files a dispute I do IMMEDIATELY refund his payment. I do not even look into whether it is justified because what is 100 bucks lost if it can prevent you from losing your Paypal account. I did collect like 45.000 Dollars through Paypal for my business and I am going to collect well over 100.000 Dollar within the end of this year. If I lose my Paypal account with all my subscriptions I am having a problem. So if someone files a dispute I refund his payment right away no matter how unjustified it is (and of course they are never justified.)

What cg219 could've done was send a cd with the stuff on it to the client. Then he could've provided a tracking number. At least I think that would've protected him...

Ya thats true, but I never thought someone would do something like that. So thats what I do now.

Thanks for the suggestions.

Some reassuring information for ya... I processed maybe twice as much as you in payments last year through PayPal, with the average payment being $20ish, but several in the 4-figure range. I received half a dozen Buyer Protection complaints for various reasons, all of which I resolved some way or another. I also received quite a few fraudulent payments that were later reversed. With all that in mind, I have never been contacted by PayPal and my account was never restricted in any way.

I have no reason to believe they'll randomly suspend anyone's account. From the looks of it to me, they can recognize normal business activity just fine. I keep $1-2k balance in there and haven't had it confiscated the way I've read in those horror stories as well. I couldn't be happier with them as a processor (I list them secondary, but more than half my customers use them anyway).