HP Forum Archive 17

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Paypal problem Message #1 Posted by Don Shepherd on 9 June 2007, 12:15 p.m. People on this forum have complained about Paypal in the past, but I had never had any problems with them, until now. This past week I won an auction, paid for it with Paypal using funds from my checking account (which I have done many times in the past), then waited to hear that the seller had shipped my item. She wrote today and said she was waiting for the funds to "clear." I thought, what is that crap, when I pay from my checking account I thought the funds were instantly transferred to the sellers account. So I checked my Paypal account and it says the status of the transaction is "uncleared" with the expected clearing date one week after the close of the auction. Needless to say, I won't be using Paypal in the future.

Re: Paypal problem Message #2 Posted by Raymond Del Tondo on 9 June 2007, 5:18 p.m., in response to message #1 by Don Shepherd Hi, have you checked with PayPal customer support? They should be able to explain the delay;-) HTH Raymond

Re: Paypal problem Message #3 Posted by Tadeyev on 9 June 2007, 6:34 p.m., in response to message #2 by Raymond Del Tondo CUSTOMER SUPPORT????? Really, are you kidding? This must be a joke :-)? PayPal has no support- simply morons who send off pre-set replies in answer to everything... If you call them, you will be on hold for hours, and be told there is nothing they can do (if you ever get a rel person to speak to) Even simple things are beyond them. I ceased using them long ago... If you MUST use it, then only use it for amounts you can throw away and miss- when it goes wrong (which it inevitably will). Their so-called insurance is a total fraud as well. As far as I am concerned, their eBay connection and shady banking system are a type of monopoly that should be broken. My choice is to use Western Union with sellers that have good feedback.

Re: Paypal problem Message #4 Posted by Raymond Del Tondo on 9 June 2007, 10:17 p.m., in response to message #3 by Tadeyev Hi, this is not a joke. At some time a few years ago I had a question regarding my PP account, which I could not find an answer for in the FAQ, so called their support. They could clarify the question, so the support worked, at least for me. Other than the above, I never had any problems with my PayPal account. Of course everyone should take reasonable care with *every* online payment method. Interesting thing, slightly OT: I opened a PayPal account some years ago only because there were various U.S. eBay members who insisted to pay (or to be paid) via PayPal, nothing else. Raymond

Re: Paypal problem Message #5 Posted by Don Shepherd on 10 June 2007, 4:39 p.m., in response to message #3 by Tadeyev Paypal customer support did respond (on Sunday no less). I don't know if it is a "canned" response or not, but the writer identified himself as Roel and he explained that the Automated Clearing House (ACH) or checking account transfers typically take 4 business days. I guess that has always been true, I never noticed the delay before because usually I use Visa with Paypal which, as another poster said, does provide instant funds transfer. In future auctions, if I don't want to use Visa (and sometimes I don't), I'll just send a postal money order in the mail. It will be quicker than using Paypal with a checking account.

Re: Paypal problem Message #6 Posted by James M. Prange (Michigan) on 10 June 2007, 8:01 p.m., in response to message #5 by Don Shepherd If I'm not mistaken, for an "instant transfer", you have to have both a primary funding source and a back-up funding source, for example, a bank account backed up by a credit card, and otherwise you have to wait for the transaction to clear. Perhaps your bank account was previously backed up by a credit card, but the credit card is no longer valid, or perhaps the expiration date has changed? Regards, James

Re: Paypal problem Message #7 Posted by Don Shepherd on 10 June 2007, 9:17 p.m., in response to message #6 by James M. Prange (Michigan) James, you know more about this than the Paypal customer service people do! In fact, the expiration date on my credit card did change recently, because a new credit card was issued. I guess I notified everyone of the new expiration date except Paypal. One might wonder why Paypal would not notify someone whose expiration date has just expired.... thanks for the answer Don Shepherd

Re: Paypal problem Message #8 Posted by James M. Prange (Michigan) on 11 June 2007, 12:08 a.m., in response to message #7 by Don Shepherd Quote: James, you know more about this than the Paypal customer service people do! That knowledge is from a surprising (to me) personal experience. It seems to me that I did (eventually) find the relevant information on the PayPal site, but as I recall, it wasn't very easy to find. Quote: One might wonder why Paypal would not notify someone whose expiration date has just expired.... I agree. Quote: thanks for the answer You're welcome. Regards, James

Re: Paypal problem Message #9 Posted by GE on 11 June 2007, 7:02 a.m., in response to message #5 by Don Shepherd Some years ago I was banned from TAS because Postal Money Orders take more than 3 weeks to scrawk slowly from Europe to the US. A Canadian seller shot me for non-payment, a few days before receiving the payment, and after a couple of messages from me stating that the PMO was very slow. Of course he never negated his complaint. So I'm not using PMOs any more, because some people are just plain stupid. Paypal is very far from perfect, but can work when other ways don't. I don't like it, either...

Re: Paypal problem Message #10 Posted by Egan Ford on 9 June 2007, 6:43 p.m., in response to message #1 by Don Shepherd Switch to using a VISA Checkcard on the same bank account. It's instant.

Re: Paypal problem Message #11 Posted by Don Shepherd on 9 June 2007, 7:20 p.m., in response to message #10 by Egan Ford Thanks, guys. Yes, I emailed their customer support but have not heard back yet (but it is Saturday so I'll cut them some slack). When I do hear, it will probably be a canned response. Yes, I have used Visa in the past with Paypal, and I guess that is the only "instant" way that works. I don't think I will ever use my bank account with them again, though. It's faster to send a money order to the seller! On a good note, because of the delay, the seller found the original manual and box (the auction was for the calculator only, a 17bii) while cleaning up today, so she will send those too. Sometimes bad things turn out good!

Re: Paypal Is The Problem Message #12 Posted by Happy HP User on 10 June 2007, 9:57 a.m., in response to message #11 by Don Shepherd PayPal is eBay's secondary goldmine, generating additional fees with every eBay transaction it's used with. In agreeing to PayPal's terms, users give control of their bank account to PayPal. PayPal users also sign away all rights customary with banking and credit card. It's no wonder that PayPal is a primary source of fraud, generating countless scams. The solution is relatively simple: fully investigate buyers and sellers. If previous performance is unsatisfactory, don't do business with them. For payment, money orders and cashier's checks work well. For all my eBay transactions, for both buying and selling: No PayPal.

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