So, I was going to take a freelance job that had PayPal listed as a “soft requirement.” I’m just wondering what people’s experiences with PayPal has been (whether sending money to or receiving money from). I got to their ToS and my eyes nearly fell out.
While I intend on reading the ToS and Privacy Policy before I join, I’m just wondering if this is worth my time/energy or if I should simply request that I be sent checks.
What are your PayPal experiences like? I suppose the security and all is decent, so giving my bank account number up wouldn’t be that much of a hassle.
Are there any “hidden” things I should know about? Fees? Quirks that make this maddening, etc?
I’ve used PayPal for recieving payment for freelance writing now for about 6 months. So far my experiences have all been positive. Since I’m using only a bank account, and recieving only from bank accounts, I’ve been hit with no funny fees. I’ve heard that credit card payments start fees going in, but it’s not going to be an issue for me.
I’ve used it for several years for purchasing only and have never had a problem. The payments are deducted from my checking account.
When I’m buying on EBay, I usually will not consider sellers who don’t accept PayPal.
Once, when I had not used PayPal for awhile, I received an email that appeared to be from PayPal. It said that my credit card had expired and I needed to provide an update. Since PayPal does not charge to my credit card, I ignored the email. I suspect the email was fraudulent.
I’ve had no problems using Paypal, but then again have never used it for large sums of money. Using a credit card will mean you are hit with large fees, but if you’re just receiving payments and withdrawing them to a bank account it should be pretty straightforward.
Paypal works fine. Have done thousands and thousands of dollars in auction transactions using it. Only complaint is absurd approx 3 % “transaction fee” charged to sellers that have upgraded accounts (like mine) so credit cards can be used by buyers. This “fee” is charged even for non-credit card Paypal to Paypal transfers. If someone uses Paypal to transfer 900 from his checking account to yours, you will be charged around 30. or so for the privilege of receiving that money via Paypal for what is essentially a bank to bank computer transaction.
Paypal and the tie in with eBay is a license to print money.
You need to be aware that a Paypal account gives Paypal the authorization to put money into your account and pull money from it. You might want to think about setting up a separate checking account from your home account to do your Paypal business with.
My only squabble was when a buyer tried to charge back the 90 purchase of a notebook docking station. Thank god I had sent it UPS and had a paper trail. Paypal took 90 from my account and told me that the item was in dispute. Paypal makes it very difficult to get in touch with a human being if there is a problem. It’s all email and you usually get a canned response. I must have sent them 4 big emails documenting the transaction.
Using a reverse directory I finally tracked down the SOB trying to charge back, and emailed him pointing out the item was delivered to his house and signed for. Paypal informed me a week later that were releasing the $ 90 back to me. A few weeks later I got a sheepish reply that he did not recall the purchase on his card statement as it had some weird identification code and that’s why he charged it back. :dubious: :rolleyes:
I kept my money, but it gave me taste of just how out of your hands the situation is if there is a dispute.
Yeah, I saw that, but I think I could get away with a personal account.
You know, I was going to post about the efficacy of doing this as that part of their empire was quite awe-inspiring. Unfortunatley, I don’t know that my bank would appreciate me setting up an entirely new account that was ridiculously small volume.
My only squabble was when a buyer tried to charge back the 90 purchase of a notebook docking station. Thank god I had sent it UPS and had a paper trail. Paypal took 90 from my account and told me that the item was in dispute. Paypal makes it very difficult to get in touch with a human being if there is a problem. It’s all email and you usually get a canned response. I must have sent them 4 big emails documenting the transaction.
That was another concern of mine. I dunno, I’ll see about getting a separate bank account opened.
Paypal screwed me out of $150 when a buyer reversed the charges on a credit card. They wouldn’t even give me the credit card info even though they told me to contest the reversal with the credit card company. And of course, they cannot be held liable when this happens. And while all this was going on my account was frozen for almost 3 months. It pretty much ended my eBay business.
I have used PayPal hundreds of times paying for Ebay auctions and some non-Ebay transactions and two or three times to receive money. I have never had a problem knock wood and won’t bid on an auction that doesn’t take PayPal.
The client expressed their preference to paying with PayPal. I figured that if I can make their life easier, what the hell. Although, I have to admit that I put more credence in the horror stories, but that’s just me.
I have been using Paypal almost since it opened. Never had any problems, although I have heard of people that did. I use it for small purchases online and the occasional Ebay purchase or sale.
The first time I used PayPal was to pay for a laptop off of Ebay. When submitting the payment form, I somehow clicked the “ok” button twice, or refreshed the page or something, but I wound up with two charges of $1500 to my checking account, when I only meant to have one. I looked frantically around the site for an option to void a charge, which there wasn’t, or a phone number I could call, which I couldn’t find, either. I sent an e-mail, but I didn’t really trust it to be answered quickly enough to make a difference (I was right). I tried to see if I could cancel it through my bank, but they told me I had to go through PayPal.
Finally, I took everything but $2000 out of my bank account and was charged a somewhat hefty penalty fee when my second charge bounced.
I realize that it was my mistake for not being careful enough with the submit button, but I just wish there was an easier way to get in touch with PayPal in these situations. Most times, an email just won’t cut it.
karomon, you should’ve contacted the seller, since they are the ones who recieved your double payment. If a customer double pays me, I usually catch it and send a refund. But if I don’t catch it and they contact me, it’s no big deal.
I have 2 Paypal accounts. One is from when I had an online business, I now use it for buying on Ebay and other shopping sites that accept Paypal. I don’t use it for selling on Ebay, because it’s an upgraded account, and as mentioned above, the fees are high. The other account is strictly for selling on Ebay. I’ve been using Paypal for 4 years and the only problem I had, was when I tried to change the name on my business accont back to MY name, they said it couldn’t be done. I didn’t want the account downgraded, I just wanted it personalized.
I didn’t want the account downgraded, I just wanted it personalized.