Paypal : Are they too bad?

33 replies
HI, all
I had read many threads here telling sad story how they are ruined at Paypal! I have sympathy towards these internet marketers and worried as I am also using Paypal, but I have some questions about this service.

1) Paypal is leader in that area and why they are behaving like that?
2) If they don't care about their business?
3) Are these sad stories are misleading?
4) Is somebody trying to harm Paypal's reputation?

I already said above that I have sympathy towards internet marketers who are in trouble. I have just thoughts in my mind and I write it here. I may be wrong. Please express your views here.

- Pradeep
#bad #pypapl
  • Profile picture of the author TPFLegionaire
    Hi,

    yes , they are horrors stories with Paypal, true horror stories...

    PayPal Alternative - Pay Pal Lawsuits, PayPal Complaints & Fraud

    1) Paypal is leader in that area and why they are behaving like that?
    -because they can

    2) If they don't care about their business?
    -They care about their business, not yours

    3) Are these sad stories are misleading?
    -Some might be, most aren't

    4) Is somebody trying to harm Paypal's reputation?
    -Yes

    the big question you haven't asked:

    What are you going to do to mitigate the risks involved in using Paypal?

    Answer to that might make this tread worth reading/keeping
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    • Profile picture of the author bgmacaw
      Originally Posted by TPFLegionaire View Post

      yes , they are horrors stories with Paypal, true horror stories...
      Another reference to the affiliate site that uses a put down of PayPal using primarily inaccurate, one-sided and old stories to attempt to sell a online payment processing service that has more restrictions and requirements than PayPal does. :rolleyes:
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      • Profile picture of the author TPFLegionaire
        Originally Posted by bgmacaw View Post

        Another reference to the affiliate site that uses a put down of PayPal using primarily inaccurate, one-sided and old stories to attempt to sell a online payment processing service that has more restrictions and requirements than PayPal does. :rolleyes:

        you're right,some of the stories are probably inaccurate but all of them? , old stories? A quick look at the forum section will show you the latest ones.

        As for the fact that there is an affiliate links on that site...That can't be an issue for anyone here...Surely?

        At least there are some good contributions on the thread as to how to mitigate the risks.
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        • I made a few bad experiences as well. To sum them up in short:

          1.) Got my account limited multiple times just because I was logging into my account from a different IP (forgot do disable proxy).
          2.) Often times their customer support would ask for all my details, spelling out email and other stuff just to tell me "thank you, unfortunately I can't help you, I will forward you to the right department though" and then the cycle of requesting all my information began again.
          3.) It takes them several days to respond to my emails. Of course, nobody works there on weekends, so if you have a problem on friday evening, you are stuck until monday.
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  • Profile picture of the author Vitaliy K
    Actually I have never had any problems with paypal and I think they are not so bad.

    Every company has its own bad and good testimonials, but the company try to hide bad testimonials and show only the best ones.

    If you do not like paypal you can use many other services such as e-junkie for instance.

    :-))
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  • Profile picture of the author InfinetADs
    I personally never had a problem with paypal. The only thing i dont like is how long it takes to get to people and clear. But in a business there are always going to be unhappy customers, you cant make everyone happy. But if it works for you keep doing it, but just be cautious, the first sign of something weird going on, really look into it!!!
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    • Profile picture of the author swasts
      The only things I hate about PayPal is they did not protect seller for digital products....
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      • Profile picture of the author Silas Hart
        Originally Posted by swasts View Post

        The only things I hate about PayPal is they did not protect seller for digital products....
        At least you understand something most "IM'ers" refuse to. Some guy on here said he could dispute anything and always win, I bought a couple of his products, disputed them, won as the buyer, was nice enough to send him the money again anyways.

        At some point, people have to move past PayPal. Sticking with PayPal for your online business is like trying to go mountain biking with a tricycle. It Might be possible, was great when you were first starting, but at some point can make your life harder than it needs to be.

        I'm not against PayPal, not at all, I understand them and how their business works.
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  • Profile picture of the author Ralph Malph
    If you have anything but a business account with paypal this is what you have to worry about. The most experienced hackers out there can make it appear to paypal that they have made a purchase and get the product for free when they have in fact paid nothing to paypal. Some how the hackers know how to find the link back to paypal that tells them the purchase has been made and go to the download link or the thank you page. If you have a business account with paypal, it is a different story and can't be done.
    I am only passing on some information that I received in a conversation with a programmer that knew how to do this. Maybe there is others out there that can comment on this.
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    • Profile picture of the author obseerver
      Banned
      [DELETED]
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      • Profile picture of the author Gauher
        I personally have not had any major issues with PayPal. If you have verified account with a long history, there shouldn't be any issues. If you have a high number of refunds or disputes, then they will flag your account. They do hold a 15% reserve for 3 months on all my incoming funds as a precaution, which is a major pain. But it is tough not to give your customers a PayPal option.

        Gauher
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  • Profile picture of the author nhieuphan
    I have had no issues with Paypal so far. Used it for quite a long time.
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  • Profile picture of the author va_mom
    Me too, i have been hearing sad and terrifying stories regarding paypal. But i have been using it for quite sometime now and it never let me down. :-)
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  • Profile picture of the author Firstrate
    They're really given me some trouble recently - they can deifinitely be a nightmare from time to time.
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  • Profile picture of the author Ken Strong
    Originally Posted by bhagwat68 View Post

    I had read many threads here telling sad story how they are ruined at Paypal!
    So you decided we needed one more thread like that? Thanks!
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  • Profile picture of the author sax.sunny
    Well, Here is what I think,

    PayPal is a leading Brand as far as Payment Transfer is concerned. Yes, that's true.

    But, it will hold your account if you have a big product launch. (PayPal doesn't understand IM {Internet Marketing} Businesses). Though 2CO does. Just a recommendation.

    PayPal also is an eBay's Company. So it would be good if you would just take it as a payment processor for Customers and Sellers dealing with eBay OR Alike Services/Businesses.

    If you're just transferring payments, selling goods or just taking/receiving payments for Services - PayPal is good enough.

    But for Internet Marketing purposes - NO - PayPal is not an option for you. Having said that, YES - PayPal is an option for you as long as you are operating on Small Scale IM Businesses...

    That's just my own experience.
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    • Originally Posted by sax.sunny View Post

      Well, Here is what I think,

      PayPal is a leading Brand as far as Payment Transfer is concerned. Yes, that's true.

      But, it will hold your account if you have a big product launch. (PayPal doesn't understand IM {Internet Marketing} Businesses). Though 2CO does. Just a recommendation.

      PayPal also is an eBay's Company. So it would be good if you would just take it as a payment processor for Customers and Sellers dealing with eBay OR Alike Services/Businesses.

      If you're just transferring payments, selling goods or just taking/receiving payments for Services - PayPal is good enough.

      But for Internet Marketing purposes - NO - PayPal is not an option for you. Having said that, YES - PayPal is an option for you as long as you are operating on Small Scale IM Businesses...

      That's just my own experience.
      So if paypal is an option for as long as one is operating a small IM business...what is the option for big businesses?

      Also, I often heard that the "Paypal will hold your account after a product launch" issue can be overcome by simply calling them a day before and explaining them that the next few days a rush of payments will come etc. etc. It seems that once you explain it to them like that, they are ok with it.
      And also note down the name and ID of the support person you're talking to. That way, if they still limit your account, you can point back to that support person.
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      • Profile picture of the author Silas Hart
        Originally Posted by john_m View Post

        So if paypal is an option for as long as one is operating a small IM business...what is the option for big businesses?

        Also, I often heard that the "Paypal will hold your account after a product launch" issue can be overcome by simply calling them a day before and explaining them that the next few days a rush of payments will come etc. etc. It seems that once you explain it to them like that, they are ok with it.
        And also note down the name and ID of the support person you're talking to. That way, if they still limit your account, you can point back to that support person.
        It doesn't really matter, and I've asked about this. They said, a limitation is a cautionary response. It doesn't really matter if you call in and say "I'm expecting to get 20k in payments over the next three days" they will put a note on your account, but it will still become limited and you won't have access to the funds. Sure, someone at PayPal can go back and take a look at it, and even if you say where the money is coming from, what you are selling, and who you talked to beforehand, they can and probably will keep the funds while they investigate and there is not limit on how long they can investigate. Say it takes a week or two? They will tell you that a scammer selling knock off shoes can call in and say "I'm going to be selling homemade candles, I expect $20k in sales over the course of next week" but it doesn't mean they are selling candles so at that kind of income, that have to actually investigate. This isn't just in a burst payment situation either, if you go from 200 a week, to 500, and then to 800, and then to 1000, and then 2000, at some point in there, they will limit your account while they investigate.

        As far as operating a "big business," I set up the PayPal gateway so that I can accept PayPal payments but it is processed and deposited by an actual merchant account (and no, it is not 2CO, they are too expensive) - anybody can do this with PayFlow Pro and their merchant account.
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        • Originally Posted by FaJeeb View Post

          It doesn't really matter, and I've asked about this. They said, a limitation is a cautionary response. It doesn't really matter if you call in and say "I'm expecting to get 20k in payments over the next three days" they will put a note on your account, but it will still become limited and you won't have access to the funds. Sure, someone at PayPal can go back and take a look at it, and even if you say where the money is coming from, what you are selling, and who you talked to beforehand, they can and probably will keep the funds while they investigate and there is not limit on how long they can investigate. Say it takes a week or two? They will tell you that a scammer selling knock off shoes can call in and say "I'm going to be selling homemade candles, I expect $20k in sales over the course of next week" but it doesn't mean they are selling candles so at that kind of income, that have to actually investigate. This isn't just in a burst payment situation either, if you go from 200 a week, to 500, and then to 800, and then to 1000, and then 2000, at some point in there, they will limit your account while they investigate.

          As far as operating a "big business," I set up the PayPal gateway so that I can accept PayPal payments but it is processed and deposited by an actual merchant account (and no, it is not 2CO, they are too expensive) - anybody can do this with PayFlow Pro and their merchant account.
          I would hit the thanks button but for some reason I can't find one (sorry, I'm new here, it worked in other threads though?).
          Anyway, I looked up payflow pro and this is what it says at the end:
          Get Payflow Pro. The fully customizable way to get your business online. Contact us at 1-888-847-2747


          What will they ask/tell you when you call them? What does it cost? And with "merchant account", you mean the paypal one (because I've read about high-risk merchant accounts, probably from other providers)?

          @E. Brian Rose: I wish you the best of luck...Paypal certainly got deeper pockets for the law circus than you :/
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          • Profile picture of the author Silas Hart
            Originally Posted by john_m View Post

            I would hit the thanks button but for some reason I can't find one (sorry, I'm new here, it worked in other threads though?).
            Anyway, I looked up payflow pro and this is what it says at the end:
            Get Payflow Pro. The fully customizable way to get your business online. Contact us at 1-888-847-2747


            What will they ask/tell you when you call them? What does it cost? And with "merchant account", you mean the paypal one (because I've read about high-risk merchant accounts, probably from other providers)?

            @E. Brian Rose: I wish you the best of luck...Paypal certainly got deeper pockets for the law circus than you :/
            I set up mine before there was such a steep start-up cost, which I think is $250. Then it's $70 a month or so, but I also pay extra to be able to do recurring billing. I pay about $400 a month because I process about 4,000 transactions through PayPal alone, each month, but several thousand more opt for a non-paypal payment, which means they just want to pay directly without using PayPal at all - which saves me money. I still save a lot of money by not having an expensive merchant and using an actual PayPal account, but it is nice to be able to accept Payments through PayPal on all of my eBay accounts.

            Edit: PayPal will ask about your pre-existing merchant and your current business information and what you sell. That's pretty much it. The did call me a couple months ago to verify my address.
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            • Originally Posted by FaJeeb View Post

              I set up mine before there was such a steep start-up cost, which I think is $250. Then it's $70 a month or so, but I also pay extra to be able to do recurring billing. I pay about $400 a month because I process about 4,000 transactions through PayPal alone, each month, but several thousand more opt for a non-paypal payment, which means they just want to pay directly without using PayPal at all - which saves me money. I still save a lot of money by not having an expensive merchant and using an actual PayPal account, but it is nice to be able to accept Payments through PayPal on all of my eBay accounts.

              Edit: PayPal will ask about your pre-existing merchant and your current business information and what you sell. That's pretty much it. The did call me a couple months ago to verify my address.
              Again, thanks for sharing your experience FaJeeb, much appreciated
              Good to see that you have so many transactions without any problems or freezing and by that you're certainly making back those $400/m easily. Congrats.
              By "pay directly" you mean people choose the credit card option? And why does that save you money, I thought paypal charges fees on every transaction done through them, no matter if the buyer is using paypal or a cc to pay?
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              • Profile picture of the author mikeb1
                I have a business account and I find paypals ways of doing business just shocking, they bought ebay or ebay bought them, I think they stay up all night just to invent crazy stuff just to annoy you , hope some better alrenative business leave these people stranded in the starting boxes. They both deserve to die in financial ruin.

                Mike.
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              • Profile picture of the author Silas Hart
                Originally Posted by john_m View Post

                Again, thanks for sharing your experience FaJeeb, much appreciated
                Good to see that you have so many transactions without any problems or freezing and by that you're certainly making back those $400/m easily. Congrats.
                By "pay directly" you mean people choose the credit card option? And why does that save you money, I thought paypal charges fees on every transaction done through them, no matter if the buyer is using paypal or a cc to pay?
                By Pay Directly, I mean, people go to check out and click on either PayPal or Credit/Debit and then pay me that way which is what I prefer. When someone uses PayPal, its an extra little fee but there is a large amount of users that have money in their PayPal account and they choose not to withdraw the money to their account but spend it on things instead.
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                • Now it's making sense, thanks again Fajeeb (believe it or not, the thx button is back again as well).

                  Cheers,
                  John
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    • Profile picture of the author Joel_Cowen
      Originally Posted by sax.sunny View Post

      Well, Here is what I think,

      PayPal is a leading Brand as far as Payment Transfer is concerned. Yes, that's true.

      But, it will hold your account if you have a big product launch. (PayPal doesn't understand IM {Internet Marketing} Businesses). Though 2CO does. Just a recommendation.

      PayPal also is an eBay's Company. So it would be good if you would just take it as a payment processor for Customers and Sellers dealing with eBay OR Alike Services/Businesses.

      If you're just transferring payments, selling goods or just taking/receiving payments for Services - PayPal is good enough.

      But for Internet Marketing purposes - NO - PayPal is not an option for you. Having said that, YES - PayPal is an option for you as long as you are operating on Small Scale IM Businesses...

      That's just my own experience.
      What are some Pay pal alternatives that are IM friendly?
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  • Profile picture of the author E. Brian Rose
    I am currently involved in a lawsuit against PayPal. Without notice or reason, they put a hold on a very large amount of money and stopped taking payment for over 600 recurring membership accounts.

    A lawyer friend in another state assisted me with a pro se complaint. Shortly after filing, I was approached by dozens of law firms that wanted to take on the case. I ended up partnering with one of the largest firms in my state.

    PayPal's blunders throughout this whole process have been almost comical and I am very much looking forward to the proceedings.
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  • After more than 3 years and over $100,000 worth of transactions, I used to have a opinion about PayPal until last month, when they froze my account out of the blue for no particular reason. It was a hell to get it back up after numerous emails, phone calls, faxes, etc.

    I will be very cautious to use paypal other than for minimal stuff from now on.
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  • Profile picture of the author JasonParker
    If PayPal freezes my account, would it suck? Ya. But I never leave more than 200 bucks in there at the end of every day.

    If something were to ever happen to my PayPal account, I would get merchants to send me affiliate checks instead and I'd use ClickBank for every product I launch.

    That said... that's why I never do any recurring payments with PayPal, because I wouldn't want to lose all those subscriptions. I've seen it happen to too many people.
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  • Profile picture of the author buckknife1
    I think Paypal is great if your a buyer and a little scary when you are a seller. They offer a great return policy on the buyers end because you don't need much proof (if any) that you are being scammed. On that note its great as a buyer. If you're a seller who just sold a website, a buyer can claim it wasn't as described or that they never got it and get refunded.
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  • Profile picture of the author jointaldc
    I've never had a problem with them, though the occassional wait does bother, nothing too much that I had to complain
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  • Profile picture of the author Randy Daugherty
    I personally never encounter any problem with paypal...If feel sorry for those who encountered problem with paypal but hopefully the issue will be resolve by the authority soon. Godbless!
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  • Profile picture of the author Bo Mill
    I've never had a simple problem with PayPal. I'm in their Top Customer program (I believe you're enrolled automatically once you spend $5k or $10k, not sure) and I phoned support a few times, they answered right away. They always worked with me to resolve any problems I had with buyers/sellers.

    But I do hate the fact that they don't protect buyers when it comes to digital products. I was scammed for $2,5k once when I bought a website, and there was nothing PayPal could do.
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