• PayPal ruins Christmas (possibly again?)
    68 replies, posted
Not from an actual news site, but a blog. If your OCD can't let you keep this in here, please move it to GD, please. Then we can get a little christmas hate bonfire going. Source: [url]http://www.regretsy.com/2011/12/05/cats-1-kids-0/[/url] [release]As you know, we have been trying to buy Christmas presents for kids in the Regretsy community. We took many applications, vetted them carefully and set about creating a giant gift exchange program, where you could buy a gift for the over 200 children we’re helping. We raised so much money that we found ourselves in a position of not just being able to send toys, but to send a monetary gift to the families as well. We hoped it might help them make their holiday dinners more special, or maybe pay a pressing bill. [b]PAYPAL SHUT IT DOWN[/b] Apparently we made the mistake of using the “Donate” button, which Paypal is now claiming is only for nonprofit organizations to use. They froze the account, which also includes Zazzle money that we use to make emergency gifts. That money isn’t in issue, but what the hell! Might as well keep everything! So last night, I decided to go about this a different way. Since these toys are already purchased, I decided to offer them up for sale on this site, just like any other retailer would. You could buy them according to what you wanted to spend, and we would send them on to the recipient of your gift, just like any other retailer. [b]PAYPAL SHUT IT DOWN[/b] After a very long and jaw-dropping conversation with an incredibly condescending representative, they have decided that I must refund all the donations and purchases that have not been processed. If you don’t get a refund, it’s because we got your money before they got smart and kept us from helping children at Christmas, which is really the best move any corporation can make. Here are a few highlights from our conversation: [b]YOU CAN ONLY HELP CATS[/b] [b]PAYPAL[/b]: Only a nonprofit can use the Donate button. [b]ME[/b]: That’s false. It says right in the PDF of instructions for the Donate button that it can be used for “worthy causes.” [b]PAYPAL[/b]: I haven’t seen that PDF. And what you’re doing is not a worthy cause, it’s charity. [b]ME[/b]: What’s the difference? [b]PAYPAL[/b]: [i]You can use the donate button to raise money for a sick cat, but not poor people.[/i] [b]YOU HAVE TO START A NEW WEBSITE[/b] [b]ME[/b]: The problem is I’ve already bought all of these toys, so now I’m really in a position like any other merchant – which is to say, I have inventory I need to sell. Why can’t I sell them as gifts, like any other retailer? [b]PAYPAL[/b]: Don’t you think it would look suspicious if the same people bought them again? [b]ME[/b]: Why? These are my customers! [b]PAYPAL[/b]: If you wanted to do that, you’d have to start a new website. [b]ME[/b]: What? Why would I start a new website? [b]PAYPAL[/b]: I’m not going to argue with you. [b]WE WILL TRACK YOUR SHIPMENTS[/b] [b] PAYPAL[/b]: The only way you’d be allowed to sell these as gifts is if you sent them directly to the person who bought them. And we will track your shipments and make sure it goes to the buyer. [b]ME[/b]: That’s discriminatory! You don’t make other retailers send purchases to the buyer only, especially not at Christmas. [b]PAYPAL[/b]: No one but a nonprofit would send gifts to someone else on buyer’s behalf. [b]ME[/b]: What about Amazon? [b]PAYPAL[/b]: We know what you’re doing and we’re through playing games with you. [b]YOU’LL NEVER GET AWAY WITH THIS[/b] [b]PAYPAL[/b]: You say you’re selling these as gifts but there is no information as to what the gift is. [b]ME[/b]: People sell mystery gifts and grab bags all the time. What about sites where they say, let us choose for you?” [b]PAYPAL[/b]: It doesn’t say that on your site. [b]ME[/b]: Is that the problem? If I say it’s a mystery gift would that be sufficient? [b]PAYPAL[/b]: You aren’t going to be able to get around this. It’s too late, we know what you’re trying to do and we’re not going to let you do it. [b]ME[/b]: But there are hundreds of toys! Do you think it’s reasonable to create a drop down menu for hundreds of gifts, all of them different, and create an inventory for each as “one?” So that every time one sells, it’s sold out, and the customer has to keep choosing options and going through check out to see if they can find a gift that’s still available? [b]PAYPAL[/b]: Yes, I think it’s reasonable. Then my brain exploded. At this point, I asked to speak to a supervisor and was told that “No one above me will talk to you. No one at my level ever makes phone calls. We’re only doing this to help you.” When I asked how to close my account, he said I had to “refund everything, write a letter saying you understood what you did WAS WRONG AND YOU WILL NEVER DO IT AGAIN, and then request permission to close your account.” Then, for good measure, they froze my personal account, which has revenue from my book sales, e-books and all the other Finnish Folktales Swag. They’ll be holding that money for 6 months. So to recap: $ They allowed me to use a donate button, and got a portion of the donations $ Then made me return the donations, and kept a portion of the fees on the donations $ They allowed me to use a Buy Now button to sell gifts individually, and got a portion of those sales $ Then made me return the sales, and kept a portion of the fees on the sales $ They processed the toy purchases, and made fees on that They have made a fortune for not doing anything but making me manually return thousands of $2 sales and contributions. I have been able to guarantee purchase and shipment of the toys, so that part is happening, as are the letters from Santa (most have already been delivered). However, I am very sorry to say that at this point, I am not able to make a monetary gift to the families. They have frozen everything that was not already spent or donated, and I have no more funds to make a gift of that size. MERRY CHRISTMAS Wanna tell Paypal how you feel? Here’s a [url=http://consumerist.com/2008/06/all-the-secret-paypalebay-email-addresses-and-phone-numbers-you-could-ever-want.html#.Tt1m77VTojs.twitter]list of every administrative Paypal email address and phone number[/url] The Consumerist was able to find. [/release] [b]UPDATE[/b]: Really well-researched piece about all of this crap on [url=http://thegreengeeks.wordpress.com/2011/12/06/why-paypal-is-wrong-regarding-regretsy-according-to-their-own-policies/]The Green Geeks blog[/url] (Pretty much, if you didn't understand what went down here, you can get it re explained in a lighter, simpler text, here. Basically it's like that whole paypal assfuck SA had in the past, too, which Lowtax complained about. Obviously not the only dick thing paypal has done in the past, if you didn't know, [url=http://www.paypalsucks.com/]there are tons[/url] (their website layout does not do justice to their cause). [h2]UPDATE:[/h2] [QUOTE=Zeke129;33609099][url=http://consumerist.com/2011/12/paypal-bows-to-internet-scorn-agrees-to-release-regretsys-funds.html]Crisis averted[/url] Keep hating Paypal though they're the worst.[/QUOTE]
Paypal is a vile organization
[url=http://consumerist.com/2011/12/paypal-bows-to-internet-scorn-agrees-to-release-regretsys-funds.html]Crisis averted[/url] Keep hating Paypal though they're the worst.
This guy should sue.
Well that was fast.
He should use the released funds to sue, then.
The fact that PayPal did it in the first place is alarming. Small misunderstanding? well too bad it's ours now.
I had to wait 180days to get my 150euro withdrawn, their reason was that i had used my credit card as a quest on Ebay without logging in when i had a account to log in with. It made no fucking sense.
For me, Paypal has always been known as huge dicks. While it's an easy money-transfer system, they're support is pretty shitty. They'll always try to avoid paying back as they haven't learned to admit their mistakes.
Yeah I got like 2 dollars frozen. Enjoy them, dicks.
Thankfully I've never had an issue with paypal, probably because I only use it as an online card instead of as a way to recieve money.
My mom just applied for one of their mastercards so I could get a PC for Christmas. Hopefully none of this crap happens to us, although it's a different situation. Didn't they do this to Notch initially too?
[QUOTE=Mr. Bleak;33609324]My mom just applied for one of their mastercards so I could get a PC for Christmas. Hopefully none of this crap happens to us, although it's a different situation. Didn't they do this to Notch initially too?[/QUOTE] Yes, Garry had (has?) problems with Paypal too.
[QUOTE=Hatsen;33609354]Yes, Garry had (has?) problems with Paypal too.[/QUOTE] Heh, monkey_123 (i think) :v: [SP]OH FUCK OH FUCK, WE'RE GONNA BE POOR!![/SP]
So sick of PayPal. I've had two things happen to me recently: They've taken money from my account and made me pay back the 'negative balance' out of my own money because I didn't have enough balance (pending an investigation) after a person who lives across the world complained because she didn't get an item I sent after a week - oh, and after she had failed to update her address so it was sent to her old house. Apparently that was my fault. Secondly, my account was frozen because someone sent money as a gift. PayPal is notoriously lacking in sense. Obviously this doesn't compare to what these people had to go through, but it doesn't surprise me.
[QUOTE=Zeke129;33609099][url=http://consumerist.com/2011/12/paypal-bows-to-internet-scorn-agrees-to-release-regretsys-funds.html]Crisis averted[/url] Keep hating Paypal though they're the worst.[/QUOTE] yay zeke saved christmas!
This seems like something a news network would freak out about. I'd think about bringing it up....
[QUOTE=thisispain;33609382]yay zeke saved christmas![/QUOTE] zeke is like our local superhero with his avatar that can be recognized everywhere might as well just use it as a bat signal
[QUOTE=Hatsen;33609354]Yes, Garry had (has?) problems with Paypal too.[/QUOTE] The folks at The Indie Stone (Project Zomboid) had a huge problem with them too, I believe. Yeah. Google Checkout tried to fuck them over too. Notch has also been screwed by them. Why do they still get to do this shit?
I'm quite unhappy that people still use paypal to store funds on, rather than setting up some kind of system that sends money to a real bank account. I don't know how difficult that would be to do, but since people still use paypal this way I guess it's a lot more complicated.
[QUOTE=TurbisV2;33609444]I'm quite unhappy that people still use paypal to store funds on, rather than setting up some kind of system that sends money to a real bank account. I don't know how difficult that would be to do, but since people still use paypal this way I guess it's a lot more complicated.[/QUOTE] The problem with that if you have no money and they deduct from your account, and it's linked to your bank account, then they'll freeze it and make sure you can't open another PayPal account again. I have my PayPal account linked to my bank account, but only to take money out of it I don't have enough PayPal funds to pay for something on eBay. Also, there are a lot more problems with PayPal that doing what you described won't help.
so it is safe to say everyone here hates paypal with the force of a thousand suns
Wait, why is he smiling in the screencap but not on the actual site? [IMG]http://static1.consumerist.com/regretsyresolution.png[/IMG] [IMG]http://puu.sh/a6wJ[/IMG] (actual site)
Next year: Paypal shoots Santa Claus, feasts on flesh
[QUOTE=RaDiVaX;33609481]Wait, why is he smiling in the screencap but not on the actual site? [IMG]http://static1.consumerist.com/regretsyresolution.png[/IMG] [IMG]http://puu.sh/a6wJ[/IMG] (actual site)[/QUOTE] Either a photoshop or some dumbass at paypal forgot to switch the photo before posting it.
[QUOTE=RaDiVaX;33609481]Wait, why is he smiling in the screencap but not on the actual site? [IMG]http://static1.consumerist.com/regretsyresolution.png[/IMG] [IMG]http://puu.sh/a6wJ[/IMG] (actual site)[/QUOTE] He wants to look menacing and not a happy-dappy guy.
I can't stand using Paypal. They say it takes up to 3-5 days to send funds into your account, but this is never the case for me as I often have to wait even longer. One time I even had to wait 2 weeks for my money to come through.
Paypal is a bunch of greedy wankers. I really don't have any better words for them. Unfortunately, they completely crushed all competition so they can get away with being jerks, since there are no alternatives.
Seems like any company that works with transacting money are a bunch of bastards. Shouldn't PayPal operate under the same laws as banks?
Moral of the story, don't use Paypal.
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