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Buying & Selling Using PayPal

Doug Carter

Moderator
Staff member
PayPal is a great way to create your own cashless and even international transaction, and it's a very stout, solid system. I have been using it since the early days in 2001, and have rarely—if ever—had issues with their system. I still find it difficult to believe when someone selling something online says that they don't use/accept PayPal or other online payment forms (Dwolla, Square, Cash, etc.).

There are a few things you should realize before casually sending someone money through PayPal, however.


Don't Pay Someone's eBay Fees
It is against PayPal policies for a seller to openly ask or demand the buyer to pay the PayPal fees. That is solely the responsibility of the seller. You want the fees covered as a seller? Ask more for the item. Not cool to openly force the buyer to pay more than your asking price for fees that you need to be covering. Just like a credit card service, the seller pays the fees.

Don't EVER Send Someone a "Gift"
Why? Because it works as cash, for no exchange of goods. As far as PayPal is concerned, you send someone a charitable donation, asking for nothing in return. Gift. There is no buyer protection if you do that, and PayPal will laugh at you if you want your money back. They don't consider it a transaction, for good reason, so there is no insurance on a gift.

If someone asks or demands money to be sent as a gift, and they aren't your relative (and even then), RUN, don't walk, as fast as you can from that deal. Chances are good that you won't see the item or your money ever again.



There are scammers in every corner of the internet. You need to protect yourself better to avoid becoming the next victim of internet fraud. Use common sense, and buying online with PayPal can be a simple and safe experience.
 

Retro Dude

Member
Thanks for the tips Doug.

I wasn't aware of the PayPal Gift caveat of being same as cash until a few fatcoggers got burned.
 

aron

Member
Great advice. I paid someone using another site because seller didn't accept paypal and lost 550 bucks. They got me good. Never had a problem using PayPal's goods or services option always worked.
 

zonq

Member
I think I disagree. If two people want to buy a bike from you, and one of them wants to send you a check, and you know you can deposit that check, wait for it to clear, and send them the bike, as we did before paypal, and the other wants to use his own method of super digital form payment that takes 5% of the money, then he should pay that 5%.

Over the last 16 years I've experienced paypal/ebays service become increasingly worse in every way, in a great effort to paint an unrealistically rosy picture of itself to buyers (which they actually do state is their intent), while misrepresenting shipping costs, returns policies, feedback, and dumping every concievable liability and cost on to the seller, who in turn become resentful of buyers and the system. The day either of these companies has any real competition, theyre both dead, and good riddance. Theyre both terrible.

And I havent even had breakfast yet.
 

Doug Carter

Moderator
Staff member
I think I disagree. If two people want to buy a bike from you, and one of them wants to send you a check, and you know you can deposit that check, wait for it to clear, and send them the bike, as we did before paypal, and the other wants to use his own method of super digital form payment that takes 5% of the money, then he should pay that 5%..


You can certainly disagree, and in most businesses, the buyer does pay for the option to use electronic payment (credit card), but that is already calculated into the seller's price. If you shop at a store that doesn't accept credit cards, you will find much cheaper prices because of it.

The issue is, demanding a buyer pay for the fees is against PayPal's user agreement. They will suspend your account if they get a report that you are forcing buyers to pay the fees or asking for payment as a gift. I've seen it happen.

If you don't want to accept electronic funds from PayPal, that's your option as a seller. And if you only want to be paid by check via carrier pigeon, I have the right to laugh at you for using old, outdated technology. ;) :)

There are a few other electronic forms of payment too, like Dwolla, Square and Cash, that work as well as PayPal at transferring money from party to party.
 

zonq

Member
Yeah, they're interesting, these predatory credit card & payment companies. They effectively set the price for not only their own users, but in their attempt to hide their true cost, take control of pricing from the business owner and set everyones prices, even those who don't use their service at all. I do notice many retailers offering a cash discount. Not sure how to apply that to an auction when there is no set price though.

I think this may be harder to suggest to international users here, since most of the other first world countries have far surpassed the US in establishing consumer protections, and placed restrictions on this kind of racket, as evidenced by nearly every European, Scandinavian & Brit on this & every forum selling bikes & frames stating that their price is net, post whatever ship & payment fees you rack up getting them the $. Seems like a pretty well established cultural norm and a pretty sensible one.



Carrier pigeons were futurists. Sentient drones ahead of their time.
 
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