Date Received: 2021-10-21
Issue: Fraud or scam
Subissue:
Consumer Complaint: On XX/XX/2021, I set up a personal fundraiser through PayPals Generosity Network. I requested to raise the maximum amount allowed of {$20000.00}. The fundraiser was set to be live for 30 days, through XX/XX/2021. I followed the guidelines precisely. Then I sent the link to my fundraiser to some family and friends. In my fundraiser, I asked for help paying with for an extraordinary amount of XXXX XXXX XXXXXXXX I need to have but, for which, I do not have nearly enough money. Within a short period of time on XX/XX/XXXX, a friend donated {$500.00}. I was notified by PayPal. My friend also sent me an email to that effect. Almost immediately, PayPal placed limitations on my account, limitations which prevented me from accessing my money. They offered no explanation other than something was suspicious. I am guessing they could not believe a friend would give a friend {$500.00} to help her out. Over the next four days, I continued to receive emails regarding more information I needed to provide. I was able to provide most of the info, but not all of it because the website kept crashing when I tried. Over the course of this same time period, I spoke with at least seven different people, none of whom would tell me why the restrictions had been placed. They just kept telling me I had violated the user agreement. Plus, they kept referring to the goods I was selling. I WAS NOT SELLING ANYTHING. IT WAS A DONATION ACCOUNT INTO WHICH MY FRIENDS PUT MONEY TO HELP ME WITH DENTAL EXPENSES. Ultimately, on XX/XX/XXXX, i received an email telling me I was permanently banned from using PayPal and that they were holding my money for 180 days to investigate the suspicious transactions. They also insinuated that I was selling illegal merchandise. I then emailed the corporate headquarters and each of the three top executives. On XX/XX/XXXX, I received a phone call from someone saying he was from the corporate office. He promised to resolve things. Well, he did nothing but give me the same empty speech about my account being permanently blocked because they suspect fraud. No explanation regarding what fraud they believe I committed. No explanation about a personal fundraiser was somehow categorized as selling merchandise, merchandise they said was either not delivered or was illegal or both. I dont know what to do because I dont know what I did wrong. I have since found out that PayPal can hold peoples money for whatever reason they want, and they do not have to explain why. How can this be legal? Plus, how can they legally accuse me of wrongdoing but not tell me what the nature of that wrongdoing is. In the United States, people are supposed to be told what they are being accused of. I need to know what to do. Plus, I believe this practice PayPal so proudly waves in peoples faces needs to be investigated. I also question holding someones money when they have done nothing wrong. Can you help me?
Company Response:
State: CA
Zip: 90405
Submitted Via: Web
Date Sent: 2021-10-21
Company Response to Consumer: Closed with explanation
Timely Response: Yes
Consumer Disputed: N/A
Date Received: 2021-10-20
Issue: Problem getting a card or closing an account
Subissue: Trouble closing card
Consumer Complaint: XXXX XXXX XXXX I have had my PayPal account for a little over a year. I've only had 1 transaction me paying for a XXXX account. I had gotten locked out of my Re-Employment account and was unable to claim 17 weeks of unemployment. Finally it was unlocked. The DEO deposited a little over {$5000.00} into my PayPal account. I initiated an instant transfer to my bank, it was denied. I tried a regular transfer, denied. i tried requesting a check be sent to me, denied. I tried sending money that I owe a friend for helping me pay rent. That transaction was denied as well. I added another account and tried transferring MY money out, DENIED. I sent a message requesting help. I was answered by my account being limited and having to verify my identity. I did immediately. It passed verification and limits lifted. I tried again to transfer money out and was answered with limits again. I had to answer questions about where my deposits came from and why i received it. I explained my situation with FL DEO and unemployment. Keep in mind Paypal was advertising to have your government checks direct deposited into your PayPal account. I did what they advertised and now i have no access to MY MONEY! I logged into my PayPal the next morning to find PayPal had closed my account and I would not be able to access my money for 180 days. They said I violated their terms and agreement and gave me no explanation. I requested their evidence as to what I violated, no answer. Paypal is holding my funds illegally. They are in breach of their own contract. The Paypal Balance Terms and Conditions states : " Hold your Balance Account balance for up to 180 days if reasonably needed to protect against the risk of liability or if you have violated our Acceptable Use Policy ; '' There is no risk of liability because I have not abused my paypal account in the past, i have no chargebacks, or even recent transactions. I only wanted to transfer MY MONEY out. I verified all my information and explained my money came from Unemployment. I did not violate their Acceptable Use Policy either. PayPal is not responding to my request for sn explanation as to what terms and conditions I supposedly violated. Due to their own Breach of Contract they have bo right to hold my funds for 180 days and collect interest illegally
Company Response:
State: FL
Zip: 33510
Submitted Via: Web
Date Sent: 2021-10-20
Company Response to Consumer: Closed with monetary relief
Timely Response: Yes
Consumer Disputed: N/A
Date Received: 2021-10-20
Issue: Money was not available when promised
Subissue:
Consumer Complaint: I sold LEGAL products on XXXX. During that time PayPal was the payment processor for all XXXX accounts and sellers were given no other choice to have payments processed for their sells. After months of selling my PayPal account was shut down and restricted ( XX/XX/2021 ). When I contacted PayPal from my phone number on profit I was questioned about a friend sending money as friend and family option on my PayPal business account. I was told that in order for friends and family to send me funds through their system I would have to open a personal account. However I was assured that it didn't appear that my account would be completely closed for that reason because I had been such a long standing customer. The following day comes and I speak to another rep who restated the same information as previous call made. This rep further stated that by the end of the day my account should be unrestricted. I wanted to make sure that was the case because I had almost 10k of products I needed to ship to customers that day. The following day being the third day I called again. This time I was given a completely different excuse on why my account was restricted. At that time I was told my account was restricted because I was selling items PayPal does not process payment for, even though it was permitted through XXXX at the time. I was informed that my funds would be held for " up to 180 days '' after that I would receive an email about how to withdraw my funds. The rep did not reference any actual transaction as being in violation nor did he mention where in user agreement from XXXX that I was not allowed to sell said products. His response was " its not illegal to sell them, we just don't want to process your payments. You can use another payment processor. '' Very rude and further in a matter of fact tone said : we will hold it for 180 days to cover any charge backs if necessary. He never mentioned policies on violation fees or surcharges. Within a month of the 180 days being over PayPal took {$10000.00} from my account leaving it at a XXXX balance. I was never given any warning or notice the funds would be removed for any reason. I was continually told I would receive my funds after hold period. I would have never sent that much product out, I would have refunded the customers. Now I am out of product and revenue for using a third party payment processor that has monopolize the market. When I would contact PayPal after my funds were withdrawn they would direct me to contact a team through email. The reply to my email is an automate response. If I try and contact PayPal through their website it does not allow me to make contact. XXXX literally gave no other option to process payments over their platform at said time. Further you could only sign up as a seller by having a required PayPal account. If XXXX allowed the sale the end user should not be held liable for financial loss due to XXXX service providers contradictory user agreements. Because you are using XXXX system to sign up the user agreement should be the same for any payment provider. Which after this I did continue to sell the same items over XXXX platform. My account with XXXX is still in good standing to date. It should also be mentioned that PayPal and XXXX were ending their payment processing partnership during this time. It has been reported by several XXXX sellers that PayPal just closed, restricted or refused payments during this transition.
Company Response:
State: IN
Zip: 468XX
Submitted Via: Web
Date Sent: 2021-10-20
Company Response to Consumer: Closed with explanation
Timely Response: Yes
Consumer Disputed: N/A
Date Received: 2021-10-20
Issue: Unexpected or other fees
Subissue:
Consumer Complaint: Yesterday I reached out and spoke with XXXX who told me he was removing the late fees that I received after PayPal tried charging a closed account despite having both an updated banking account information as well as my credit card information. Because I continued to get emails about the late fees, I called again and spoke with XXXX XXXX XXXX ) who told me PayPal was unable to remove the fees. I asked why I was given different information yesterday but couldn't get an answer. There is no accountability. Both calls took place on a recorded line according to PayPal. I refuse to pay the late fees especially after XXXX told he was removing them. At this point, I would also like to close my PayPal account. Shouldn't there be notes from yesterday 's call?
Company Response:
State: DC
Zip: 20009
Submitted Via: Web
Date Sent: 2021-10-20
Company Response to Consumer: Closed with monetary relief
Timely Response: Yes
Consumer Disputed: N/A
Date Received: 2021-10-20
Issue: Attempts to collect debt not owed
Subissue: Debt was result of identity theft
Consumer Complaint: XX/XX/XXXX I noticed a charge on my XXXX XXXX XXXX checking account in the amount of {$1000.00} in the name of PayPal. I refuted the charge with my bank, they agreed this was a fradulent charge, they had seen it happen a number of times and were aware this was an issue with PayPal. XXXX changed my bank account numbers and requested the {$1000.00} back from PayPal as a case of Fraudulent transaction. PayPal returned the {$1000.00} and " Locked '' the PayPal account associated with my name, recognizing this was in fact a fraudulent transaction. 1 Year later ( XX/XX/XXXX ) I received a letter from a collections agency ( XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX located in XXXX, UT ) stating I owe {$1000.00} from a PayPal account they now owned. I contacted PayPal and they state that because the {$1000.00} was put on a prepaid debit card before my bank was able to contact them and report the fraudulent transaction, and because the bank requested a return of {$1000.00}, the PayPal account continued to reflect a - {$1000.00} balance. Although they acknowledged the transaction was fraudulent by locking the account, they still left the balance. No communication was sent to my email, or my phone ( both of which PayPal has on file to this day ) regarding the negative amount. Not at 30 days, not at 60 day, not at 90 days, not at 180 days ( which is the cutoff date for " reporting '' fraudulent activity ) although " locking '' the account was, for reasons unknown, not considered a " report ''. The only notice I received was from XXXX XXXX XXXX exactly a year later stating they now own the account and require payment. PayPal is unable to do anything because the account was sold. PayPal is also unable to remove any of my personal information ( they confirmed my address, email, phone, old bank account numbers and SSN were kept for history and/or record keeping ).
Company Response:
State: CO
Zip: 80241
Submitted Via: Web
Date Sent: 2021-10-20
Company Response to Consumer: Closed with non-monetary relief
Timely Response: Yes
Consumer Disputed: N/A
Date Received: 2021-10-20
Issue: Attempts to collect debt not owed
Subissue: Debt is not yours
Consumer Complaint: Someone named XXXX XXXX email address XXXX sent my paypal email a paypal payment of XXXX dollars because i did not know this person i did not keep the money, Paypal is stating that this person after sending me the money reported that they sent the money to the wrong person and paypal is trying to say i now owe {$860.00} for this transaction.
Company Response:
State: CA
Zip: 91780
Submitted Via: Web
Date Sent: 2021-10-20
Company Response to Consumer: Closed with explanation
Timely Response: Yes
Consumer Disputed: N/A
Date Received: 2021-10-20
Issue: Managing, opening, or closing your mobile wallet account
Subissue:
Consumer Complaint: Yes its against PayPal they will not give me my money XXXX. They put a limitation on my account XX/XX/XXXX and said they was closing my account and was going to hold my money for 180 days well 6 months later XX/XX/XXXX I call to get my money out and they said they was going to hold it for another 180 or unless I get a court order cepena well I wait the 180 days and in XX/XX/XXXX of this year I contacted them and now there saying they are holding it for another 180 days. This is not right there privacy policy says after 180 days they will send a email telling you how to withdraw the money, it doesnt say they will keep it for 3 straight 180days, I want something done cause that money came from the Georgia Department of Labor COVID pua relief money.
Company Response:
State: KY
Zip: 411XX
Submitted Via: Web
Date Sent: 2021-10-20
Company Response to Consumer: Closed with non-monetary relief
Timely Response: Yes
Consumer Disputed: N/A
Date Received: 2021-10-20
Issue: Other transaction problem
Subissue:
Consumer Complaint: My PayPal account is XXXX and I can not withdraw my money to my bank account for over a month now. There was a dispute about the money I received and the case was won in my favor. I was notified that any hold on this money was removed and I would be able to withdraw them but still nothing! I only get templates from PayPal how their system is caring about everyone and I should wait for some more time etc!
Company Response:
State:
Zip: XXXXX
Submitted Via: Web
Date Sent: 2021-10-20
Company Response to Consumer: Closed with explanation
Timely Response: Yes
Consumer Disputed: N/A
Date Received: 2021-10-20
Issue: Unauthorized transactions or other transaction problem
Subissue:
Consumer Complaint: On XX/XX/XXXX, I paid {$830.00} to someone for an item ( pc part, motherboard, Transaction ID : XXXX ). I never received the item and seller stopped responding to me on Discord. I've never received tracking information that shows it was delivered. Therefore, I would like money back for this. If I don't receive money back, I will file a complaint with state attorney general and federal trade commission to pursue this further.
Company Response:
State: TX
Zip: 75204
Submitted Via: Web
Date Sent: 2021-10-20
Company Response to Consumer: Closed with monetary relief
Timely Response: Yes
Consumer Disputed: N/A
Date Received: 2021-10-19
Issue: Managing, opening, or closing your mobile wallet account
Subissue:
Consumer Complaint: On Wednesday, XX/XX/2021, I received emails from both Paypal and Venmo ( a Paypal subsidiary ) indicating that my account had been suspended for a violation of Paypal 's Acceptable Use Policy [ " AU '' ] that is part of its Paypal User Agreement [ " PUA '' ]. The emails and notifications from the company did not specify further what the violation may have been, and only urged me to review the AU and make that determination on my own. After reviewing the AU, I determined that none of my posted transactions were violations of the XXXX, and could not figure out how they would have been flagged as such. I called the Paypal support hotline, where I was told that there was no further information. I requested to speak to a supervisor, and after being put on hold for 30-minutes my call was disconnected. I called the Paypal XXXX XXXX office afterward, and spoke to another individual who told me that while he did not have any more information, he could see that my account was flagged for review and that I should receive a message from Paypal within 72-hours regarding the status of my account. After the call I filed a complaint with the XXXX XXXX XXXX [ " XXXX '' ], detailing this information, requesting a reinstatement of both my Paypal and Venmo accounts, or alternatively requesting a reasoned and factually-supported explanation of why my account violated the accepted uses. That report was submitted on XX/XX/2021 ( Complaint Case # XXXX - Ref # XXXX - documents attached ). On XX/XX/2021, I received another email from Paypal linked to a message reaffirming that my account was permanently closed. On XX/XX/2021, I received a response from the XXXX indicating that Paypal had responded. In that response, Paypal 's representative " XXXX XXXX XXXX indicated that my account was closed because " the level of risk associated with your accounts is too great. This permanent suspension applies to all current PayPal accounts held by you or any further accounts you may open in the future. '' She further wrote that " our decision about holds, limitations, and reserves may be based on confidential criteria that are essential to our management of risk and the protection of PayPal, our customers, and/or service providers. We may use proprietary fraud and risk modeling when assessing the risk associated with your account. Due to this proprietary confidentiality, we can not provide any more details or specific information regarding your account limitation or the activities that led to your accounts being limited. '' This opaque answer is dissatisfying for two reasons. First, there is no mention that I proactively violated the PUA or AU policiesinstead, there is new language about a " risk '' determination. This risk determination is not mentioned in the AU policy, and there is no guidance to understand what behaviors or activity that is not covered by the AU is somehow deemed " risky. '' It becomes difficult to comply with rules that are " proprietary '' and algorithmically determined, because it represents a black box to the consumer. Second, the insistence that my account will remain closed is a great hamper to interacting with my secondary businesses and services. This is because Paypal and Venmo is a near monopolistic market participant. If there were countless payment transacting services that had equal market-share, then it would be somple for me to simply move to a different service provider and be done. But that is not the case. Paypal enjoys market dominance, and as such I am no longer able to process payments with innumerable vendors, including brick and mortar stores who only process payments using Paypal or Venmosomething that is occurring increasingly. Despite its status as a private company, its function as a financial service provider means that it has disrupted my access to other businesses through a cloaked and unaccountable internal determination.
Company Response:
State: CA
Zip: 90039
Submitted Via: Web
Date Sent: 2021-10-19
Company Response to Consumer: Closed with explanation
Timely Response: Yes
Consumer Disputed: N/A