Paypal Withholding My Money

frazers575

Hi. I have just got off the phone to Paypal who have closed my account and are withholding all of the funds in my account £240 and counting) for 180 days!

They said it was because I was selling high risk items (1 new mobile phone) and wanted the invoice. As I explained I had sent everything that came with the phone to the buyer and so didn't have this but sent them my order confirmation email which contained my name, address, the same Paypal registered email address and the make & model of the exact phone I sold. They still came back we're closing your account with no more right of appeal and will be keeping your money for 6 months.

They had already paid me for this and let me transfer the money to my account but then recharged the money onto my account and held money I had received for something else.

I cannot believe that they can get away with doing this but, looking at Google there are many occasions that they have done this to people.

Is there anything that I can do because it is more a matter of principle now than the money (which I won't be seeing until 2012 even though the buyer has a nice new Blackberry phone).

Thanks for any help

pcombo

You need to contact financial ombudsman and make a complaint, They will then send you a form with all the information you sign the form, Send it back along with all the paypal emails etc saying your limited.

They have up to 8 weeks to deal with you complaint.

phone our consumer helpline on 0300 123 9 123 or 0800 023 4567
8am to 6pm, Monday to Friday – we'll be happy to phone you back

If you dont want to do that you can contact a lawyer which might cost, other than that you have no more options.

Paypal are the worst company ever they do not agree to anything.

pitkin2020

Phone paypal again, go through it all again. You may have to do it more than once to get someone who knows what they are talking about. They are a pain when they do that, I can understand why they do it but 6 months is taking the biscuit.

pcombo

pitkin2020 wrote: »

Phone paypal again, go through it all again. You may have to do it more than once to get someone who knows what they are talking about. They are a pain when they do that, I can understand why they do it but 6 months is taking the biscuit.

It's pointless they do not and will not ever compromise with the customer.

The only way to deal with paypal is external sources i.e fos

pitkin2020

I don't totally agree with that i'm afraid, paypal put a complete stop on my account. First time I called was told there was nothing they could do, 2nd time exactly the same, 3rd time account was fully operational within the hour with a £5 credit for the inconvenience!!

The problem is paypal jump the gun and put a lock down when its not always needed, they will give you a rubbish excuse because half the time the operator doesn't actually know the FACTS, they can only make an assumption by looking at your account, and that'll do they aren't prepared to delve any deeper.

pitkin2020

d.ross wrote: »

That's the problem, they don't actually listen to you either. This is why you need to keep escalating it untel you get to someone senior enough to actually make a decision.

I totally agree which is why you need to keep calling to get through to someone who will actually do their job, trouble is they are few and far between.

toffe

a couple of points for you....

when you call paypal immediately demand to speak to someone in "executive escalations" thats the name they give the department where the decision makers actually work.

explain to them that you do not accept their reasons as valid grounds to withold your funds and you intend to complain to the ombudsman, now it is a pre employment condition at paypal that you must be as thick as two short planks to work there so the numb skull on the other end of the phone probably won't know that it will cost them £500 just for the privilege of being complained about or that this amount is non refundable or recoverable from you even if they win, so remind them of those little facts and that clearly they can not "win" financially as the funds are yours and paypal will have to return them eventually anyway so really it is just a case of .....

"do you want to stop playing silly beggers now and give me whats rightfully mine, this option won't cost you a penny, or do you want to keep messing me around and playing your stupid games? if you choose the latter option that is fine, but it will cost you £500 and you'll still have to give me my money in the end anyway...the choice is yours".....

Now remember, everyone at paypal is REALLY, REALLY, REALLY stupid, i mean properly BRAIN DEAD so don't hold your breath that they will do what any logical person would do and just stop p155ing around and give you the money that quite clearly belongs to you, oh no, i mean thats what a Normal person would do, but paypal only employ people with one brain cell...MAXIMUM!

SO don't be surprised if the stuttering simpleton on the other end of the phone pretends to think about it for a while and then decides that paying £500 to do something they could, and should, just do for free makes far more sense in their own little empty mind......

but at least you will have tried...then its the ombudsman's job to try and communicate with these idiots, they'll sort something out....

frazers575

Thanks for this

toffe wrote: »

a couple of points for you....

when you call paypal immediately demand to speak to someone in "executive escalations" thats the name they give the department where the decision makers actually work.

explain to them that you do not accept their reasons as valid grounds to withold your funds and you intend to complain to the ombudsman, now it is a pre employment condition at paypal that you must be as thick as two short planks to work there so the numb skull on the other end of the phone probably won't know that it will cost them £500 just for the privilege of being complained about or that this amount is non refundable or recoverable from you even if they win, so remind them of those little facts and that clearly they can not "win" financially as the funds are yours and paypal will have to return them eventually anyway so really it is just a case of .....

"do you want to stop playing silly beggers now and give me whats rightfully mine, this option won't cost you a penny, or do you want to keep messing me around and playing your stupid games? if you choose the latter option that is fine, but it will cost you £500 and you'll still have to give me my money in the end anyway...the choice is yours".....

Now remember, everyone at paypal is REALLY, REALLY, REALLY stupid, i mean properly BRAIN DEAD so don't hold your breath that they will do what any logical person would do and just stop p155ing around and give you the money that quite clearly belongs to you, oh no, i mean thats what a Normal person would do, but paypal only employ people with one brain cell...MAXIMUM!

SO don't be surprised if the stuttering simpleton on the other end of the phone pretends to think about it for a while and then decides that paying £500 to do something they could, and should, just do for free makes far more sense in their own little empty mind......

but at least you will have tried...then its the ombudsman's job to try and communicate with these idiots, they'll sort something out....

korky69

frazers575 wrote: »

Hi. I have just got off the phone to Paypal who have closed my account and are withholding all of the funds in my account £240 and counting) for 180 days!

They said it was because I was selling high risk items (1 new mobile phone) and wanted the invoice. As I explained I had sent everything that came with the phone to the buyer and so didn't have this but sent them my order confirmation email which contained my name, address, the same Paypal registered email address and the make & model of the exact phone I sold. They still came back we're closing your account with no more right of appeal and will be keeping your money for 6 months.

They had already paid me for this and let me transfer the money to my account but then recharged the money onto my account and held money I had received for something else.

I cannot believe that they can get away with doing this but, looking at Google there are many occasions that they have done this to people.

Is there anything that I can do because it is more a matter of principle now than the money (which I won't be seeing until 2012 even though the buyer has a nice new Blackberry phone).

Thanks for any help

i had the same problem with paypal/ebay a couple of years ago, sold 2 mobiles separate, paypal said 6 month wait for my money!!
complained to them saying both buyers have left +feedback and they will have to wait the same time for me to pay my ebay bill too and they released the money a few days later

Oliver14

pcombo wrote: »

You need to contact financial ombudsman and make a complaint, They will then send you a form with all the information you sign the form, Send it back along with all the paypal emails etc saying your limited.

They have up to 8 weeks to deal with you complaint.

phone our consumer helpline on 0300 123 9 123 or 0800 023 4567
8am to 6pm, Monday to Friday – we'll be happy to phone you back

If you dont want to do that you can contact a lawyer which might cost, other than that you have no more options.

Paypal are the worst company ever they do not agree to anything.

Paypal are no longer a member of the FSA so ombudsman has limited powers which are now pretty weak. So i'm afraid they are not the Panacia that everyone seems to think.

pitkin2020 wrote: »

Phone paypal again, go through it all again. You may have to do it more than once to get someone who knows what they are talking about. They are a pain when they do that, I can understand why they do it but 6 months is taking the biscuit.

The reason they do 6 months is that is the maximum amount a credit card chargeback can be done so they are covering themselves from loss. If they didn't the fees would be far higher and everyone would be whinging about that.

pcombo wrote: »

It's pointless they do not and will not ever compromise with the customer.

The only way to deal with paypal is external sources i.e fos

As above not huge amounts they can do.

Frazer575 wrote:

They said it was because I was selling high risk items (1 new mobile phone) and wanted the invoice. As I explained I had sent everything that came with the phone to the buyer and so didn't have this but sent them my order confirmation email which contained my name, address, the same Paypal registered email address and the make & model of the exact phone I sold. They still came back we're closing your account with no more right of appeal and will be keeping your money for 6 months

It will be more than that one thing that they have done this. Paypal can be random but they do not block accounts just because you are selling risky items. Otherwise no one would be able to use their services. There will be other reasons it could be high risk items mixed with an amount of disputes of the fact your personal information doesnt add up. You need to find out all these reasons that will give you some chance too rectify them.

Phone them and try and speak to a manager. Get a name direct number and email address (this could be hard) ask for a full explanation of the full reasons of why your account has been blocked. After everything email them a copy of the conversation to clarify. Be persistant. Paypal the same as any other financial institution have the right to protect themselves.

Persistancy in getting the full reasons is your best bet,

visidigi

6 months hold for credit cards is a total crock when you consider you cannot open a dispute after 45 days.

they are the only company I know that gets away with absolving themselves of nearley every risk going.

45 days for a dispute yet they keep your money for 180 days...