Thursday, June 14, 2012

Why PAYPAL are robbers in broad daylight



I've been a Merchant Account holder of PayPal for the business, for almost over a year.

In the beginning, I was starting to hold PayPal in awe, for being one of the only online payment systems to accommodate payments from all over the world. However, after what happened today, PayPal has officially been BLACKLISTED and SCREWED in my dictionary!

For PayPal users out there, whether or not you are a personal account or Merchant account holder, do beware and do your research before opening a PayPal account. PayPal tends to hold in high regard the words 'security measure' and 'security risk', but they are actually using their corporate and market monopoly power to abuse the definition of security.

If you have not heard, PayPal has the 'power' and 'authority' to close your account without any due notification. What they do, is to send an email template stating:


For the safety and security of the PayPal network, we often review accounts for potential risks. After reviewing your account, we have decided to close it because of security issues.

We are making every effort to minimize any disruption to your business.

If your PayPal account balance is zero, and you have no unresolved buyer complaints or chargebacks, your account will remain limited.

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Disbursement options
-----------------------------------

Option 1. If you owe refunds to any of your buyers, you can use the money in your PayPal account to refund them.

To refund your buyers:
1. Log in to your PayPal account.
2. Click "Contact Us" at the bottom of any page.
3. Click "Contact Customer Service."
4. Under "Choose a Topic," select "Sending/Receiving Money."
5. Under "Choose a Subtopic," select "Refund/Cancel a Payment."
6. Click "Continue" and follow the instructions to refund payments.

Option 2. Money in your PayPal account will be held for 180 days. After 180 days, we'll email you information on how to receive your funds.

We regret any inconvenience this may cause.

Thanks,

PayPal

Please do not reply to this email. This mailbox is not monitored and you will not receive a response. For assistance, log in to your PayPal account and click the Help link in the top right corner of any PayPal page.

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Consumer advisory- PayPal Pte. Ltd., the holder of PayPal’s stored value facility, does not require the approval of the Monetary Authority of Singapore.
Users are advised to read the terms and conditions carefully.

No, you didn't read wrongly, and it does state 180 days! That's 6 months of funds stuck in a PayPal account which does not offer you interest returns, on top of that, with the fluctuations of USD currency exchange, and the rate of inflation! 

According to the PayPal User Agreement: 

We may close, suspend, or limit your access to your Account or the PayPal Services, and/or limit access to your funds for up to 180 Days if you violate this Agreement, the PayPal Acceptable Use Policy, or any other agreement you enter into with PayPal.  We may also use proprietary fraud and risk modeling when assessing the risk associated with your Account. If you wish to open a Dispute through PayPal's Online Resolution Center you must do so within 45 Days of making your payment or initiating your transaction in the case of Pay After Delivery; or if you use the PayPal Grace Period payment feature, you must open your Dispute within 60 Days of receiving your email transaction statement.

When a call is made to clarify for such actions by PayPal, their reply is simply 'Our decision after internal review'. Upon demanding for explanation of 180 days hold, their explanation is that it is required in the situation that customers require a refund. 

Upon Googling, I realized that I am not the only victim of this clause! Other PayPal users from all over the world are experiencing such frustration with PayPal. You could say that PayPal are robbers in bright daylight! 

So if you are reading this post, and experience a somewhat similar situation, you can try to find some resources at http://www.paypalsucks.com/

If you are reading this post, and wondering what I'm talking about. Stop wondering. Just STAY AWAY FROM PAYPAL! 

Monday, June 11, 2012

Half a mind to turn Vegetarian




So I saw this on the way to work, and was pretty much following the truck for almost 15 minutes.

I now have half a mind to turn vegetarian....