Should I Bite the PayPal Bullet?

[Jac@stafford.net]

I always constrain my auctions to USA only. When I found a trend from a particular buyer for precious or novel items the address was an office within a Washington state airport. I am good with that. They always paid. No complaints. They were apparently a broker for wealthy Chinese clients. Bring them on!

[jnantz]

Nope, not since 2015.

https://www.cnet.com/news/ebay-picks...r-1-5-billion/
Article is from 2002.

[Corran]

https://www.cnet.com/news/ebay-picks...r-1-5-billion/
Article is from 2002.

Yes, and in 2015 they spun off PayPal to be a separate entity (again).

[DonJ]

https://www.cnet.com/news/ebay-picks...r-1-5-billion/
Article is from 2002.

You should sort your web searches by date. We know eBay owned (past tense) PayPal; but they haven’t for over 3 years.

[John Olsen]

Paypal has worked for me. I sold my 8x10 equipment in two lots last year and also a few prints through Paypal. They all went smoothly. I think maybe we can trust Paypal more than, say, cashier's checks. Cash would be nice too.

[jnantz]

Yes, and in 2015 they spun off PayPal to be a separate entity (again).

Thanks Corran, I didn't know that. Good to know !

[BradS]

I think there are two different businesses and issues being talked about: Paypal and Ebay. 45 posts and nobody has discussed that a seller can have a Paypal account without the problem of getting forced to give a refund. Ebay does that, not Paypal. Yes, when working together, that's how they operate.

But if you buy a lens from someone right now, on the forum, and pay with Paypal, how are you going to get your money refunded? I don't send an PP invoice or anything when I sell. I talk to the person here, on the phone, or wherever. We agree to the transaction, I give them my PP address, and they "send the money". Done. How would Paypal know what I advertised, what was sold, the condition, or how I shipped? I've just never heard of someone trying to pull the "it's not as advertised" EXCEPT through Ebay. So the better questions is "Should I sell on Ebay", where, by the way, you are REQUIRED to offer Paypal. Short answer: no, not if you can help it. Because THAT is when all the scams start.

Yes! With regard to scammers and sellers getting screwed, eBay is the problem. Not PayPal.

The only issue I have with PayPal is the high fees but I am happy to pay the fee to get the sale.

[Corran]

2.9% is high?? Oh, plus 30 cents flat per transaction.

[Michael Graves]

Yes! With regard to scammers and sellers getting screwed, eBay is the problem. Not PayPal.

The only issue I have with PayPal is the high fees but I am happy to pay the fee to get the sale.

That's not entirely true. From PayPal's site: (https://www.paypal.com/us/smarthelp/...roblem-faq1344)

"If you purchased something and would like a refund because you haven't received it, or it's not as described, you can file a case in our Resolution Center to start the process of getting your money back.

You have 180 days from the transaction date to initiate a case on a transaction.

If your eBay payment is complete but you didn't receive your item, it's not as described or the auction got canceled, you'll need to file a case. You can do this in eBay's Resolution Center or the PayPal Resolution Center.

If you feel the transaction was unauthorized, please visit our Resolution Center to file an unauthorized transaction case.

There are 2 kinds of cases you can create:

-- Item Not Received – You bought something but didn’t receive it. (Wait at least 3 days from the transaction date to give your seller enough time to ship the item.)
-- Significantly Not as Described – You received an item but it was significantly different from the seller’s original description. (You might have to pay return shipping costs, but may be eligible for Return Shipping on US. Activate Return Shipping on US before filing your case to qualify for the benefit.)
"

Paypal will ding the seller as well. Although I don't know if they're as buyer-centric as eBay.

[jnantz]

2.9% is high?? Oh, plus 30 cents flat per transaction.

One doesn't have to look far to find for sale/classifides ads that specifically state buyers pay paypal fees / service fees. I think many sellers would love it if the service was free, including me ! I know over the last 15 years I have probably paid more than $1000.00 in money conversion and paypal credit card fees, but the trade off is that I can sell things to people worldwide and it is convenient, and the buyer has the convenience of returning something I sell if I am unscrupulous.