Hi Everyone, A friend of more than 5 years is having trouble with his Paypal Account. At the moment it's frozen. He has asked me if I could accept a payment from a design client of his, and then cut him a check for the amount less paypal fees and a small cut for me. I have no doubt he will deliver a great design for the client, so I am not worried about chargebacks. It's also a non-tangible product, so even if the customer was unhappy, their options of getting the money back is very limited with Paypal. The only thing that worries me is the legality of this. I am sort of acting like a broker between 2 parties. I assume that's legal? Also, if I accept the money, I am guessing I have to report it on my taxes, even though it's going right back out the door? I appreciate any advice you can share.
as far as I know it's legal. The only downside you didn't mention is: they will come after you if things go wrong because you took the money.
Well, the customer may not feel comfortable if they pay to a 3rd party, at least that's how I would feel if I am in that position. Besides, Paypal's Acceptable Usage Policy seems clear about this. https://www.paypal.com/us/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=p/gen/ua/use/index_frame-outside