Paypal has cancelled me payments after products have been sent

Hello!

I can't believe what has happened...

Somebody make me four orders in my online store. I received money for all orders in my business verified paypal account.

So... I sent products.

After four days, my customer received products and PayPal cancelled payments because "the payments are fraudulent".

I have go to the Police and I have sent a reclamation to PayPal, for stealing my money.

Any suggestions about what can I do?

If only I could accept google checkout....

Thank you!

 

Have you raised a dispute with paypal? Since the goods have been shipped from your end - and you used paypal as a gateway, PP cannot wash their hands off in this fashion. I am sure they have to have a legal / moral obligation to save merchants from such instances.

good luck!

 

They have a bigger obligation to protect people who's credit card details have been stolen and used in a fraudalent way.

 

Agreed, but should the merchant be penalized? When a payment is made for a product to the merchant, it no longer belongs to the payment processor, but kept for merchant to collect. What would PP do if the merchant withdraws the entire amount before they realize it was a fraudulent transaction?

I know CC owner has to be protected, but same logic would apply to the merchant too!!! Can PP recover the items that have already been shipped to buyer, and give it back to the merchant?

 

In an ideal world yes but in reality its a risk of doing business. Paypal is a facilitator not a guaranter so unfortunately this means you take a hit once in a while.

If it was physical goods it was sent to an address so the police report can find the details required to take the fraudster to court.

Not 100% fair but thats the way business works.

 

Thank you for all your replies.

As a seller, I can't open a dispute. Disputes are for non received products, if somebody has steal your account, etc.

So I have send a reclamation.

PayPal has told me they contacted the customer and didn't answer. They don't have any evidence if they payment is fraudulent.

I'm a verified business customer since 2006. I can't believe this...

Aren't merchants protected by PayPal? Four days it's too late... if I receive a payment, I can't hold four days the order...

 

paypal protect peoples from GOoods,if they were goods email them and explain,actually you never should ship from different addresses(Shipping&billing)

 

The scale is heavily tipped against sellers - once a while hit can really be too often, too frequent to force a seller to become buyer


Thanks for your inputs @ yfs1, this thread is really an eye-opener for all merchants - who need to be aware of issues with payment facilitators.

xoxo - time to take a merchant account and move on from PP to your own account.

Hope you get a (+)ve response to your reclamation request.

 

And this is only one aspect. If you sell non-physical goods Paypal offers zero protection and you can get scammed really bad.

xoxo - What type of address did you send the goods to - Another country, a PO Box, etc ?

 

then PP would take the funds, put you into a negative balance and expect you to pay the difference.. That's what they did with me.

i am now $546 in debt

 

Perhaps use something like Western Union or Moneybookers as an alternative and design a custom button structure.

 

Western Union is far more risky!!! Plus you cut the number of potential customers to a fraction of what they were (Most people will not send Western Union for goods bought on a website).

The best alternative is something like Worldpay where they are processing credit cards direct for you. You still risk chargebacks of course (Even bricks and mortar shops face this).

 

Expected to pay - at least they can't take the money away from your bank! Much better to be in debt rather than lose your goods and your money too

 

Would it help to have your own merchant account?

 

I have still had chargebacks that I had to dispute. Since my products are lightweight and inexpensive, I don't pay for delivery tracking (It would eat up half the profit).

That means once in a while I get scammed but I keep money aside for that. It's rare but gets absorbed as a cost of business.

 

For any order above $500 you have to verify the order properly before shipping it. If they have used the funds from a credit card connected to paypal then probably it means chargeback and you can do nothing about it.

1. It is a good idea to call the buyer and ask them to confirm their credit card details.
2. Get signed credit card authorization for any orders involving USD 500.-

 

Thank you for all your answers and suggestions. I sent products in the same country, and delivered in a shop. So I suppose police will be able to know what happened.

@-whynot-: In this case, billing and shipping adresses where different, so next time, in these cases, I will hold the order 48 hours.

@olddocks: We are talking about $500 more or less... Your advice for future cases is really appreciated.

@yfs: Where can I get a merchant account for small business or a few transactions per month? I sell only a few orders. Months ago I asked for a quotation at WorldPay and it's extremely expensive for me...

@The dark knight: I have also a merchant account in moneybookers, but at this moment there is not available a magento extension yet.

Of course, I hope this experience will be useful for other DP members.

 

usually that is a good indication of fraud. you should never ship to addresses where billing and shipping are different.

 

If you are sending via UPS, FedEx, DHL etc..., ship to a confirmed address. This is my number 1 rule when I sell on eBay. When a customer sends money via PayPal, it should tell you if they have a confirmed shipping address or not.

 

Thank you very much for your comments... I have learned some useful tips. Thank you all!