On Paypal and why I won’t use it

ajw308 is curious:


A couple of times now, you’ve indicated on your blog a refusal to use Paypal without stating why. I did join Slashdot.org, searched on Paypal, and founds lots of Paypal articles. Nothing that would dissuade me from using them though jumped out. Can you post a link on your blog? Others have also indicated an interest in this info.

There are a number of reasons listed here, but these are the ones that I find compelling:

2. Their customer service is horrible. They hide their telephone number, (intentionally – by their own admission) and only provided support via “form” emails: As for the customer service, Sollitto said they intentionally make the phone number very difficult to find in order to save costs.”

4. If PayPal feels your actions are questionable, PayPal is the investigator, judge, jury and executioner. “Telling your side” of what happened, in most cases seems to be irrelevant. They also refuse to provide you with the details of their investigation and withhold documents they relied upon to make their decisions.

5. If you are a bona fide, up-standing individual with hundreds of successful transactions, but someone pays you with a stolen credit card, your account (by PayPal’s own admission) is immediately flagged as being “criminal behavior” and any money in that account is confiscated.

Furthermore, as a general principle, I don’t consider it wise to give people and corporations you do not know direct access to your bank account.