I am a musician and also have a small company that designs and builds guitars. We sell a very small quantity and try to offer a lot of guitar for a little money. Most of our customers are happy. Occasionally someone is not so happy. And we resolve these issues very easily 99% of the time. We use EBAY as a form of marketing. Rather than pay $1000's for magazine ads, we auction guitars at pretty big discounts and rely on repeat buyers, referrals,etc. It's worked pretty well over the years and has afforded us the opportunity to expand consistently. So what's up with PAYPAL? I thought you'd never ask!
Let me begin by saying that I used Paypal for years. I've had $1000's 'frozen' while they 'investigate suspicious activity' and forced me to mail them utility bills and copies of my ID. My social security card. My favorite is when they resolve 'buyer complaints'.I remember EBAY closing my account due to some Paypal claim that I owed them $680 for a guitar that was allegedly returned, that we never received! So I ended up paying $680 to Paypal just to be able to use Ebay. That's right, Ebay owns Paypal. And the 2 are in bed together like a meth addicted chickenhead and her strung out coke dealing pimp. Ebay automatically inserts Paypal in all auctions. EBAY HAS BANNED THE USE OF CHECKS AND MONEY ORDERS!!!! ARE THEY INSANE? And by the way, that $680 left a mark on my credit to boot.
Here's the breakdown folks; If you sell something and accept Paypal, grab your ankles because the buyer can return anything, anytime for the full purchase price. All they need to do is claim it is 'not as described'. Do you specify a restocking fee? It doesn't matter. If you spend $300 to ship the item? Prepare to lose that too. Paypal is the judge, jury and executioner of your money. And the only solution is to avoid them.
My inspiration for this posting is a very simple Ebay transaction. I have had far worse experiences and kept using Paypal. I jumped through all the hoops.Why? Because I always felt that Paypal and Ebay went hand in hand. Now I realize that's false.We have stopped using Paypal. Onto the latest installment of Paypal chicanery...
We sold a handmade thinline Tele for $400 which included air shipping(cost us over $100). AFTER he won the auction the buyer started asking a lot of questions. Then he made an offer of $350. Then he started threatening to file a Paypal claim-before he paid! After receiving payment and shipping the guitar we got an email that he was 'bummed' that the guitar had a 'dot' on it. I can't make this up folks...The flame maple top did indeed have a dot in the grain. I've never seen a piece of wood without various specs or dots-it is WOOD! Go look at a $4000PRS. You will certainly find dots all over it! It is impossible not to.
Anyway, he used it for a week or so, well beyond our 3 day return policy. He returned it without authorization, and started the Paypal circus. He requested $350-we countered with $300, which would not even cover our shipping. We also waived our 15% restocking fee which was stated clearly in the auction. He refused and the whole debacle went to Paypal's elite resolution team of monkeys and nimrods. They decided the er buywas entitled to a refund. And they refunded the FULL $400. Now we have a used guitar, and we're out $128 in shipping costs. Even though THE BUYER AGREED TO $350, Paypal decided to shaft us a little extra for good measure. Thanks guys. And we lost $40 in Ebay fees too.
This may not seem like a big deal, but it is. Not the $50...It is the fact that they handle millions of these transactions-MILLIONS. They freeze countless accounts everyday. Each of these 'disputes' may take weeks, or usually months to resolve. And they are operating on the legal fringe. They hold your money, offer credit cards, but are NOT a bank.
They have 'investigations' done by their own employees which ALWAYS end in the best interests of Paypal. Imagine being able to hold billions of dollars-the whole while nickel and diming each client. Madoff? Ponzi sheme? Maybe a lot worse. Because NOBODY is getting the big payout here. One more quick story....
My friend Mike sold an Ibanez Jem on Ebay for $1600. It was mint. The buyer paid by Paypal. He received it and filed a claim 2 days later-"not as described". Why? Because it has some grunge on the fretboard. 15 seconds with a napkin would solve this. The guitar was in fact mint-I've seen it. Not a scrath,no wear..But yes, there was some skank on a few frets.
Now it gets interesting...The guy sent the guitar back w/signature required as Mike requested. UPS either delivered it to the wrong house or it was stolen. Mike never got it. But Paypal saw it was 'delivered' and refunded the buyer. This buyer also filed a claim with UPS-and got paid AGAIN.That's right, another $1600.
Mike didn't have enough money in his Paypal account to cover the $1600 so Paypal wiped him out and now has a collection agency on him. He called to say he never received the guitar. He emailed them. All they said was, "That is between you and the buyer".
What would you do? Pay them their ransom or let them wreck your credit? Sue them? A billion dollar company? All we can do is stop using them. Use a different service like GOOGLE CHECKOUT. Yes, another billion dollare company, but one that does not meddle in your life.You can set up a merchant account for about 1/2 the cost of Paypal. And you can use it online or for local sales, even for phone sales. COSTCO has some great discounts. And you can help loosen PAYPAL's stranglehold on small businesses and individuals worldwide.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment