Why I Can't Use PayPal To Buy Your Product • Hacker News Board

Re: Why I Can't Use PayPal To Buy Your Product

#21

Post by jack-r-abbit » Wed, Apr 18, 2012, 9:12 PM UTC

lomegor wrote: post #17

jack-r-abbit wrote: post #3

While some people may have various business reasons for wanting multiple PayPal accounts linked to one bank account, I've run into this problem for another reason that I imagine is even more common: I'm married. My wife and I both have PayPal accounts. But guess what, PayPal? We have but one bank account. You know... a joint account... like I'm sure a vast majority of married people have. What a stupid rule.

PayPal does let you use the same joint bank account in two accounts. The only problems is that you need to be married and share the same last name. This may make sense in the US, but in a lot of other parts of the world, you don't take your husband last name when you marry. I'm tired of PayPal too, but just wanted to let you know that there may be a solution to your problem.

> PayPal does let you use the same joint bank account in two accounts.

Thanks. That must be new in the recent years as I don't believe we had that option when we had that issue... but its been a while. It is no longer an issue since we don't really use PayPal much anymore.

Re: Why I Can't Use PayPal To Buy Your Product

#22

Post by lomegor » Wed, Apr 18, 2012, 9:18 PM UTC

dazzla wrote: post #9

I'm pretty sure you can go to pay while not logged in to PayPal. Then enter your credit card directly. They will tell you it's linked to an account and do you want to login. But there is still an option to go ahead and just use the card.

I tried to use that option, but every time it tells me that the card was rejected. Even though I can use the card fine if I enter the details directly... it's just weird.

Re: Why I Can't Use PayPal To Buy Your Product

#23

Post by jeltz » Wed, Apr 18, 2012, 9:24 PM UTC

Natsu wrote: post #8

jack-r-abbit wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Care to elaborate on that? How does it prevent fraud?

Presumably it keeps people from just spam-creating new accounts every time they get banned. In this case, however, it's hurting their business by being too strict. They could, for example, let you have at most two accounts linked to solve the problem some married people have.

I do not see why they need to stop spam creation of accounts. They can just ban the bank account in addition to the Paypal account. Without any bank account or credit card connected to the Paypal account it is not very harmful to Paypal.

Re: Why I Can't Use PayPal To Buy Your Product

#24

Post by grandalf » Wed, Apr 18, 2012, 9:25 PM UTC

PayPal is good in some ways (lowers the bar to becoming a merchant) it is broken and horrible in many other ways. Let's hope the competitors can improve upon things (Google, Amazon, Square, Facebook, Apple).

Re: Why I Can't Use PayPal To Buy Your Product

#25

Post by dazzla » Wed, Apr 18, 2012, 9:27 PM UTC

jakeonthemove wrote: post #13

dazzla wrote: post #9

I'm pretty sure you can go to pay while not logged in to PayPal. Then enter your credit card directly. They will tell you it's linked to an account and do you want to login. But there is still an option to go ahead and just use the card.

Nope. I used to be able to pay using only a credit card before (like 2 years ago), but now it just asks that I login or register a new account. I suppose with over 200 million users you can get away with this crap...

I'm fairly sure I've done this in the last 6 months.

Re: Why I Can't Use PayPal To Buy Your Product

#26

Post by greyfade » Wed, Apr 18, 2012, 9:34 PM UTC

dazzla wrote: post #9

I'm pretty sure you can go to pay while not logged in to PayPal. Then enter your credit card directly. They will tell you it's linked to an account and do you want to login. But there is still an option to go ahead and just use the card.

I've tried that, and when it complained that the card was linked to an account, it wouldn't let me proceed until I logged in.

At the time, my account was locked down because I had the audacity to go to a conference in a town 80 miles away and try to use my Paypal account for something. They wouldn't let me unlock my account until I gave them a new landline phone number (which I didn't have) or fax them my ID (which I wasn't willing to do). It was as if they didn't want me to reactivate my account.

And I still couldn't buy anything until I got a new card.

Re: Why I Can't Use PayPal To Buy Your Product

#27

Post by mdc » Wed, Apr 18, 2012, 9:36 PM UTC

lomegor wrote: post #17

jack-r-abbit wrote: post #3

While some people may have various business reasons for wanting multiple PayPal accounts linked to one bank account, I've run into this problem for another reason that I imagine is even more common: I'm married. My wife and I both have PayPal accounts. But guess what, PayPal? We have but one bank account. You know... a joint account... like I'm sure a vast majority of married people have. What a stupid rule.

PayPal does let you use the same joint bank account in two accounts. The only problems is that you need to be married and share the same last name. This may make sense in the US, but in a lot of other parts of the world, you don't take your husband last name when you marry. I'm tired of PayPal too, but just wanted to let you know that there may be a solution to your problem.

>share the same last name. This may make sense in the US

That counts me out. My wife was well-known professionally before we were married, so she kept her name. In my circle of friends, I know a handful of others to whom this also applies. Paypal's policy might have made sense in 1950's US, but not in the US as it is now.

Re: Why I Can't Use PayPal To Buy Your Product

#28

Post by Posibyte » Wed, Apr 18, 2012, 9:37 PM UTC

I've had quite the bad experience with PayPal myself. I used to sell goods on the internet. Nothing shady, unless you consider Wordpress shady. Anyways, one day I try to charge against my PayPal account and I find out my account has been frozen and is pending investigation. I had not a lot of money, but more than a few dollars.

It's been frozen ever since (about 2 years). I've tried working with PayPal, but they've yet to help me in any constructive way. If I were to add to this post, this is the reason I won't allow PayPal payments on my site.

Re: Why I Can't Use PayPal To Buy Your Product

#29

Post by nfm » Wed, Apr 18, 2012, 9:47 PM UTC

In a related vein: Try to change your name for your PayPal account. In Australia (and I assume globally), last I checked you had to fax 100 points of ID to them. Setting up an account requires nothing. I could wait until my CC expires and open a new account in my new name, but I've tied my account to my bank account too.

Re: Why I Can't Use PayPal To Buy Your Product

#30

Post by ig1 » Wed, Apr 18, 2012, 9:48 PM UTC

dazzla wrote: post #25

jakeonthemove wrote: post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Nope. I used to be able to pay using only a credit card before (like 2 years ago), but now it just asks that I login or register a new account. I suppose with over 200 million users you can get away with this crap...

I'm fairly sure I've done this in the last 6 months.

It's a setting that the merchant has to enable, by default you have to have a paypal account.