paypal protection for owners?

[JMLBrats]

An acquaintance of my sister's wants to rent points from us, but since I don't know this person too well...I'm just wondering, what can you do if the renter decides to try and get their money back from paypal. I know paypal generally protects buyers so how can we be protected if we accept paypal from a renter? Does that make sense? Anyone?

Thanks guys!!

 

[epicureangirl]

I use Paypal mostly through eBay, but even then, there are quite a few instances where Paypal does not protect you (so read the fine print). If this is a Paypal transaction outside of eBay (I assume) there is probably even less recourse. Is there a trust issue with the buyer, or are you just weighing your options of what payment type is best?

I find Paypal nearly impossible to deal with (as a company) if you ever have a problem. They are just too big and have lousy customer service. I would be much happier with a money order if at all possible. Show me the $$$!

 

[CarolA]

Protection from Paypal???

Paypal protects PAYPAL. Anything else is the luck of the draw!

 

[epicureangirl]

Protection from Paypal???

Paypal protects PAYPAL. Anything else is the luck of the draw!

Well said!

 

[CarolMN]

How far in advance is the reservation? Why not just accept a check? It doesn't take 30 days for a check to clear and you probably shouldn't make a short notice reservation for someone you don't know, anyway. If the deposit check is bad, you just cancel the reservation. You can request payment in full 45-60 days in advance to be sure you get all the money owed, but if the deposit check is good, chances are the final would be, too.

If the prospective renter is the one pushing paypal, my advice is to just suggest he/she find someone else to rent from as you do not want to deal with paypal. If the acquaintance is pushing paypal, , he/she is likely to be "high maintenance" or needy (requiring lots of hand holding). You might want to pass on this for that reason. If he/she knows your sister, I'm not sure why trust is such a big issue.

Good luck!

 

[JMLBrats]

Thanks for the tips, I think I will try to go w/the check. She does know my sister but very casually and my sister doesn't even feel comfortable saying for sure that there's no chance of us getting scr____ over. Soooo, better safe than sorry. Plus paypal charges us the sellers/owners a fee on top of the fact that we won't be protected should the buyer decide to try and get their money back.

 

[blizzard]

Not sure how you have your paypal setup, but what I do is to have a separate account set up for paypal, and then immediately take the money out when money is transferred in. Now, the sender might not like that you've done it, and if there's a problem, paypal will put a hold on your account, but you've got your money at that point.

 

[TAKitty]

How far in advance is the reservation? Why not just accept a check? It doesn't take 30 days for a check to clear and you probably shouldn't make a short notice reservation for someone you don't know, anyway. If the deposit check is bad, you just cancel the reservation. You can request payment in full 45-60 days in advance to be sure you get all the money owed, but if the deposit check is good, chances are the final would be, too.

If the prospective renter is the one pushing paypal, my advice is to just suggest he/she find someone else to rent from as you do not want to deal with paypal. If the acquaintance is pushing paypal, , he/she is likely to be "high maintenance" or needy (requiring lots of hand holding). You might want to pass on this for that reason. If he/she knows your sister, I'm not sure why trust is such a big issue.

Good luck!

I would be one to push paypal and I am not needy. If I want I can pay paypal with a credit card and am offered some security. I also don't like sending checks with all of my personal information to people I don't know very well.

With paypal it is almost instant payment. A check requires a lot more work making sure it clears etc.

 

[dianeschlicht]

You can always ask for a certified or cashiers check.

 

[salmoneous]

I don't rent my points. If I did, I would never accept Paypal. It gives the renter too much power to take back the money - as well as being a hassle for the seller.

From your standpoint, there is no advantage to accepting Paypal. All it does is get you the money faster. Presumably, you are demanding the money well in advance. No need for anything more than a personal check. A certified check doesn't really give you much protection and is a pain for the renter to acquire. The money will be deposited and clear long before the reservation is used.

If the renter insists on your accepting Paypal, they are treating you like a business, not an owner doing someone a favor. Nothing wrong with them treating you like a business - but if they do so, you should charge them like a business. As a business, I'd be thinking more like $15/point or more.

 

[BWV Dreamin]

I don't rent my points. If I did, I would never accept Paypal. It gives the renter too much power to take back the money - as well as being a hassle for the seller.

From your standpoint, there is no advantage to accepting Paypal. All it does is get you the money faster. Presumably, you are demanding the money well in advance. No need for anything more than a personal check. A certified check doesn't really give you much protection and is a pain for the renter to acquire. The money will be deposited and clear long before the reservation is used.

If the renter insists on your accepting Paypal, they are treating you like a business, not an owner doing someone a favor. Nothing wrong with them treating you like a business - but if they do so, you should charge them like a business. As a business, I'd be thinking more like $15/point or more.

I totally agree........plus you are involving another party into the transaction, should things not go well.

 

[GusMan]

You can always ask for a certified or cashiers check.

Actually, you do not want a certified check... That is only saying that the funds are in the account. Those funds can be withdrawn after the certified check is sent off, making the check worthless. (Its only about as good as a personal check.)
A cashiers check actually takes the money out of the account first so the check is good regardless.

The thing about PP's buyers protection is that it the goods being purchased must me a "tangible" item. I do not think rental of points would fall under that category.

But I would agree... Paypal may have its place on eBay but I would say not for a rental transaction.

 

[Blahnde]

Y'know what they say ... opinions are like bellybuttons, everybody's got one!

Over the years I have rented out over 2,000 points all with PayPal ... while I offer to take cashier's checks, no one has ever taken me up on it. It is especially appealing when renting to our northern neighbors or those who use a currency other than the US dollar ... PayPal fee is higher, but conversion is factored in!

I have no grand illusion that it provides either party with any real protection, which was the topic of this post, but it is convenient and fast. And fast can be very important; the sooner money changes hands, the less likely the deal will fall through.

And not all reservation requests are made months in advance. Have you seen the rent/trade board recently? There are people looking for October and November reservations TODAY ... try making that work with a cashier's check!

As already suggested, I transfer my money out of PayPal right away so the renter cannot take it back, even though this has never happened. And I charge the renter the fees so I'm not out anything for using it!

I even had one renter tell me that they chose me even though I had a higher per point price simply because I took PayPal ... it was just one element that made me seem more professional than the other guy ... and they needed to use a credit card!

But, hey, if you don't want to take PayPal that is okay by me ... more renters who will do business with me instead of you!

Blahnde

 

[JMLBrats]

Y'know what they say ... opinions are like bellybuttons, everybody's got one!

Over the years I have rented out over 2,000 points all with PayPal ... while I offer to take cashier's checks, no one has ever taken me up on it. It is especially appealing when renting to our northern neighbors or those who use a currency other than the US dollar ... PayPal fee is higher, but conversion is factored in!

I have no grand illusion that it provides either party with any real protection, which was the topic of this post, but it is convenient and fast. And fast can be very important; the sooner money changes hands, the less likely the deal will fall through.

And not all reservation requests are made months in advance. Have you seen the rent/trade board recently? There are people looking for October and November reservations TODAY ... try making that work with a cashier's check!

As already suggested, I transfer my money out of PayPal right away so the renter cannot take it back, even though this has never happened. And I charge the renter the fees so I'm not out anything for using it!

I even had one renter tell me that they chose me even though I had a higher per point price simply because I took PayPal ... it was just one element that made me seem more professional than the other guy ... and they needed to use a credit card!

But, hey, if you don't want to take PayPal that is okay by me ... more renters who will do business with me instead of you!

Blahnde

I agree that sometimes the transaction needs to be done very fast. In that kind of situation, I would probably take paypal. But hopefully I won't ever need to sell the points on the fly like that. We don't have that many pts to rent anyway so you won't get much competition here!