Pay After Delivery...sometimes

[citromis]

I'm trying to zero-in on the rules for "Pay After Delivery". Sometimes this option comes up and sometimes it doesn't.

I've tried changing shipping addresses to see if that has a bearing on it. I live in Canada, so I thought maybe it's a Canada/US issue. Frankly, it would be a lot simpler if I just knew what the particulars were with respect to "Pay After Delivery" instead of trying to figure it out by trial and error. But, I can't find anything much in PayPal's online help.

Does, anyone know what the rules are for "Pay After Delivery" (for Canadians, if it matters) with respect to why and when the option turns up and why it doesn't for various transactions? Thanks.

[yolanda1969]

Thats a good question..It is a good option if it works all the time..It was asking me to update my credidt cards and adress i did and still wont work..It will be nice if someone help with this matter...

[overhauled101]

I have been making purchases for the past 6 months or so using this option but recently it hasn't been available for some reason and am looking for answers to the reason why it may not be. 

[Doris_girl]

Same thing for me. I did a BUNCH of Christmas shopping on eBay using Pay After Delivery and it was so great cause I just paid for everything after the holidays and now whenever I try to buy something, the option isn't there.

It's really frusterating especially when buying through eBay because you commit to buy an item first before you can determine how you want to pay.

I e-mailed PayPal to inquire on this further and the answer they gave me was pretty much useless. They said that sometimes the option may not be available. I used it on like 30 transactions before Christmas and ever since then, it has worked ZERO times!!!

I really wish someone from Paypal would get there s**t together and explain what the hell is really going on!!!

[mjdn50]

OK everybody, this is the answer that I received from customer service regarding the seeming randomness of PAD: "From reviewing the account, the payment and the seller's preference, the internal system has selected the payment to be approved for Pay After Delivery. We use complex statistical models to identify transaction patterns. This is similar to the way many banks and credit card companies work on checking if the transaction is secure or not. Sellers have the flexibility on how they would like to receive payments for their order fulfillment to provide good service for their customers. Some of them doesn't accept these payment for apparent reason." I initially was told that it is the sellers choice to have PAD available, but I questioned that and received the above reply. So we should all keep track to see if this is true and report to PayPal if we find that their reasoning is not true.

[lilblue10]

Hi ! I live in Canada as well and the same thing is happening to me. Pay After Delivery hasn't been available to me for the past month except for yesterday when I was making a 3.25$ payment which is kind of ridiculous lol. I had been using it for about 4 months without any problem so I would really like an answer ! I've just sent an email to Paypal about it so hopefully they can resolve that. I'll let you know how it goes !

[mjdn50]

I live in Canada as well and have the same issue with the "pay after delivery" option not always being a available. I had thought that perhaps that had to do with the sellers choice. However, yesterday I attempted to purchase on eBay and use the pay after delivery. Didn't show up! So I emailed PayPal. I have not received any sort of reply as yet, not even the automatic one. But then I tried it again later and the pay after...showed up! Today, I tried to make an eBay purchase and it was not there again! I have no idea what/who dictates this option, but I would like to know "the rules". I will post if I get an answer.

[citromis]

Really! I wish there was a way to know in advance whether Pay After Delivery will be available. With online merchants, the only way is to run through a transaction and see if it shows up. Then, if it doesn't, cancel all the way back.

With eBay it's tougher because you have to start by committing yourself to the purchase. If Pay After Delivery doesn't show up, it's then too late; you've made the purchase. I thought that it always shows up for eBay but then on one purchase it didn't, so I don't know anymore.

So far, I think--I emphasize, I think--Pay After Delivery will not show up if you are using an alternate shipping address from your main address that you used to register with PayPal. Also, Pay After Delivery showing up is dependent on the merchant. Apparently, some merchants are approved for it and some are not. I can't tell in advance which merchant is approved.

What I don't understand about PayPal's logic is that Pay After Delivery is a service meant to encourage purchases and use of PayPal. Otherwise, why bother offering at all. But, if the buyer can't know whether the service will be available on a purchase, then the service itself is not part of the buying decision. So, what's the point?

[mjdn50]

Precisely!!! Going through the entire purchase process to only find out that the option is not available is beyond frustrating! The thing is, the seller gets paid right away by PayPal! If a buyer has a proven record of the funds being available once the 21 days is up, then the the "pay after delivery option should come up automatically. I am quite determined to get a concise answer from PayPal on this issue, then I will post what I learn.

[citromis]

I have a new tidbit of information to add to the ongoing mystery investigation 🙂

I just tried to use Pay After Delivery (PaD) with a merchant with which I have already used it on a previous transaction. Now, suddenly, it was not available. So, I called PayPal to try and find out what's the story. As usual, they were vague in their responses with respect to PaD.

They couldn't tell me why this time it wasn't available. But, they did tell me that PaD is a feature that individual merchants need to sign up for with PayPal. Maybe it's a special further financial check or the service fees are different; I don't know, I'm guessing.

Also, I'm also pretty sure that PaD is not offered to all PayPal users. That is, on the consumer's end, you have to have a PayPal account in good standing.

I think the best and easiest thing would be if such users had available and would use a modified PayPal logo that indicates that they offer the PaD feature/service. That would really simplify things for consumers who would like to make use of this feature.