Correct method to deal with eChecks

[JessicaAndTim]

I tried to pay for an item on ebay using paypal but by card linked to my paypal has expired and so an eCheck was issues from another account linked to my paypal. 

I don't want to use the eCheck system because it's slow.

After reading some questions on here I've asked the seller to refuse the eCheck. 

I Will now fund my paypal from the bank account in question and make an instant payment. 

However, I have read that even though the eCheck has been cancelled paypal will still attempt to debit eCheck amount from my bank account - is it possible to stop this form happening - short of asking my bank to refuse the payment?

I have also read that even though the seller has refused the eCheck they still receive the money - essentially leading to a double payment. How do I prevent this (short of asking my bank to refuse the payment).

[angelleye]

When the e-check is issued PayPal hits your bank to submit the transfer similar to a check transaction. Then it will take 2 - 3 business days for the e-check to clear.

If the seller has refused the payment then the cash could end up in your PayPal account instead of being moved back to your bank, but I've never heard of an instance where the seller still got the payment. If it stays in PayPal, though, then it would be twice the amount expected removed from the bank account (one that went to the seller and one that went to the PayPal account) so you would want to make sure you have enough to cover that until you can transfer that amount back to your bank from PayPal.

I think you're just making things hard on yourself, though. If you submit a transfer from the bank to your account it could take a couple of days for that to clear the same as the e-check, so then you wouldn't be able to make the "instant payment" until the cash was actually there and ready to go.

The way around that is to have a card added to the account which can act as a backup funding source. This way it will do the bank transfer and process the payment instantly, but would fall to your backup funding source if the bank funds weren't available. Since your backup funding source was expired, it kicked into a regular e-check.

By the time you get all of this worked out the e-check probably would clear anyway.

[JessicaAndTim]

So exactly the oppersit of what you said has happened. 

I asked the seller to refuse the payment. He did so. I could see this on the ebay auction. 

I transferred money from the bank account to paypal via bank transfer which was instant. 

I paid the seller via paypal instantly. The seller confirmed this and is sending the goods. 

Today I see that two payments have been made to the seller. The money has been taken from by bank account twice. There is zero on my paypal balance. 

So something you have never heard of has just happened to me - I heard about it with only 10 minutes of googleing - which is why I asked here. 

Absolutely absurd - what the hell are paypal playing at?

[kernowlass]

@JessicaAndTim

When you cancel an echeque payment those funds can't do a u-turn > they still have to process through to paypal who will then credit your paypal balance  but that takes a few days and sometimes up to a week.

[JessicaAndTim]

Further to this, why on earth didn't paypal have a dialog box at the point of payment saying "You are about send an eCheck - please note, this is NOT an instant transfer method and could take up to 7 days to clear - even if you cancel this eCheck funds will still be withdrawn from your account" (And in my case paid to the seller anyway.)

[kernowlass]

@JessicaAndTim

No idea, ask them but no paypal payments are instant, paypal credit the seller for you and paypal wait for the funds to transfer.

But with echeques its you that takes the wait, normally they give you a 'clearance' date.