Possible fraudulent/erroneous transfer from PayPal (Europe) S.a.r.l. et Cie., S

[FredRaven8]

So recently I had made an accidental subscription purchase in the value of 89.99€, I had it canceled and was granted a full refund. So far so good. Now I use my bank account as my preferred payment method on paypal. So when the refund value arrived it went straight to my bank account even though the money from the original purchase had yet to be debited from my bank account, this I assume cause my paypal balance to go from 0 to -89.99€, so naturally I tried to fix this as fast as possible so I directly transferred that same sum from my bank account to my paypal. Well, on the 20th the transfer was done, my paypal balance was back to 0 and the issue seemed to be solved. 

Well turns out on the 21st there was some sort of automated transfer from my bank account from "PayPal (Europe) S.a.r.l. et Cie., S" for the value of 89.99€, I did not make this transfer, make any additional purchases, and my paypal balance is still at 0, so now they seem to have just stolen 89.99€ from me. Should I expect this money to show up in my balance soon? If not, then how do I resolve this. I'd truly appreciate any and all help.

[kernowlass · Accepted solution]

@FredRaven8 

If you have failed bank transfer OR negative balance then Paypal automatically keep trying to access those funds to clear your negative balance.

If you sent a bank transfer to your Paypal account and Paypal also automatically applied for the funds as well then you would have 2 payments processing to your paypal balance.
The first one to arrive will clear the negative balance and the second one will be credited as a + to your balance and you can withdraw it back to your balance once cleared.

[FredRaven8]

Well, I certainly hope you're correct, what you're saying makes sense, I'm only worried due to the money not having arrived yet to my paypal account.

How long should I expect to wait, since the transfer was done on the 21st of this month?

[kernowlass]

@FredRaven8 

3-5 business days as it goes as an echeque ie electronic transfer.

I am right, happens to lots of folks and I have given that message loads of times.

[FredRaven8]

The funds just arrived while I slept on the 29th, so the 6th business day, I am glad and relieved that the issue is resolved. I was curious though, why do these types of transfers takes such a long time to complete?

[kernowlass]

@FredRaven8 

Transfers from bank accounts are never instant as Paypal use electronic transfers ie echeques  and NOT wire transfer (cheaper but slower).

Funds normally leave your bank account from a few hours > few days later but they take several working days to clear through to the seller/Paypal as they go via ACH in batches.

Its called instant because normally Paypal credit the seller upfront and then Paypal take the wait for the funds to transfer, this is so you get your item without delay.

However there are times however when its you and the seller / recipient that take the wait for the echeque to clear and here are some of the reasons...

1. Back up card has expired or needs updating.
2. You have had a recent negative balance or failed bank transfer (so paypal are not going to credit the seller in advance in case it happens again).
3. For some high cost riskier payments / transactions.
4. Friends / family payments *funded from a bank account* as this option is free then its you that takes the wait this time.
5. Clearing a negative balance by adding funds from your bank account.