No option to change default funding source?

[TigerNightmare]

PayPal has long been a thorn in my side and now it's become a sword run through.  When I was a teenager, before the proliferation of the online marketplace and credit cards everywhere (including McDonald's!), PayPal was an easy and convenient way to directly pay for eBay auctions without the hassle of waiting for a check or money order to get through the mail and be cleared after several business days.

Since that time, I've graduated to a much beloved American Express Blue Cash credit card.  I earn an annual cash reward based on a percentage of my spending, I get excellent protection and a free warranty extension, to name just a few of the many benefits.  And yet, PayPal will always default to my checking account as payment.  For every single payment I've made, I've had to change the funding source from checking to credit with at least five extra clicks and a minute's worth of loading and the ever-present, "Are you sure you want us to do what you just asked us to do?" message.

As if that wasn't bad enough, now PayPal isn't even giving me the option to change funding sources.  I just bought something on eBay and they asked me to log into my PayPal account.  I entered my password and ... that was it.  The transaction was finished.  While that makes it easy and more simplified, my lack of control is outrageous.  I combed through my account options and there just isn't a way to change default funding options, as if there ever was.

Despite receiving an item-shipped message from the seller already, with the transaction listed as complete, I'm not allowed to remove my checking account because the transaction that's listed as complete is somehow still pending and will be for 3-5 days.

I'm wondering, once the transaction is complete complete, will I really be allowed to remove my checking account or is this required for PayPal?  And if so, is there any way to restore the option of changing your funding source or even changing your default funding source?

Why does PayPal prefer checking over credit cards?  I can't think of anything other than cravenly weak legal power against a consumer's ability to reverse a bad charge with a credit card.  But checking accounts can have insufficient funds and credit cards pretty much have an optional layaway program built-in.  There's a better chance for someone to follow through with credit card than a checking account.  So why why why WHY with these terrible policies?!

[tmcnewyork]

I ALWAYS change my funding source to credit card, and am positive I did it for my last three transactions, but they all went directly to my bank account anyway. My bank called me up this morning because I was getting overdrafts all over the place. (I have a separate account affiliated with PayPal. No way was I EVER going to give them access to my regular checking account.) What really ticks me off is that I didn't put the transaction through my bank account and I have no recourse... and overdraft fees at $30 a pop. $90 in overdraft fees for $36 of purchases. Scary.

[DuncanE]

I have the same problem. I get invoiced from a vendor that i use frequently. I have a American Express Black card (i could buy a Farari with it if i wanted) attached to my PayPal account and i am unable to pay a $525 invoice with it. They tell my it is high risk... Whatever that means.

When i call PayPal it makes me want to shoot myself in the head. I get some idiot in India who refuses to tell me why i am unable to use my credit card to pay the invoice... They have all sort of reasons why i can and no resolutions to fix it! Saying that i hate PayPal is a grose understatment. I am a business, i do not want to pay for invoices useing my bank account!

There is no hope that i can see that PayPal will ever fix these kinds iof things. It is a never end sea of restrictions and extremely poor customer service. They are far from a convenient way to pay ANYTHING.

Duncan

[OldOwl]

Mine is a related problem, but I don't know if it stems from the same source.  I have used Ebay successfully for many years, having my credit card linked for payment to my PayPal account.  Last week, while trying to complete a payment transaction, I was blocked from doing so, and advised that I could no longer utilize my credit card to back up my PayPal account, b/c I had reached a theoretical "spending limit.."  I was required to open a new credit line billing itself as "Paypal Plus" credit card.  I had to give out all of my confidential information to this "service," and when I tried to use the new credit link,  after a few transactions, I started receiving phone calls from this company inquiring about fraudulent charges, and limited my purchases to under $500.00.  Each time I would call, to try to lift my credit limit, I was required to give out more confidential information, and new limitations and rules were applied to my use of credit through this "service."  They insist that they are legitimate, but they have a different number from PayPal (the company associated with Ebay), and they don't seem to communicate at all with Ebay's PayPal, other than to intercept credit and confidential information.  The most I could ascertain from them is that they are called GE financial, and they close out any and all other options for participating with Ebay.  When I finally realized what was going on, I was able to contact the REAL PayPal, and they immediately restored my original credit card as default payment for my purchases, and I was able to successfully complete my transaction.  It took me at least 2 1/2 hours on the phone to get this all sorted out.  I am steaming!!!!

[OldOwl]

Mine is a related problem, but I don't know if it stems from the same source.  I have used Ebay successfully for many years, having my credit card linked for payment to my PayPal account.  Last week, while trying to complete a payment transaction, I was blocked from doing so, and advised that I could no longer utilize my credit card to back up my PayPal account, b/c I had reached a theoretical "spending limit.."  I was required to open a new credit line billing itself as "Paypal Plus" credit card.  I had to give out all of my confidential information to this "service," and when I tried to use the new credit link,  after a few transactions, I started receiving phone calls from this company inquiring about fraudulent charges, and limited my purchases to under $500.00.  Each time I would call, to try to lift my credit limit, I was required to give out more confidential information, and new limitations and rules were applied to my use of credit through this "service."  They insist that they are legitimate, but they have a different number from PayPal (the company associated with Ebay), and they don't seem to communicate at all with Ebay's PayPal, other than to intercept credit and confidential information.  The most I could ascertain from them is that they are called GE financial, and they close out any and all other options for participating with Ebay.  When I finally realized what was going on, I was able to contact the REAL PayPal, and they immediately restored my original credit card as default payment for my purchases, and I was able to successfully complete my transaction.  It took me at least 2 1/2 hours on the phone to get this all sorted out.  I am steaming!!!!

[VK]

Wow!! Thanks for your input. I was trying to verify my card by using my checking account. PayPal keeps saying another user is using that account and to provide them with another account. I've dealt with PayPal before and know there is no reasoning with them or changing their data to match reality. Because of your post I am NOT going to give them my 

checking account number. I don't like knowing they may have kept my checking account number from years ago. Perhaps I should use my old name to sign on. It seems if you haven't used their service in years, they might delete your account to prevent any problems. Well that's PayPal for you. I will wail for them to verify my card through email (was a bunch of baloney) because canceling this new account could only cause more problems. I don't like PayPal but it appears to be the only way to use Ebay at times. Vickie

[DuncanE]

Infact, even these forums are full of people complaiining and NO ONE giving any answers to these questions! ARG!

[TigerNightmare]

I deleted my checking account not long after my original post.  So far, so good.  But reading all these replies, I'm still worried.  They would really go so far as to deny a credit card payment well within its spending limit (if any) and refer to it as high risk?  What the **bleep**?  What exactly do they need verified, anyway?  I don't exactly shop on eBay on even a monthly basis, but I'm reluctant to even bother with that amount of frequency.

Paypal was originally a separate company until eBay bought it.  So, on top of winning bid commission, they make whatever they make with Paypal.  Double dipping.  There has to be something illegal about that.  It's like being unable to buy a bag of chips at the store because they only accept payment in the forum of Mario Lopez Dollars and the only way to obtain this fake currency is to give Mario Lopez your bank account number.  And Mario Lopez owns the store where you just tried to buy chips.

There's only four ways out of this.  I'll list them in order of likeliness.

1. eBay/PayPal strives for better customer service and satisfaction and mend their ways of their own accord.  Not going to happen.

2. eBay is supplanted by a bigger, better online auction website and is forced into actual competition after years of lazy monopoly.  It could happen, but definitely not in a weak economy like this.

3. eBay **bleep**s the pooch several thousand times too many, prompting a class action lawsuit.  This is what we should hope for.  They've already cost a lot of people a lot of money in unnecessary fees that could easily have been avoided.  All we need is a very hungry law firm whose partners get hit by PayPal personally.

4. New federal financial legislation makes PayPal's shady business practices illegal.  The most likely thing to happen, but not terribly helpful if there isn't a system in place to police these crimes.

[gesxickah]

I would like to change the default as well. I've had two instances now where I haven't been able to change the payment type prior to purchasing the item. It's maddening.

[tmcnewyork]

I have taken this one step further and have reported PayPal to the Better Business Bureau. I really don't expect anything to come of it, but... best case scenario, I'll recoup the overdraft fees charged to my bank account (after the funding source had been changed to credit card, but not honored). At the very least, there will be a complaint on file for PayPal, and if these start piling up, who knows what could come of it! Anybody else out there ready to man up?

[rubantin]

To make this even more interesting. I WANT to use my bank account as my default. However, I have an ebay Mastercard and it continuallu reverts to it. I have been charged OVERDRAFT fees at $35 a pop because I am by default paying with the stupid card. PLEASE make my bank account the default.

So... wow... this sounds a little to coincidental to not be constructed to suk us dry.

[btw123]

I find this frustrating too!  However, there is a way to set your credit card as a back-up funding source, so if there isn't enough money in your bank account it will put the balance on the credit card.