Question for folks who've used Paypal to receive payment

[bc_dup1]

I've just sold a combo on Ebay. The buyer immediately paid by Paypal, but Paypal have emailed me to say I can't accept credit card payment unless I upgrade from a Personal to a Premium account. This means I'd have to pay commission on the credit card payment.

 

Looking at Paypal's site, it clearly suggests that I can accept auction payments with my Personal account. It further seems to suggest that Premium accounts are appropriate for people who will enter into frequent transactions, which doesn't describe me. However it is also clear that a Premium account is needed to accept credit card payments.

 

Frankly, I'm confused, but the implications seem to be:

 

- the buyer can use some other method of payment, not credit card, but still via Paypal OR

 

- I upgrade to Premium and pay the commission.

 

This may be a question of protocol as much as anything else. Have I, by indicating that I will accept Paypal, led bidders to believe that I will accept credit card payment, in which case I should absorb the commission? Or have I merely said that I will accept payment via Paypal, leaving the onus on the buyer to use a non-credit card method of transferring funds so I avoid commission?

 

Sorry for the convoluted description of the problem, but I really don't know whether I should simply upgrade and pay the commission or ask the buyer to find another way of transferring the funds.

[MattC]

Yeah, you did indicate that you'd accept credit card payments when you listed paypal as a payment service. Many people (real cheapskates, IMHO) specificaly list that they will only accept bank and/or paypal acct. transfers so as not to have to pay the credit card fee. The way I see it, you have to ship now that the buyer paid. The recpient fee for credit cards isn't too high, especially if you've sold a relatvely pricey item.

 

So yes, you do need to sign up for the premium account to receive that payment. Otherwise you'd have to decline the payment and ask for it in another form. It's bad e-business to do the latter.

[_Sweet Willie_]

Yup. I'd upgrade your PayPal account to premium and ship the item, and, as Matt said, the credit card fees you will absorb are generally not too high. In the future you can account for them somewhat by figuring them into your "reserve" price.

[bc_dup1]

Thanks guys. I don't have any problems paying the commission if that's the usual thing.

[PJR]

What Sweets said.

 

PJR

[Prague]

Originally posted by Sweet Willie:

...In the future you can account for them somewhat by figuring them into your "reserve" price.

Is it normal for fees (like taxes, I guess) to get passed on to the consumer?

[bc_dup1]

I'd already indicated to the buyer that I was unsure of protocol here. He was very decent and offered to pay by cheque or to pay the commission himself. I noted that I'd discussed it with some people (namely you guys) and had clarified that the commission was my obligation and that I would pay. We are both happy with the outcome.

 

I do think Paypal's guidance to Personal account holders could be clearer, though. Obviously both he and I knew were unsure what our obligations were and we are both Paypal members.

[The Fonz]

i learned this the hard way too. if you sell a more high ticket item on ebay, your buyer is going to want to pay with a credit card. the problem is paypal requires you to have this premium account in order to accept the credit card payment. unless you need the cash right away, i would insist on cashiers checks or money orders.

[MattC]

As you could imagine, they tell you about but don't advertise their fees. If they made a big deal about the fees for those transactions, fewer people would use it. IMHO, PayPal is definately worth the fees they charge.

 

I'll let you in on a little (not so) secret: we ebayers aren't the only people to pay fees for credit card transactions. Every time you use a credit/debit card to make a retail purchase, the store pays a fee for that transaction, usually a base fee plus a percentage of the total sale.

[george costanza]

Originally posted by paostby:

Originally posted by Sweet Willie:

...In the future you can account for them somewhat by figuring them into your "reserve" price.

Is it normal for fees (like taxes, I guess) to get passed on to the consumer?

You bet your sweet bippy!

Every business does this no matter how much they might whine about govt. regulation, taxes, etc., all costs get passed on to the end consumer.