July 7, 2004 6:13 AM PDT
eBay sellers file billing suit
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The two eBay members filed the claim on Friday, alleging that eBay failed to address problems with a billing tool that overcharged individuals selling items on its site. In the suit, brought in California Superior Court, eBay members Robert Cerreta and Nancy Spaulding contend that the online auction host double-billed their user accounts after launching a new payment processing system in February.
According to the complaint, Cerreta and Spaulding, who hail from Florida and Ohio, respectively, were charged twice the amount they actually owed eBay for handling auctions of goods they were selling. The eBay users assert that the funds were then inappropriately drawn from bank accounts and credit cards they had registered with the company. In addition, the two customers said that eBay threatened to suspend their user accounts over the disputed charges.
An eBay representative said late Wednesday that the company has yet to be officially served with the suit and declined to comment on the claims.
However, company executives have already apologized publicly for the billing issue. In mid-June, General Manager Jeff Jordan told attendees at the company's user conference that eBay had discovered the double-billing issue, fixed the problem and was in the process of addressing credit issues that had resulted from the gaffe. Jordan acknowledged in a speech that eBay had let its customers down, and he promised that the company would be more careful in launching a new search tool that is one of the company's forthcoming technological improvements.
The billing problem was first aired in the company's own online user forums. eBay's billing team eventually posted messages to the discussion area, pledging to fix the issue and help customers address any mistakes.
While neither Cerreta nor Spaulding was charged large amounts of money as a result of the glitch--each was overcharged about $20--the customers maintain that eBay's payment system also rounds up the dollar amounts it charges sellers without telling them it does so. For instance, they said, eBay now rounds a bill of $30.78 up to $30.80. Despite the fact that the system tacks on only a few cents to each transaction, the customers said the additional charges add up over time.
In the suit, Spaulding also said she was threatened with jail when she attempted to protest outside the user conference, which was held in New Orleans. A copy of the lawsuit has been published on the Web site of the law firm that the two eBay members are using, Fazio & Micheletti, of San Mateo, Calif.
In related news, eBay's PayPal unit recently reached a settlement with customers who accused the company of illegally freezing their funds. As a result, PayPal said it would pay a total of $9.25 million to settle the federal class-action suit, $3.4 million of which would go to paying its customers' legal fees. PayPal admitted no wrongdoing in settling the claims, which were filed in 2002 as part of two federal class-action suits that also alleged other customer service deficiencies.
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Unfortunately, I have also witnessed a gradual crumbling of its infrastructure. Under eBay's "new and improved" billing system, sellers who generate $15 to $20 in fees are getting bills for $200 to $300 and more. Corrections to these errors sometimes take months. The billing system has run amock. Unilateral changes in category structures have put hundreds of sellers who depend on the income generated by eBay sales out of business. The sad thing is, the sellers are getting steamrolled by corporate greed.
I wholeheartedly support the efforts of these brave individuals who are leading the way to justice for all of us. Someone has finally spoken up and said, "Enough!" My respect and admiration are tempered, however, with melancholy. It didn't have to come to this. How sad...for us all.
Unfortunately, I have also witnessed a gradual crumbling of its infrastructure. Under eBay's "new and improved" billing system, sellers who generate $15 to $20 in fees are getting bills for $200 to $300 and more. Corrections to these errors sometimes take months. The billing system has run amock. Unilateral changes in category structures have put hundreds of sellers who depend on the income generated by eBay sales out of business. The sad thing is, the sellers are getting steamrolled by corporate greed.
I wholeheartedly support the efforts of these brave individuals who are leading the way to justice for all of us. Someone has finally spoken up and said, "Enough!" My respect and admiration are tempered, however, with melancholy. It didn't have to come to this. How sad...for us all.
In my experience, eBay acts like a bunch of bullys who will gladly conduit online crooks into your living room for ridiculuous fees. If you have a relative who is an addicted eBayer, do him/her a favor and point them to Pricewatch - you will save them their money and dignity.
In my experience, eBay acts like a bunch of bullys who will gladly conduit online crooks into your living room for ridiculuous fees. If you have a relative who is an addicted eBayer, do him/her a favor and point them to Pricewatch - you will save them their money and dignity.
he will try to do the best he can as acution board adress is www.lowpricepaid.org
the fee's are very low and a great deal he started it so they would have a honest auction board they can count
on he takes paypal but plains to do more he want to get it start free to join and if their are any rip off's he will address
them and take care of it he for real that is why he started it to try help people who sale not get rip off
Robert
Robert
I used to use ebay to purchase a few things, but I got burned for about $200.00 after many tries of trying to recoup my loss with ebay and paypal. I just gave up. I have never used them since and try to voice my opinion about them to who will every listen. I dont know if they have changed how they do business I dont care. I will never darken their web site again. All I can say is hurray and take them for all you can. I want to read more stories like this. It makes my heart swell with so much joy.
I used to use ebay to purchase a few things, but I got burned for about $200.00 after many tries of trying to recoup my loss with ebay and paypal. I just gave up. I have never used them since and try to voice my opinion about them to who will every listen. I dont know if they have changed how they do business I dont care. I will never darken their web site again. All I can say is hurray and take them for all you can. I want to read more stories like this. It makes my heart swell with so much joy.
PayPal offers no protection for using Direct Transfer or eCheck so if you end up being the victim of a scam which is becoming an epidemic on Ebay youre out. PayPals so called Buyer Protection is another scam because you have to pay a fee for it and most of the time they will find a way to disqualify or dismiss a complaint. PayPal and Ebay are in the business of scamming both Buyers and Sellers. Its no wonder why Ebay has had to adjust their earning projects in recent days. People are quickly finding out that they facilitate the fraudulent actions on their website and then play dumb. Their purchase of PayPal was just to increase their money making scam. The Federal Government needs to get involved and shutdown Ebay and Paypal.
PayPal offers no protection for using Direct Transfer or eCheck so if you end up being the victim of a scam which is becoming an epidemic on Ebay youre out. PayPals so called Buyer Protection is another scam because you have to pay a fee for it and most of the time they will find a way to disqualify or dismiss a complaint. PayPal and Ebay are in the business of scamming both Buyers and Sellers. Its no wonder why Ebay has had to adjust their earning projects in recent days. People are quickly finding out that they facilitate the fraudulent actions on their website and then play dumb. Their purchase of PayPal was just to increase their money making scam. The Federal Government needs to get involved and shutdown Ebay and Paypal.
The fact is, Paypal is disorganized and the staff are completely incompetent and unqualified to be making financial decisions. And no one there really has the brains to make a honest decision. The state attorney general should investigate them for fraud!
The fact is, Paypal is disorganized and the staff are completely incompetent and unqualified to be making financial decisions. And no one there really has the brains to make a honest decision. The state attorney general should investigate them for fraud!
PayPal system. During a recent screening, we noticed an issue regarding
your account.
We are very sorry, but in accordance with the PayPal User Agreement, we are
no longer able to have you as a customer.
We have had to close your account for the following reason:
Recent account activity has made it necessary for us to collect additional
verification information.
We apologize for any inconvenience this account closure may cause. You may
still log in to PayPal to view your transactions history and personal
information for a limited time.
To review your account and some or all of the information that PayPal used
to make its decision to limit your account access, please visit the
Resolution Center. If, after reviewing your account information, you seek
further clarification regarding your account access, please contact PayPal
by visiting the Help Center and clicking "Contact Us".
The funds in your account will be held for 180 days, due to the risk of
outstanding chargebacks and complaints. After 180 days, any remaining funds
will be available to you for withdrawal.
We thank you for your prompt attention to this matter.
Sincerely,
PayPal Account Review Department
PayPal Email ID PP522
Pay Pal uses an automated program that searches and links accounts designed to assign liability to a related party when accounts are in violation of Pay Pal policy. If a member's account is derogatory or is in an adverse standing with Pay Pal, any other member with similar search criteria such as last name, matching previous address, or several other criteria (deemed confidential by Pay Pal representatives), will have their account access restricted until such issue is corrected. This is the tricky part, there can be no connection at all between these accounts and yet the financial liability is automatically transferred. In fact Pay Pal will debit a members account to pay for the negative balance of another unrelated member's account. (This sounds wrong, but it is how they conduct business: They will take money from you to pay a strangers debt, and/or halt your ability to conduct business if some other unknown member of Pay Pal has a negative account balance...) This is illegal, as in any transaction protected by federal and contract law, all parties much agree to the terms and in this case, must actually be liable for the debt. In conversation with a representative named Scott in the account review department at Pay Pal, it was stated, that the stand of Pay Pal was that they are not a bank and do not have to abide by Federal Banking Laws. In fact Scott was so confident that the actions of Pay Pal were not in violation of any federal banking or trade law that as a representative of Pay Pal, he was compelled to terminate phone calls with members at will and terminate accounts without review when faced with questions concerning tort interference with a member's business. The circumstances surrounding the conduct of how Pay Pal and their parent company Ebay conduct business must be investigated and controlled. This issue will persist unless regulation and investigation is initiated. If consumers, regulatory agencies, and media are not made aware of such illegal practices by large autonomous, multi-national companies, then banking or FDIC pass though violations and FTC violations will continue to harm businesses and individuals. We would like to see an investigation into why Pay Pal suspends a business banking account (which is what this is, complete with a debit master card) and halts a companies ability to conduct business, pay bills, function financially, and attempt to illegally pay anther members debt with private money.
PayPal system. During a recent screening, we noticed an issue regarding
your account.
We are very sorry, but in accordance with the PayPal User Agreement, we are
no longer able to have you as a customer.
We have had to close your account for the following reason:
Recent account activity has made it necessary for us to collect additional
verification information.
We apologize for any inconvenience this account closure may cause. You may
still log in to PayPal to view your transactions history and personal
information for a limited time.
To review your account and some or all of the information that PayPal used
to make its decision to limit your account access, please visit the
Resolution Center. If, after reviewing your account information, you seek
further clarification regarding your account access, please contact PayPal
by visiting the Help Center and clicking "Contact Us".
The funds in your account will be held for 180 days, due to the risk of
outstanding chargebacks and complaints. After 180 days, any remaining funds
will be available to you for withdrawal.
We thank you for your prompt attention to this matter.
Sincerely,
PayPal Account Review Department
PayPal Email ID PP522
Pay Pal uses an automated program that searches and links accounts designed to assign liability to a related party when accounts are in violation of Pay Pal policy. If a member's account is derogatory or is in an adverse standing with Pay Pal, any other member with similar search criteria such as last name, matching previous address, or several other criteria (deemed confidential by Pay Pal representatives), will have their account access restricted until such issue is corrected. This is the tricky part, there can be no connection at all between these accounts and yet the financial liability is automatically transferred. In fact Pay Pal will debit a members account to pay for the negative balance of another unrelated member's account. (This sounds wrong, but it is how they conduct business: They will take money from you to pay a strangers debt, and/or halt your ability to conduct business if some other unknown member of Pay Pal has a negative account balance...) This is illegal, as in any transaction protected by federal and contract law, all parties much agree to the terms and in this case, must actually be liable for the debt. In conversation with a representative named Scott in the account review department at Pay Pal, it was stated, that the stand of Pay Pal was that they are not a bank and do not have to abide by Federal Banking Laws. In fact Scott was so confident that the actions of Pay Pal were not in violation of any federal banking or trade law that as a representative of Pay Pal, he was compelled to terminate phone calls with members at will and terminate accounts without review when faced with questions concerning tort interference with a member's business. The circumstances surrounding the conduct of how Pay Pal and their parent company Ebay conduct business must be investigated and controlled. This issue will persist unless regulation and investigation is initiated. If consumers, regulatory agencies, and media are not made aware of such illegal practices by large autonomous, multi-national companies, then banking or FDIC pass though violations and FTC violations will continue to harm businesses and individuals. We would like to see an investigation into why Pay Pal suspends a business banking account (which is what this is, complete with a debit master card) and halts a companies ability to conduct business, pay bills, function financially, and attempt to illegally pay anther members debt with private money.
and still put my money on hold 180 days, what's kind of bs is that.
i email them thousand times, they always use auto reply email
their customer service is ""help less"""
I called, and they put me on hold for 20 mins long
and still put my money on hold 180 days, what's kind of bs is that.
i email them thousand times, they always use auto reply email
their customer service is ""help less"""
I called, and they put me on hold for 20 mins long
Many people here have been robbed of moeny, had accounts held or frozen, and not even CNET or the Calf AGs office will investigage. I bet there are more stung people, and it looks to me like PayPal is run by organized crime.
In this case, Ebay/PayPal created ficticious accounts to recieve merchandise, have paypal freeze and take back the money, so they would get both.
How much will the patrons of Ebay put up with this? I would think some smart lawyer out there can find enough people out there to sue Ebay not only on falsifying its own records, but on Rico laws and breaking laws involving interstate commerence.
MrMikl
Many people here have been robbed of moeny, had accounts held or frozen, and not even CNET or the Calf AGs office will investigage. I bet there are more stung people, and it looks to me like PayPal is run by organized crime.
In this case, Ebay/PayPal created ficticious accounts to recieve merchandise, have paypal freeze and take back the money, so they would get both.
How much will the patrons of Ebay put up with this? I would think some smart lawyer out there can find enough people out there to sue Ebay not only on falsifying its own records, but on Rico laws and breaking laws involving interstate commerence.
MrMikl