How long does the Paypal gift option last?

[Topnotchsy]

I was wondering how long people thought the Paypal gift option would last before Paypal realized/decided they were losing more money that it was worth to offer the option?

 

[HPC]

Good question.

Problem is that people do legitimately send gifts, so theres really no way paypal can tell the difference unless you specifically list goods in the description.

 

[rainmanesq]

I’m guessing that as the # of cc/bank chargebacks from ‘gift payments’ that result in buyers not getting their items rises, paypal will soon crackdown on/restrict gift payments. Paypal’s already cracking down on micropayments + may start holding gift payments for 3 weeks like they do on micropayments for some people.

 

[HPC]

How many people have actually figured out that you can do this, other than those who frequent a few message boards?

My guess: not many.

 

[Topnotchsy]

Good question.

Problem is that people do legitimately send gifts, so theres really no way paypal can tell the difference unless you specifically list goods in the description.

How long has the option been available? Seems like on this site over the last few weeks it's become standard to pay with it.

 

[Topnotchsy]

I’m guessing that as the # of cc/bank chargebacks from ‘gift payments’ that result in buyers not getting their items rises, paypal will soon crackdown on/restrict gift payments. Paypal’s already cracking down on micropayments + may start holding gift payments for 3 weeks like they do on micropayments for some people.

That's a term I don't know. (At least in relation to how it would work on Paypal.)

Side point, but is there anyone who feels that it's unethical to use the gift option for a transaction? (This may open a can of worms that is not worth getting into, but I am curious and it's an online message board so what's the worst that can happen, right?)

 

[HPC]

Paypal gets their money either way.

The more customers PayPal has, the more money they make from revenues outside of eBay fees.

It does them good to keep signing up people who may use the gift on a few transactions and also sell on eBay, which gives them more money in fees.

 

[rainmanesq]

I’m guessing that as the # of cc/bank chargebacks from ‘gift payments’ that result in buyers not getting their items rises, paypal will soon crackdown on/restrict gift payments. Paypal’s already cracking down on micropayments + may start holding gift payments for 3 weeks like they do on micropayments for some people.

That's a term I don't know. (At least in relation to how it would work on Paypal.)

Side point, but is there anyone who feels that it's unethical to use the gift option for a transaction? (This may open a can of worms that is not worth getting into, but I am curious and it's an online message board so what's the worst that can happen, right?)

yes, micropayments accts are used by a lot of $.99-$10 sellers...but it often leads to paypal 'flagging' your acct. as for using the gift option, i won't do it as either a seller or buyer b/c there's not enough protection + also, i don't feel it's 'right'. then again, i don't end auctions early or list BINS/sell 'offline' to cheat ebay out of fees. I think part of why ebay/paypal fees are rising is b/c so many people are using 'loopholes' to avoid fees...but people don't think of the BIG impact- they just think yay, i saved $10 by using a 'gift payment'

 

[Topnotchsy]

I’m guessing that as the # of cc/bank chargebacks from ‘gift payments’ that result in buyers not getting their items rises, paypal will soon crackdown on/restrict gift payments. Paypal’s already cracking down on micropayments + may start holding gift payments for 3 weeks like they do on micropayments for some people.

That's a term I don't know. (At least in relation to how it would work on Paypal.)

Side point, but is there anyone who feels that it's unethical to use the gift option for a transaction? (This may open a can of worms that is not worth getting into, but I am curious and it's an online message board so what's the worst that can happen, right?)

yes, micropayments accts are used by a lot of $.99-$10 sellers...but it often leads to paypal 'flagging' your acct. as for using the gift option, i won't do it as either a seller or buyer b/c there's not enough protection + also, i don't feel it's 'right'. then again, i don't end auctions early or list BINS/sell 'offline' to cheat ebay out of fees. I think part of why ebay/paypal fees are rising is b/c so many people are using 'loopholes' to avoid fees...but people don't think of the BIG impact- they just think yay, i saved $10 by using a 'gift payment'

I may be missing the obvious, but what is the issue with micropayments (especially is someone is selling $.99 items on eBay.)

 

[Groat]

yes, micropayments accts are used by a lot of $.99-$10 sellers...but it often leads to paypal 'flagging' your acct. as for using the gift option, i won't do it as either a seller or buyer b/c there's not enough protection + also, i don't feel it's 'right'. then again, i don't end auctions early or list BINS/sell 'offline' to cheat ebay out of fees. I think part of why ebay/paypal fees are rising is b/c so many people are using 'loopholes' to avoid fees...but people don't think of the BIG impact- they just think yay, i saved $10 by using a 'gift payment'

Ebay sales plus paypal fees easily cover the costs of their operation. Ebay has about a 30% profit margin off of $8,730,000,000 yearly revenue, so losing a sale here or there hardly puts a dent in their bottom line. While I'm sure that they will eventually crack down on gift payments, it won't be because they're in any sort of financial danger.

 

[rainmanesq]

yes, micropayments accts are used by a lot of $.99-$10 sellers...but it often leads to paypal 'flagging' your acct. as for using the gift option, i won't do it as either a seller or buyer b/c there's not enough protection + also, i don't feel it's 'right'. then again, i don't end auctions early or list BINS/sell 'offline' to cheat ebay out of fees. I think part of why ebay/paypal fees are rising is b/c so many people are using 'loopholes' to avoid fees...but people don't think of the BIG impact- they just think yay, i saved $10 by using a 'gift payment'

Ebay sales plus paypal fees easily cover the costs of their operation. Ebay has about a 30% profit margin off of $8,730,000,000 yearly revenue, so losing a sale here or there hardly puts a dent in their bottom line. While I'm sure that they will eventually crack down on gift payments, it won't be because they're in any sort of financial danger.

it's not about whether ebay/paypal are profitable to me, but rather i believe sellers who avoid fees on ebay and/or paypal are creating a domino effect that's only going to lead to higher fees- which will drive more sellers off of ebay/paypal- which will make certain cards less available.

 

[rymflaherty]

Lat time I went to use a "gift" payment for a box break on this site it said that the only way I could issue such a payment was if I had paypal funds to use or was using money from a registered bank account.

Maybe I was just doing something wrong, but if that was the case then Paypal really isn't "losing" money. They may not be gaining money, but they're not taking any hit on credit card fees. Plus it's essentially just transfering money at that point, so more often than not that money is probably just going to be used for another transaction that will result in fees.

If anything I think it's the person sending the gift fund that should beware, unless it's someone that poses 100% no risk, it doesn't seem worth foregoing the ridiculous amount of protection they give buyers.

 

[mredsox89]

Lat time I went to use a "gift" payment for a box break on this site it said that the only way I could issue such a payment was if I had paypal funds to use or was using money from a registered bank account.

Maybe I was just doing something wrong, but if that was the case then Paypal really isn't "losing" money. They may not be gaining money, but they're not taking any hit on credit card fees. Plus it's essentially just transfering money at that point, so more often than not that money is probably just going to be used for another transaction that will result in fees.

If anything I think it's the person sending the gift fund that should beware, unless it's someone that poses 100% no risk, it doesn't seem worth foregoing the ridiculous amount of protection they give buyers.

You can't avoid the fees if you are using a CC. You can still send it as a gift, but you still have to pay the fees or have the recipient pay the fees.

 

[HPC]

Dont forget also:

If people have a PayPal CC or Debit Card, and do a gift payment, they make money.

 

[Topnotchsy]

Dont forget also:

If people have a PayPal CC or Debit Card, and do a gift payment, they make money.

Not following what you are saying?

 

[HPC]

Dont forget also:

If people have a PayPal CC or Debit Card, and do a gift payment, they make money.

Not following what you are saying?

I retract that statement, I had written it wrong:

PayPal acts like a bank. They issue their own credit and debit cards (which are backed by someone) and will collect a percentage each time their card is used.

Everytime you swipe your credit card through a machine, the creditor (for example Visa) takes a percentage of the retailers profit: this is how they make money.

If you use a PP credit card somewhere, PP gets a percentage of the sale. With eBay, the fees are inherant and a given.

I am sure someone with more knowledge of bank credit/debit procedures could shine more light on the subject, but my initial statement of "on a gift payment they make money" is probably inaccurate, but my example above shows another stream of revenue paypal has besides eBay.

 

[JVC]

Lat time I went to use a "gift" payment for a box break on this site it said that the only way I could issue such a payment was if I had paypal funds to use or was using money from a registered bank account.

Maybe I was just doing something wrong, but if that was the case then Paypal really isn't "losing" money. They may not be gaining money, but they're not taking any hit on credit card fees. Plus it's essentially just transfering money at that point, so more often than not that money is probably just going to be used for another transaction that will result in fees.

If anything I think it's the person sending the gift fund that should beware, unless it's someone that poses 100% no risk, it doesn't seem worth foregoing the ridiculous amount of protection they give buyers.

This is something that most people on here don't understand about gift payments. If you are funding with a cc or debit card, you have the option to pay the fees or have the fees taken out of the payment. Either way, the fees get paid and you're left with no protection.

 

[pigskincardboard]

Seriously,

If you send a gift, you get no protection, and thus shouldn't have to pay fees. As long as the money stays in the paypal website, they're using it to their advantage and are thus making money anyways.

It's why the bank doesn't charge a service fee on anything if you're accounts over 5K. They're making money off you, there's no reason to piss you off.

If paypal wants to charge me less than 1% on gift payments, that's kosher. I've paid the fees on every gift transaction I've given someone on here -- It's no biggy.

However, to ask people to pay huge fees on transactions that paypal's not offering anything on is just plain bad biznass.

You should be able to simply waive protection on any transaction and not pay fees. To me, that's fair.

 

[JVC]

Seriously,

If you send a gift, you get no protection, and thus shouldn't have to pay fees. As long as the money stays in the paypal website, they're using it to their advantage and are thus making money anyways.

It's why the bank doesn't charge a service fee on anything if you're accounts over 5K. They're making money off you, there's no reason to piss you off.

If paypal wants to charge me less than 1% on gift payments, that's kosher. I've paid the fees on every gift transaction I've given someone on here -- It's no biggy.

However, to ask people to pay huge fees on transactions that paypal's not offering anything on is just plain bad biznass.

You should be able to simply waive protection on any transaction and not pay fees. To me, that's fair.

I can see this being argued for non-cc or debit card transactions, but most of the fee that Paypal charges goes towards covering the fee that the cc companies charge Paypal for their use.

 

[EricInCT]

On the beach that is known as eBay & PayPal, gift payment issues are a mear grain of sand.