Paying via PayPal as "gift": Please Read!

FrankBauer

Gift is nice but PayPal just takes fees from the sender. Money isn't being saved, just who is charged the fees. Seller should just add a few bucks more to his sale price or buyer adds a few bucks (instead of sending as gift). Solves the potential headaches. I've had people pay me as gift a few times but that's really putting a lot of trust in the seller. I've also sent as gift but in reality it's pointless. If u are willing to send as gift then just add a few bucks to ur transaction fee instead and send regularly.

NAUjackfan

FrankBauer wrote:

Gift is nice but PayPal just takes fees from the sender. Money isn't being saved, just who is charged the fees. Seller should just add a few bucks more to his sale price or buyer adds a few bucks (instead of sending as gift). Solves the potential headaches. I've had people pay me as gift a few times but that's really putting a lot of trust in the seller. I've also sent as gift but in reality it's pointless. If u are willing to send as gift then just add a few bucks to ur transaction fee instead and send regularly.

Sending a gift from a bank account or Paypal balance doesn't result in any fees. Using a credit card to send a gift does result in fees, though.

Pearl Jam_ie

I am all for outing someone publicly for not holding up their end of a deal, but we'll save that for another thread. My intention for starting this thread was not to tell people how or how not too do their transactions, or to cause paranoia amongst board members. Just wanted to let people know what could potentially happen if they don't protect themselves as buyers. I did not know the details of how PayPal worked, and for that I am learning a valuable lesson ($50 to be exact, lol), but now I won't let it happen again.

dimitrispearljam

i have a question...
why what ever pay method i use,gift,goods service i pay feeds?
people always say to pay as gift,but always there are fees,the only explanation i can give is that has to do with transfer from another country?
as for my opinion,for who pays the fees.even im a buyer always, i believe buyer must pay the fees...seller must take clear the money ask for his item..

and thanks to OP for let us know

Suziemay

dimitrispearljam wrote:

i have a question...
why what ever pay method i use,gift,goods service i pay feeds?
people always say to pay as gift,but always there are fees,the only explanation i can give is that has to do with transfer from another country?
as for my opinion,for who pays the fees.even im a buyer always, i believe buyer must pay the fees...seller must take clear the money ask for his item..

That's the foreign transaction fee, Dimitris. 0.5%-2% depending on where you are (ouch, Germany!!). See here, section 8.4: https://cms.paypal.com/us/cgi-bin/?cmd= ... #8.%20Fees.

Also, general info on PayPal fees: https://www.paypal.com/webapps/helpcent ... 0006&m=TCI

dimitrispearljam

Suziemay wrote:

dimitrispearljam wrote:

i have a question...
why what ever pay method i use,gift,goods service i pay feeds?
people always say to pay as gift,but always there are fees,the only explanation i can give is that has to do with transfer from another country?
as for my opinion,for who pays the fees.even im a buyer always, i believe buyer must pay the fees...seller must take clear the money ask for his item..

That's the foreign transaction fee, Dimitris. 0.5%-2% depending on where you are (ouch, Germany!!). See here, section 8.4: https://cms.paypal.com/us/cgi-bin/?cmd= ... #8.%20Fees.

Also, general info on PayPal fees: https://www.paypal.com/webapps/helpcent ... 0006&m=TCI

thanks

Elzar

I never request nor send payments as "gift"

- too much shit could happen
- can't print a paypal shipping label
- no protection for buyer or seller

and it's only 3% or lower! cmon people!
I really dont mind paypal fees....its those damn ebay fees, some crazy amounts, especially if anyone tries to sell vinyl or books ~25% !!!

JOEJOEJOE

It makes sense that Paypal doesn't offer any buyer protection of payments sent as "gifts".....they don't fees on gifts, so it wouldn't be cost-effective if they had to spend time rectifying fee-less transactions.

Sometimes, it just makes sense to pay the 3%. I think a good idea is for the seller to figure-in the fees when deciding on the selling cost of an item.

cowboypjfan

Elzar wrote:

I really dont mind paypal fees....its those damn ebay fees, some crazy amounts, especially if anyone tries to sell vinyl or books ~25% !!!

To sell a record on ebay is 10%. If you get paid by paypal, it's 3%. so 13% total fee is very accurate.

boyo79

This thread is certainly an eye-opener. I've always paid 'gift' when buying from someone on here. Never really thought of any complications further down the line, just thought I was doing the seller a favour by them not getting any paypal fees

cowboypjfan

boyo79 wrote:

This thread is certainly an eye-opener. I've always paid 'gift' when buying from someone on here. Never really thought of any complications further down the line, just thought I was doing the seller a favour by them not getting any paypal fees

I have always paid gift too and never once had a problem though. I think there are warning signs when buying anything that you should also be aware of. The A+ list is great but it is not always a good thing for large purchases/sales since some people have only traded small items(under$100).

Elzar

crazypjfan wrote:

Elzar wrote:

I really dont mind paypal fees....its those damn ebay fees, some crazy amounts, especially if anyone tries to sell vinyl or books ~25% !!!

To sell a record on ebay is 10%. If you get paid by paypal, it's 3%. so 13% total fee is very accurate.

they've recently changed their fees - for books, music, dvd's - 13% for the initial $50, plus 5% remaining balance, for fixed price listings, then add all the other fees (insertion, upgrades, paypal, etc)
Auction style listings FVF is a little more i think. They keep changing their rates around.

Either way, the bill i would receive from them at the end of the month when i sold only records would come close to 25% after everything. I stopped selling records on ebay last year, so it might have gone up or down in fees. It's just not worth it for me to give ebay so much money.

I would rather offer the same records here minus their fees, so i get the same amount in the end, but someone here in the pit saves a few bucks and gets records at better prices.

cowboypjfan

Elzar wrote:

crazypjfan wrote:

Elzar wrote:

I really dont mind paypal fees....its those damn ebay fees, some crazy amounts, especially if anyone tries to sell vinyl or books ~25% !!!

To sell a record on ebay is 10%. If you get paid by paypal, it's 3%. so 13% total fee is very accurate.

they've recently changed their fees - for books, music, dvd's - 13% for the initial $50, plus 5% remaining balance, for fixed price listings, then add all the other fees (insertion, upgrades, paypal, etc)
Auction style listings FVF is a little more i think. They keep changing their rates around.

Either way, the bill i would receive from them at the end of the month when i sold only records would come close to 25% after everything. I stopped selling records on ebay last year, so it might have gone up or down in fees. It's just not worth it for me to give ebay so much money.

I would rather offer the same records here minus their fees, so i get the same amount in the end, but someone here in the pit saves a few bucks and gets records at better prices.

It must be more when the records are more than $50 then but mine were all under that. I try to sell the good ones(pearl jam) around here as well though.

HesCalledDyer

81 wrote:

HesCalledDyer wrote:

The buyer can also now opt to pay the fees instead of charging them to the seller. Honestly, I think if everyone on this board could operate on the honor system (as they have with "gift" purchases) and use this opt-in method for fees, it would benefit both the buyer and seller as both would have a sort of insurance on their transaction.

i believe the fee's should go to the seller as a "cost of doing business"

i hate when i see an ad that has fee's marked as buyer to pay....imo, the seller needs to set a price that he is comfortable with inclusive of fee's.

My point was more toward the "transaction protection" end vs. "who pays what and how" end. As a buyer, I don't mind paying an extra buck or two to have the insurance factor, in case the item gets lost, stolen, or never shipped, I'm then protected in getting a refund. Gift payments don't provide that protection.

I don't really look at Paypal fees as "cost of doing business" from one individual to another. It's kind of a pain in the ass, really. My main point is that, as a buyer, if you want protection, it might be an idea to cover the fee yourself. I kind of see it as buying shipping insurance, which is something the seller should never have to cover.

Good judgment is a key factor in who a person should buy from/sell to/trade with. I always check the BST thread before PMing someone about a possible purchase. If their name is on the list, I have faith that I'm probably good to purchase from that person. I've found, in this forum, that good people vouch for other good people and we have a pretty good system & code of honor. Gift payments are hardly a problem here as they may be with other outlets, but it's always a good thing to have buyer/seller protection.

dangerboy

go to expressobeans.com
search for a thread called "curious"

an established member. with good feedback. successful transactions. many people vouched after he was outed but before he was heard from. thousands lost. and this is just one story.

honestly, as a buyer, for a seller to ask for or demand a gift payment sends up a red flag. they're asking me to not protect myself. why? for 3 dollars, or 9? i feel that as a seller, if i tell people i don't want them to send gift payments because THEY are not protected, that maybe they'll actually have a little more trust in the transaction knowing that they have recourse...

oh, and generally, i've found that between ebay and paypal fees, most items cost an average of 18-22% of the final price to sell. my experience.

81

dangerboy wrote:

go to expressobeans.com
search for a thread called "curious"

an established member. with good feedback. successful transactions. many people vouched after he was outed but before he was heard from. thousands lost. and this is just one story.

honestly, as a buyer, for a seller to ask for or demand a gift payment sends up a red flag. they're asking me to not protect myself. why? for 3 dollars, or 9? i feel that as a seller, if i tell people i don't want them to send gift payments because THEY are not protected, that maybe they'll actually have a little more trust in the transaction knowing that they have recourse...

oh, and generally, i've found that between ebay and paypal fees, most items cost an average of 18-22% of the final price to sell. my experience.

493 pages of curios over there...any other hints

starmap3333

Pearl Jam_ie wrote:

An FYI to buyers/sellers:

I recently tried opening a claim through PayPal to try and get a refund for an item that I paid for, but never recieved. I found out that you can only open a claim if you sent payment for "goods" or "services". If you send payment as "gift" you are not allowed to open a claim.

If you want your purchases protected, only send payments for "services" or "goods". I'm sure any good seller will understand this situation, and can adjust their prices accordingly.

Also keep in mind that claims must be opened within 45 days of the transaction date. After the 45 day period is up, you will not be able to get a refund for your purchases.

Cheers and Happy Trading!

yeah it's true, you can;t get a refund, so be careful out there... however... since i'm a reputable trader here i will never accept anything other than gift unless the buyer pays the fees.