PayPal snubbed me after a fraudster shut my account
An unauthorised transaction was made on my PayPal account and £220 was used to buy a Flightgiftcard. The fraudster then closed my account. PayPal opened an appeal and stated that the money should be put back into my account within 48 hours. I was then sent an email explaining that my appeal had been denied as I am no longer a PayPal
customer. This is because the fraudster had closed my account. After three weeks of chasing, PayPal advised me to ask my bank to raise a dispute since I’m no longer a PayPal customer.
The bank told me that it couldn’t help as the fraud occurred on my PayPal account, not on my debit card. IB, Cardiff
This is a disgraceful case. For nearly a month PayPal washed its hands of you, declaring that it had closed your complaint because your account had been terminated.
It then erroneously claimed its hands were tied because your bank had issued a chargeback request (it hadn’t) and, finally, that your bank had refused your chargeback request and returned the funds to the merchant (it hadn’t).
Only when the Observer intervened did it discover that it had messed up. “Due to human error, the unauthorised payment on the customer’s PayPal account was not appropriately dealt with,” says a spokesperson. “We have apologised and issued a goodwill credit to her account for the inconvenience caused.” The stolen money has now been refunded.
If you need help email Anna Tims at your.problems@observer.co.uk or write to Your Problems, The Observer, Kings Place, 90 York Way, London N1 9GU. Include an address and phone number.