When Will People Learn "Goods and Services"

I see posts on here every day of people getting ripped off and scammed, why are we sending these people money via "friends and family" when they are clearly not friends or family in need of money.

To me any merchant asking me to send them money friends and family puts up red flags. Lets protect ourselves as buyers and follow the rules and pay for our purchases through goods and services.

Make the sellers pay the fees, and if the seller is that hard up and does not want to pay the fee then offer to pay the few extra dollars but still send the money through "goods and services", or find a different form of payment. Lets face it so many of us are spending 100s of dollars on animals already a few extra dollars is not going to break that bank at that point as annoying as it may be.

I am sorry to write this and am not doing it to make people feel dumb but am writing it for their protection. Please, Please, Please pay through "goods and services" It kills me to read all these posts about people getting ripped off for sending money without protection. I know this is not a 100% full proof way of protecting yourself but at least its something.

Have a great day!!!

*Moved from the BOI to comply with BOI rules*

This is always a wonderful point to make Shannon, and I 100% agree. I know I have personally brought this up many times in BOI threads. No matter how many times it is brought up, people still send money via "friends and family".

When you go to send money it gives you two very clear options.
One says: "Covered by PayPal Protection for buyers"
The other does NOT.
(Red items below inserted by me)

I know, right?! Ticks me off to no end, as well. Friends and Family, or as a Gift, offers zero buyer protection.

Asking the buyer to pay the transaction fee is annoying too. As you said, if the 3% is going to make or break the deal, either work it into your asking price, or don't accept PayPal as a form of payment. The convenience of getting funds quickly isn't free, and should be considered a cost of doing business.

Kathy

Whenever I have been asked by sellers to send the money "Friends and Family", my solution has been simply to ignore the request, as it is an unreasonable request, and send the money goods and services. So far, nobody has refused to accept the payment.
I also agree that it is tacky and unprofessional to ask the buyer to pay the fee. It is a SELLER'S expense, a cost of doing business, as Insomniac101 pointed out. It isn't the amount of money; it is the intent behind it. If I'm buying a $1000 lizard, another $30 isn't going to hurt me, but it isn't going to hurt the seller, either. Asking me to pay your banking expense for the privilege of buying an animal from you comes off as arrogant. I think they are taking advantage of the fact that herp keepers get so exited and ga ga to buy the animal in question, we'll agree to almost anything to keep from losing it.
Sellers should simply factor in their costs when pricing an animal.

I agree with everything all of you have said. 3% is not going to hurt the sellers pocket. Or like yall said figure it into the cost of the animal, and just keep it to yourself.

I read so many of these bois and just bite my tongue I just couldn't anymore and felt the need to speak up!

Originally Posted by morbidangel

I read so many of these bois and just bite my tongue I just couldn't anymore and felt the need to speak up!

No, more people need to speak up, and thank you for doing so!

I had one just yesterday, requesting payment via Friends and Family, or to include the fee if paying for Goods and Services. I politely explained why I wouldn't, and the seller agreed to accept payment as G&S, with no fee.

So, our standing firm is working!

Originally Posted by Herpin Man

Whenever I have been asked by sellers to send the money "Friends and Family", my solution has been simply to ignore the request, as it is an unreasonable request, and send the money goods and services. So far, nobody has refused to accept the payment.

Good idea; I'm going to try that next time. The worst they can do is refuse, and refund the amount of the transaction.

Kathy

Awesome! Great job Kathy!

I would imagine a lot of them are just flat out inexperienced in using paypal as a payment method. Still blows my mind when people are doing $500+ deals and sending without any protection. I, sadly, laugh every single time a BOI starts off with, "I sent $___ via friends and family. Now the seller isn't responding."

I don't really understand setting yourself up to get get scammed over about $15 or less.

Originally Posted by MrTPlush

I would imagine a lot of them are just flat out inexperienced in using paypal as a payment method. Still blows my mind when people are doing $500+ deals and sending without any protection. I, sadly, laugh every single time a BOI starts off with, "I sent $___ via friends and family. Now the seller isn't responding."

I don't really understand setting yourself up to get get scammed over about $15 or less.

To me, it's a matter of principle. Can I afford the extra 3%? Of course, but it is the responsibility of the seller to absorb those costs.

Perhaps PayPal could show more information on their site, when people click the F&F tab. I can't remember precisely what the wording is now, but maybe if people choose that method of payment, a dialog box should pop up, stating that, basically your money is irretrievable, and are you sure you want to send it.

My husband and I send money to the kids in college, all the time. That's the only reason to use F&F, in my opinion.

Kathy

Originally Posted by Insomniac101

To me, it's a matter of principle. Can I afford the extra 3%? Of course, but it is the responsibility of the seller to absorb those costs.

Kathy

What I am referring to is people who are willing to do a sale F&F to save themselves $10 or the seller $10. A lot of time the buyer says they were trying to be nice....and honestly that seems crazy to me.