PayPal users in the UK are up in arms over what they claim is
the company's
heavy-handed anti-money laundering and anti-fraud policies.
The online payment services company, which is used by
individuals and small and larger businesses to send and receive
payments, has tightened security, affecting many of its users.
Users complain that some transactions on eBay are held for 21
days before PayPal releases the money. The only way a seller is
able to obtain cash from a sale before this timelimit is if the
buyer leaves positive feedback. This has led to some eBay sellers
demanding positive feedback from buyers before they ship
products.
One user said, "Paypal is now pretending to be an Escrow
service. The only problem is that they are not licensed as
one."
Other users have also had their PayPal accounts checked for
money-laundering. Their account is cleared only once the user has
completed a PayPal anti-money laundering form on its website.
PayPalk user Andrew Furtek, said, "I am going to report them to
the FSA and possibly the Data Protection Commissioner. I am just an
individual who buys and sells the odd thing, not a business."
Furtek said PayPal should be subject to UK banking regulations.
"As it is, it appears to be completely remote and unaccountable to
its users and judging from threads I have read elsewhere appears
able to act with impunity, and gets away with it."