PayPal
iTunes Purchase Pulled From Bank Account, Causing $25 Overdraft

I have used PayPal occasionally and at first thought it was pretty safe and legitimate.

I made an agreement with PayPal to pay for iTunes purchases. In that agreement, I listed the PayPal balance as the primary funding source and a credit card as the secondary funding source. I proceeded to download 2 songs from iTunes for a total of $1.98. I assumed it would be charged to the credit card, which I had listed as the funding source, and I never gave permission for them to use any other funding source. Lo and behold, I visited my bank website after depositing money (there was none at the time) and found a $1.98 PayPal/iTunes charge, followed by a $25.00 overdraft fee.

I never, nowhere in the agreement, gave PayPal permission to use my bank account. I called a PayPal representative (after a long wait) and was answered by a lady who sounded like she had just woken up and was reading exactly what they told her to off of a script. She informed me that they had to resubmit the transaction because there was a problem with the credit card on file. (There should not have been any problem with the credit card.) And in her words, PayPal will "get their money" by going to other accounts associated with the PayPal account. She said there was nothing she could do but would be happy to give the bank any information they needed to refund my overdraft fee.

I called the bank (twice) and the associates were equally unfriendly, but their suggestion was to file a report of fraud against PayPal. Now I do not know that the bank associate knew exactly what I was telling her, but when I called back I got the same response. I also emailed PayPal... twice. My first email went unanswered and my second was filled with a bunch of "copy and pastes," giving me no answer.

I do not know if the teeny tiny fine print when you first open a PayPal account allows them to use any and every funding source they so desire, but in my agreement with them to pay iTunes, there were only 2 funding sources I gave permission to be accessed for that purpose. If there was a problem with the credit card (which there is no reason there should have been), then deny the payment and do not let me download my $.99 songs.

I am in complete disgust that this was allowed to happen in the first place, and then to be acknowledged by someone sounding half-dead and obviously reading from a script, and to have my emails ignored. This company screws people over all the time, whether it be their ridiculous fees or faulty or unknown charges. I do not think a company should be able to operate in this manner. And $25 may not seem like something to get this upset over, but $25 in this day and time is a lot of money to me and many others. But my complaint is not even about that. It is about them using a funding source I never gave them permission to use and then acting like they do not give a darn to try and help you.

Company: PayPal
Country: USA
Site: www.paypal.com

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