Consumer complaint received 2023-05-31
Company: Paypal Holdings, Inc
State: SC
Product: Checking or savings account
Sub-product: Other banking product or service
Issue: Managing an account
Sub-issue: Deposits and withdrawals

Complaint:
XX/XX/XXXX when I tried to transfer part of my direct deposit from work to pay a bill through VENMO and it would not allow me to do so. I got an email stating my account was temporarily restricted. 

I use Venmo for paying bills, I use it for daily purchases such as food and shopping because they offer rewards back on spends, I use it for my direct deposit and transfers to friends or payments from friends as well as for my art business and those transactions. 

I contacted VENMO and then received an email on Sunday, XX/XX/XXXX, XXXX XXXX  EDT Hello XXXX, We have reviewed your account and believe you are engaging in one or more restricted activities as described in the Venmo User Agreement. Specifically, that your use of our services has resulted or may result in disputes, claims, reversals, chargebacks, fees, fines, penalties or other liability to Venmo, other users, or third parties. For that reason, future abuse may result in closure of your account and your Venmo Card. 

I responded : How so? Any dispute I have ever made with Venmo is a legit dispute and to question my legitimacy is actually very disheartening. I have used you for years and it seems as though maybe you dont deserve me as a customer anymore. 

They would not give me any answers when I called and sent chats through their app which I have copies of but the app allowed me to transfer my money from my account to my bank, XXXX XXXX on XX/XX/XXXX. 

XX/XX/XXXX I received an email stating they have now froze my account and need proof of my identification government ID, so I did. 

I tried to contact them many times just to get a run around but was promised my account would be unfrozen after 7 days for them to look at it as protocol. In the meantime I set my work direct deposit up with XXXX XXXX  instead since I was not sure how long this would take and I needed to get paid so I can pay my bills. My new direct deposit did not have enough leeway to route to XXXX XXXX and instead it still proceeded to attempt the deposit to my VENMO acct. 

I contacted VENMO yesterday with my employer HR rep on the line to try and get my direct deposit returned to XXXX, my employer. They told me they will not reject it and once my account is unfrozen only then will I receive my funds they are holding of {$2400.00} plus I already had {$200.00} visible in my VENMO sitting and am unable to transfer it to my bank or pull out. 

My employer said they can not send me my money until VENMO rejects the deposit and sends it back. 

Today XX/XX/XXXX I received an email from VENMO Hello XXXX, Thank you for sending us your ID. My name is XXXX, and your account has been escalated to me. 

While we encourage the use of Venmo, we must ensure all users abide by our User Agreement. After reviewing your inquiries and account activity, we have found that your actions and activity have been in violation of this agreement. 

As a result, your account has been permanently deactivated and we regret to inform you that we can no longer offer you the Venmo service. We do not make these decisions lightly, and when we do, it is to help improve the safety of the Venmo community. Note that creation of a new account will not change this decision. 

The funds in your account will be held for up to 180 days for loss prevention purposes. We will contact you at the email address on file with your Venmo account should these funds be available for transfer in the future. 

If you have questions regarding this decision, please note that we do not divulge our decision-making criteria in order to protect the systems that monitor activity on Venmo. 

Regards, XXXX XXXX. 
Account Specialist | Venmo I replied What part of this agreement did I breach? Do I not have a right to that information? What is the purpose for holding my money for 180 days? What is going to happen to my direct deposit that has been sitting waiting to be deposited? I spoke with your team yesterday and they told me I would have access to my my direct deposit of {$2400.00} once you unfreeze my account. So now that the account will not be unfrozen, you need to return my direct deposit back to XXXX so they can handle my funds safety and properly. 
If this does not happen by the end of this week I will be getting my attorney involved because at this point you are stealing from me. 

There has been no response. Bills are due and I have no access to my money. 

I have lost my Venmo card several times in the past few years. I have made a few purchase disputes as well. 
Please help!

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation