Consumer complaint received 2023-02-07
Company: Paypal Holdings, Inc
State: TX
Product: Checking or savings account
Sub-product: Other banking product or service
Issue: Managing an account
Sub-issue: Problem accessing account

Complaint:
Dear PayPal, In reference to your CFPB Complaint No : XXXX, dated XX/XX/XXXX, I hereby respond to you as follows. 

With regards to your claim about the use of Virtual Private Networks ( VPNs ) to make payments or access my PayPal account, I accept that I have used VPNs on some occasions to access restricted websites under the jurisdiction of the United States of America. I have informed your customer support agents at PayPal about this during our conversations. I apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused to PayPal, but I am tied in certain circumstances where VPN is necessary to access and make payments using PayPal. 

In reference to your claim about my account receiving an excessive amount of personal payments, I have done a thorough review of my account transactions activity and can confirm that the two personal payments totalling {$590.00} received in my PayPal account registered under email address XXXX are valid. The payment amounting to {$33.00} from XXXX XXXX was used to purchase a freelance digital service on XXXX, and the payment amounting to {$560.00} from XXXX XXXX was made under the Friend and Family category, as XXXX is my good friend. There have been no disputes or chargebacks in the six-month time period after the limitation was placed on my account, and thus I deny your claim that these payments pose a higher risk of chargebacks or disputes. 

With regards to the restriction placed on my account, I was notified about this as permitted under the Restricted Activities, Holds, and Other Actions We May Take section of the User Agreement. However, I was not given the opportunity to submit any documents through PayPal 's restore appeal steps, and a permanent limitation was placed without being given a chance to provide my identification. To support this claim, I am attaching my valid state 's driver 's license for your reference. If the same document was provided to you on XX/XX/XXXX, I will accept your claim that " Later that same day, we received a copy of a screenshot of a picture, which we could not accept. '' I will not process any further complaints to PayPal if my claim is declared invalid, but If my claim is right and valid, I would appreciate a thorough review of the situation again, keeping in mind the facts mentioned in this complaint. 

I have suspected a breach of my personal information and identity, and I can confirm that this information is being used to attempt to circumvent the limitations by creating new or additional unauthorised PayPal accounts. This is a violation of the User Agreement, and I request that PayPal register my complaint for " unauthorised account creation '' as this has resulted in another account with a negative balance using my personal sensitive information. I would highly appreciate a positive outcome to this issue. 

I would like to bring to your attention that I am not under any court orders or legal regulations that would require the implementation of the Restricted Activities, Holds, and Other Actions as stated in the User Agreement. Furthermore, I have not violated any of PayPal 's Acceptable Use Policy, which is only applicable to Business PayPal Accounts. Based on these reasons I decline your claim of holding my funds longer than 180 days, & I respectfully request the release of my funds or either the restoration of my PayPal account access.

I am fully aware of the provisions stated in the Restricted Activities, Holds, and Other Actions section of the User Agreement, which states that PayPal can only hold the balance in my account if there is a risk of liability to PayPal or a third party, or if I have violated the Acceptable Use Policy. The hold may remain in place for longer than 180 days as per court orders, regulatory requirements, or other legal actions. However, in my case, none of these conditions apply. 

I am willing to provide any additional information that is needed to resolve this issue, and I am eager to cooperate with PayPal to have this matter resolved in a timely and efficient manner. 


As per the Electronic Fund Transfer Act ( EFTA ) and the Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act ( ESIGN ), PayPal must provide clear and conspicuous disclosure of its policies and practices relating to electronic fund transfers and the consumer 's rights and liabilities. I request that PayPal comply with these laws and provide me with the necessary disclosures. 

I hope this clarifies the situation and resolves the matter. Thank you for your time and attention. 

Sincerely, XXXX XXXX

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation