Consumer complaint received 2024-08-31
Product: Money transfer, virtual currency, or money service — Mobile or digital wallet
Issue: Unauthorized transactions or other transaction problem — 
Company: Paypal Holdings, Inc (CA)

On XX/XX/XXXX, I made a PayPal payment of {$7800.00} ( Transaction ID : XXXX ) to XXXX XXXX, my new landlord, in response to the attached invoice she sent on XX/XX/XXXX. The payment was drawn from my XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX account ( Account No. XXXX, XXXX XXXX. XXXX ) linked to my XXXX XXXX XXXX. This card allows me to earn rewards points on rent payments by using it as a " virtual bank account, '' which ultimately withdraws funds from my connected XXXX XXXX checking account ( Account No. XXXX, Routing No. XXXX ). For context, this product was initially issued by XXXX until XX/XX/year>, and is now serviced by XXXX XXXX. More details can be found here : XXXX XXXX XXXX  quickly realized that the payment request was mistakenly sent as an invoice, labeling the transaction as " Goods & Services, '' which resulted in a commission fee being applied, reducing the amount she received. After confirming with PayPal Customer Service, she issued a refund on XX/XX/XXXX ( Transaction ID : XXXX ) and asked me to resend the payment using the " Friends & Family '' feature to avoid the commission.

I received the refund notification the same day and initiated the process on PayPal to deposit the funds back into my XXXX account, assuming it would then transfer back to my associated XXXX XXXX checking account. On XX/XX/XXXX, I resent the {$7800.00} to XXXX using the " Friends & Family '' feature ( Transaction ID : XXXX ), which she received in full. 

However, on XX/XX/XXXX, XXXX informed me that they can not process refunds ( see attachment ) and that the funds would typically be returned to the originating PayPal account within 2-5 business days. Despite waiting over 5 business days, the funds never appeared in my PayPal account or XXXX. 

XXXX initially stated that the funds were returned to XXXX ( " my propriety '' ) and later claimed they were sent back to PayPal on XX/XX/XXXX ( XXXX  XXXX XXXX : XXXX ). Despite this, after more than a month, the original {$7800.00} is still missing.

I have been in constant communication with the customer support teams of all involved parties : - PayPal ( Case No : XXXX, escalated to Supervisor # XXXX ) claims the funds were posted to my XXXX  account ending in XXXX on XX/XX/XXXX ( ACH trace number : XXXX ). Despite assurances that an " error '' was identified and that my funds would be traced and redeposited, there has been no follow-through. 
- XXXX XXXX ( XXXX XXXX : XXXX ) states that the funds were returned to PayPal ( XXXX XXXX : XXXX ). 
- XXXX ( XXXX XXXX : XXXX ) has been investigating for over a week with no update. 

This fraudulent withholding of my original {$7800.00} has led to substantial overdraft fees in my XXXX XXXX account connected to XXXX, extensive time spent on calls with customer support teams even while I was traveling abroad, and significant emotional distress due to the large sum of money that is still missing. Furthermore, I have read numerous similar complaints online from other XXXX users facing extended delays in receiving their refunds with no clear resolution ( see this example : XXXX XXXX XXXX ). 

I look forward to your bureau 's assistance in promptly retrieving my funds. 

Thank you.