why do i have to accept echecks as a form of payment. they take 6-8 days to clear. i want to block

[8645ray]

i called paypal and their preferences spells it right out. i can block echecks from everywhere EXCEPT ebay. i cant find anywhere on my ebay account settings to block echecks

[pierrelebel]

The rules and policies at eBay do NOT allow you to reject echeck.

A few sellers show "no echeck" in their description.  That is meaningless.  A buyer can pay through PayPal using

- funds in his/her PayPal account

- funds from his/her bank account (echeck)

- funds from a credit card

If the buyer has both a bank account and a credit card linked to the account, a payment made from funds from the bank account will be considered instant (not echeck).  However, if the buyer has not linked a credit card to PayPal, the payment from the bank becomes an echeck and subject to delays (typically up to 4 business days for American buyers and up to 8/10 business days for Canadian buyers).  It is recommended sellers wait for echeck clearance before shipping.

[Anonymous]

At least eCheck through PayPal is much better than receiving a personal check by mail.  By mail you have no protection from eBay/PayPal while with eCheck you do. 

So what is the problem that you don't want eChecks?  Can't wait to get $$$ immediately? 

[pierrelebel]

" By mail you have no protection from eBay/PayPal while with eCheck you do.  "

???

When a seller receives a personal cheque by mail from a buyer (I always welcome them), the buyer has no protection.

[8645ray]

pierre, thank you but i know what the rules are regarding eChecks. I actually called and spoke to someone . I am questioning why I, me, not Ebay, can not choose what form of payment to accept. I dont accept anything other than paypal. i dont accept cheques eh. nor checks, nor direct credit card payments because i choose not to. i also can block eChecks from Paypal from any source other than Ebay. if that costs me some sales i dont care. i want it to be my choice not someone else's choice. that's my point. It would appear from my limited review of the topic that in America they still use Checks to pay for things. How 1990's, or 1980's. In Canada I dont think anyone pays for anything with a cheque anymore. Nobody I know. My limited review of the subject also leads me to believe that the buyer has the funds taken from his/her bank account within one or two days, yet the seller does not see the funds for 8-10 days. This seems wrong to me. Legal question I know so i guess its more rhetorical, but who has legal claim to that money during that 6-9 business day gap? Last but not least, I clearly will not ship an item until it clears 8 to 10 business days after the payment is made, but the buyer sees the money going out after a day or two and can get the impression I am responsible for the extremely long wait for the delivery of the item. Thats just a bad situation for everyone. i'm just a guy selling a few things on ebay with no illusions of anything resembling a business or a store so maybe my opinion doesnt matter but in my opinion I do have the choice to use eBay or not, why shouldnt i have the choice of what form of payment to accept?

just sayin

[Anonymous]

When I get eChecks, I always tell my buyers that I received the notification from PayPal that it has not been cleared and do not allow me to ship it until PayPal informs that it has been cleared.  I also tell my buyers that I will tell them when they are cleared and when I shipped and that they would be understand and be patience.  

If they complain, I simply tell them that they choose to use eCheck, next time use other payment method like using credit cards via PayPal.  I never have problems with any buyers who send eChecks (knock on wood 3 times!) and get positive feedback and good DSRs.

[Anonymous]

I have see some US sellers with "eChecks not accepted" in their listings, not sure if they are allowed to or it is working for them.

[anguscoinshop]

i cancel all e checks, no exceptions.

buyer sending mail payments have 100 % superior protection by canadian law over ebay/paypal

[reallynicestamps]

(My limited review of the subject also leads me to believe that the buyer has the funds taken from his/her bank account within one or two days, yet the seller does not see the funds for 8-10 days. This seems wrong to me. Legal question I know so i guess its more rhetorical, but who has legal claim to that money during that 6-9 business day gap?)

Paypal is an American company. The money is taken from the customer's bank account, but, just like a paper cheque, has to pass through both the US and the Canadian banking systems before being cleared and ready to be deposited into the seller's account. (Let's not talk about the 21 Day Hold at this point.)

So while I can't answer you question about who has legal claim, not being a lawyer, what is happening is basically red tape. And remember while Canada has fewer than a dozen bank chains with federal charters, the US states charter banks because it's more fun (I don't understand states' rights as a principle.) 

The odd time I get an e-cheque, I send a note to my buyer thanking her for the "e-cheque" (and note spelling) explaining that because it is paid from her bank account that it has to clear through the US and the Canadian banking systems, and that Paypal will not allow a shipping label to be printed until it has cleared. The points I'm making are : cheques have to clear, your dealing with a foreigner, and it's all PPs fault.

[anguscoinshop]

there are a lot of payments i receive, cheque by mail. i deal with a major bank, when i recieve a cheque from a consumer with the same chartered bank, my branch always gives me courtesy by telling right away if the cheque has cleared or not, for instant shipping or not.

that is a major advantage over pp

[anguscoinshop]

Off topic for now,

Merry Christmas to all board contributors.

[furtova]

This post is over 5 years old but glad it is still here for me to read. I am a small seller, it is just a hobby for me, I buy as well. Been selling for a really long time. In the past 9 months I have received echecks for the first time, all three ended without me getting paid (side note: they were all $8-$12 items). If I could block this as a form of payment I would. I don't care about the time frame, money is money, I'll wait a month if I have too. It wastes my time getting the items ready and then the payment fails (just had this happen after 11 days of waiting and no reason was given to me for the failure) or the buyer cancels at the last minute. Not to mention in that time I could have sold the item to someone else. IMO it is almost like a scam. The person is fishing by buying the item then hopes that you ship it and then they will cancel the payment. I think it is funny that "it is recommended that you do not ship until the payment clears" That is a no-branier if you ship it and then the payment does not clear, good luck getting your money back (If I am wrong on this point please lmk). Should state DO NOT SHIP ITEM until payment clears in flashing red letters with a buzzing noise.

From reading other posts it appears to be just me, other sellers seem to get echecks without any issues and everything is great. Well not for me, that is why I would like to block them but I can't so I will continue to get them in the future and will have to cross my fingers that it works out.

[mcrlmn]

I've had echecks 'bounce' also.
Most recently for $2.98.

Talk about not having two nickels to rub together.

After waiting 9 days to find out the echeck 'bounced', I was obliged by eBay to open a 'Payment not received' claim and wait a further 4 days to recover the fees eBay had already taken from me at the time the echeck was submitted.

The buyer crawled out from under his rock to contact me a month later wondering where his 'free' item was.

Thought I'd toss that in before someone screams,

ZOMBIE THREAD!

I've always wanted to do that.

[lotzofuniquegoodies]

The usual reason is insufficient funds. For a buyer to cancel an e-check there is a cost to do that. When that happens, the best bet is let them know because more than likely you will know before they do and either ask them if they would like the order canceled or request a different form of payment if they still would like their item shipped. In most cases, they end up being fine with the order canceled. Then any fees are refunded...Well, accept the silly .30 cent transaction fee.

-Lotz

[femmefan1946]

@mcrlmn 

You should also be screaming in Comic Sans.

[marnotom!]

Before this thread is shut down, may I ask if eChecks still "clear" instantly if the sender has a credit card as a backup funding source for their PayPal account?

[ypdc_dennis]

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@marnotom! wrote:
Before this thread is shut down, may I ask if eChecks still "clear" instantly if the sender has a credit card as a backup funding source for their PayPal account?

---

Only if the bank account is already backed by a credit or debit card before payment.

https://www.paypal.com/ca/smarthelp/article/why-is-my-echeque-pending-%28buyer%29-faq3270

[kh-leslie]

Hello Everyone,

Due to the age of the thread, it has been closed to further replies.  Please feel free to start a new thread if you wish to continue to discuss this topic.

Thanks for understanding!