Online Shopping
Online Shopping: What is PayPal?
PayPal is the most popular online payment solution. In the past, moneygrams and wire transfers are the standard form of payment but nowadays, millions of Internet users prefer to use PayPal in paying purchases online, sending and receiving money via email. It is free to join PayPal or to send money to other members but there is a fee structure for those who want to receive or withdraw money.
When you use PayPal in paying online purchases the merchant will not see your credit card information. The same holds true when you send money to other members as money transfer is done via email. Perhaps, this is the biggest advantage of using Paypal and this is also the reason why most people trusted the company.
Create an account to start using PayPal. You only need a valid email address and a credit card or bank account to link to. Visit the PayPal’s website and click the Sign Up button. This will direct you to the registration page where you are asked to enter personal information and bank or credit card information. After the registration, validate your email address by clicking on the link PayPal give you. You now have a PayPal account and are free to use it as needed.
Is PayPal Safe?
As good as it may seem PayPal is not perfect. There are a lot of complaints against PayPal that triggered lawsuits. Most users say that PayPal is safe to use because they have not had any difficulties using it. Before you decide if you are comfortable using its services, check the important facts below.
Technically, PayPal is not a bank therefore it’s not covered by any banking regulations. If there are disputes, only PayPal can decide which user is right. They can freeze your account for any reasons they deem valid and whatever they decide, it is considered as the final answer.
When you sign-up, you are given the option to link your bank account or credit card with PayPal. If you have transactions that PayPal considers as suspicious, they can take funds from your bank or charge your credit card to cover disputes even without your permission.
PayPal does not have a dedicated customer support and it is very difficult to get a hold of a live person; the dispute process can take months to process and it is your word against the other complainant. Dispute process does not even guarantee that you can take your money back nor receive the item purchased.
The good news is most web sites online accept PayPal from MadBid to Amazon.
