Paypal asking me to be dodgy

[Feckingpaypal]

I’ve had to open a paypal account to pay for a service as the business has changed ownership and card payment is currently being changed over. Paypal are saying they can’t verify my account unless I get the date of birth of a specific employee. Can anybody tell me if this is normal?

Have you used your own email address to set up the account?

Did you use your own details... name, address, telephone number?

I'm really confused about how they even k ow which company you want to pay and a name from that company?

When you set up a PayPal account, all you need to do is give them your name, email, house address and card details. So how did they get this companies name?

Where did you get the phone number to call them from? Or did they just call you? After you emailed them?
Your bank may be fine but if they are trying to get someone else’s d.o.b they are clearly going to robbed blind.

I got the phone number from paypal.com. I logged into my account and pressed the contact them button. They gave me a 6 digit number to enter when I called them. I’ve used this business before but I usually press paypal and pay by card. I don’t have a paypal account and this time I had to open it to get the transaction to go through. I had had a prior email from the business saying they were having a few glitches with it changing hands. Paypal are saying it won’t go through but it’s been taken out of my bank account. I’m going down to the business tomorrow unless they call me back to find out what’s going on. I haven’t given anyone’s date of birth out. I also tried sending an email from the address that sent the email and I got one back saying they couldn’t reply from this address and I would have to log in and contact them from there, which I did. Sorry I haven’t been able to reply to everybody but I’m trying to sort my kids out and the youngest wants a bit of mum time as I’ve been at work.

This is the front page of the site I am going into.

Sorry, I don't understand what is being asked,but neither can I spot any typos in the email. What are the typos??

Right, we can’t helo you when you wont answer specific question about how you actually set up your account, what information you gave them in setting it up and how they even found out about this company when you set up your own account. See my post above.

Like I said earlier today, you do not need a PayPal account to pay a business through PayPal. This business sounds dodgy as fuck.

@Feckingpaypal

You never need a Paypal account to pay someone through Paypal.

If you paid them before through Paypal by just entering your card details and their business has changed hands (or whatever) then they need a new Paypal account. That's between them and Paypal and nothing for you to get involved in.

Whatever you think you're trying to do you've clearly either got the wrong end of the stick or someone's scamming you.

It's not a scam, PayPal really do this when they can't complete a transaction because they suspect money laundering or the possibility of money being transferred for illicit purposes.

And there's nothing illegal about asking for the employee's date of birth, but then they don't have to give it to you if they don't want to. But if they don't then they won't get their money and their account may end up suspended.

Well something isn’t right. When I log into PayPal UK it says PayPal, Inc in the tab and not PayPal.com which is on your picture.
Also my emails from them are from [email protected] but the picture you posted is again from [email protected].
In all the years using PayPal, paying people all over the world, they have never felt the need to ask me someone else’s d.o.b. It’s just odd.

malmi sorry but I don’t think so. How would a customer be entitled to ask anyone who works for a company for their dob. Bollocks to that

You could walk into any shop you like and ask someone their date of birth, as there's no law against asking a question.

When I got the original email saying the transaction was pending it was from paypal.co.uk. The business themselves said I would be able to pay via paypal friends and family(?) so that is why I filled the box in to get a paypal account. I’ve never had one before so I was wondering if this is was a thing. I can’t remember fully what I filled in, pretty much the usual bumf, nothing out of the ordinary. Nothing to suggest it was iffy. Malmi is pretty much saying what they told me on the phone. For me to be able to set up my account I need to tell them this persons date of birth or they won’t let me set it up. How they actually expect me to get the date of birth they couldn’t help me with. Just that they are able to ask for it as the business is also their customer. I have no issues with the business at all and I’ve used the payment system 5/6 times and that looked exactly the same except not going straight to the card payment bit, which they had told me wouldn’t be available.

OP you can setup a PayPal account without paying anyone. Do you mean they are asking for the info to release the payment??

It all sounds super dodgy and unlikely. If PayPal really wanted a piece of verifying information, surely they’d ask for something related to the business like, I don’t know, VAT number or some such, rather than the personal information belonging to someone who happens to currently be an employee of the business??
But, as plenty of PP have pointed out, you don’t need a Paypal account to pay a Paypal invoice. So maybe stop opening this dubious account and pay the invoice using your credit card.

In future as a heads up, only use friends and family for friends and family payments. Business transactions are covered by paypal guarantee if you pay using pay for a product/ service - business'have to pay a transaction fee to receive the money. That'll be why they wanted you to pay friends and family.

Yes I think the issue is because they’ve asked you to pay via f&f. If they’re a business they shouldn’t be doing this and causing their customers this much hassle

Don't pay for anything via friends and family - you won't be protected.

WidowTwonky. Yes that’s what I mean. 🙂 You put it far more simply than I have.

If you ever get your account sorted - Don't pay a company via friends & family rather than goods & services - you'll not be covered by any of the protections PayPal have put in place.

This smells of scam. Even banks don't ask for this information when sending money to a payee? Isn't there the DPA in force here.

Also did PayPal tell you that they needed the DOB of the employee to rule out money laundering. Isn't this tipping off and breaks AML regs surely?

Having used PayPal for over a decade this sounds dodgy as fuck. Id love an update on how you get on op.

Thank you for the f and f info. It sounds like they are doing this to save money then. If it’s not meant for business use that possibly explains paypal thinking I could get the date of birth if they thought it was somebody I knew rather than an employee.

I’m off to bed now as I’ve been up since 5am. I’m going to get in touch with the business in the morning and see what’s what with a fresh head. Thank you.

I think it's connected with the company trying to use a Friends and Family payment when you are actually buying goods/services. The company are being dodgy, not PayPal. If you were paying friends or family you likely would know their DoB and PayPal are picking up that something is not right.

Oh, sorry, cross post . Cancel the cheque!