Buyer won't pay by paypal....

[hackneyzoo]

I have just sold an item and it states in my listing I only accept paypal or cash on collection as payment methods.
The buyer has sent me a message saying they want to pay by postal order as thier paypal account isn't working.
I emailed back and said I only accept payment as stated in my listing.
They emailed back once again saying their paypal isn't working and they want to pay by postal order as they 'won' the item and they want it.
Am not sure how to proceed, I don't want to accept a postal order, my local P.O. is a nightmare and I don't want the hassle. What do I do? Should I canel the sale or open a dispute as unpaid? I have 100% feedback over a number of year sand don't want to get neg. feedback, and it seems the buyer can leave feedback even if they are in the wrong....

Any advice much appreciated...

I have had the same problem (twice last week) after only asking for paypal, in the end i had to accept postal order (to save the hastle), TBH postal order is best as you get out of paying paypal fees, its just anoying as you have to wait for them to post it (not as fast as paypal). If you get the postal order crossed you can take it to the bank instead of the post office.

I have had this before, just say that you are sorry that their PayPal account isn't working and you hope that they can get it fixed in the next seven days, as PayPal is their only option for payment as is clearly stated in your listing.

You can't do anything else for 7 days as that is how long any buyer has to pay.

Personally I do take PO (though I don't say that I do) as it means you don't lose 3.5% to fees.

If they're apologetic and polite then I'd probably let them pay by PO. If they're rude and insist that it's their right to pay by PO then I'd tell them to get lost.

Paypal can be a right royal pain if it decides to cause problems for one reason or another. I had a problem once when I had 'won' an item and was going to pay by paypal but it kept saying that there was no card attached to the account (there was) and wouldn't let me put the (same) card details in. It took ages to sort out and the seller had to wait three weeks for payment (as they would only take paypal) and got shirty with me, even though I was doing everything I could to sort it out, so I can kind of understand it from your buyer's perspective.
Would it really hurt to accept a postal order on this occasion?

you can pay a postal order into your bank if that is easier?

I would take it if I were you - no paypal fees or risk of chargeback. You have nothing to lose to be honest.

Thanks for all your replies.

I would happily wait if they sorted out thier Paypal to be honest, but they have been a bit short in their messages (plus they wrote in text speak which I find really annoying ). I don't accept PO as I work full time and have 3 small children and live in an area where a trip to the bank or post office is a nightmare as the queues are always out the door. Plus its for such a small amount it seems a bit ridiculous. I use my PP account for buying DCs' clothes so I like everything paid in there as this is my budget IYSWIM.
I guess I'll just end up taking it as it doesn't seem worth the hassle to do anything else....grr.