PayPal might place a hold on your funds for several reasons. One of the most common is that a dispute exists over the purchased item or payment amount. Another reason might be that PayPal feels the need to confirm the source of the funds to make certain they are legitimate. A third reason might be that your PayPal account is new and the amount in question is larger than the usual customer's. Finally, PayPal might hold back funds if the seller has received too many complaints.
Contact the customer service Help Desk, reachable through the PayPal website (see Resources), and ask why the funds have been placed on hold. Include pertinent information about yourself, your buyer and the purchase.
Ask the PayPal representative if the funds can be released early. If your account is new, offer to use a credit card as a backup funding source. This may assure PayPal and the buyer that it is safe to release your money.
Try to resolve any conflict with your buyer. If your funds are being held over a conflict of some sort, contact the buyer and ask him what needs to be done to resolve the conflict. If the problem can be resolved, ask the buyer to contact PayPal to let the service know that the issue has been resolved.
Try offering the buyer a partial refund. Issuing any sort of refund to your buyer will normally unlock the hold on your funds.
Tips
Trying to resolve the conflict that originally caused your funds to be placed on hold is always the best plan of action.
Warnings
Angry threats don't usually work against corporations as large as PayPal.
References
- PayPal Help Center: Reasons Why Payments Are Held
- PayPal Help Center: What Is a Temporary Hold?
- PayPal. "Data Encryption." Accessed Feb. 11, 2020.
- PayPal. "PayPal Bug Bounty Program." Accessed Feb. 11, 2020.
- FTC. "How to Recognize and Avoid Phishing Scams." Accessed Feb. 11, 2020.
- FTC. "Tips for Using Public Wi-Fi Networks." Accessed Feb. 11, 2020.
- Evergreen National Bank. "Fraud Prevention." Accessed Feb. 11, 2020.
- Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. "Fraud and Scams Key Terms." Accessed Feb. 11, 2020.
- PayPal. "Resolving Disputes, Claims, and Chargebacks." Accessed Feb. 11, 2020.
- Federal Trade Commission. "FTC Advises Consumers Not to Use Wire Transfers for Online Purchases." Accessed Feb. 11, 2020.
- PayPal. "How Seller Protection Can Help Support Your Business." Accessed Feb. 11, 2020.
- PayPal. "What Is FDIC Insurance and How Does It Work?" Accessed Feb. 11, 2020.
- FDIC. "Prepaid Cards and Deposit Insurance Coverage." Accessed Feb. 11, 2020.
Tips
- Trying to resolve the conflict that originally caused your funds to be placed on hold is always the best plan of action.
Warnings
- Angry threats don't usually work against corporations as large as PayPal.
Writer Bio
Carolyn Sorrell began writing in 1985. She has written novels and short stories, and her articles have appeared in "Letters to Our Mothers" and "Southern Living." In 2009, she ghost-wrote a book about the Obama campaign for a client in Washington. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in English.