Idea: Adopt PAYM Payments

[#1]

@nominate

That is a potential issue but it's the customers responsibility to make sure their details are correct and people who wanted to use PayPal still could, it doesn't have to be either/or.

[#2]

@extreme_one@natty_noo I was lucky this time in that within 24 hrs I did get my money transferred, however in December, when I was not in the same fortunate position as you both, and yes, I did need it, they held onto it for days. In fact, I had to complain to Paypal direct

[#3]

@frenchielove

Don't get me wrong, i'm not belittling anyone who's in financial straits, far from it, but no one should be relying on giffgaff payback to live. How do they manage in between the payback periods?

Everyone is either employed, retired, or on benefits. Whichever one it is then money is still coming in weekly/monthly. So why is it, come June and December, that people are in need far more than any other month?

[#4]

@natty_noo

Going from previous member statements around payback time people budget their payback towards holidays, bills, presents, etc.

That's why they depend on it.

I know a few have admitted in the past that they pay their fixed line phone/internet bills annually from payback for instance, so if it didn't arrive in a timely fashion they'd risk being cut off and having to rely on mobile data.

Don't the payouts also fall when quarterly payments on things like fuel and water are due as well, (I'm presuming that's March, June, September and December?)? Then there's the babysitters needed around holiday times for working folks, especially working single parents.

I agree totally with what you're saying about how people shouldn't do things like that, but going from history, many, many do and they aren't about to change that anytime soon.

Of the demographics which giffgaff target that's only going to increase, if these new packages manage to attract significant numbers of low-earners and students, (not making judgements, but they are the people the TV programs they're sponsoring are aimed at, and the adverts I've seen).

Many have tried to change habits and help people to gain a little more of a sounder financial structure, all have failed.

And none of the above takes into account things like burst pipes, broken windows, annual road tax, insurance policies and so on and so on which people may or may not have to pay, some of which can destroy even the most careful financial planning and management when someone is struggling to make ends meet because of all manner of things like zero hour contracts and the like which can make payback more of a necessity than a bonus.

There's probably a million and one other circumstances beyond that which I haven't thought about, school supplies and uniforms, sports equipment, clubs...

I think even if kids had the get up and go to try and earn the money themselves how many of us did when we were kids they'd find it a lot more difficult than we did because of all the extra "protect the children" and "health and safety" nonsense which exists today that didn't when we were kids, in fact I'm certain of it, so it all falls back on the parents now.

Even the babysitter thing, when we were kids my mother, (single parent), went to work and we were left alone and told if we needed anything to ask people in our street, or go and find her at work, or go to our grandparents. I doubt very much that would be allowed these days, lol

It's all done under the guise of "protecting the children", but really it's more about enslaving the parents, because the more they gotta pay out the more they gotta work, and that keeps the papers happy because they can talk endlessly about rabid kids roaming the streets in feral packs and citing the breakdown of traditional values. :-D

I don't blame people for coming on and trying to blast away enough to try and get that £600 biannual maximum. Single parents especially these days must find it hell the amount of pressure they must be under. If payback eases some of that burden, good for them.

[#5]

Hi @k89bpa

Could you explain your statement are these your beliefs or are these held and ccomplained about generally.

Having seen a fair few being hit by PayPal and their idiotic policies.

[#6]

@williamwalker

Regarding PayPal?

Part experience, part opinion based on my own and anecdotal evidence.

Myself, my clients, my suppliers, my friends all experienced "quirks" with PayPal, delayed payments, frozen accounts, people having issues buying and selling, issues with PayPal buyer protection, and so on.

When we switched to using Google and other payment options none of those problems existed anymore.

That told me all I need to know about PayPal. Other people are free to make up their own minds, based on their own experiences, but I will never trust PayPal after those experiences I and people I've known have had with that company.

The fact that the UK support lines are horrific and that you had to call the US to even begin to resolve any issues didn't help things either, especially on a payment hold or account freeze where they tell you nothing and don't attempt to help you resolve the issue of their creation at all.

I strongly suspect they only freeze accounts and payments so they can benefit from the interest accrued whilst funds are sitting in their account rather than their customers accounts, but that's just a suspicion, I have no proof, it just seems to be the most logical reason.

I've had account holds and things before and every single company I've dealt with has been a breeze to sort it out. Just yesterday Nationwide blocked my card, (well, verified by visa did), because it was the first time I'd used it online. Three minutes later and it's all unblocked and the payment I was trying to make is authorised. The same experience with a PayPal debit card, (which is prepaid by the way), is a total cluster....

I hate PayPal with a passion.

And their foreign currency exchange rates! It might be pennies per transaction more expensive, but over the number of transactions, they're raking in tens of millions per annum with them vs people using other solutions.

[#7]

Hi @k89bpa

Actually I can see where you're coming from.

I forgot about there thing security check says in bank 2 hours then get email 72 hours ring up we've upgraded it to 24 hours they do that to a million people that's some dosh for them.👍

[#8]

@williamwalker, that three day thing is quite tame, I've known 7 day holds, and even 21 day holds. I've personal experience of the 7 day one, no reason given, just "security check", and that was when I was paying someone from funds sitting in my PayPal account so they were already cleared.

That company and their behaviour at times it more like a mafia protection racket.

I'm sure it's about money and trying to force people to use them.

Many times I've paid for things on a card, been directed to PayPal who try to insist that I create an account with them, (often giving no option to pay without creating an account), which is a huge, dishonest, data slurp and attempted entrapment deal. I think they are the only one who do that.

I've certainly paid via Google whilst not being signed in, Stripe is another one.

The forced account creation is totally unnecessary to simply process a debit or credit card payment.

In this day and age it makes much more sense to do payments via bank transfer as they're free, quick, no data protection issues and they're safe as the payments are direct and not going through another company, which eliminates a possible attack vector.

With companies being hacked left right and centre the fewer companies we have to hand card details over to, the safer we are.

It's particularly the case for domestic payments and now the open banking thing is out and people will be granting access to their bank accounts, (that's where giffgaff money is headed), so the banking details will be available regardless.

Technically if giffgaff had bank details stored and were hacked spammers could set up direct debits on your accounts, (a la the Jeremy Clarkson affair), but they're covered by the direct debit guarantee and you'd get the money back quicker and easier than if your card details were stolen and used, (if you didn't spot the erroneous direct debit in the first place and cancel it before they could take payment - check once a week, you'll never lose anything).

Even more secure if you have an account which has no direct debit functionality as in that case they can do diddlies.