The Wholesale Forums

[penfold]

Just received an email from Paypal asking for verification of my business account for EU anti money laundering. They say that I have neared the threshold of £1700 been paid in and they have to by law ask for this verification.

They sent 3 questions that I have to answer...1/. Check that my bank details are correct and get Paypal to call me to verify my telephone number which I have just done; 2/. They say they will pay 2 small amounts in to my bank account and I have to go to the bank check the amounts then notify Paypal to verify. 3/. State the monthly/quarterly turnover of the business, what type of items I'm selling etc.

Has anyone received this message from them?

I tried to contact them on the number they provided but all I got was a automated system!

[darren1979]

Its a standered request, id say 99% of people who have paypal accounts on this forum have had to do this or at some point will.

[Ultravox]

This is typical PayPal. Everyone gets this unless they are verified (and in some cases, even after they've been verified)
You need to jump through their hoops and once you've done that, they'll remove the limit.
If not follow these instructions;

Quote from a link regarding Pay Pal payments being held

Firstly let me tell you that there is no requirement under EU Anti money laundering legislation for paypal to freeze accounts, that is a rule they invented so they are lying to you for a start.

I challenged account freezes several times, 3 times via the small claims court and paypal never tried to defend, because they have no grounds or real legal right to hold the money.

In this instance paypal will probably try to hold the money for six months, but there is no need to let them.

First thing to do is email them a pre-legal notice and post it also to their uk offices at:
PAYPAL (EUROPE) LTD
WHITTAKER HOUSE
WHITTAKER AVENUE
RICHMOND
SURREY
TW9 1EH

Send the letter recorded, given the time elapsed allow only 7 days for them to release the money (sorry there is no overnight solution unless they give in to the pre-legal email)

The basis of your letter and email should read:


PRE-LEGAL NOTIFICATION

Account Name:
Email address:

Despite my compliance with your request to supply extra proof of identity and other documentation i am disappointed that you have failed to remove the account limitation and i remain unable to access my funds.

Furthermore i am alarmed that you claim that you have to freeze money due to EU Anti money laundering regulations as this is not my understanding of the law. Could you therefore provide documented evidence from a respected legal source that highlights the requirement for you to freeze my account funds in order to comply with EU Anti money laundering legislation.

I require my funds to be released within 7 days or a valid legal reason that prevents you from doing so be presented to me in writing.

If you ignore this notice or reply in any other way than to comply with the above i will commence legal proceedings without further notice, at which time court costs, legal expenses and interest will be added to the amount being held in my account by you against my will.


Yours sincerely
YOUR NAME

if they do not release your money after seven days, or they reply asking for extra i.d. or in any other way try to stall you then issue the court claim online via www.moneyclaim.gov.uk , it costs £25 but that is charged back to paypal, they will not defend unless you committed some kind of fraud which i presume you did not.

A few times when i did this paypal backed down without me having to claim via the court but three times i had to claim but still they never disputed the claim they just released my money plus costs.

Going through the court is better than waiting six months which is how long paypal can, and often do, hold money according to their T&C'S.

However if that sounds too long to wait then do as i say but ring them every day and demand to speak to a senior manager when you ring stating this is a pre legal warning, then pester them and make it clear you are going to take them to court if they do not release your money within the time frame you set, no excuses will be accepted, if you stand firm they may give in within a few days but failing that you will have started the process to get your money back if they won't play ball.

Good luck and if you need any advice just ask.

[bulkoffers]

That information could be very usefull to alot of people have problems with paypal accounts!

Great post.

[Anthony]

This is standard protocol and what you would expect from any reputable merchant/payment processor. Complete the steps they have asked you to do and move on.