posted on October 30, 2001 01:13:48 PM new
I am into my first few days as the owner of a new PayPal business account. I'm finding that folks sure do like to use their plastic, though it's hard to say if I'm getting any buyers who would have refused to pay other ways.
One question: does Paypal email a monthly statement of the fees, or do you just go in and find it somewhere on the site? I mean a monthly total.
One observation: maybe I'll get over it, but those first several fees really go down hard. I know most of you consider it a business expense and "get over it". But it still bothers me to be subsidizing buyers who use their plastic whereas so many others spend their own gas and money to buy a money order.
I am correct in assuming, aren't I, that we are not allowed to charge a fee for using a credit card. That hasn't changed, right? Somehow this is different from an ad I just read, in which the seller said he'd tack on a $4.50 fee for any international buyer?
posted on October 30, 2001 01:19:21 PM new
Nope, still not allowed to tack on a fee directly. Now, you can roll it into an "overall handling fee" & consider recovering it from there (just don't mention PayPal, BillPoint, etc).
Yep, those fees add up quick, especially for items under $15..PP is much higher than BP.
No, no monthly report. I just kept a spreadsheet w/the fees on there for both BP & PP so I didn't have to constantly check the history to see how much it was. And be sure & recognize that the fee is on the TOTAL including shipping, not just the sale price.
posted on October 30, 2001 01:33:40 PM new
you can download your paypal transaction .
the seller who charges 4.50 for intl is probably referring to shipping and handling ,altho billpoint does charge one dollar extra for overseas customers.
you can offset some of the paypal fee by getting a paypal debit card ,use it for shipping and gas and grocery,paypal gives you a 1 1/2% cashback and you can see it in your account.
i also keeptrack of cc fee by hand,i wish there is an cumulative total for the month so i can book it at the end of the month when i close my books.
posted on October 30, 2001 01:35:31 PM new
do not forget come 11/6/01,for transaction of 500 dollars or mmre,make sure you ship to the verified address and get a signature receipt as well to be covered by seller protection program
posted on October 30, 2001 01:52:57 PM new
I have my two Paypal accounts in Microsoft Money - so I can keep track of incoming payments & fees - just have to run a MS Money report each month to capture my fees, Cash Back rewards, etc etc etc.
posted on October 30, 2001 01:54:28 PM new
I double-checked the auction I referred to here. The seller explicitly says he will charge $4.50 service fee IN ADDITION to shipping charges for International buyers. I suppose it's OK to do that, but not to say "please add $X.XX if you use a credit card by PayPal".
Actually, I know full well you can't say that, so I guess if I feel like an AW "wet diaper" about this, I should retrench. I was just really taken aback by at least one of the fees I noticed today.
posted on October 30, 2001 03:20:19 PM new
4.50 extra for overseas buyers -it does take more work filling out papers,better packing and nasty surprise when you show up at the post office.
i tried to ship a book to germany yesterday,surface mail is 20.50 so i came back and repackaged it,well i managed to reduce it by one dollar.
this is sold thru amzn and i only receive 12.23 for shipping this heavy book.
posted on October 30, 2001 03:47:10 PM new
wowwow - just for future reference, for heavy books inquire about the "M-bag" rate. It should provide hefty savings and get the cost down to, or below, the shipping allowance.
posted on October 30, 2001 04:41:22 PM new
they look up the m bag rate for me and the book said you have to do so much business with usps to qualify,thats what the book said but i have heard other sellers using them ok
recently i detect a change in the attitude of our usps clerks,they are not as helpful in helping me save money.
i shipped a small box express delivery it is slightly over 8 ozs so it went for 16 instead of 12,the clerk is ecstatic.
well,between this and the german book it is more than i usualy pay them.
