PayPal Credit Promotional Payment Allocation

[MrsDixon18]

PayPal Credit is using fraudulent deceptive practices when allocating payments towards promotional purchases. In 2015 CFPB ordered them to pay 25 million to its consumers for their shady practices. It’s 2018 and not much has changed. I have 24 month promotions and I have 6 month promotions. I make my minimum payment towards my 24 month promotions. And I payoff my 6 month promotions way before the end date. Most within a month of the purchase date. BUT PayPal Credit has this deceptive payment hierarchy where they allocate your payments so they benefit from accrued interest. So even when you make the minimum monthly payment and make extra payments to pay off your 6 month promotions, PayPal is not applying your extra payments towards the 6 month promotions. You have to call and ask to have your payments allocated towards the promotions or you’ll get stuck paying what I call the “stupid tax” 19.99% interest from the date of purchase. They bank on consumers lack of knowledge. They never communicate this in writing. They only tell you this when you call and complain. Extremely fraudulent deceptive practices. Shame on PayPal.

[jpski]

What do you suggest for ..taking this on? I agree with you 100%. My solution is just to make minimum payments, but set aside the overpayment that I would like to make. Then when it's due, pay it off. That way I get to make interest (little bit) and then I get the satisfaction of knowing that I have not fallen victim to their BS..

[Barrywhite]

I too have been in this situation and as you say no matter what overpayment I payed, it would all come off my instalment plan. It’s deception at its greatest really. An instalment plan should be exactly that. It should have no bearing on your smaller 0% plans. They just started the Pay in 3 plans. Although I think it’s PayPal and not PayPal credit. First two days they charged my bank for the first 2 payments, but failed to reflect it on the balance. I told them what they had done and tried to say my bank refused the first charge and I’d have to contact my bank and reverse the first charge. Thankfully my bank did but it’s not their problem it’s PayPal. Worst of it they said the first one had been refused, when in fact the balance clearly shows that the first one now had cleared and the 2nd one disappeared. I used to love PayPal, but now I always have to have one eye always looking at them.

[dawatson]

Were you able to do this successfully?  I have tried several times to allocate a payment and it never gets done.

[jgatl]

I am always able to allocate my payments. Just last month I had a payment I allocated. I've found the turnaround is most of the time 14 calendar days (but never less than 10 calendar days). I have found that when you do this, you often lose the eBay merchant name and it gets generically converted to "ebay purchase"). Not a big deal for me, since I know the amount. 

The most frustrating thing is that any non-promotional purchase is not shown anywhere online. You have to call to find out the amount of the non-promotional balance, or you can calculate it by comparing the total of all the easy pay and promotional balances to the total credit used. I'd recommend to not put any non-promotional purchases on Paypal Credit, and to review your statements and online balances to total credit amount to ensure this doesn't slip by you.

[ANNAMARIEP29]

There used to be a setting on PayPal where you can choose how your payments were allocated. I can’t find this anywhere anymore. I just spoke with 4 customer service agents and they have no clue how payments are applied to your account! Two customer service agents said you just make your minimum balance and it’ll go to the promotional balance. Wow! I replied, you have no idea what you’re talking about. I can’t believe this is a qualified customer service agent! Have you ever tried to dispute something on PayPal. Don’t! Contact Synchrony bank. PayPal will just say they disputed and then the next day release it. Contact the bank directly on the back of the credit card and they will officially take care of it. I thought PayPal was all that but the credit card and PayPal credit are awful. To send money back-and-forth between friends and little things PayPal’s OK. I do have a lot of stock in PayPal that seems to be doing OK but I’m losing faith in PayPal day by day. I will continue to make four times my minimum due and I do notice that it does go towards my promotional balances, but I think that’s because along time ago when I first open the account I allocated my payments to go to the minimum due first and promotional balances second. Maybe one day when I have a lot of time to waste I’ll try and contact customer service again. Good luck!

[jpski]

I have finally given up on trying to contact payPal credit. I never pay extra anymore. I only pay the minimum due to avoid finance charges. They can put it wherever they want as long as I don't get charged finance charges. I would like to get things paid off faster but with having to go through their craziness, I won't. In the end they are the losers. I am just using their money longer and not having to pay for it.

[ANNAMARIEP29]

I agree PayPal is very frustrating to try to contact or have anyone understand what you’re asking. I will say that when I have a promotional payment due and a minimum payment due. I pay the minimum balance due and the entire promotional balance due to avoid that interest. I hope that helps. Anna

[ANNAMARIEP29]

Please remember that if you have a promotional balance that is due and a minimum payment due you must make the minimum payment due and the entire amount of the promotional balance due to avoid interest on that promotional balance. I hope this helps. Anna

[ShuggC]

I have just been caught out by this PayPal Payment Allocation Scam too. I cannot believe they are getting away with this,. its such an underhand way of catching you out and changing interest on promotional purchases!  

[jgatl]

I've had my share of issues, but calling and asking for a PPC supervisor always works for me. I seen several people ask about the rules, so here's what I've seen in practice:

1. Any payment goes first to the minimum amount due (total of easy pay balance payments plus $29.00). 
2. The $29.00 will be applied
   1. to any non-promotional balance first (any PPC purchase that isn't easy-pay or 6 month interest free (less than $99.00)),
   2. then to any 6-month promotional balance expiring in the next 2 billing cycles,
   3. and finally to your easy pay balances
3. Any payment above the minimum balance follows item 2's order above -
   1. nonpromotional first,
   2. then 6-month promotional balance expiring in the next 2 billing cycles. then
   3. to your next expiring easy pay balance(s)
4. If you are 3 billing cycles (or more) away from your promotional balance expiring, you either need to:
   1. save the money until you are 2 billing cycles away or
   2. call to allocate your "over" payment (over > above the minimum payment due).
5. The $29 that is part of the minimum balance automatically goes to your non-promotional balance and then your next expiring promotional balance. No need to call to allocate it
6. When you call in to allocate, the allocation occurs in 2 weeks (+/- a few days). The balance associated with the allocation will sometimes get relabeled as "Miscellaneous adjustment." I recommend keeping a worksheet to tell your balances apart (noting the original purchase date, purchase amount, balance month to month and expiration date). 
7. If you are overpaying, I'd recommend you make 2 (or more) distinct payments:
   1. The minimum payment
   2. The allocated payment, one payment per balance - when I've tried to allocate across multiple balances, it's invariably allocated incorrectly. It's a mess to clean up, so don't do it. If your payment equals the remaining balance for a 6 month promotional balance, then it's kind of hard for the supervisor to get it wrong.
      1. Example: "I want to make a payment of $59.08" to the balance expiring on Oct 11 that is currently $59.08 and was originally $99.00 purchased on Jun 10." 
8. I have found numerous times that paying the amount to avoid interest does not mean your payment will be allocated correctly. If you want to test where it will be applied, pay $1.00 more than the minimum amount and see what balance gets the $1.00 is applied. I'm often surprised here
9. Do not make your overpayments all in one day. Make your minimum, let PPC apply it to your balances. Then call in to make your allocation and wait until it has been allocated before making any more payments.  You can use the $1.00 overpayment to test theories on subsequent balances
   1. Example - you owe $59.08 on one balance expiring in Oct, and $99.00 on another balance. You want to pay both off this month. You pay the minimum plus $1.00 and the $59.08 balance reduces to $58.08.  You then pay $59.08 ($1.00 more) and the $1.00 goes to one of your easypay balances. In this case, you need to call in to allocate your $99.00 payment. 

Hope that helps everyone. I don't know what happens if the only balances you have are easy-pay promotions. I assume the $29 is applied to the next expiring easy pay balance.