PayPal Business Debit Card is removing backup bank account funding

[moorewmla]

I am not sure I am posting this in the correct location but we just received an email from PayPal informing us that starting September 12th the backup funding from our bank account to our PayPal Business Debit Card function is going to be removed from ALL PayPal accounts. I called and spoke with a wonderful customer service rep Lori who spoke with her supervisor (and they had to speak with their supervisor). Apparently no one had informed them of this major change in PayPal business account functions. 

We really rely on this benefit as we are fully self-employed with three businesses and live in a very rural area. The Debit Card backup funding gives us the peace of mind to know our accounts are running smoothly and we don't have to constantly check balances. Ours is a perishable product business and our sales are cyclical on a weekly basis, we don't have customers making purchases every day of the week.

Bottom line: booooooo to PayPal!! You just made our businesses HARDER to run on a day-to-day basis despite your claim in that very email stating your "ongoing focus on helping your business to thrive". I imagine there will be a lot of folks shopping around for other options since PayPal thinks it is fine to cut major functional benefits to their customers with no information or basis in doing so.

[Longtimecustome]

I have a strong feeling that paypal is going to lose alot of loyal customers over this. I have been with PayPal from the beginning and have never done them dirty. The sole purpose for using them was because I could link my account and it would automatically pull what it needed. I have had to cancel ALL of my auto-pays with them.

[Temp20230918x]

Until several days ago I could make PayPal (my only Debit card) purchases using automatic top-off and/or "preferred when purchasing 0nline".
Now (NSF decline), I must wait 3 to 5 days, to transfer funds, before some purchases can be made.
PayPal should restore the original policy, or allow immediate transfers without requiring a bank debit card.

[merrygogray]

I agree with Edward 100%. Either immediate transfers or restore the original policy. I am considering ditching PayPal because of this. 

[auramaster]

I never received the notification of the change. Iv had several transaction go thru since the cutoff date until i went to use it today and it declined twice in a row. Once i got home and dug around for an hour or more to finally find out about this new BS, im now having to go thru every auto-pay i have set up and change them.

The biggest reason i had to use the card was it was safer than directly using my bank debit card and i got a notification on my phone ANY TIME the card was used. I could also have the card locked within 20 seconds thru the app if i had to.  cashback was just a small bonus.

[AnnaRenee87]

Why has this been done? I was grocery shopping yesterday and I'm just happy I brought my normal Chase card because otherwise we wouldn't have had dinner. The backup funding option was the only reason to have this card. Way to **bleep** over your customers who've been with you for almost 20 years....

Also if this was about the cash back? I couldn't care less about it, whoopy, I don't get my 1 dollar each month.....

[Wolf_lissy]

About a month ago I was having a problem with my debit card where I had made a bunch of different purchases and all of them except one went through my bank account. The last one didn't and ended up putting my PayPal account negative. I called PayPal and asked them why this happened and they kept telling me, oh it's because you had no balance in your PayPal account. I kept telling at them, I NEVER HAVE A BALANCE IN MY PAYPAL ACCOUNT. I HAVE BACKUP FUNDING WITH MY BANK! I finally got someone with a brain to tell me it was because there was so many transfers going from my bank that that last one they couldn't send to my bank. So I just transferred it and all was good. I also asked him about that email saying as of Sept 12th you'll no longer be able to use backup funding for your card and he told me that it was a warning if I didn't update my backup funding that it would my backup funding would be turned off. So yeah their customer service didn't know anything about this happening. When I called yesterday and asked why my card was being declined and they told me they were no longer accepting back up funding I told him they were going to lose a lot of customers. and they have. He agreed with me completely. He said all we can do is keep fighting it and hope they change it back but customer service is on our side. They think it's **bleep** that they did this.

[Lumos-Nox]

I've been using my PP debit card for years without keeping a balance in my actual PP account. The other day when I tried to use it, it was declined. Now from what I've read it's because I don't have a balance sitting in PP. Did this just change? Or do I need to dig further?

[nettiemcc]

The original post has all your answers, as does the 22 pages of comments before yours.  Paypal ended backup funding September 12.  Your card will only work for the amount you have in your paypal balance.

[Lumos-Nox]

OMG I just found that thread! I, just like a lot of others, ignored that email because it was labeled "we're making some changes to our legal agreement" 😳 Why on earth would they label it that, and more importantly, WHY would they make this decision?? Isn't the bank backing the whole reason most of us have this card?

[meteordealer]

OMG I just found that thread! I, just like a lot of others, ignored that email because it was labeled "we're making some changes to our legal agreement" 

Why on earth would they label it that, and more importantly, WHY would they make this decision?? Isn't the bank backing the whole reason most of us have this card?"

Proper legal notification would have been to send all of their cardholders a letter in the mail, 2 or 3 months in advance, notifying them of the change. Not to bury it in the fine print of an email with an incorrect subject line. I'm going to laugh when they get slapped with a class action lawsuit.