Facebook Marketplace

[Amybunnett]

Want to buy someone on Facebook marketplace, seller asked me to use friends and family as there is no fee. I offered to pay extra to accommodate the fee and they said no as there would still be a delay in them receiving the money. Is this legit? The product is only £15 so it’s not exactly a lot to gain by scamming, I don’t know if they’re just being difficult. Do they think that I will reverse the payment since I requested this accomodation? What is the best way to move forward. Should I risk it since it’s only £15?

[kernowlass · Accepted solution]

@Amybunnett 

A friends / family (or gift payment) is intended as a transfer of funds from family or friends to one another. For this reason, there is no processing fee when payment is made with bank or PayPal balance.
However as it is a gift payment, there is also no buyer protection as no goods or services should have been exchanged.

If he was not a close mate or family member you should never use that option as it enables the seller to evade paying his Paypal fees and negates your buyer protection at the same time.

You would also not be able to open a dispute (apart from one citing an unauthorised transaction), which would be automatically closed as you did authorise the initial payment.

Be careful as using that option for purchasing goods is against Paypal rules and can lead to account limitation. Personally I would report the seller for selling and evading paying their paypal fees by using that option.

[Truthteller2]

I just tried to send money to a true friend. She was not registered, but I had her correct phone number. I checked the number multiple times since I knew the money to be nonrefundable if I made a mistake. I did not make a mistake, but it was sent to the wrong person. This is the perfect inside fraud, and now PayPal is hiding behind its policy. Everyone does not ever try to send money to a person by their phone number. I am an attorney, but this is bigger than I can handle; if any class action attorneys want a case, I think this is the perfect one. 

[kernowlass]

@Truthteller2 

You do know that mobile phone companies recycle phone numbers?

So the person that had the phone number before your friend may have linked it to their paypal account.

As your friend is not registered with paypal then if you send the funds to that phone number it will go to the phone number linked to that paypal account.