Paypal ... Buyer's Tale

Debbie has given the seller's take on Paypal

Here's a buyer's tale.

After numerous transactions on Ebay using paypal, couple of days ago and without any prior warning, whilst in the middle of atransaction for just 15, up pops a notice from Paypal telling me that I have toprovide them with details of my personal bank account.

OK, nothing strange in that you may say. Only thing is that from the very outset, I have only used my Visa credit card for all transactions the details of which they already have. In the same week, I had already purchased goods to the value of around 800 from other online retailers (I'm moving house), all using the same card and not one of them had the temerity to ask for my private bank account details.

Over my spending limit? Not a bit of it. Apart from having a high spending limit, I actually keep my visa account in credit! Strange I know but I simply use Visa for convenience and the protection it offers on purchases.

So what precisely are paypal up to you may ask?

You may well ask?

Why are they asking for totally non-relevant private information when firms, far farmore respected and long-established than they don't request such information?

Given the global nature of their operation and their money transfer arm; and given that widespread fraud that seems to have infected allaspects of the web, would YOU feel safe in divulging such private information to a company about which so very little is known within the public domain. And that is not to mention that they have been brought to task about their business methods by BBC's Watchdog programme.

Something mighty fishy here I reckon.