Please remember that sellers on R2R are NOT allowed to ask for unprotected forms of payment (PP friends & family, unprotected Venmo payment, etc.)

[Mperry622]

Hey everyone, as a reminder, sellers are NOT allowed to ask buyers to send payment as a gift (either via the Paypal Friends and Family option, unprotected Venmo payments, Western Union, or any other option that negates buyer protection). Any sellers who are shown to be asking for payment in these forms may lose their ability to access the marketplace at all.

Buyers, please beware of any requests to send payment in these ways. This is a large forum, and while most transactions are carried out with no issues, you should never gift money to anyone you do not know personally. Sending payment as a gift removes any protection available to you through the payment services you utilize.

Here's some tips everyone should read before buying or selling online: https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/watch-out-before-buying-or-selling.201631/

Also, here are our selling forum rules: https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/selling-trading-forum-rules-please-read-before-posting.115471/

EDIT: Venmo now offers payment protection, but it has to be selected for each transaction (the buyer has to click the button to turn it on). R2R does recognize and allow payments to be requested through Venmo with buyer's protection turned on.

I didn't see this post before I purchased... but I bought several items off the marketplace and
members are asking you to use family and friends to get around the fee..

 

[kschweer]

I didn't see this post before I purchased... but I bought several items off the marketplace and
members are asking you to use family and friends to get around the fee..

Report it. We take this seriously.

 

[Daniel@R2R]

We are seeing an increase in violations of this rule. This is a rule we take very seriously because we have had attempts by scammers to cheat members of our community in the past. Violations of this rule will result in suspension of selling privileges on Reef2Reef. Please help us keep the marketplace forums a safe place for everyone.

If you are aware of violations of this rule, please report them. This is about keeping our community safe. Thank you.

 

[haitian_reefer]

We are seeing an increase in violations of this rule. This is a rule we take very seriously because we have had attempts by scammers to cheat members of our community in the past. Violations of this rule will result in suspension of selling privileges on Reef2Reef. Please help us keep the marketplace forums a safe place for everyone.

If you are aware of violations of this rule, please report them. This is about keeping our community safe. Thank you.

How do I report this violation?

 

[Daniel@R2R]

How do I report this violation?

Each thread post and private message has a report link at the bottom (see attached screenshot). Just click that link and it will create a ticket that alerts our staff to the issue.

 

[MnFish1]

And FYI - it's also a PayPal violation - i.e. if you're paying for a 'good or service' - you're violating your own PayPal agreement if you say its just 'for a friend'

 

[Zaven D]

I personally feel like sellers should add that into their cost when they are charging people if they are really bothered by that transaction fee. Instead of charging $250 shipped for a Frag pack they should charge $259.55 there’s a site that does the calculation for you.

Ive dealt with both types of sellers that will either be okay without charging you the transaction fee, and sellers that will tell you to send as friends family and if you don’t will get aggressive and demand the difference.

 

[Daniel@R2R]

I personally feel like sellers should add that into their cost when they are charging people if they are really bothered by that transaction fee. Instead of charging $250 shipped for a Frag pack they should charge $259.55 there’s a site that does the calculation for you.

Ive dealt with both types of sellers that will either be okay without charging you the transaction fee, and sellers that will tell you to send as friends family and if you don’t will get aggressive and demand the difference.

Yep. It's actually in our rules that all selling fees MUST be built into the price. It's part of the cost of selling/using PayPal for transactions. Please report any violations of this rule.

 

[coralbeauties]

I believe it is more a income tax ramification then the paypal fees. With the new tax rules of reporting over $600 in sales I have had two different sellers request friends and family in the last several months. I refused to buy from them. If you report them are you left anonymous or will they find out who reported.
Jeff

 

[Daniel@R2R]

I believe it is more a income tax ramification then the paypal fees. With the new tax rules of reporting over $600 in sales I have had two different sellers request friends and family in the last several months. I refused to buy from them.
Jeff

Yep. We absolutely understand. Nobody likes to pay more taxes. However, this rule is in place to protect our community from scammers. Sending money via F&F makes the buyer vulnerable to fraud. (And that's not even addressing that it's a violation of PayPal's policies as well.) So as much as we sympathize with people being unhappy about paying more taxes, we must insist on this rule.

 

[coralbeauties]

do the fraudulent sellers find out who reported them. I would fear some sort of retribution for the report?

 

[Daniel@R2R]

do the fraudulent sellers find out who reported them. I would fear some sort of retribution for the report?

We never indicate to anyone how they were reported/found to be in violation. All reports are considered to be anonymous.

 

[Montiman]

Following this thread I wanted to point out that PayPal is also one of the most secure payment methods for sellers. PayPal offers Seller protection in addition to buyer protection. As an e-commerce business owner I geartly prefer customers pay with PayPal. If someone contests a credit card charge there is basically nothing a seller can do. I have provided card companies with order details including the ip address of the order from the customer's home, tracking numbers and a package signature and the card company has still sided with the customer. With PayPal they actually look at the evidence and don't just side with the customer by default. Some security is worth 3.5%

 

[MnFish1]

Here are the actual "Rules" - that may help both buyers and sellers here:

Why You Can't Charge Clients Paypal Fees + What to Do About It

Patrice Perkins of Creative Genius Law explains why you can't charge your clients PayPal fees, as well as what you can do about it. Get the info you need!

creativegeniuslaw.com

 

[MnFish1]

I believe it is more a income tax ramification then the paypal fees. With the new tax rules of reporting over $600 in sales I have had two different sellers request friends and family in the last several months. I refused to buy from them. If you report them are you left anonymous or will they find out who reported.
Jeff

If you run a business (sell coral, fish, etc) - whether you make $60 or $600,000, technically you are supposed to pay taxes on that money. Thats not a Paypal rule or an R2R rule - it's the IRS rule. So let's say you sell a 100$ frag - and pay pal takes $3 - you can deduct that $3 and your other expenses it took to grow that $100 frag from the income. Again - don't shoot the messenger - its the law - or my understanding thereof.

 

[coralbeauties]

Lmk if I’m wrong but as a buyer and I get scammed, I report it to PayPal and they find in my favor but the crook withdraws the money. There is then no funds for PayPal to retrieve to repay me. This happened to me years ago and luckily it was only for $80 but showed me that the security of not getting scammed is not all that great. My buddy and I are currently in a jam with a big name seller, importer where he owes us almost $3000. He is ignoring all communications. We are in hopes he does the right thing but know if we file a claim there will be no funds available to recover from and will tick the guy off so much we will loose all chances of getting anything back from him. Almost a loose loose situation.
Jeff

 

[GARRIGA]

Just to confirm, if buyer is picking up item at our house then Zelle or Friends & Family is allowed since buyer has inspected said item and taken possession? I personally try not dealing with cash.

 

[mfinn]

Just to confirm, if buyer is picking up item at our house then Zelle or Friends & Family is allowed since buyer has inspected said item and taken possession? I personally try not dealing with cash.

If someone is picking a item up at your house, you can do anything you want.

 

[MnFish1]

Lmk if I’m wrong but as a buyer and I get scammed, I report it to PayPal and they find in my favor but the crook withdraws the money. There is then no funds for PayPal to retrieve to repay me. This happened to me years ago and luckily it was only for $80 but showed me that the security of not getting scammed is not all that great. My buddy and I are currently in a jam with a big name seller, importer where he owes us almost $3000. He is ignoring all communications. We are in hopes he does the right thing but know if we file a claim there will be no funds available to recover from and will tick the guy off so much we will loose all chances of getting anything back from him. Almost a loose loose situation.
Jeff

You are possibly a little incorrect - if there is a dispute - 1 your account has to be in good standing for 180 days. 2. you have to message the seller and try to resolve it - if it is not resolved you have to dispute it within 180 days - . Within 20 days of that if still not resolved - you need to escalate it to a Claim status and that needs to be done within 20 days. If not the dispute cannot be re-opened (i.e. you're out of luck) Previously (I think it still is) - the funds are held in the sellers account from the time you open the dispute to the end of the claim resolution. So let's say you buy a Frag Receive it on Tuesday - and it's dead - if you report it within the timeframe - you SHOULD be covered. Note - I can't find it on the PayPal website - but - on other articles - it states that PayPal does not cover living animal transactions.

 

[LiquidFunk]

Paypal is the devil and has screwed me multiple times (on ebay). I will never do business with them again (or Venmo, which is owned by Paypal). There are too many other options available and I think its lame R2R requires something that frankly is none of their business, its between the buyer and seller. I have sold a number of items here on R2R previously without using Paypal and my buyers have been very satisfied (a Nero even ended up defective upon arrival and I got him a new driver from AI). My name is more important than the money. Some people still have honor and for R2R to pigeon hole us into a garbage payment system is really lame. I guess I just wont sell any more on R2R until something outside Paypal is accepted - like cash app, Zelle, apple pay, google pay, crypto etc.