Why I Don't Use Bid Pay

Last year I bid on an item at eBay. No big drama here, I bid all the time. In fact, I think eBay is brilliant and use it to bid on almost everything, from soap to CD's. What was different was that the seller ONLY accepted Bid Pay, a service offered by First Data Corporation. She offered no other way to pay.

I'd only ever used my Paypal account to pay for purchases. I love Paypal. I think the Paypal payment system is as perfect as a system can be. I have never had any problems using Paypal, for sending or receiving funds. In addition the fees Paypal charge are very very reasonable - plus the buyer protection plan they offer is brilliant.

Lost Money the First Time I Used the Service

First Data Corporation claim that their payment system is a fast, reliable way to pay for online auctions. Well not from my experience. You see, I live in Australia, and the seller would only offer surface mail delivery to my home. To post a parcel from the USA to Australia, by surface mail, takes around nine weeks. No big deal, I do this all the time. But remember, this was my first experience with the First Data system.

The first problem I encountered was the fees they charge - they are very expensive. But this wasn't the biggest issue, it was the fact that my parcel never arrived. And it took nine week to find this out.

I contacted First Data and found they only offer protection for purchases up to 30 days after the sale. This was useless to me. Surface mail from the USA to Australia takes nine weeks at best, and First Data would not reconsider their policy.

The end result is that I've lost all my money, so I'm going back to Paypal.

About the Author

James Robinson is an Australian writer, broadcaster and commentator. He lives in the world famous Blue Mountains of Sydney.

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