Alternatives to PayPal - how long does it take for an earnings 'check' to arrive at a UK address?

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Due to Paypal’s recent admission that it intends (at some point in the near future) to fine $2,500, or close the accounts of, any user it arbitrarily decides has written, spoken or shared what it calls ‘misinformation’, and is therefore not a place that anyone can rely on for proper financial security, I have made the decision to only use ‘real’ banks going forward, for all online and offline movement and holding of money.

Therefore, my steadfast aim, as many more millions have also now decided to do (#BoycotPaypal movement) is to never use Paypal again. They cannot put the toothpaste back in the tube. Everyone now knows that Paypal simply cannot be trusted with our money like a ‘real’ bank can.

However, the one thing that stands in my way is Zazzle’s persistant reluctance to provide a 100% secure and ‘real’ banking facility for transfer of earnings to Zazzle creators. Therefore, until Zazzle provides ‘real’ banking transfers, creators are left with the only other option, which is to request a ‘check’ payment.

When you think about it, that choice is like offering either ‘MacDonald’s’ or ‘grow your own’ for your food options, or offering ‘Uber’ or ‘use your legs’ for your travel options. When it comes to something as important as earnings, and where the recipient has no real choice, Paypal is essentially operating a business ‘monopoly’.

So my question is this. Until Zazzle implements a ‘real’ banking facility for transfer of earnings, I must at least investigate the logistics of receiving a ‘check’.

I reside in the UK, and would like to know when I should expect to receive a check in relation to the normal receipt day of the 15th of each month?

Are checks posted from the US, or are they posted from the creator’s country of residence? Obviously, if they are posted from the US, Zazzle cannot make any true estimate of a delivery date, and there is always a reasonable possibility with international postage that the check would never turn up. In that case, the check option becomes totally irrelevant to any creator residing outside of the US.

Thanks for looking into this Zazzle. I’m sure you appreciate that 100% banking security is a very important issue that needs full resolution asap.

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That is a real problem for me too . I went  for holiday  and wanted to withdraw money I collected on paypal . It suspended my account on the ground of "suspicious activity "  .  i had  to submit this  document and that document  and they still kept telling me  that I   am suspicous .  After  some days they  changed  their mind  and  allowed access  to my money .They ruined my  holiday  and my trust in them .Then I  wrote  to Zazzle  customer service  suggesting to find  another service but they answered  that ppl  is very  good .    

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Please, Zazzle, consider offering a payment alternative to Paypal.

I would suggest WISE  - they are FCA regulated, SEPA or SWIFT transfers, they have maybe the smallest fees on the market and their service is used in the European Economic Area (EEA) countries, Canada, US, UK, Switzerland, Australia, New Zealand and more. Please look into this.

As for the cheque alternative - at least in France, there is no way to cash or to deposit a USD cheque to a French bank. 

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I would suggest that the notion of “very good” in regards to Paypal could not be seen as an official Zazzle statement in regards to what you said happened to you. I’m sure as a company, Zazzle do not believe that PayPal’s way of dealing with that particular situation could possibly ever compare to the way a ‘real’ bank would have dealt with it. Real banks may not be perfect, but they are highly regulated, and I’m sure the response you received must have been a flippant comment by the individual who happened to reply to you.

Yes, PayPal may make it easier for Zazzle, but this discussion is not about what is easiest for Zazzle. It is about the financial security of personal money holding and transfer, which obviously includes putting the customer first. As far as I can see, the main problem with PayPal is that they regard their customer as big business, not the individual! That is the total reverse ideology of a ‘real’ bank. For this reason alone, all earnings payments throughout the world should now be legislated as being only permissible through ‘real’ banks, which are governed by specific codes of practice that equally protect each and every individual whose money they hold.

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Thanks for expanding this conversation Magda. I didn’t realise that was the situation in France. That basically means that Zazzle are not giving any choice at all to any French creators. Until now, I did not even consider what you have stated, but I will now need to see if my bank accepts US dollar checks. Your situation fully illustrates the fact that Paypal are operating a monopoly in regards to Zazzle. I wonder how many other companies have been sold the idea that putting all their eggs in the Paypal basket will make life easier for them?

It doesn’t matter what your politics are, it is thankful that in regards to this discussion, Zazzle have firmly thrown their hat in the ring of liberal values, which of course include collective bargaining, and so we can be sure that Zazzle will listen to its creators if enough of them want real change, in regards to ending this corporate monopolising. Let’s keep on expanding the conversation until we get the required solution!

“Be the change you wish to see in the world.” Ghandi.

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Thanks for bringing this is up. I think it has been requested many times to have alternatives to PayPal. I think cheques are not legal in all of the EU, so that is not an alternative. And “regular banks” are also going the same road as PayPal, like JP Morgan recently. So I don’t even know if there are other and more reliable payment options (if Zazzle would offer them). Very uncertain times.

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Several decent alternative systems exist, but they seem geared toward merchants getting paid, so if you’re only looking to have your Zazzle earnings go to a specific place, I’m not sure where it might be because, looking at those that popped to mind, I found they’ve been up to no good too.

Colorwash's Home

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I still think “payroll cards” are an ideal solution. Most major payroll services and financial institutions offer them and while the fine print & possible fees will differ from provider to provider (and can be negotiated) , they all share the same basic pros - instant access to funds, ability to use anywhere/anyway you’d use a regular credit/debit card in-person or on-line, ability to withdraw cash from ATMs, ability to transfer funds from card to your bank account, ability to get paid and spend without even needing a bank account …  Many are also structured for international use so you can be paid and also spend in whatever currency without high conversion fees and whatnot.

Here’s a guide to payroll cards that was written for employers/payors that does a good job of explaining their pros/cons and how they work and all.

https://www.consumer-action.org/downloads/english/Employer_Guide_to_Payroll.pdf 

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The problem in our country Australia plus other parts of the world are that ‘Real banks’ are closing their branches in many towns so the only way you can deal with them is online ,or travel kilometres away ! Such was the problem we had with 98yr old mother in law yesterday with hearing issues answering questions about her account via phone. Yes the banks probably have more security but they have a lot to answer for as well!                        

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Of course, you are absolutely right @orientcourt . We need to see laws to guarantee the high street presence of every ‘real’ bank. The banking industry as a whole is being pulled towards the same disregard towards customer service, and Australia is certainly not the best example of nation resisting the multinational takeover of government. However, as it stands at the moment, there is still a chasm of difference between a rogue outfit like Paypal and a standard bank in terms of legal financial security of customer funds.

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I would expect JP Morgan to follow suit. Enough said on that! The important thing going forward is for enough people to demand that permanent lines are drawn in the sand as far as our banking security is concerned. It starts in discussions such as this. As another person also mentioned, you have raised this issue of cheques (checks) not being legal in some EU countries @Anne , and I think that is a very important point. Zazzle needs to understand that the check option cannot be regarded as any option at all, if even one major country does not permit the cashing of it. Therefore, Zazzle currently ‘forces’ all creators to use a certain multinational corporation Paypal) in order to receive payment of earnings. Whatever ‘arrangement’ Paypal and Zazzle have made, the facts are the facts - that is a corporate monopoly at play. There is no other word for it. It would be interesting to know just how many other companies in the US and around the world force their employees to use Paypal, or simply not get paid?

I have decided that I will be writing to my political representative on this issue. I believe we may need legislation to deal with this, and I’m sure there are many House Representatives and Senators in the US who might see this a key election topic. I might suggest that anyone who sees this as an important issue do the same as me, and write to your political representative. We need a law that guarantees that every company provides a payment facility with a ‘real’ bank, which is not legally permitted to discriminate in any way in regards to transferring of earnings.

After all, we are not talking about retail or other transactions here. This is purely about the safe and secure transfer of earnings, nothing else. Let Paypal deal with buying stuff from Amazon, or indeed Zazzle, but no company on the planet should be legally permitted to deny/discount/suspend the payment or transfer of a person’s salary/wages/earnings, for any supposed reason. Surely, we are talking here about something that is akin to a human right?

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Hi @Barbara . I think the bottomline is going to be providing ‘standard’ earnings transfer facilities such as BACS, CHAPS, SWIFT etc. That allows the creator to choose where the funds are sent.

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Hi @ColsCreations . That is an interesting suggestion. I don’t know enough about ‘payroll cards’ to comment but I will take a look via the link you provided. I wonder how that facility compares in terms of ease for payee, and ease of set-up for the payer (Zazzle) to establishing standard CHAPS, BACS and SWIFT payments?

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Hey @369  ,

Many thanks for your feedback on this. I am passing this on to our team now!

Checks are sent on the 15th of each month and can take 1-2 weeks to be delivered. Checks can only be considered lost if not delivered within 30 calendar days of the check being issued. They are posted from the US.

Fiona​:sunflower:

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@369   Your last paragraph sums it up perfectly.

Colorwash's Home

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I’m in Canada and I opted to be paid by check. It usually arrives within 3 weeks, a few times it took longer and once it took so long that zazzle canceled the check and issued me another one which arrived at the expected time. I prefer to be paid by check because I’m wary of online transfers of money.

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I sell on Alamy, which is a UK stock photo agency, and they pay in US$ directly into my bank account.

I would prefer Zazzle to do likewise

Besides, I don’t consider Paypal to be secure. I received an email stating that someone was charging me £600, and contacting the telephone number in the email, they were able to send security codes by text, which worked on Paypal, knowing my phone number and at least the last 4 digits of my Paypal card, I cancelled my Paypal card (which they said they were going to, but didn’t) and my bank advised me to have my bank card cancelled because as it was linked to my Paypal account, they could probably access its details as well

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I think your past experience and serious security issues with Paypal @kennethwfd , spell out the problem we face in no uncertain terms. From your testimony, Paypal not only failed to secure your money but did not respond properly to the issue, whereas your ‘real’ bank took extra measures to secure your account with them, which had also been put at risk because of Paypal’s insecure framework. Again, I remind everyone that Paypal is not governed by the same regulations as ‘real’ banks under both each individual country’s laws as well as regional and global banking requirements. Paypal are a transnational retail transaction company, nothing more. They will always put the desire for big business profits over the financial security of the individual customer.

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Thank you Fiona for letting us know the official statement on how long it should take for checks to arrive. However, other contributors have already provided broader information about check issues that has not only opened up the discussion to further comments, but has also established the fact that checks are simply not an option for people based in certain countries, and therefore cannot be classed as a universal option at all. Please read all the comments for details.

It will be interesting to see what ‘the team’ comes up with in response to the overwhelming opinion from contributors so far, which is that checks are simply not an option at all for so many, and are a very uncertain form of payment for the rest, and it therefore stands that in reality, for many, if not most, Paypal is actually the only payment option provided by Zazzle.

The consensus seems to be that payment via Paypal is leaving many creators with high levels of insecurity regarding their money, with examples provided of exactly how Paypal has been proven to be a real financial security risk in the past for some. Such very real financial security risks, and allowing so many creators to experience various levels of anxiety with regards to their earnings, is surely not what Zazzle wants or wishes to prolong? I’m sure you agree that the sooner ‘real’ bank transfers or an equivalent alternative to Paypal are provided, as a permanent standard going forward, the sooner creators minds will be put at rest.

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The fact that Zazzle had to once cancel your check and you only live in Canada certainly does not give me or others living across the pond any good reason to request a check! If it “usually” arrives in 3 weeks travelling from California to Canada, I dread to think how long it may take, with all the potential transfers and shipping methods, if it is sent to the UK!