Parent ?pay via paypal

[lucyD]

Do any of you accept this. If so what to they put it under personal service, purchase or what? & are you charged anything. What other ways are there. Its just that I dont want cheques really as I dont often get a chance to get to the bank

Thanks

[kel1983]

wow thats a good idea.

I think I have transfered from mine to my dads before now and didnt get a charge. The only downside I can see is that it can take 5 working days to transfer from paypal to your bank account once its in your paypal account, unless you pay a £5 fee and its done instantly.

[rickysmiths]

I don't think I would accept payment of childminding fees via Paypal. Can't they transfer straight to you bank?

If I am paid by cheque I have in my Fees Policy that I must be given it a week before the fees are due to give me a chance to pay it in.

[Tippy Toes]

I don't accept paypal and haven't been asked.
I prefer bank transfer much less hassle.

[lucyD]

What info do I need to give her though for her to able to pay me direct into my account. As I hate the idea of giving her my bank details

[rickysmiths]

You need to give the name of the Bank (not your branch address though), the sort code and account number. Also the name as it appears on the account. You do NOT give the long number across the middle of the front of the card, the 3 didget security code on the back of the card or the start or end date. They do note need ANY of those details.

It is also worth asking them to attach a reference so you know which payment is from them, I usually ask for the parents surname not the child's name. I also ask the parent to email me when they have paid in the money confirming the date they paid it in and the amount. I then ring my bank or go in and check it has gone in and when I have done that I issue a receipt.

[smurfette]

Wouldn't really be keen on payPal to be honest just takes too long to reach bank although at least you know they have paid it as it arrives instantly. Can't see why they would prefer it as usually people use credit cards to pay with it? And if they are using bank account why not just bank transfer?

[cara1235]

I had a parent who was always behind on her payments and when she sold anything on ebay she would then pay me what she could via paypal but it wasnt until 6 weeks had gone by that i noticed i wasnt receiving the full amount amount she would make a payment of 18.oo and i would only recieve 17.50 so i went back through all of her payments and had to charge her what i had not received i no longer accept payment from her via paypal x

[JCrakers]

All my parents pay by bank transfer or vouchers straight into bank as i don't get time to put cheques in either.

Just give them your sort code and account number and the name of your bank. Dont worry giving your details out because they wont be able to take money out just put it in.

[lucyD]

Thanks everyone, will just give her my account details then

[bunyip]

AFAIK, if you're doing a business transaction via PayPal, you should send a payment request to the client for them to respond and pay you. The payment is then subject to a handling fee, which is deducted from the payment before you receive the balance. So you lose a little of what you're owed. IIRC it's between 1.5% and 3.5% of the transaction, plus a 20p flat rate handling charge.

It is technically possible to circumvent the fee by getting the client to initiate the transaction and mark it as a "gift". This is in breach of PayPal's rules, and might legally be classed as fraud, so I could not possibly recommend it. PayPal are not stupid, so they almost certainly have a piece of software in place that trawls through all the accounts looking for people receiving regular "gift" transactions.

The big danger with receiving PayPal transactions is their 'chargeback' system. This effectively reverses a transaction and refunds the money to the client's account. It's essentially there to protect customers who've paid for mail-order goods that don't arrive but, as it seems to be a universal feature, I don't see why a CM's client couldn't effect a chargeback if they wanted to be unscrupulous and claw back the last month's payment after giving notice.

Not saying they'd do it, but be aware it's a possibility.