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PayPal Account Freeze Class Action Lawsuit Overview:
- Why: PayPal allegedly unlawfully froze accounts without warning and subsequently seized their funds.
- Who: Three plaintiffs filed a class action lawsuit against PayPal.
- Where: The PayPal class action lawsuit was filed in California federal court.
PayPal Inc. unlawfully seizes account holders’ funds without informing them of the reasons behind the account freeze, according to a class action lawsuit filed last week in California federal court.
Plaintiffs Lena Evans, Roni Shemtov and Shbadan Akylbekov filed the PayPal class action lawsuit on Jan. 13. They each claim that they have used PayPal accounts for years before their accounts were frozen without warning or explanation and their funds were permanently seized after a 180-day hold period.
“This action stems from Defendant’s widespread business practice of unilaterally seizing funds from its clients’ financial accounts without cause and without any fair or due process,” the PayPal class action lawsuit states. The plaintiffs argue that PayPal’s policy amounts to theft.
Plaintiffs Allege PayPal Seized Funds Without Warning
Evans alleges she began using PayPal in 1999 when she opened her eBay account. She uses PayPal to buy and sell items. She also uses it for her nonprofit organization and to exchange money for a poker league she manages, according to the PayPal class action lawsuit.
Evans says her PayPal account was frozen without warning in November 2020 and that she learned on May 22, 2021, that PayPal seized nearly $27,000 from her account without providing a reason.
Shemtov has used PayPal to sell yoga clothing on eBay since 2014, the PayPal class action lawsuit says. In March 2017, PayPal allegedly froze her account and ultimately seized nearly $43,000.
In August 2020, Akylbekov says he learned that PayPal had seized more than $172,000 from his account. He says he did not receive an explanation about the seizure of his PayPal funds until he filed a complaint with the Better Business Bureau at which point he learned that the sale of injectable fillers that were not approved by the FDA violated PayPal’s User Agreement and Acceptable Use Policy.
The plaintiffs claim that PayPal has transferred their funds to PayPal’s own account, and that the amount seized has no causal connection to the damages PayPal actually suffered due to their alleged violation of the Acceptable Use Policy.
The plaintiffs filed the PayPal class action lawsuit on behalf of themselves and a proposed Class of other PayPal users who had funds seized by PayPal based on a purported breach of PayPal’s Acceptable Use Policy.
They are seeking compensatory damages, restitution, treble damages, punitive damages and injunctive relief that would require PayPal to stop engaging in the allegedly unlawful seizure of account funds.
Does PayPal have a right to seize customer’s funds without warning? Tell us what you think in the comments!
The plaintiffs are represented by Eric Bensamochan and Deborah C. Silver of The Bensamochan Law Firm Inc. and Eric Schreiber of Schreiber & Schreiber Inc.
The PayPal Class Action Lawsuit is Lena Evans, et al. v. PayPal Inc., Case No. 5:22-cv-00248, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.
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429 thoughts onPayPal Unlawfully Seizes Account Funds, Class Action Says
So like when I go to transfer money to another account they take the funds out and it doesn’t send. They c s r says our security system detected unusual activity and no human can do anything about it. Happened to me several times. Only clears after reporting to c f p b.
I have been fighting with them for YEARS! I wanted to start a class action suit against them a year ago but didn’t know how to go about it. Samething happened to me. I had my PayPal account for 11 years without any kind of issue. All of a sudden I find out that they have closed my account, say I committed fraud and that I owe them 2000.00. I spend days and days telling them I don’t know what they are talking about that my account got hacked or something. They take my money from my account, and this is how I get paid for my jobs is through PayPal. So now I can’t work because they take my money! They are straight up thieves and need to be held accountable
I’ve had my 2 pay pal account I’ve saw some diaper add me to this
Add me .they wont even tell me why icant use my account.
Add me
Please add me
Please add me they froze over $8,000 from my unemployment back pay n won’t tell me why I’ve been fighting them over my money since November of 2020.here it is January of 2022 and they still won’t release my money or tell my why the froze my account. Please help me with this.
Please add me, they froze my account multiple times. Took nearly $1000 from my account and now say that I owe them a couple thousand dollars.
Add me please
Add me