Three users of the online payment service have filed a federal lawsuit against the company, claiming they were frozen and their funds taken without explanation. Two users from California and one from Chicago are accusing the company of violating racketeering laws by seizing their personal property. They're proposing a class-action lawsuit on behalf of all other users who have had their accounts frozen before and are seeking damages.
The website froze the account of a woman who'd been a user for 22 years without ever telling her why. Evans had been using eBay to buy and sell clothing and to exchange money for a poker league she owns and a non-profit that helps women with various needs.
Roni Shemtov said that her account was terminated by PayPal because they seized over $42,000 of her money. One customer rep said that she used the same computer and internet address as other Paypal users, and another said that she sold yoga clothing at a lower price than retail. She denies that it was because she used multiple accounts.
Shbadan Akylbekov said that his money was seized without any explanation why his account was limited. The account of the company Akylbekov's wife owns was used to sell the hyaluron pens. After the money disappeared from the account following a six-month freeze, PayPal sent his wife a letter that says she "violated PayPal's User Agreement and Acceptable Use Policy (AUP) by accepting payments for the sale of injectable fillers not approved by the FDA." The money was taken from her account because of the AUP violations.
Many users have been angered by the fact that they can't have unlimited accounts or have their funds frozen for six months or more. Chris Moneymaker, an American poker player, had $12,000 taken from his account after six months of being limited. Moneymaker was asking people to join him in a class action lawsuit before his funds were mysteriously returned.
The complaint reads:
The class action was brought against PayPAL, Inc. Damages and other relief available at law and in equity on behalf of themselves, as well as on behalf of the members of the class, are whatPayPal is attempting to recover. The action stems from the widespread practice of seizing funds from clients without cause or due process.
There is a hold on the funds in the accounts. Even though they were told that they would have to get a subpoena to learn the simple information about why PayPal was holding, the class was denied access.