Flippa and his curious solution

[Dondomainer]

After selling a domain. have confirmed my account with my credit card, have also confirmed my account with the phone, my email, have transferred the domain to buyer,

Flippa says that they send payment through paypal, if I add my bank account and as an alternative solution they say :

If the buyer has already received the assets and wishes to send you funds directly via PayPal, I'm happy to refund the Buyer's payment.

Also they say that $ 5 of my credit card frozen for two days, were not to authenticate my account, wait a minute, then flippa lie because that's exactly what they say.

His solution is utterly disappointing, worthy of a novice website.

I don't feel safe on offer too much information about me, I think they have created a system that works more like a financial institution as a domain market.

In the end, I do not know when I can collect my money, a complete nightmare.

 

[Apprich]

5 days, no solution.

You need to be patient, sometimes it takes long but it gets solved. Once it took for me 10 days but in the end i received my money without problem.

 

[NameFilter.com]

Things could have been changed since I last used Flippa, but as far as I recall, when the buyer chooses to use Paypal via Flippa, the payment will go directly to the seller. The flippa escrow service only allows wire transfer and cc payment I Think, not Paypal. So I don't know how Flippa can hold the buyers Paypal payment.

 

[Dondomainer]

Things could have been changed since I last used Flippa, but as far as I recall, when the buyer chooses to use Paypal via Flippa, the payment will go directly to the seller. The flippa escrow service only allows wire transfer and cc payment I Think, not Paypal. So I don't know how Flippa can hold the buyers Paypal payment.

I found a buyer mail to Flippa, where he says he has no paypal account, so Flippa accept payment.

 

[Jen-Sin]

Seems like the Buyer paid by Flippa Escrow.

When that happened, Seller does not need to pay the Flippa 10% Success Fee as it will be deducted directly from the payment to Flippa Escrow, and the remaining released to Seller.

Also it seems like the verification by Flippa and Flippa Escrow are done seperately. Verification by phone, email and credit card seems to be by Flippa. Flippa Escrow would require another form of verification, usually before releasing the funds, failing which your account might be suspended or banned with the money still on hold.

I think they have created a system that works more like a financial institution as a domain market.

I agree with your above observation. I feel their system are more stringent than a financial institution.

 

[Dondomainer]

..no domain , no money...still waiting.

 

[offersity]

Flippa is my least favorite place to transact domain. I feel like they are trying too hard sometime to be awesome and cool with their platform, however you can always feel there is always this disconnect between their process and their customer support.

And while Im at it, I also feel like they work like big retail banks on how they make money, which is to fee you to death, this is true especially for sellers, which is why I stay away from them. I do however buy domains occasionally on their platform.

With that said, Im 100% sure you will get your money, it looks like this was just a misteps somewhere.

 

[Dondomainer]

News from Flippa, You can believe this?

Hi there,

Thanks for following up!

I am not seeing where the buyer has made payment for the property using Paypal or Flippa escrow. Kindly reach out to the buyer to indicate that he do the same.

Buyers are given a short period to respond. If the buyer has not responded within 72 hours then you may file a dispute against him/ her.

 

[Jen-Sin]

News from Flippa, You can believe this?

Hi there,

Thanks for following up!

I am not seeing where the buyer has made payment for the property using Paypal or Flippa escrow. Kindly reach out to the buyer to indicate that he do the same.

Buyers are given a short period to respond. If the buyer has not responded within 72 hours then you may file a dispute against him/ her.

Did you receive the following email notifications previously from Flippa?

1. Buyer has made payment for 'Flippa listing #XXXXXXX'
2. Buyer has released payment for 'Flippa listing #XXXXXXX'

 

[Dondomainer]

Did you receive the following email notifications previously from Flippa?

1. Buyer has made payment for 'Flippa listing #XXXXXXX'
2. Buyer has released payment for 'Flippa listing #XXXXXXX'

Yes,, the same day I transferred the domain, i received the email from Flippa



so, i do not know whatis happening, It is unacceptable.

 

[Dondomainer]

I have been forced to file a complaint in BBB, This is too much

https://sanjose.app.bbb.org/complaint/new/1001916?bbbID=1216

 

[Jen-Sin]

Normally there is a success fee in the transaction:

This is weird but mine was an auction and not a domain classified.

Have you communicated with the buyer as well as replied to Flippa?

@FlippaDomains is at NamesCon and will be able to assist you in this when he is back.

 

[Jen-Sin]

Normally there is a success fee in the transaction:

I understand now why there is no success fee for your transaction as you had paid it separately.

Hope Flippa can fix this issue with you soonest.

 

[FlippaDomains]

I don't recall speaking to you directly, @gipson - I was away due to a family emergency, and then was at Namescon. I am just now seeing this post. Let me investigate and respond fully. BTW, this is a Flippa Escrow issue. Flippa does not hold your money; Flippa Escrow does.

Back soon.

 

[S-B]

BTW, this is a Flippa Escrow issue. Flippa does not hold your money; Flippa Escrow does.

Back soon.

Pawning problems off on other portions of the business is a little corny. The prefix to the escrow business is still Flippa.

 

[FlippaDomains]

Yes, four messages since January 8, and one solution :

If the buyer has already received the assets and wishes to send you funds directly via PayPal, I'm happy to refund the Buyer's payment.

I did not write this.

Need to know your transaction ID, URL and/or username so I can assist. Thanks.

 

[FlippaDomains]

Pawning problems off on other portions of the business is a little corny. The prefix to the escrow business is still Flippa.

Hey Shane. Were you at Namescon? Sorry I missed you.

This actually is strictly a payment issue. I'm not pawning anything off; I need to look into it, but we also do not control money. Flippa Escrow (PromisePay) is an Escrow service the marketplace uses that has insight into where the money is, and where it goes. It's not like I'm sitting on a massive bank account and can track everything in front of me, personally.

I'm going to reach out to my team and see what happened. @gipson - anything you can PM me would be appreciated.

 

[ForceAwakens]

Gipson, good point you make in posting that link to the San Jose BBB.
A lot of people assume Flippa is solely doing business out of Australia.

But as they are fully entrenched in San Fran, they're under California laws.
This also brings up the situation that California has several different orgs that protect consumer rights.

One of them advises consumers to safeguard personal ids.
I noticed this issue on another thread and thought I would give a heads
"
Providing your driver's license could put you at risk of identity theft
Think twice before allowing businesses and others to record your data"
consumerreports dot org/cro/news/2013/12/drivers-license-identity-theft/index.htm

oag DOT ca DOT gov/sites/all/files/agweb/pdfs/privacy/business_privacy_handbook.pdf.
www DOT dca DOT ca DOT gov/publications/guide/ref_guide.pdf
www DOT leginfo DOT ca DOT gov/cgi-bin/displaycode?section=civ&group=01001-02000&file=1747-1748.95
www DOT privacyrights DOT org/what-personal-information-should-you-give-merchants

 

[SpareDomains]

Based on previous threads of having to send in ID'S based on their escrow terms the couple transactions I've done there I used Escrow.com instead as not a fan of sending my id across the internet to companies.

 

[Dondomainer]

I have no private bank account, is shared with my family, so I can not compromise all that.

This is what Flippa says :

The reason we ask for your bank details (and photograph or other identification, if necessary) is to identify you and your business (if applicable).

This is to ensure that we remain compliant with government bodies such as the United States Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) and the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) in relation to the relevant financial sanctions law.

These details are run through a fraud and risk screening process known as KYC (Know Your Customer) to determine whether you (or any other customer) may be engaging in identity theft, financial fraud, money laundering, or terrorist-financing activities. We are required to do these checks to remain in compliance with financial and governmental regulations.
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WHAT IS OFAC ?

The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of the US Department of the Treasury administers and enforces economic and trade sanctions based on US foreign policy and national security goals against targeted foreign countries and regimes, terrorists, international narcotics traffickers, those engaged in activities related to the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, and other threats to the national security, foreign policy or economy of the United States. OFAC acts under Presidential national emergency powers, as well as authority granted by specific legislation, to impose controls on transactions and freeze assets under US jurisdiction. Many of the sanctions are based on United Nations and other international mandates, are multilateral in scope, and involve close cooperation with allied governments.

https://www.treasury.gov/about/orga...s/Pages/Office-of-Foreign-Assets-Control.aspx
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I have no words...I mean, wtf ..It is not a missile, an you are in US.

 

[Dondomainer]

I asked advice to a law firm about how OFAC affects me and the answer was simple, this law does not affect me in any way, because I am in Florida, United States and Flippa in Los Angeles.

Here more about OFAC .

Compliance for Internet and Web Based Activities
Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons (SDN's).

A number of Internet-based financial service companies already developed Internet Protocol (IP) address blocking procedures. These companies use publicly available data to maintain tables of IP addresses based on geographic region. Users attempting to initiate an online transaction or access an account from a sanctioned country are blocked based on their IP address. While this approach is effective, it does not fully address an Internet firm’s compliance risks. The fact that international distribution authorities can reassign IP blocks makes the geographic location of an IP potentially dynamic.

The anonymous character of Internet-based transactions often places obstacles in the path of rigorous compliance practices. Firms that facilitate or engage in e-commerce should do their best to know their customers directly. In order to minimize their liabilities, Internet remittance and account service firms should attempt to gather authentic identification information on their customers before a new account is opened or new transaction is initiated. This information will help confirm the customer’s identity and help the e-commerce firm ensure it is not conducting business with a sanctions target. Currently many Internet remittance companies use credit card authentication as the primary method of confirming a customer's identity. While this method is technologically expedient, it does not meet the standards of due diligence normally found in the non-Internet-based financial community. A company cannot rely on another firm’s compliance program in order to mitigate risk.

It is recommended that e-commerce firms gather and record "purpose of payment" information on each transaction they process. In the non-Internet sector, financial institutions are able to stop in-process transactions and gather more information on them. Due to the level of automation found within the Internet financial sector, this type of in-process information gathering is not always possible. Collecting information on the purpose of payments up front will allow Internet firms to better screen outgoing and incoming transactions for potential violations. [04-13-04]


Specially Designated Nationals List (SDN)

As part of Its Enforcement Efforts, OFAC Publishes a list of Individuals and companies owned or controlled by, or acting for or on Behalf of, targeted Countries. Also it lists Individuals, groups, and entities, Such as terrorists and narcotics traffickers designated under programs That are not country-specific. Collectively, Such Individuals and companies are called "Specially Designated Nationals" and "SDNs." Their assets are blocked and US persons are prohibited from Generally Dealing with them.


Plz, try : https://sanctionssearch.ofac.treas.gov/

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So Flippa lying when he says that must comply with a requirement from OFAC.