Shop closed after purchase and asked to pay through PayPal
When a shop closes or gets shut down after a purchase, sellers sometimes ask buyers to cancel and pay through an alternative method like PayPal. This leaves buyers questioning if the request is a scam while dealing with unresponsive support and withheld funds.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
Found another way around this?
Share your steps and trade-offs so fellow engineers don't have to reinvent the wheel. No account required.
- 1Marking the email as spamDid this help you?
- 2Requesting a refund directly through EtsyDid this help you?
- 3Refusing to pay the seller elsewhereDid this help you?
- 4Filing complaints with regulatory bodies like the FTCDid this help you?
- 5Attempting to file with the Better Business BureauDid this help you?
- 6Posting public warnings on social forumsDid this help you?
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
“Last night I got an email saying their shopped closed and asked me to refund and pay through PayPal business for buyer protection instead.”source ↗
“I checked Etsy and the shop no longer had any items up so that part at least checks out.”source ↗
“Is this suspicious to anyone else?”source ↗
“On Sept 7, they permanently closed it, citing a policy violation I'm not disputing. But they're also withholding $365.04 that was already earned and due for payout on Sept 3 — four days *before* the closure.”source ↗
“I've emailed them 5 times over two weeks asking them to release it or explain why. I've gotten nothing but automated "ticket received" replies — no human has answered a single question.”source ↗
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
- 2Etsy shop closed after purchase, will it still ship?
- 2Why was my digital order cancelled and the shop closed?
- 2Why is it so hard to close a merchant account?
- 2Why do payment gateways disconnect or close accounts before launch?
- 4Why does an Etsy shop say it appears to be closed?
- 2How to track sales made outside an online store