Hi everyone,
My name is Hailee Jones, and honestly, this post is more of a breakdown than a complaint — because at this point, I feel completely ignored and powerless.
My store was blocked on September 1st. I received an email clearly stating that my funds would be held for 120 days to cover potential chargebacks or refunds. I accepted that. I understood the risk policy. I waited.
On December 15th, about two weeks before the 120 days were supposed to end, I contacted Shopify support just to make sure everything was on track and that my funds would be released as promised once the hold expired. I was reassured that everything was fine.
Well, today is January 9th, the 120 days are long gone — and my money is still being held.
Since then, I have been contacting Shopify support every single day via chat, and every conversation is exactly the same. Literally word for word:
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“We have escalated your case and added an urgency note.”
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“Only the Risk Team has access to your account.”
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“This is for your safety.”
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“You should receive an email in the next few days.”
Days pass. Nothing happens.
No email. No update. No timeline. No human accountability.
At this point, I honestly start to wonder if I’m talking to real agents or just AI following scripts — because no one can explain why my money is still being held after the deadline Shopify themselves set.
Here’s my question, and I ask this seriously:
How can a company legally hold thousands of dollars beyond the timeframe stated in their own terms, with zero communication, and face no consequences?
If additional reviews or verifications were needed, why weren’t they done before the 120 days expired? The deadline passed. The money should have been released. Period.
I have bills. I have suppliers. I have family. I have a business to run.
And I’m expected to just wait — indefinitely — at the mercy of a billion-dollar company that doesn’t even offer a direct support channel for merchants.
And that’s the worst part of all this:
There is no real way to contact Shopify Payments. No phone. No email. No case owner. You just sit in a chat queue, day after day, hoping someone — someday — decides to look at your case.
This is not transparency. This is not support. This is not how merchants should be treated.
At this point, all I can do is wait — and share my experience so other merchants are aware.
Please be careful. Please understand the risks. Because when you actually need Shopify, they may not be there for you.
If anyone here has gone through something similar, or knows how to get real attention from the Risk Team, I would truly appreciate hearing from you.
Thank you for reading.