URGENT Help Needed! Shopify Payments Holding Payouts for Weeks!

Shopify Discussion
41

@minimalist3312 @CampanulaDesign @Jlynn0879 @WorthHome @Big-Dawg

This is called “money floating” and yes, it’s very illegal. Shopify uses our funds for their purposes (like a bank- but they are NOT a bank, and they do not have the rights to do so). The longer they have it- the more they can do with it. _as if YOU don’t need your own money for the same reasons.. Equally-_they are still bound by the law.

Here is is the post that has been deleted over 72 times today:

We are having the SAME PROBLEM: We built YOUR business, Shopify. WHY are you destroying OURS?

After opening our second store, we verified everything and were approved for Shopify Payments. After several transactions, I signed in to find that my payout of over 6k was on hold and I had to contact Shopify, which as we all know has migrated to a “chat bot”. This raises a RED FLAG. Why am I being asked to chase down a problem that I was never alerted to? I’m told they will “email me”. 2 days later without any response from Shopify, monies were still on hold, I’m getting frustrated.

Aren’t there laws surrounding the handling of monies?

YUP, there are- on both sides of the coin.
In this case: Shopify is the Payment Processor- while WE are the Consumer.
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
US Electronic Fund Transfer Act (EFTA) and Regulation E
EFTA: The Electronic Fund Transfer Act (15 U.S. Code § 1693 et seq.) establishes the rights and liabilities of consumers and the responsibilities of all participants in electronic fund transfer systems.

  • Regulation E: Implements the EFTA and includes requirements for:
  • Disclosure of Terms and Conditions: Payment processors must clearly disclose the terms and conditions under which funds may be withheld.
  • Error Resolution: Procedures must be in place to resolve errors promptly, including those related to withheld funds.
  • Unauthorized Transactions: Handling and reporting unauthorized transactions and notifying the consumer promptly.
  1. Unfair, Deceptive, or Abusive Acts or Practices (UDAAP)
  • Enforced by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), UDAAP prohibits financial service providers from engaging in unfair, deceptive, or abusive acts or practices. Withholding funds without proper cause or clear communication can be considered a violation

After finally getting a response, Shopify asked me to verify the same documents I had previously provided to open the account. This seems negligent, especially now that they have $6,300 of our funds. I provided the documents again, and Shopify confirmed the account was in “good standing” and payments would be processed. Yet, 15 minutes later, they sent another notification putting the account on hold again, blocking incoming payments as well as the payout.

For three days, I’ve been emailing Shopify “Customer Support” to find out what is needed now to resolve this issue. NO one can give me an answer. They have “escalated my request” yet cannot seem to get tot he bottom of it and deliver a direct response towards a resolution. Despite all of my emails and requests, I still receive the same false and inconclusive emails from Shopify:

"Hi there,

Thank you for reaching out. I understand the urgency of the hold on your payments. Two escalated tickets (Ticket #47680900 and Ticket #47610956) are actively addressing your concerns. Our specialized teams are working diligently on your case and will update you as soon as they have information."

This situation is debilitating and unreasonable. Shopify’s actions are unlawful and unethical. They cannot withhold our money without providing any response or actionable steps within a reasonable time frame. They are using our cash for their business needs, while harming ours.

Our money has been withheld. Just like yours , Shopify REFUSES to deliver a response- of any kind towards clarity or a resolution (EFTA15 U.S. Code § 1693 et seq.E). Furthermore, they “resolved” the matter in my case and subsequently reversed it within minutes unceremoniously. This is fraud. This is deceptive. This is unjust.

After 8+ years with Shopify - what used to be excellent customer service has now become an absolute nightmare of seeming incompetence- or is it purposeful because they know we are small? Are we?

I’d happily start a class action suit, as I am clearly not the only one affected.

Shopify is BREAKING THE LAW.
Shopify’s actions are Unfair, Deceptive, & Abusive

This is absolutely unacceptable.

We deserve better.

As per my attorney:

If a payment processor is participating in Unfair, Deceptive, or Abusive Acts or Practices (UDAAP), there are several steps you can take to seek recourse: If you believe a payment processor is engaging in UDAAP, you have several avenues for recourse. Taking these steps can help you seek resolution and hold the payment processor accountable for their practices before pursuing a legal format.

I will be spending my entire Saturday doing the following & rallying for a class action on Monday.

SENDING A FORMAL LEGAL FILING TO SHOPIFY:
legal@legal-mailer.shopify.com

Shopify Legal Department
150 Elgin Street, 8th Floor Ottawa,

Ontario, K2P 1L4 Canada

The only solution OUTSIDE of legal action : This is what my attorney and I will be doing for the rest of the day.

  1. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB)

  2. State Attorney General’s Office

  3. Federal Trade Commission (FTC)

  4. Better Business Bureau (BBB)

  5. Online Consumer Review Platforms

  6. Financial Regulatory Authorities

3 Likes
42

So we were locked out for nearly 6 weeks, and the total funds were approaching $70,000. After threatening legal, BBB and other outlets, nothing helped. Then I connected with a WSJ reporter and my funds were released within the hour… incredible and very scary. Let me know if you are in a similar situation. Wishing you a fast and speedy outcome.

3 Likes
43

How did it pan out? we are in a similar situation now for 3weeks and need a resolution before we close down the business altogether. Any insight on this will be very helpful

@minimalist3312 @SheriScraps

44

Not sure this is helpful but I was placed on a deposit hold on a Thursday in December. Provided as much evidence as possible and had my transactions deposited on schedule the following Monday.

45

I am in the same boat right now. I just opened a second store with Shopify and I am not getting my payments. They have been put on hold. When I ask why all I am told is to respond to my initial ticket which there has been no response to from them in 9 days. I am literally going to have to shut down my business as I sell high dollar items and without the income coming in I cant cover expenses or payroll.

What did anyone do to get this resolved?

46

I opened an account with Shopify Balance. I verified my account upon opening. I got 2 payouts and then my account got blocked and my payouts were paused. The date was May 21. I contacted customer support, they told me to wait for their Internal team e-mail and what documents will be needed. It took 5 business days for the team to replay to me by e-mails, they asked for my ID pic, proof od address, social media links of the website, EIN docs, stock invoice etc. There was an option to submit all those into my account as well. I did. The notification in red says : It takes 2 business days to verify the info.
Nothing happened, I contacted customer support at least 10 times, 5 days later I received another e-mail from the Internal team, they asked me for another proof of address as utility bill and pic of the inventory with handwritten todays date.
I sent it as an attachment to the e-mail as they pointed as the best point of direct connection.
It was May 29, nothing happened afterwards. I contacted the customer support over 40 times, they did nothing besides escalating it to the Internal team. Since May 29 every couple of days I receive the very same e-mail asking me to provide them proof of address and picture of the inventory, something that I have already did at least 10 times. I replayed them directly to the e-mail asking what’s going on, attaching again files etc. Nothing, they just send me the very same generic e-mail, I am sure that there is no ongoing verification process, it’s just a joke. Menawhile 3037$ are blocked into this account with no reason. It has been more than 3 weeks now since this started. We are not even talking about how this impact my business, I stopped working, I have overdue bills for Google ads. We sent most of the orders to the clients, because we don’t want unwanted chargebacks etc. I don’t have words to describe how frustrating this is. I am attaching images to see that the generic e-mails sent from the Internal team have been answered and the reqested docs attached to them multiple times. That’s fraud, what they do is illegal and they don’t have any right to keep my money blocked asking for docs that I have already provided again and again.

1 Like
47

I would be interested in being part of this lawsuit as well. Can you please contact me at info@thesaberworkshop.com

Thank you

48

Hello, I’m actually in the same situation and i don’t know what to do, I’m trying to have this money to feed my family, and this is the only reason why I need my money, but Shopify don’t want to help us can you please help me ?

49

This has got to be the scariest thread out there. I am in a slight panic mode to figure out a back up plan for my website and business because this is not an isolated incident. I am surprised this thread has not been removed. Who would ever start with Shopify seeing something like this? Especially with no explanation from them on this topic.

3 Likes
50

The easiest thing to do is to stop using Shopify Payments. Look for a 3rd party and pay the extra fees. Its worth it so that Shopify cannot hold your money. Taking Shopify out of the checkout process allows YOU to control your money and not them. I am strictly using Paypal at this point for all transactions in my store. I fully understand depends on the dollar amounts you are pulling in if Paypal will work for you.

Here is a list of good alternatives:
PayPal

Stripe
Authorize.net

Opayo

Verifone

WorldPay

Klarna

Square

Amazon Pay

Most of these already have integrations ready for Shopify.

51

The easiest thing to do is to stop using Shopify Payments. Look for a 3rd party and pay the extra fees. Its worth it so that Shopify cannot hold your money. Taking Shopify out of the checkout process allows YOU to control your money and not them. I am strictly using Paypal at this point for all transactions in my store. I fully understand depends on the dollar amounts you are pulling in if Paypal will work for you.

Here is a list of good alternatives:
PayPal

Stripe
Authorize.net

Opayo

Verifone

WorldPay

Klarna

Square

Amazon Pay

Most of these already have integrations ready for Shopify.

52

Shopify is not holding your funds. Shopify’s bank is. They have to wait on the bank to get to reviewing your case. The bank can do this at anytime and its perfectly legal.

At this point the easiest thing to do is to stop using Shopify Payments.

Look for a 3rd party and pay the extra fees. Its worth it so that Shopify cannot hold your money. Taking Shopify out of the checkout process allows YOU to control your money and not them. I am strictly using Paypal at this point for all transactions in my store. I fully understand depends on the dollar amounts you are pulling in if Paypal will work for you.

Here is a list of good alternatives:
PayPal

Stripe
Authorize.net

Opayo

Verifone

WorldPay

Klarna

Square

Amazon Pay

Most of these already have integrations ready for Shopify.

1 Like
53

Did you finally get your payouts?

54

Hello WorthHome, did you get your after being in contact with the WSJ reporter ?

55

Yes, within 2 hours we received notification that the funds would be released. Plus, we are a top -10% performing shopify store and even my “rep” said he couldn’t help me.

How long have your funds been locked ?

2 Likes
56

Wow !!! its been few days now, but we just launched and now we have to pay our supplier and ship the orders but its impossible they keep saying the same things and we are stuck here with all the refunds and chargebacks for our customers… its really going to hurt my mental health

1 Like
57

So very sorry about this. It’s hard enough to be in consumer goods without the challenges of getting your hard-earned funds.

1 Like
58

How long did it take them to get back to you and did they fix the problem

59

Yes, I’d been having the payout issue from April through July. No logical follow through with anything, Suddenly, my money was released to my store. I’ve requested documentation explaining why my funds were held hostage – I was told that if I wanted a faster review I had to upgrade my plan, which seems like extortion. I"d like to join the lawsuit.

60

Any result? I’m a new business I only have a few hundred on hold but it’s still insanity!! Been on hold since I set up my website almost 6 months ago. All identification has been submitted.