Nov 10, 2013, 11:26 am
Last edit by: mcdullhk88
Dead as of 10/13/14
FAQ's
Is Amazon Payments treated as a cash advance? No CC issuer has been reported as treating an AP transaction as a cash advance unless the sender selected "Payment is for Cash Advance" on the Send Money screen.
What does it mean when your payment is "pending"? Your payment will be reviewed. We are unsure whether this review is done by a human or computer. It should take less than 24 hours but is usually within minutes.
How should you describe your payment? "Goods or services" will allow you to charge with a CC and it will not be treated as a cash advance. Note: If you choose cash advance, it may be treated as such by your CC issuer; always choose Goods/Services. There is no reason to put anything in the optional description field - leave it blank.
What is the monthly limit for sending CC payments? $1,000 per calendar month per AP account
What is the monthly limit for receiving CC payments? $1,000 per calendar month per AP account
What if it is not allowing me to send/receive more than $500 or any at all? You probably have not verified your bank and/or added a CC. In order to get the full $1,000 allowance for sending and receiving you must have a bank verified AND a CC added to your account as a payment method.
Does AP qualify for special spending categories? Specifically it qualifies for Discover's (usually 4th quarter) category of online purchases but so far, not Chase's "5% CB on Amazon.com purchases." Refer to thread for other options.
Can you get shutdown? Yes.
How do you get shutdown? No one knows. Anecdotes are found throughout the thread. Some suspicious behavior that MIGHT get your AP account(s) shut down is listed below.
Which transaction is most advisable? A -> B -> C -> A (see here)
Are any fees charged during this process? No, not by Amazon Payments. If your transaction is treated as a cash advance by your card issuer--fees are possible. Beware and always double check that goods/services is selected!
Can you liquidate Amazon GC via AP? NO!
Can you liquidate other gift cards via AP? Yes. Note that you cannot liquidate the full value of a GC because amazon places a $1 hold while it verifies the validity of the GC. You can sometimes (not always) avoid the hold by entering an incorrect expiration date for the GC when adding it to your AP account, and after you have added it, go to "Edit my account settings," then to "Add edit or delete my credit cards" and edit the expiration date there.
When does the month end? It appears as if Amazon is on pacific time, so midnight PDT/PST is when the month resets.
It bears repeating that no one knows the methodology amazon uses to police AP transactions, determines which transactions violate its T&Cs, or identifies violators. However, various people in this thread and elsewhere have confirmed that their AP account(s) were shut down for the following reasons:
Additionally, we have updated the terms and conditions of our User Agreement (https://payments.amazon.com/help/Personal-Accounts/User-Agreement-Policies/User-Agreement) that apply to your use of the products and services provided by Amazon Payments. Our updated User Agreement revises certain terms (including, among other things, the elimination of person-to-person payments). Our new User Agreement will become effective on October 13, 2014, which is more than 30 days from when we first posted our updated User Agreement. By continuing to use our services after October 13, 2014, you are agreeing to be bound by the terms and conditions of our new User Agreement.
Is Amazon Payments treated as a cash advance? No CC issuer has been reported as treating an AP transaction as a cash advance unless the sender selected "Payment is for Cash Advance" on the Send Money screen.
What does it mean when your payment is "pending"? Your payment will be reviewed. We are unsure whether this review is done by a human or computer. It should take less than 24 hours but is usually within minutes.
How should you describe your payment? "Goods or services" will allow you to charge with a CC and it will not be treated as a cash advance. Note: If you choose cash advance, it may be treated as such by your CC issuer; always choose Goods/Services. There is no reason to put anything in the optional description field - leave it blank.
What is the monthly limit for sending CC payments? $1,000 per calendar month per AP account
What is the monthly limit for receiving CC payments? $1,000 per calendar month per AP account
What if it is not allowing me to send/receive more than $500 or any at all? You probably have not verified your bank and/or added a CC. In order to get the full $1,000 allowance for sending and receiving you must have a bank verified AND a CC added to your account as a payment method.
Does AP qualify for special spending categories? Specifically it qualifies for Discover's (usually 4th quarter) category of online purchases but so far, not Chase's "5% CB on Amazon.com purchases." Refer to thread for other options.
Can you get shutdown? Yes.
How do you get shutdown? No one knows. Anecdotes are found throughout the thread. Some suspicious behavior that MIGHT get your AP account(s) shut down is listed below.
Which transaction is most advisable? A -> B -> C -> A (see here)
Are any fees charged during this process? No, not by Amazon Payments. If your transaction is treated as a cash advance by your card issuer--fees are possible. Beware and always double check that goods/services is selected!
Can you liquidate Amazon GC via AP? NO!
Can you liquidate other gift cards via AP? Yes. Note that you cannot liquidate the full value of a GC because amazon places a $1 hold while it verifies the validity of the GC. You can sometimes (not always) avoid the hold by entering an incorrect expiration date for the GC when adding it to your AP account, and after you have added it, go to "Edit my account settings," then to "Add edit or delete my credit cards" and edit the expiration date there.
When does the month end? It appears as if Amazon is on pacific time, so midnight PDT/PST is when the month resets.
It bears repeating that no one knows the methodology amazon uses to police AP transactions, determines which transactions violate its T&Cs, or identifies violators. However, various people in this thread and elsewhere have confirmed that their AP account(s) were shut down for the following reasons:
- Associating one credit card number with more than one AP account (Be Careful if authorized user card has the same number as the primary card holder - in some instances the CC numbers are completely different)
- Associating one bank account with more than one AP account
Amazon Payments
Dec 12, 2013, 8:33 pm
#3076
Join Date: Oct 2013
Location: WAS
Programs: SPG Plat. Marriott Plat. Hilton Diamond. Hyatt Diamond. IHG Plat.
Posts: 2,580
I am new to Amazon Payments, just started using it this month. I have a question on how safe this set up would be.
Make 2 accounts for myself with the same name, ssn, address (my own) and different bank accounts. Send money to account B and C. B and C live in the same house but it would be different name, ssn, bank info. Then, they deposit the money in my bank account directly.
So the chain would be A1 > B, A2 > C. Then they send me a check. So they will never be sending me money through AP.
My question is how safe is it to have A1 and A2 under the same name, ssn, address, and different bank info. Should I be using different credit cards for A1 and A2 or could I use one credit card for both? Meaning is it safe to manufacture 2K spending a month on one card using A1 and A2? Or am I better off using 2 different credit cards?
Thanks!
Make 2 accounts for myself with the same name, ssn, address (my own) and different bank accounts. Send money to account B and C. B and C live in the same house but it would be different name, ssn, bank info. Then, they deposit the money in my bank account directly.
So the chain would be A1 > B, A2 > C. Then they send me a check. So they will never be sending me money through AP.
My question is how safe is it to have A1 and A2 under the same name, ssn, address, and different bank info. Should I be using different credit cards for A1 and A2 or could I use one credit card for both? Meaning is it safe to manufacture 2K spending a month on one card using A1 and A2? Or am I better off using 2 different credit cards?
Thanks!
Dec 12, 2013, 11:10 pm
#3078
Join Date: Sep 2013
Posts: 829
it is 20K/200 and I am far, far away from those. At most I can do 12K/12 transactions a year to A1, or any other recipient in my chain.
Dec 12, 2013, 11:11 pm
#3079
Join Date: Sep 2013
Posts: 829
seems like the Bezos tribe is on the path of war before the year end.
Last edited by MaineCoon; Dec 12, 2013 at 11:20 pm
Dec 13, 2013, 3:30 am
#3080
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: Somewhere above the Mason-Dixon
Programs: DL Ham Samich
Posts: 1,661
Dec 13, 2013, 4:08 am
#3081
Join Date: Oct 2013
Location: WAS
Programs: SPG Plat. Marriott Plat. Hilton Diamond. Hyatt Diamond. IHG Plat.
Posts: 2,580
Try it and let us know. ^
Dec 13, 2013, 9:22 am
#3082
Join Date: Aug 2011
Programs: AA, UAL
Posts: 545
What reasoning did they provide for shutting them down? I find it hard to believe that after being successful for "close to two years with absolutely no issues", one fine day, without any trigger, Amazon shuts them down.
Dec 13, 2013, 11:06 am
#3083
Join Date: Oct 2012
Posts: 64
Did you do something out of ordinary just before they shut you down?
What reasoning did they provide for shutting them down? I find it hard to believe that after being successful for "close to two years with absolutely no issues", one fine day, without any trigger, Amazon shuts them down.
What reasoning did they provide for shutting them down? I find it hard to believe that after being successful for "close to two years with absolutely no issues", one fine day, without any trigger, Amazon shuts them down.
Dec 13, 2013, 11:17 am
#3084
Join Date: Oct 2012
Posts: 486
I just signed up for AP last week. The T&C don't prohibit having multiple accounts. They do say you can't have multiple accounts for the purpose of skirting transaction limits, and that you can't fund a payment to a second account with a credit card. So for MS purposes, a second account is out, but the mere fact of having a second (or third, or nth) account isn't problematic.
Dec 13, 2013, 9:41 pm
#3085
Join Date: Aug 2012
Posts: 432
Did you do something out of ordinary just before they shut you down?
What reasoning did they provide for shutting them down? I find it hard to believe that after being successful for "close to two years with absolutely no issues", one fine day, without any trigger, Amazon shuts them down.
What reasoning did they provide for shutting them down? I find it hard to believe that after being successful for "close to two years with absolutely no issues", one fine day, without any trigger, Amazon shuts them down.
Dec 14, 2013, 11:15 am
#3089
Join Date: Dec 2011
Location: In the heart of the Evil Empire
Programs: AA LT Gold, Starwood Gold, Hertz Gold, HHonors Gold, IHG Plat., BFD
Posts: 113
Dec 14, 2013, 11:25 am
#3090
Join Date: Oct 2012
Posts: 64
Most of us are not talking about "suspended accounts" though that's what they may say when you log in. We have gotten emails that say the accounts are closed for having too many accounts assigned to the same SS#.