PayPower
Reviews and Complaints

Today 4/9/15 Paypower has closed my account they were dishonest. They closed the account and said I was in the wrong do not talk to yennie #00106 employee id she is a dishonest supervisor, a manager should reprimand her for this action. I am furious and I would like everyone to know they stole my money while my card was fraudulently used and will not reopen account, or the fraud case this company should be investigated by the FCC. This is criminal. DO NOT USE PAY POWER I HOPE THEY LEARN OR ARE FINED.

The product is a pre-paid Visa card. You have to buy the card, then to put additional funds on it there is also a charge. Another charge they have is a monthly fee of $5.95. When your card's balance becomes zero PayPower will continue to charge monthly fees, making a negative balance. The only way to avoid this is to login to their web site with the account you were required to setup to activate the card, there you can cancel the card. My complaint is it should not be possible to have a negative balance on a pre-paid Visa card. This company counts on the monthly fee charges to add up, even when a person is obviously done with the card when they've spent the money they put on it. It would be very easy for PayPower to, upon seeing a card's balance is 0, to de-activate the card and not allow it to be used until the owner pays to put more funds on it. Instead no notice is given, they simply add a negative balance to your "pre-paid" card. This is simply low-life business practice they can justify all they want, but in the end it's still bottom-feeding.

Paypower prepaid card, took my refund and have not issue me a card they said it takes up to 7-10 business days but it been 23 days since I applied for my refund. I receive my tax refund on February 4th and I also received a email confirming that I should have received my card. I never got one. I called their customers services over 10 times and they gave me four different stories. One day they said it would arrive on this day and then I call again they say a different day. I can't keep doing this I need my money. I already filed a complaint with BBB. MY next step is to turn to my local news station. I suggest when you do your taxes and you don't have a bank account go with a check! If you see pay power please don't use them because your money becomes their money!

We were told that we were approved for a $5000 loan. But we had to moneygram them a refundable $110 to get started...which we ignorantly did. Then we had to call them and let them know the moneygram was sent and give them the code from the money gram. After keeping us on the phone for about 15 minutes they said it didn't go through and we would have to send $130 also refundable, but it didn't go through either of course. These are foreigners scamming anyone they can. Please beware.

I was a new customer to Pay Power and had my had tax refund sent there. I seen that my Federal refund was alreday in so I went to pay a bill and it said transaction declined. So i double check to make sure that the money was there and it was. I called the [protected] number and spoke to someone and they stated that the reason why I was unable to use my card is there was a HOLD on my Card due to attempted Fraud. Bow my question is how is that when it is the first time I'm using the card and it's a prepaid? I asked the gentleman what I to do to get the hold off my card? He said I had to speak to someone in the fraud department. So i spoke to a lady that could barley speak any English I had to go through a series of questions. Once I answered them she's said ok you answered them correctly now you have to wait for the level 2 fraud depart ment to call you. I'm like really you didn't say I had to go through different levels to get my money. So, now I'm fighting with these guys to get my thousands of dollars. Im getting the run around, I'm to the point that I'm going to a lawyer involved. Very disappointed

They called me presenting as IRS investigator as king me to pay $4250 or I will be arrested if I will not pay. The asked for government voucher. I became in panic, I'm green card holder, and I started to follow the instructions. They told me to go to MoneyGram and send 500 to an account. Before doing that I asked he shop and they told me the payment will have password, later I discovered it was not true. I paid $940 to the account [protected] (I discovered later it is prepaid from PayPower) and $500 to the account [protected] (prepaid card from PayPower) and later $1500 on 3 PayPower cards, I didn't give them because I understood and broke the communication.
After I went to the Randolph, MA police and they have all my documents.
Doing same investigation by myself I found that it is possible using the feature PayPower prepaid cards have for recharging using MoneyGram payment.
I think this functionality is the way this frouf is executed and it could be stopped.
There is a way to identify who removed the money.
As I did later to empty the prepayd card I got, PayPower is asking for name, address and SSN for the card to be usable on ATM machines.
I asked PayPower and they told me the request must came from Police or FBI so the cards used to scam me are:
[protected] and [protected] and the calls arrived from [protected] (I also have voice mail they left 1/16/15) and from [protected] (just happened again today) .
So they are pretty active and not organized because they called me again.
Thank you for your help and I hope those information will help to them in jail.
Regards

This card was recommended to me, as my daughter was traveling out of the Country on a Winter Intersession from College to Chile. There was ample funding on the card and over the weekend, she tried to withdraw cash in local currency from several ATMs and was denied. She was able to withdraw earlier in her trip but for some unknown reason when she needed more cash about 10 days later, cannot withdraw. I called Paypower multiple times, with little to no help. I called Metabank, who they referred me to and they were absolutely useless, let alone nasty. I called Visa International 9/11 to try to get daughter emergency cash and am dealing with that currently. The idea of having this card is supposed to be ease of use when traveling outside of the Country and PayPower is blaming the ATMs. My daughter walked into a bank after being denied from their ATM and the banker indicated he could not assist her. What is the sense of having this card, paying the outrageous fees it charges and not being able to use it when you need to? Please save yourself the aggravation and do not purchase this card.

Never buy anything from pay power visa! I purchased a card for $200 on December 1st, 2014 then on December 21st I received an email from them stating my card would arrive in 7 to 10 days. I understand it was during the holidays so I didn't email them until it still had not arrived after 17 days . We emailed back and forth 4 times and each time they asked me for my phone number and each time I sent it along with my address etc. All I wanted was for them to send me a new card but they kept telling me that I wasn't giving them the same phone number that I registered with. It's the only phone number I have so yes it was the correct number. I finally called them to asked for a refund. The guy I spoke to could barely speak English and had a very bad attitude. When I gave him my phone number it worked fine so I don't understand why the person emailing me accused me of giving them false information. Eventually he said he would try to put in for a refund and then I was told it will take 30 to 60 days to arrive! This is ridiculous!

I am a single mother who had just loaded $500 on to a Pay Power card when it was stolen, before I noticed it was stolen, the thief made a purchase and that money was gone and since the purchase was made before before I noticed it missing they will not help me get my money back, I have a special needs child and that money on that card was raised by her school so she could talk (it was for a I pad with a talking app) with her friends. Now I have not a clue what to do my daughter is the one who got the short end of the stick here!

I Have over ONE THOUSAND DOLLARS BEING HELD by Pay Power! I cannot reach them! They have turned their phones off and you literally can not talk to anyone. I have sent them about 8 to 10 emails from last night to this afternoon. I cannot use my card after two successful transactions of $30 dollars yesterday. I also chose to have my state refund deposited on this. I am going to be contacted my local police station, as well as Visa. You will not get away with STEALING my money.

This company has recently switched to an America based call center. this is the one highlight I can mention. they were incredibly nice but unable to help in any way. 2 fraudulent charges were made on my card for minor amounts. I emailed in my complaint and then called to verify. when calling I was informed that they would have to block my account for 7 to 10 days and send me a new card. I said no it. simply did not have time for that. forget the claim. 2 days later my card was declined. this was because the claim had just now gone through. at about 4 mind you. I then called to have it unblocked ect. the only response they could give me was wait the 7 to 10 days or pay $25 to have it in 3 days. so I no have to pay $25 to fix their mistake. fantastic. wonderful women working in their call center but terrible policy. this company will do anything to nickel and dime money out of you! do not waste your money. many other companys offer the same service with out the run around.

I was scammed by a company called Rapid Cash Advance, d/b/a CashNetUSA, d/b/a/ US Financial Services & God knows what other names they are using! In any event, I was told to load these cards with funds which I did. The cards were emptied out. When I called to report this to PayPower I was instructed by Samantha to file a police report & fax all my receipts to them, which was no problem because I had all of that. Ifiled a police report that night & faxed everything over INCLUDING the police report to PayPower. I called an hour later to make sure they received the fax. I was told by Summer that there was no report under my name therefore she could not check for the fax. I asked for the risk management number & told there is none to give out. I then asked to speak with her supervisor. I got Kristin on the line. She stated that the only thing I could do was file another report with the police or have the police contact them so they coulod open a file! FRAUDS! I was taken for over $300 by this company! They have no protection for theie consumers!

I just had the horrible experience of PayPower. I purchased my card in April 2013 and received an income tax refund in 07/2013. I never used the card until 07/21/2013 and it was declined. I called on 07/22/2013 and was not given a reason as to why the card was placed on hold. I spoke with the supervisor and was told the same thing. I was told risk management will call me in 2-3 days depending on how many people were in front of me. I have bills to pay and now I may incur disconnections.

So, right around January, I come early to surprise my wife and instead of me surprising her, she ended up surprising me. With our children in the front room she's in the bedroom with another man. Suffice it to say, I left her immediately. Unfortunately, I didn't see this coming and was completely unprepared for her to start using my personal information and ruining my credit as well as emptying and closing my bank accounts.

I saw an ad (probably online) for the Paypower card and how it would work everywhere and was effective and I could deposit my tax refund to the card. I thought, "this is precisely what I need" and it would've been if Paypower was actually being honest. I did my taxes and my $2k+ refund was deposited to my account; it posted 2/27/2013. Now, I had my Paypower card sent to where I was living at the time, but I have been diligent about keeping my address up-to-date with the post office and my credit companies.

But for some odd reason, my Paypower card NEVER WORKED, not once. After 7 calls and as many emails that each took 2-3 days to get a response, I finally got fed up and emailed them to cancel my account and mail be a cheque for the remainder. They don't have to believe I am who I say I am when my bank can and will verify who I am and give me MY money. I even called to make sure the account was closed and I was mailed at cheque.

It is June 7, 2013 and I haven't received another phone call or non-automated email from them. However, I also haven't received my cheque (nor have they issued so much as an apology for being so terrible at their jobs. Don't we all wish we could dupe unsuspecting people into giving us lump sums of cash and then be allowed to make excuse after excuse to NEVER give it back. Oh, wait, we CAN'T BECAUSE THAT WOULD BE THEFT)

I also find it interesting to note that in addition to not ever having issued the cheque for the remainder of my funds, I am still being charged an "account maintenance fee." I don't like it when banks charge this, but at least banks provide a service and give you your money when you have it coming.

Congratulations Paypower (and Blackhawk, Inc) you have managed to become the company and product that deserve far more ire than all of the investment firms that traded in mortgage backed securities combined. Those companies at least had the flimsy of defense of becoming greedy and wanting to place people in homes of their dreams. Outside of pure, simple greed and (most likely) a general misanthropy that allows you to believe you should get away with this; what possible defense is there against stealing my (and as I understand it; several other peoples' money?)

Blackhawk should be aware, they faced a class-action in regards to their gift cards' which were small sums. They're now stealing sums large enough to goad even the laziest, most apathetic people into action. Not to mention theft of Federal Tax returns is probably a serious crime.
NEVER DO BUSINESS WITH PAYPOWER OR ANY OF THEIR AFFILIATES. UNLESS YOU LIKE GIVING HARD EARNED MONEY TO PEOPLE WHO HAVE ALREADY STOLEN ENOUGH TO BE VERY, VERY COMFORTABLE. NEVER

I have no idea how Visa got in to bed with these criminals. I recieved a PayPower card when I filed my taxes. Boy... What a mistake! The card works fine, but the customer service is absolutely the worst I have ever encountered with a bank. For example, I ordered a replica of a James Bond watch worn by 007 in the movies for a friend, as a gift. About a month later, the broken watch was delivered in pieces! I tried to return the watch, but the seller would not provide me with an address. I tried many times to resolve the matter with the seller, but to no avail. So, I filed a dispute. I have NEVER heard one word about my dispute or the results. When I called, a man named "Richard" hung up on me! I have faxed them all of the information they ask for on the dispute form (along with an admission from the seller that he ripped me off!), but they have done nothing... nothing! I am out $100 now, and Pay Power will not make good on its promises. I swear to God, Himself, that I will call every regulatory agency, and notify every complaint board I can find, about this obvious den of thieves. Stay far away from them. Get a prepaid card from Wal-Mart.

i ordered a pay power visa card to get my government benefits on, i set up and got my first direct deposit i needed to get a sizable amount of cash off my card but the ATM and bank limit were only 500 per day each i called customer service and asked how i could get more cash and the only way was to get cash back after making purchases, well i made multiple purchases and this apparently flagged risk department and they blocked my card because they felt i was using my card to much... i called and got someone who couldn't help me they had no contact info for someone who could i had to wait for someone to call me back 24 to 48 hours, i got a call back two days later and i was grilled rudely about how i was using my card and why, and i was told to send in a bunch of info to verify my identity and they'd be able to decide if they would take the hold off the account, on top of the verification of my identity they wanted documents about my deposit where it came from and why i was getting it... i am a disabled veteran they knew the deposit came from the treasury and from the VA but okay i sent in everything they asked for and some. Including letters from the VA stating why i get my compensation, how much it is, where it was sent to when i began receiving it and why information that i would only have access to including my military service info but they would not take the block off my card nor send me my money. I sent my id and my ssc on top of utility bill and all this other info that also included my address and ssn... but they state that ALL OF THIS did not verify the info they want to verify and until they get that my account will stay blocked. i asked what else i could possibly send them and they said nothing. so what the hell does that mean? they can keep my money forever? how can they get away with this crap? they refuse to send me my money which is over 4000.00! and they say they will do nothing about it... so my money just gets to sit there until there stupid monthly fee eats it all up? BS. I tried to go through the VA to get it but since i spent some of the money they cannot get the deposit back. i swear what they are doing is completely illegal. not to mention its BS that you have to call one number and talk to people that don't know what they are talking about and then have to wait over 2 days for a phone call back from someone else that doesn't really care about your issue. i provided everything they asked for and some this is bull sh... and i want my money back. There will be a class action against them... and i cant wait. i want my 4200.00 plus suffering, losing my house and everything else because of their practices. i understand security but this company is definitely a scam!

This Company is SCAM! Besides they very high service charge. I went to go put gas in my car using the card as always and they help ALL the money in my account for THREE whole business days. I told them i had other people to feed besides my self but they just kept repeating over and over the policy the policy and then I asked to speak to a supervisor and I spoke with ALEX employee number 13565 AND HE WAS NO HELP! i asked him who is boss was and he said NO ONE. i ASK WHO RUNS THE COMPANY? HE SAID HE COULDN'T TELL ME THAT INFORMATION! ARE YOU SERIOUS! THE COMPANY IS A SCAM i WILL NOT REST UNTIL EVERYONE KNOWS !

Don't EVER use PayPal for anything! They're crooks. I can't tell you how many times they have put my card on hold when there was over $500.00 of MY money available! They gain the interest by making "mistakes" like that. It's on you to go through the phone menu and speak with someone in Mexico, Texas who will torture you with their slow ineptitude. Hours later you may or may not be allowed to spend YOUR money. They made this little "mistake" twice in the same month! This resulted in my iPad and iPhone being disconnected and me getting charged reconnection fees for it! But get this. They charge me the monthly fee after I made my last charge with Amazon trying to use up what's left on the card. They post it the following day in reverse order so Paypower gets paid and Amazon doesn't! Now I have to try and get all my money out of it before they take it again. These people are CRIMINALS! I don't know how they're still in business! I will be joining the class-action suit against them. And I'll be filing yet another report with the FTC and BBB. I suggest you do the same.

I bought a PayPower Visa card at a Safeway Store. I live in a rural area and wanted to use my card online.
The card was activated at the store but the card said to complete it to register online. I tried to enter the card number at least 6 times. It would not take the number. I then called the telephone number on the web site. What a nightmare. I was told I had to fax in something with my physical address like a bill. However, I explained my bills or mail has my mailing address which is a PO Box. I can not have mailed delivered. They refused to activate my card or complete registration.
I was then told to fax my Drivers License and someone would call me right back and my card would then be activated. I did that. No call. I called them again and got nowhere. Now they say it will be 24 to 48 hours. This is fraud. They take your money and then find reasons you can't use the card.
I am going to go to the Safeway store and any other stores that carry this card and show them the complaints about this card and tell them it is their customers best interest to remover them from their store. I had no idea this would be such a nightmare. I saw it in the store and thought what a good idea to shop online. If only I had waited and researched it. But who thinks of that with a visa card. Please be aware and choose another card for your use. I am now stuck having to try and redeem my money from this card. Never again. I was going to reload it for a trip I am taking and thank goodness I decided to just put some money on it to see how it worked first before I loaded it up with a lot of money.