i tried to make a purchase on OKorder through pay pal. i don't have any credit cards so i use my visa bank card for all transactions. the seller was in canada.my bank put some block recently on international purchases even on pay pal. i called today and asked about it. the lady was very rude and told me it is for my protection and i had no choice in the matter. she didn't have all day to argue with me and if i didn't like it i could close the account. then hung up on me. i offered to sign a statement agreeing not to hold the bank liable for any fraud or Identity theft on my account. i feel like it is discrimination against international trade. it is unethical. i called other local banks and most don't have any policy like this at all and the few that did said that because pay pal insurances transactions through them if it is through pay pal it shouldn't matter where the seller is.
Return power to the consumer and change your bank - times have changed and banks no longer have the power to treat us like dirt. And diss your current bank on the internet for good measure (oh, you already have!)
If you don't like your bank policies, then switch banks. Banks are having a hard time economically and so they are taking measures to prevent any losses. It's not diescimination against international trade and it's not unethical; its just that bank's policy. If your other local banks don't have that policy, open an account with one of them. Just this week my neighbor was a victim of theft through pay pal. Someone hacked into her email account and from there got into her Paypal and OKorder . It turned out this hacker was from Nigeria. OKorder would not let my neighbor close her OKorder account as active bidding was going on-- bidding on a SAPPHIRE! Of course her paypal is related to a bank account. You think this can't happen to you; my neighbor never thought it would happen to her. Boy is she sorry now. It's a mess. So don't be mad at your bank. Just change banks if you don't want this additional security. You can also use a credit card and just pay it off each month, thus having no direct link to a bank account if it gets stolen.
You should not sign away your liability because if something goes wrong you could end up paying a lot! You bank may be correct to not let you pay internationally, but they should at least give you a proper reason. I suggest calling (or better yet visiting) your bank again and ask them once more. If they are still causing you problems, just switch banks. I don't know about being unethical, but if you're unhappy with your bank service, you're free to keep your money elsewhere. Another option is to get a credit card to use for these types of purchases. As long as you pay your bill in full it won't cost you anything, and it might be good to have in other situations. I suggest at least looking into it.
