Closed Accounts, Lost Money, No Support, How Cash App Underserves Its Customers
Online payment apps have gotten extremely popular in recent years, due to how easy they make it to transfer money quickly and make purchases. Unfortunately, they don’t always provide a good experience for a lot of users, especially if they are using Cash App.
Many Cash App customers complain about a lack of quality customer service from the app. There isn’t a direct phone number that connects someone to a service rep. This is a larger issue than just returning money to your friend, mainly because many people also use the app to pay bills. The introduction of their new “cash card” makes these issues a bit trickier. With cash card, customers can load money on and use as a debit card to make purchases or pay bills.
Cash App was developed by Square, Inc. and was initially released in the fall of 2013 and has an estimated 15 million active users, a major jump from 7 million users in 2017. The app allows people to pay their friends and family back as well as accept credit and debit card payments for their business.
There are countless complaints online about the Cash App gone wrong–from being hacked, scammed by fake cash support reps, and even having accounts closed. One woman in Georgia lost it all when her bank account was drained by a person pretending to be Cash App Support.
I was able to speak with a couple of women who have had a bad experience with the app’s actual support team.
“My problem with [Cash App] is the refund process for things that you didn’t authorize. [Cash App] would like you to have a receipt or get a hold of the receipt so that they can see that it is unauthorized. It is too much, especially if you’re not in the same state as where the card was used. Cash App [act] likes it’s impossible for them to refund the money but they give out money every week on Fridays,” explained Joy Renter of Louisiana.
Another woman shared her story of Cash App closing her account during the investigation of a failed transaction.
“Somehow money that was sent to me went elsewhere and I contacted Cash App customer service after calling my bank to see what happened to my transaction as I cashed out,” said Jameah Weans of Maryland.
“I called and a man answered the phone and he was [really rude]. I explained to him what my issue was and he asked what I am trying to say, so I explained the situation, again. He says ‘I don’t understand you, don’t call back here!’ I was very taken aback so I call again because I was hung up on. I call back three times, back to back and get a song as if I’d been put on hold once the call had connected all 3 of those times. I was just trying to find where my money had gone after doing a set of eyelashes for a client but the customer service rep [refused] to help me,” she stated.
“I emailed customer support earlier this week and my response from them for my issue was that my account had been closed. I never once told them to close my account because I need to keep it [for my business]. I tried getting more information through email but no one would respond further than my account is closed so I decided to direct message Cash Support on twitter and that was NO HELP at all! After this I will never use or recommend [Cash App] to anyone,” said Weans.
To investigate further, I decided to go through the process of submitting a ticket to Cash Support myself. The only number there is to call takes you to an automated message that gives you instructions on contacting support through the app. There isn’t any telephone number that connects you with a service rep, just a mailing address.
After I submitted a ticket, I was emailed by a customer service rep after about 20 minutes, who I was able to speak to about their process for resolving customer complaints.
Her Agenda: What is the general process for customer service inquiries?
Cash App Support: We do have FAQ on our website and on the Cash App for the general questions. For account-specific, you can send us a direct email.
Her Agenda: How long does it take to respond and get issues resolved, on average?
Cash App Support: Inquiries are answered in the order that we received them and we are working hand and hand to accommodate them immediately.
Her Agenda: Is there a reason Cash App doesn’t have a phone number?
Cash App Support: The Cash team generally communicates via email only and SMS. You can reach out to us via our SMS Support through your Cash App.
I understand that there might be a delay on our end when answering all the inquiries that we have due to the volume of inquiries we receive per day. Rest assured that we are doing all the best that we can to accommodate them immediately.
Users of similar apps are being scammed out of their money by people personating customer service representatives. Cash App is not the only online payment service that has gotten a lot of heat because of poor customer service. Simply search the hashtag #VenmoSucks via Twitter. You’ll find customers who had their accounts closed or transactions questioned when they brought up their concerns.
Online payment apps are popular given their convenience. Consumers no longer have to go to an ATM or a bank to pay bills, return loans from friends, or deposit money. Consider alternatives to apps with customer service issues.
Here are a few other apps to make online money transfers:
Google Wallet creates a quicker checkout process for online and in-store purchases by scanning your phone. Google adds extra security measures too to prevent your credit card information from being exposed.
Dwolla uses Automated Clearing House (ACH) transfers to send and receive funds for users. The process allows a business or organization to collect or deposit money directly into a bank account. This is typically the process for direct deposit paychecks from employers.
Payza is a free, mobile payment app that makes sending money internationally a breeze. Each transaction is always free and they serve over 190 countries and support 25 currencies.
Paypal is the parent company of online payment app Venmo and is one of the most widely used e-commerce systems. Paypal offers personal and business accounts for accepting, sending and requesting payments. There are currently 19 million online stores that accept Paypal payments and they now off credit and prepaid debit cards as well.
2checkout is an online payment processing system that is designed to grow your business. They offer a variety of products including 2sell which allows you to accept mobile and online payments for customers globally.
With millions of people taking advantage of e-commerce apps like Cash App and Venmo, it’s important to know you have options. For first time users, test the apps with transactions of very small dollar amounts prior to sending larger sums of money through the app. It’s crucial to check with the app’s customer service and your bank regarding policies on how lost money is recovered. Many users found out the hard way that their banks don’t cover lost funds through third-party apps.
Every day people risk their hard-earned money by using these apps for personal and professional use, and there are enough horror stories out there to know that doing your research on these apps will never hurt.
