How does it work? I started to send someone a payment as a gift but it still came up asking for a fee, it just gave the choice of me paying it or them paying it. What gives?

I think you have to have sufficient funds in your PP account to send a gift with no fees

What jamesgarbett said, or pay direct from a bank account. You get the “who pays the fee” option if you use a credit card

As above, you either need funds available in your PP account or a direct debit set up – if you pay from a credit card, there will always be fees.

Presumably you get no buyer protection for a gift?

Correct

why would you need buyer protection if you’re sending a gift? 😯

A few people on here now want gift payment in exchange for goods. Which seems to take us back to sending cash in envelopes and trusting the seller entirely. Fine, as long as one does.

I was sceptical about this, but decided to pay somebody that way for a lowish-value item (trusting them because they are a regular poster) and I seem to have been shafted.

Won’t do it again.

I’ve taken to asking for gift payments now or buyer pays fees. Afterall the buyer gets all the benefits of using paypal in terms of protection etc from what I’ve seen so i think if they want that protection they can pay for it.

Paid for a fair few things as gift, all has been fine so far, touch wood 😆

direct debit set up

Just a bank account set up, rather than a direct debit.

Never been shafted by Ebay or Paypal, so dunno how people manage it 😉