Using PayPal or Venmo

[FaustOust]

It seems there are some providers who will accept PayPal, Venmo, CashApp, or other money transfer services. Are others finding this convenient or do most people still use cash?

[savantsav]

90% of the providers I've hung out with take mostly online payments. Zelle, Venmo, Cashapp... Very rarely do they ask for acsh

[Gilfson]

Either is fine with me. I take zell, cash, or PayPal. But prefer paypal

[DMonDude]

From my experience everyone does Zelle, Venmo CashApp and PayPal now mainly. I'm sure any provider would still take cash if you asked/let them know though. I can't imagine any would would turn down the cash.

[+ Vegas_Millennial]

3 hours ago, FaustOust said:

Are others finding this convenient or do most people still use cash?

I always offer cash payments, and have never been refused by an escort or masseur. 

Massage Envy did refuse to accept cash for my last massage with them several years ago. So, I cancelled my membership and then left cash anyway for the massage on the counter (the receptionist wouldn't take it from me or give me receipt) and then walked out and haven't been back.

Edited Friday at 12:16 AM by Vegas_Millennial
Spelling

[marylander1940]

Cash is King!

[Spikeguy]

Why would you want a digital trail?   Doesn’t seem that different than paying by check in the old days.

[+ Pensant]

7 hours ago, Spikeguy said:

Why would you want a digital trail?   Doesn’t seem that different than paying by check in the old days.

That’s true in 95% of cases for me; however, trusted regulars are paid via Zelle.

[Dicastri]

Zelle feels too identifying for both myself and the provider at times. I prefer Venmo and Apple Cash. 

[marylander1940]

2 hours ago, Dicastri said:

Zelle feels too identifying for both myself and the provider at times. I prefer Venmo and Apple Cash. 

A provider who frequently contributes in this forum was scammed by a client who months later declared all Apple transactions between them to be fraudulent.

 

 

[SkyBliss]

This could be the case under Apple Pay, I believe.

 

Apple Cash is something different. 
 

10 minutes ago, marylander1940 said:

A provider who frequently contributes in this forum was scammed by a client who months later declared all Apple transactions between them to be fraudulent.

 

Edited Friday at 03:03 PM by SkyBliss

[GentJ]

+1 for cash

[+ KensingtonHomo]

I don't carry cash so I use apps unless an escort explicitly asks for it. With the countless transactions occurring between people through all these apps, I don't have any concern about the digital trail. I also feel like if providers are willing to accept it, it's more likely they would run into issues having to explain all the transfers and yet they don't. 

[rvwnsd]

2 hours ago, KensingtonHomo said:

I don't carry cash so I use apps unless an escort explicitly asks for it. With the countless transactions occurring between people through all these apps, I don't have any concern about the digital trail. I also feel like if providers are willing to accept it, it's more likely they would run into issues having to explain all the transfers and yet they don't. 

In the days before payment CashApp and Venmo, I hired a visiting escort at his hotel in San Diego. I gave him cash (PayPal was very wonky at the time) and he asked where the nearest deposit-taking ATM was. Unfortunately, the only one from his bank was not nearby. He was ready to take a bus or an uber and I volunteered to drive him. He accepted my offer and treated me to a late dinner for driving him. 

Now that we have payment apps, most providers I hire prefer using the apps over using cash. They don't want to carry large sums of cash.

[Nightowl]

I only pay in cash.

[DMonDude]

6 hours ago, KensingtonHomo said:

I don't carry cash so I use apps unless an escort explicitly asks for it. With the countless transactions occurring between people through all these apps, I don't have any concern about the digital trail. I also feel like if providers are willing to accept it, it's more likely they would run into issues having to explain all the transfers and yet they don't. 

Yeah agreed. I think it's generally more a concern for providers than it is clients, and even so, mainly just for tax reasons. As fun fact, that has probably come up here many a time. Notorious gangster Al Capone went to jail for tax evasion and not for any of his rampant bootlegging, extortion, or murder he committed. The latter 3 of which literally everyone knew he did or directly ordered it done, but he never was caught in the act.

 

16 hours ago, Spikeguy said:

Why would you want a digital trail?   Doesn’t seem that different than paying by check in the old days.

People who are paying someone via Venmo (Which has a social feed where your transactions are public to your friends list, unless you specifically make the transaction Private before you hit Pay/Request), for example, has people publicly listing a transaction as "for prostitutes and drugs" or whatever else as a joke to make the friends who can see it laugh and that doesn't suddenly have the cops busting their door down.

The U.S. government also wants to tax small business transactions on Venmo/payment apps and they let you/trust you the user press a button to say if the transaction was a personal transaction like paying your roommate your half versus a business transaction like buying merch from a vendor at a convention. Because they don't have a true way to know what you're paying the person for. It's just the honor system unless variances between what the apps report to the IRS and what you report become large enough to trigger an alert at the IRS. Or if the IRS notices you make the salary of a retail employee but are buying yachts (which is effectively how they got Al Capone).

Still, you're not wrong. It is a trail/evidence in a certain context. Say a provider was caught in the act of providing and picked up. During investigation, law enforcement could then go through the payment apps on their phone, they'd see a list of people who have paid the provider at some point and how much was paid for sure. But they'd have no true verifiable way to know who sent that money in exchange for "services" and who is someone who sent money for quite literally any and all other reasons. It might get you on a list of people they think are clients to look into further or even people to attempt to get in a sting operation later if they were feeling that gung ho or had a quota to hit. But the payment on it's own shouldn't mean much. So i think that's why most feel ok to use the payment apps.

In my proposed scenario though, a provider or client probably is more likely to be directly incriminated by how most clients/providers these days are having very explicit talk with each other in the RM DMs or texts. It still blows my mind that apps like Signal or Session and other encrypted apps aren't more popular in this biz. Even if you use encrypted apps, of course if they get physical access to your phone they could still see the messages directly on screen obviously. But in the instance of an investigation, those apps aren't able to hand over your data and message content (because they literally don't have anything to hand over) to law enforcement/government like how RM (or any website/non-encrypted app) or your phone carrier would be legally compelled to do if subpoenaed/warranted.

I am NOT a legal expert, I'm just theorizing and spitballing for fun 🤣

[+ JamesB]

I’ve always paid in cash and never once had a provider complain. The only exception was with a long time regular who traveled with me a few times a year, between covering travel expenses and fees, cash just wasn’t practical in that case.

[ShortCutie7]

I wouldn’t even consider paying with anything other than cash!  I’m actually shocked to see a lot of these responses.

[ReynST]

I don't accept Zelle, but I do all other forms, like CashApp, Venmo and all credit cards including Apple and Android Pay ... and of course cash.

My Zelle is connected to my personal account and I like all business to route through my business account.