For the few Mac App customers who purchased and downloaded the new Mac OS 10.7 (Lion), some may have woken up this morning to find out that they have received multiple charges on their PayPal account from iTunes Music Store for the purchase of the new OS.
It may be showing a refund on the purchase but… (read on)
Last night, I started receiving multiple e-mails from PayPal of iTunes charges and I was surprised to see it happening and then seeing the multiple refunds and then early this morning, another payment.
But unfortunately, for those who paid by PayPal, there is a problem.
PayPal security said that if you see the multiple charges, it would have to go through your bank account (you will be charged the full amount through your bank account) and then once you receive the refund (which takes anywhere between 1-3 days), then you can deposit it to your account (which then takes another 1-3 days).
There have been reports online through message boards and twitter of people charged anywhere from 7-15 times. So, if you were charged 15 times at $29.99, your bank account will be minus $449.85 for a few days! Ouch!
PayPal first recommend contacting Apple. Apple responded that it’s an iTunes Store problem and they do NOT have a direct contact #, but they do have a 24hr. e-mail that they check at. Which can be access through apple.com/support/itunes.
Note: This was very surprising to find out there is no direct # for consumer support to handle this problem.
So, PayPal account security recommends contacting your bank to stop payment. According to my bank, they said that once it starts showing up on your account, contact the bank immediately and then they can start to stop payment. PayPal also recommends telling your bank that you contacted PayPal and they recommend stopping payment on the unauthorized multiple charges.
As an Apple user, I love my Mac products but I wish Apple addressed this problem and most of all have customer support number for their iTunes Music Store, especially if more and more people will be accessing the Mac Store. Now, because of this, I have lost confidence of purchasing on the Mac App store and would rather wait until a physical disc or USB drive is available at the Apple store.
More reports of unauthorized charges for those who purchased Mac OS 10.7: