You brought up an interesting question here. May be the IRS thinks this is one of solutions to solve the current hyperinflation I think. There might be some underlying reason behind it. This could be a very interesting Econ research topic
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I believe that the difference is the large amount of income that has recently been moved from traditionally W2-covered situations to the “gig” economy.
If you’re a known name and figure in the community, I’ll pay f&f.*
If I’ve never heard of you or seen you before, I’ll pay g&s and cover the fees.
*If the transaction is over $500, I will only pay g&s, period the end (and I’ll cover fees, still). Sorry, had $1000 yoyos get lost in the mail before. G&s is insurance.
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…you would be surprised at how many members of the yoyo community are daft and aloof when it comes to common sense shipping…
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Pretty much anything over $100 I add insurance to cover the full cost of the yoyo. Seems kind of crazy that most people don’t do that
Not to get crazy philosophical on you or this topic in general… But if you were to say… Identify yourself as “average, middle of the road” intelligence… You know, smack dab in the middle… That means that, statistically speaking, HALF of the people you meet are “dumber” than you.
Now substitute intelligence with common sense…
The point I’m making is… What is seemingly obvious for some is completely elusive for others.
There’s another falacy that goes something like "I never wear a seatbelt because I’ve never been in a car accident "… You can see the stupidity in that.
Now replace it with “paid g&s” and “been scammed” lol.
Just my $0.02
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I will always give people the option. I think I have amassed enough positive transactions to make people feel comfortable
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G&S is always welcomed, I just ask the buyer pays the fees. There’s been a couple times they threw a fit when I told them I preferred f&f solely to save them $, and when I said okay to g&s I received less $ than discussed due to the fees not being accounted for.
So now I have to come back to the person and do the whole awkward “hey… can you send a little more $ to cover these fees?”. It’s just better without all that imo.
But because of the reputation some of us have built doing bst transactions over the years, it is like a gentlemanly handshake between two individuals who trust each other enough.
If fees are covered, I care not how the $ reaches me. As long as it is the agreed upon amount.
Easy peasy 
you have to be able to prove the package is worth $1k to paypal and the post office. two retail $500 ti yoyos is provable by sale and by retail price. market value (peaks, for example) does not prove anything. the best you’ll do is retail on any peak (or vintage piece of that nature)…. $1k in insurance never means you’re covered, receipts all the way down the line is what matters…. documentation is all these entities care about to justify a claim.
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Ohh yeah learned that the hard way a long time ago when procuring switches for an enterprise. Found out real quick that legacy decade old box shipped across the country is not getting covered by any insurance when it arrives on the other end dented and broken. Regardless of if you originally bought it for 20k.
Heck learned it again with monitors being shipped for covid. Fedex expected serial numbers that matched invoices and pictures of the original packaging… most of those monitors that where shipped where old dead stock from a merger. Safe to say that whole claim never got resolved either. To reap benefit from any insurance make sure to keep all proof of purchase or expect you might get shafted if anything goes awry.
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Personally, I’m in the G+S camp.
I will happily add the extra 3% in fees. It’s only a few bucks and gives me the buyer protection that paypal is known for.
Not saying everyone who uses F+F is a scammer by any means, but I will immediately walk away from a deal if the seller will not accept G+S payment (with me paying the fees). Huge red flag imo.
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I used to sell high end glass pipes with value in the six figure range and for these you don’t get a credit card receipt or anything as it’s usually cash 99.9% of the time. So for items like this i would actually would up my own receipt and have it signed and scanned back by the other party. I’ve had to make a few claims for either broken or lost stuff and this worked every time with no issues as proof of sale for both usps and fedex.
So you can deff make a claim with no issues for the vintage stuff as well as long as you do it properly is what I’m trying to say 
Edit: also if youre not actually family or friends in real life, youre getting goods and services and ill pay the fees… unless youre @Buzz hes legit my ONLY exception to this rule and gets friends and fam bc at this point i consider him a friend even though we havnt met lol
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Sadly, F&F options are not available in Korea.
We are forced to use only G&S. Maybe it’s because of Korean law.
Bless you, Bro and of course thanks an awful lot for those kind words… End of the day it’s reliable dudes like you, who make seeing such a joy. Thanks again and enjoy 
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I am pretty new to the forum, but, so far I’m leaning towards F+F.
I agree that this is such a small tight knit community and there is a lot of trust.
The last few transactions I’ve used F+F. When the yoyo’s all arrived safely it further built my trust in the community (and even added to the experience.)
I think of everyone as a curator and the pieces are constantly moving from one collection to another. The same yoyo might pass hands many times. Yes, they are being “bought and sold” but, to me feels different than buying anything else on the internet.
I don’t know if that makes any sense or justifies using F+F in any way. But yea, G+S is definitely a safer way to go!
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In any situation where I have to choose between the common man vs. Big Banks, I’ll side with the little guy every time. You can argue that using F&F for non-F&F individuals isn’t ‘morally ethical’, well I consider much of what the Federal Govt is doing to be ‘morally unethical’. Similar to how I’m not particularly opposed to people shoplifting at big box stores that denigrate smaller local shops all while increasing global corporate hegemony.
Many here who deal with the BST have a certain level of trusted feedback, so I’m not worried about a ‘unprotected’ transaction. If there’s a case where the other party is new/has little/no feedback, I’ll request they send their side first. If they’re uncomfortable with that, well that’s just the way the chips fall sometime.
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I don’t [see a] moral or legal component to choosing between F&F and G&S. People should use these as they see fit and agree between each other.
G&S is just a product that PayPal sells to facilitate transactions between parties where the additional buyer protection is desirable by either party. If the buyer does not require this protection, there is no reason for either party to use G&S.
PayPal still charges fees for F&F. If they lose money on one or the other, that’s their business problem to solve.
From the perspective of the IRS, there is a distinction between money transfers that represent taxable income for the recipient and those are simple exchanges between friends and family. IRS documents often refer to “friends and family”, but this is not the same as PayPal’s F&F product. E.g.:
What Shouldn’t Be Reported on Form 1099-K
Money you received from friends and family as a gift or reimbursement of a personal expense should not be reported on a Form 1099-K. For example: Sharing the cost of a car ride or meal, receiving money for birthday or holiday gifts or getting repaid by a roommate for a household bill. These payments aren’t taxable income.
Be sure to note these types of payments as non-business when possible in the payment apps.
Clearly, the IRS has prevailed on PayPal to admit that any transaction that requires “buyer protection” can not pretend to be 1099-K exempt (fair point, IMO). But for PayPal F&F, the IRS requirements are ultimately the same even if avoiding them is still easy. If yoyo sells via F&F for a gain, the IRS expects that to be reported. A seller who exclusively uses F&F but dutifully reports all taxable income is on the exact same footing as one who uses G&S.
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Yep. In the terms that every PayPal user with an active account has agreed to:
- Seller will pay any applicable fees for receiving the funds.
- Seller will not ask buyer to send money using "friends & family” feature. If you do so, PayPal may remove your PayPal account’s ability to accept payments from friends or family members.
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G and s puts your money on hold for no reason. I would never use it again. It’s up to the buyer if they trust the seller enough to use friends and family. Just my two cents
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