{"id":11136,"date":"2024-12-22T16:58:07","date_gmt":"2024-12-22T15:58:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.der-digitalisierungsberater.de\/help-i-was-locked-up-in-a-digital-payment-prison\/"},"modified":"2026-05-04T11:34:50","modified_gmt":"2026-05-04T09:34:50","slug":"help-i-was-locked-up-in-a-digital-payment-prison","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.der-digitalisierungsberater.de\/en\/help-i-was-locked-up-in-a-digital-payment-prison\/","title":{"rendered":"Help \u2013 I was locked up in a digital payment prison"},"content":{"rendered":"

Digital-only payments are not a good idea. (CBDC and the like) A personal experience report! <\/b><\/p>\n

It was supposed to be a pleasant evening. After the customer appointment, off to the motorhome parking area<\/a> and then to the Beuren thermal baths.<\/a> <\/p>\n

Nice place, nice thermal baths (or so I thought). So I drove straight onto the almost empty parking lot.
\nA pitch was quickly found. So off to register and, of course, pay. <\/p>\n

But then came the surprise: CARD ONLY. NO CASH. I do not like that at all\u2014because I want to know this before entering.
\n(who actually reads the fine print on a website)<\/p>\n

Well then, I thought. Let\u2019s pretend nothing works here anymore. First, I inserted a card I had blocked myself into the slot (I thought it had been lost). Of course the payment did not go through\u2014what else. <\/p>\n

Now imagine that was the only card I could pay with. What then? I have enough cash with me. Just no other cards. <\/p>\n

Anyone who suddenly ends up in a situation like this has a problem. You cannot get out of it that easily. On foot, certainly\u2014but not with a motorhome. At that point, you are stuck. <\/p>\n

What I experienced next\u2014and how providers or customers can avoid such problems\u2014read in my post. It is going to be exciting again!<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>

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It is digital-only here\u2014or not at all!<\/b><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>

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Ill-considered digitalization and its consequences<\/b><\/p>\n

First, a call to the “hotline”<\/strong><\/em>. Fortunately, someone was still available. The pitch belongs to the tourist office in Beuren.
\nIf you look at the website, you would think, hey, it all seems interconnected. (thermal baths and pitch)
\nSo my simple thought was: go to the thermal baths across the street, pay cash at the counter, and done. But unfortunately, that was wrong. <\/p>\n

The friendly gentleman on the phone made it clear to me that one has nothing to do with the other. So I cannot simply pay that way. <\/p>\n

And cash payment is not \u043f\u0440\u0435\u0434\u0443\u0441\u043c\u043e\u0442\u0440ed at all\u2014really not. It only works with a card.
\nWell, actually also with PayPal, but not at the machine\u2014only in the app, which I can access via a QR code on the power pedestal at the pitch. Not at the payment machine.
\nYes, you read that correctly. At the machine it works one way, via the app another\u2014but the two are not coordinated with each other. <\/p>\n

So off to the pedestal. And now here is the thing (and this was not fake): someone had debited money from my PayPal account and I was in the red.
\nAccordingly, no payment via PayPal was possible, which I wanted to try right away. Very annoying. <\/p>\n

No problem, I thought\u2014I will simply make a direct transfer<\/strong> from my bank account. The amount will be in my PayPal account within minutes<\/strong> and I will be able to pay again. <\/p>\n

Think again.<\/strong> I wait and wait, then contact PayPal. “Sorry”<\/strong><\/em>, says the PayPal representative, “but allocating it to your PayPal account can take 2 to 3 days. It is not that fast with us because there is a pooled account and the deposit first has to be assigned to your account”<\/em> (apparently manually!).<\/p>\n

Why, I ask myself, does PayPal accept a direct transfer if it cannot actually process a direct transfer. This should be automatic. (with other banks you get a message during payment that this process does not work with the bank) <\/p>\n

I am increasingly doubtful whether we are talking about digitalization that is supposed to make life easier\u2014or banking in Taka-Tuka Land<\/strong> (see Pippi Longstocking).
\nThe fact is: my Postbank money is gone and, to this day\u20147 days later\u2014still has NOT arrived in my account.
\nI feel like PayPal is taking me for a fool.<\/p>\n

Good thing that part of it was still “staged”<\/em> and I did have a working card I could use to pay. Just imagine if that had not been the case.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>

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Digital money can be “locked up” very easily. And with it\u2014indirectly\u2014so can we! <\/b><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>

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Why digital payments can be problematic<\/b><\/p>\n

You are probably wondering why I am making such a fuss. It has always worked, and an occasional error is something you can live with.
\nTrue\u2014if it were only an error. But in the future, it may be intention rather than a mistake. And why? <\/p>\n

Reasons currently known for a payment problem:<\/strong><\/p>\n