Google Checkout Catch-22

April 10, 2012 5:05 PM

How can I make changes to a Google Checkout account when the tabs that have all the settings (including Settings) are MIA and Google is telling me they can't help me because they claim my Merchant ID and my account email don't match!?

I help a nonprofit out with their website and 3 or more years ago I set up a Google Checkout account so they can solicit donations via the website. Fast forward and for the first time in years I log into the account because the nonprofit is hosting a symposium and they want to be able to have people register (and pay) via their website.

However, when I log into Checkout I only see the Orders tab. I sent Google an email asking for help and they get back to me right away and say that the the email I provided doesn't match the Merchant ID I provided, but they replied to the address that the account is under and the Merchant ID was copied and pasted right from the Checkout page. So for "security reasons" they won't answer my question. To make matters worse they provide me with a link on how to find my Merchant ID and it requires me to click the "Settings" tab which is missing! Catch-22 to say the least.

Here is a screengrab of the spot where I should be seeing additional tabs: http://dl.dropbox.com/u/691607/no-tools.jpg

I have cleared cache and cookies and used 3 browsers. I have a personal business Checkout account but when I login to that I see everything as it should be.

I did some research and wondered whether it had anything to do with the type of account I set up (nonprofit), but near as I can tell even that can be changed ... via the missing tabs.

Please help.

posted by terrapin to Computers & Internet (2 answers total)

Best answer: What other email addresses could have been used?
posted by jacalata at 5:34 PM on April 10, 2012

Best answer: A bit embarrassing but the answer came to me in my sleep last night and it aligns a bit with what jacalata said above ... the email address I was using was a read-only address, which is why I didn't see the other tabs. After a lot of search of old emails, and consulting with different people at the nonprofit, I decided to try a different email address and reset the password; and then I was able to access the account! Moving forward I am making sure the nonprofit has all of this information.

This answer was not found in any of the Google Groups or other resources I found, so I hope if anyone else has this issue they will find this question.

Thanks.
posted by terrapin at 7:52 AM on April 11, 2012