My account is locked until I pay $0.
Every support agent tells me the same thing: “Just verify your credit card.”
I’ve verified it 8 times.
It shows as verified.
But I still can’t pay $0.
And until I pay $0, I can’t spend $10,000.
Can you believe this shit?
Monday, 9:47 AM
I create a new Meta Ads account.
My old one got banned 3 months ago for “suspicious activity.” The suspicious activity? I changed my credit card.
I’ve created 4 new accounts since then. All banned within hours. For nothing.
So I try again.
New business manager. New ad account. New everything.
I follow every single rule: - Real business name - Real address
- Real tax ID - Real payment method - Real everything
I click “Create Ad Account.”
Success message appears.
I open the ad account.
Red banner across the top: “Your account has been disabled. You must pay $0.00 to restore access.”
I haven’t even created an ad yet.
I haven’t done anything.
The account was created 47 seconds ago.
And it’s already disabled.
For an outstanding balance of zero dollars.
The $0 Problem
I click “Pay Now.”
It takes me to payment settings.
Three options: 1. Credit Card (shows my Visa as VERIFIED ✓) 2. PayPal (shows my account as VERIFIED ✓)
3. Bank Account (shows my IBAN as VERIFIED ✓)
All three are verified.
Green checkmarks everywhere.
I click “Resolve Payment Issue.”
Error message: “Please add a valid payment method.”
I add my credit card again.
It goes through. Shows as verified.
Error message: “Please add a valid payment method.”
I add PayPal again.
Verified.
Error message: “Please add a valid payment method.”
I try my backup credit card.
Verified.
Error message: “Please add a valid payment method.”
It’s 10:23 AM.
I’ve added the same payment methods 6 times.
All show as verified.
None of them work.
I still owe $0.
The First Chat Support (11:04 AM)
I open Meta Business Support chat.
Wait time: 47 minutes.
Fine. I work while waiting.
Support agent connects: “Hi! How can I help you today?”
Me: “My ad account is disabled. Says I need to pay $0. All my payment methods are verified but it won’t let me resolve the balance.”
Support: “I understand your concern. Let me check your account.”
5 minutes pass.
Support: “I see the issue. Your payment method needs to be verified.”
Me: “It IS verified. Look at my payment settings. Green checkmark. Says VERIFIED.”
Support: “Yes, but you need to verify it to resolve the payment issue.”
Me: “It’s already verified.”
Support: “Let me send you the verification steps.”
They send me a link to Meta’s help article: “How to Verify Your Payment Method.”
I’ve already done everything in the article.
Multiple times.
Me: “I’ve done all these steps. The card shows as verified. But it still won’t work.”
Support: “Have you tried adding a different payment method?”
Me: “Yes. I’ve added three different methods. All verified. None work.”
Support: “I see. Let me escalate this to our payments team. They’ll contact you within 24-48 hours.”
The chat ends.
It’s 11:47 AM.
I’ve spent 2 hours trying to pay $0.
The Second Chat Support (2:34 PM)
I can’t wait 48 hours.
I have campaigns that need to run.
I open another support chat.
Wait time: 1 hour 12 minutes.
I make lunch. Answer emails. Wait.
New support agent connects: “Hello! I’m here to help!”
I explain the entire situation again.
Every detail.
The $0 balance. The verified payment methods. The error messages. Everything.
Support: “I understand this must be frustrating.”
Me: “Yes. Very.”
Support: “Let me check your account.”
7 minutes pass.
Support: “I see the issue. You need to verify your payment method.”
Me: “It’s verified. Look at the account. Green checkmarks everywhere.”
Support: “Yes, I see that. But to resolve the payment issue, you need to complete the verification process.”
Me: “What verification process? What am I missing?”
Support: “You need to add a valid payment method.”
Me: “I HAVE. EIGHT TIMES. They all show as verified.”
Support: “I understand. Let me check with my supervisor.”
10 minutes pass.
Support: “My supervisor says you need to wait for the payment team to review your account. They’ll contact you within 24-48 hours.”
Me: “The last agent told me the same thing 3 hours ago. Can you escalate this?”
Support: “Yes, I’ll mark this as urgent.”
Chat ends.
It’s 3:51 PM.
5 hours into trying to pay $0.
The Phone Call (4:17 PM)
Fuck it. I’m calling them.
I find Meta’s business support phone number. Took me 20 minutes because they hide it better than CIA documents.
Automated system: “Thank you for calling Meta Business Support. Please describe your issue.”
Me: “Ad account disabled. Need to pay zero dollars. Payment methods verified but won’t work.”
Robot: “I heard ‘payment issue.’ Is that correct?”
Me: “Yes.”
Robot: “I’ll connect you to a payment specialist.”
Hold music. 37 minutes.
Finally, human voice: “Hi, this is Michael from Meta Business Support. How can I help?”
I explain everything again.
The $0 balance. The verified cards. The error messages. The two chat support sessions. Everything.
Michael: “I see. Let me pull up your account.”
Typing sounds.
Michael: “Okay, I see the issue.”
Me: “What is it?”
Michael: “Your payment method isn’t verified.”
Me: “It IS verified. I’m looking at it right now. Green checkmark. Says VERIFIED.”
Michael: “Yes, but it needs to be verified in our system.”
Me: “What does that mean? How is it verified in my settings but not in your system?”
Michael: “Sometimes there’s a delay between the verification showing on your end and our system processing it.”
Me: “It’s been 7 hours.”
Michael: “I understand. Try removing and re-adding your payment method.”
Me: “I’ve done that 12 times today.”
Michael: “Try it one more time while I’m on the line.”
I do it again.
Card details entered. Verified. Green checkmark appears.
Me: “Done. It’s verified again.”
Michael: “Great. Now try to resolve the payment issue.”
I click “Resolve Payment Issue.”
Error message: “Please add a valid payment method.”
Me: “Same error.”
Michael: “Hmm. That’s strange. Let me check something.”
More typing.
Michael: “I’m going to escalate this to our technical team. They’ll investigate and contact you within 48 hours.”
Me: “Wait, that’s what the chat support said 6 hours ago.”
Michael: “This is a different escalation. Higher priority.”
Me: “How do I know someone will actually look at this?”
Michael: “You’ll receive a case number. Our team will review it and respond.”
Case number: 749382647291
The call ends.
It’s 5:43 PM.
8 hours trying to pay $0.
The Pattern
Here’s what I’ve realized:
Meta has created the perfect Kafkaesque nightmare.
You’re trapped in a system that: - Disables your account for owing $0 - Requires verified payment methods - Shows your payment methods as verified
- Won’t accept your verified payment methods - Can’t tell you why - Can’t fix it - Just keeps telling you to verify what’s already verified
And the support agents?
They’re trapped too.
They can see what you see.
They can see the verified payment methods.
They can see the $0 balance.
But they can’t override the system.
They can’t fix it.
They can only repeat the same script: “Verify your payment method.” “Wait 24-48 hours.” “Our team will investigate.”
They’re robots stuck in a factory line.
Intelligent enough to understand the problem.
But unable to stop the motions.
Unable to relocate.
Unable to fix anything.
Growing restless.
Just like you.
The Real Question
Why does Meta make it so fucking hard to give them money?
I WANT to spend $10,000 on ads.
They WANT my $10,000.
But first I have to: - Create an account (gets disabled) - Verify payment (shows as verified but isn’t) - Pay $0 (can’t) - Contact support (can’t help) - Wait 48 hours (nothing happens) - Repeat
This isn’t accidental.
This is designed.
Meta has intentionally created a system where:
The people who know what they’re doing look stupid.
Because the system is stupid.
You can follow every rule perfectly.
Use real information.
Verify everything.
Do everything right.
And still fail.
Because the system doesn’t care about right and wrong.
It cares about patterns.
And you don’t fit the pattern.
The Expert Trap
Here’s the really fucked up part:
The “experts” who run successful Meta Ads?
They don’t look smart because they understand the system.
They look smart because they got lucky.
They created their accounts before the AI went insane.
Or they fit the pattern the AI likes.
Or they have agency status that bypasses the robot gatekeepers.
But put them in my situation?
They’d be just as stuck.
Because there’s no “expert strategy” for paying $0 when the system won’t let you pay $0.
There’s no “secret technique” for getting around an error message that makes no logical sense.
You either fit the pattern or you don’t.
And if you don’t?
You’re fucked.
No amount of expertise helps.
Which is why every Meta Ads “guru” I talk to has the same response:
“Weird. That’s never happened to me.”
Of course it hasn’t.
Because they got in before the robots took over.
What This Means for You
If you’re trying to run Meta Ads right now:
You’re not dealing with a platform.
You’re dealing with an AI that’s been trained on patterns.
And if your account doesn’t match the pattern: - New business? Suspicious. - Changed credit card? Suspicious. - Different IP address? Suspicious. - Logged in from a café? Suspicious. - Too many changes? Suspicious. - Not enough history? Suspicious.
The AI doesn’t understand context.
It doesn’t care about your real business.
It just knows: Does this match the pattern?
No? Disabled.
And once you’re in the disabled loop?
There’s no way out except: - Wait (maybe works) - Try a different business (maybe works) - Get an agency to run it (expensive) - Give up (what most people do)
This is why Facebook Ads feel like they’re “dying.”
Not because the platform doesn’t work.
Because the barrier to entry has become: “Are you lucky enough to have an account the AI doesn’t hate?”
The Update (Tuesday, 11:23 AM)
I got an email from Meta’s escalation team.
Subject: “Your Case Has Been Reviewed”
Body: “We’ve reviewed your account. To resolve the payment issue, please verify your payment method. Visit Payment Settings to add a valid credit card, PayPal account, or bank account.
For help, see: [Link to the same help article I’ve read 47 times]
Thank you for using Meta Business tools.”
That’s it.
16 hours after my escalation.
Copy-pasted help article.
Zero actual help.
The account is still disabled.
I still owe $0.
I still can’t pay it.
What I’m Doing Instead
I’m moving my ad spend to Google.
Not because Google is better.
Because at least when Google has problems, their errors make sense.
“Declined payment” means declined payment.
Not “Your verified payment method isn’t verified enough to pay $0.”
Will I try Meta again?
Probably.
In 6 months.
With a new business entity.
New everything.
And hope that THIS time, I fit the pattern the AI likes.
Because that’s all it is.
Pattern matching.
Not business logic.
Not customer service.
Just: Do you match what the robot thinks you should look like?
Fair?
The Lesson
If you’re running ads and it’s working:
Don’t change ANYTHING.
Don’t update your credit card.
Don’t change your business name.
Don’t log in from a different location.
Don’t do anything that might trigger the pattern-matching AI.
Because once it flags you?
You’re in the $0 loop.
And there’s no escape.
Just verified payment methods that aren’t verified enough.
And support agents who are as trapped as you are.
Welcome to advertising in 2025.
Where the robots are in charge.
And they don’t make sense.
And nobody can override them.
And you just have to hope you fit the pattern.
Or you’re fucked.
Jan
P.S. If you’ve ever been trapped in the $0 payment loop, reply with “LOOP” and tell me how long it took to escape. I need to know I’m not the only one losing my mind.
P.P.S. The irony? Meta’s mission is to “connect people.” But their robot gatekeepers won’t let people in. Can’t make this shit up.
P.P.P.S. Update: It’s now Wednesday. Account still disabled. Still owe $0. Still can’t pay it. If you see me on Google Ads instead of Meta, you know why.
P.P.P.P.S. The case number they gave me? 749382647291. I googled it. 43 other people have posted that exact same case number in forums. They use the SAME case number for everyone. They’re not even tracking individual cases. It’s all automated responses. The support is fake. The escalation is fake. Everything is fake. It’s robots all the way down.
