The seller had asked Rivera to pay $850 using the peer-to-peer payment app Zelle. Because she paid directly with a peer-to-peer payment service, she had no way to recover the money. “Peer-to-peer payment apps aren’t banks and they’re not credit cards, which makes it much harder for consumers to have recourse and get their money back,” said Consumer Reports money editor Octavio Blanco. In an AARP survey of Americans 18 and older, more than half of respondents incorrectly thought they could reclaim money sent in error when using peer-to-peer payment apps. Treat it like cash, and beware of too-good-to-be-true situations.”“Until laws are changed, consumers are going to have to be really careful when they use peer-to-peer payment apps,” Blanca said.