Why does Jagex need me to connect a credit card to my paypal

I'm trying to sign up for a 1 month membership via paypal, but when I select one month and paypal, then I log in to paypal, jagex wants me to connect a credit card. Any way to get around this? I don't want a subscription, I want it to terminate after one month...

They want people to buy the cards.

because I've got money in my paypal that I'd rather spend.

Its not so much that 'Jagex' needs you to connect a card. Most sites, Online services/materials require you to have a 'verified' paypal account which means you would need to add a credit card or a bank account, so if you ran out of money, or they were able to sham you into buying a continuous membership. They would need to be able to get the money from somewhere. if you didnt have the money on your paypal they could withdraw from your bank account or credit card instead.

Hope this helps!

Yeah, I just said "**** you jagex" and instead of buying 3 months of members I bought some games and stuff on steam, which doesn't need me to have a verified paypal account.

There shouldn't be any reason why they should be asking for your credit card if you're only going for one month. I remember signing up for one month membership through PayPal using an unverified account and it didn't ask me for any details. But when i signed up for the 6-month special deal it asked for my credit card details. Just make sure to check you're not signing up for a recurring subscription and if it fails contact Jagex at their parents@jagex.com email.