Pardon the technical term ‘screwed’, but I’m just curious to how many people have had issues shopping online due to no fault of their own.

By ‘no fault of their own own’- I mean buying Viagra through email offers, and paying “$9.99 for a program that will overflow your bank account with cash while you sit on the can” is partly the buyer’s mistake 

There’s always a lot of talk about security and website trust and people scared of identity theft and so on…but through my own personal experiences and those of my friends, for the most part, the online shopping world has been very safe place.

It hasn’t been perfect though and there has been a few hiccups which I’m about to share.

So if anyone else has had issues, and you feel like letting us know, please do.

If you’ve never had any issues, also let us know- might help re-install a little faith in people.

Apart from my groceries I do well over half of my total shopping online. I buy everything from my car parts, to ink cartridges to shoes online.

In total there’s been 4 ‘hick-ups’ and out of the 4 I’ve really only been screwed twice….

#1    I paid a freelancer a 50% deposit ($200) on a project I commissioned him to do through Guru.com. Shortly after the freelancer disappeared along with mine, and several other people’s deposit. I do want to point out here that this is actually my fault. Guru.com offers an escrow service (free) that I should have used. Lesson learned at a cost of $200

#2  I’ve had 3 eBay transactions go bad. The first one was my only costly one. I received the item, but it was damaged. I contacted the seller and she asked that I return it for an exchange which I did. After not receiving the new item I re-contacted the seller who gave me some sob story about her store getting broken into and her merchandise stolen. She asked that I be a bit more patient and would get the item soon. After some time I tried contacting her several more times with no luck. Finally I filed a claim through PayPal which I used to pay for the item. Unfortunately, unknown to me at the time, PayPal will only look into a claim within 45 days of your purchase. I got screwed on that 1.

#3-4 are the other 2 eBay transactions I’ve had go wrong. However, having learned my lesson from the above, I filed both those claims within the time frame allowed by PayPal. In both instances PayPal decided in my favor and refunded ALL my money, including shipping.

I’ve run many transaction on eBay and I continue to use it, so don’t be ‘scared’ by reading about my few incidents there. My recommendation obviously is to use PayPal on auctions that PayPal covers for the whole auction price.

So there you have it. In 10+ years of online shopping I’ve had 4 issues and only been screwed twice. And both time I was partly to blame. 

Excellent post Nic. I probably do 40% of my personal purchases online and probably 30% of the business purchases online. As far as getting screwed goes we had made a wire purchase from a Philippine site that was listed on Alibaba, the listing had contact info and we were having regular conversations via email, so it seamed legitimate. After we received the bank information which was listed as a business, we sent the wire. The result was that communication from the seller stopped and we never received the product, resulting in a loss of $680.00 USD

In hindsight we should have asked for references outside of the Philippines and well as paying more attention to whether or not they were a verified Alibaba business (Alibaba will communicate with you). We had them removed from Alibaba and reported them to the Philippine bank. But to be honest they were not too interested in looking into it since it wasn’t their loss.

From the business end of things, most losses, while minor, come from chargeback’s whereas the scales are heavily tipped in the credit card companies favor.

I've got two odd-case problems that cause me to do most of my shopping (again not counting groceries) online: Disabled, so can't do the driving around and lifting required for some of the stuff we buy online, AND Philly isn't known for its love of books -- not even sure it has any bookstores at all (not counting the GLBS bookstores in Center City), now that our favorite used bookstore moved, but didn't give us a forwarding address. LOL

With that, in most cases, the biggest problem we have is staying in the house waiting around for the delivery, sometimes for days.

So, three exceptions to the "no problems" claim, two are from EBay sellers, and one was our own silly fault!
1. Our silly fault -- do NOT buy refirgerators online, particularly refrigerators that tell you how many cubic feet they are. The one we have now is as big as our last one according to cubic feet. According to reality, it is slightly taller (requiring some cutting away of cabinet molding above it), it's noticably thinner then the last one, the freezer dholds less then the last one, (and the last one needed more freezer space), our potato bin won't even fit 10 medium size potatoes in it, the veggie crisper isn't any bigger then the potato bin, AND they thought it was a wonderful idea to put a very thin shelf on the bottom of the door that holds up to 8 cans of soda, noly -- too thin for anything else. Of course, we generally drink soda from cans, so that shelf is used, but one of my disabilities is I can't lean over much, so...welll, you see the problem!

2. It ended up, there was no problem, but had I read the fine print first, no way would I buy a DVD from that place again. The fine print was, once we opened it up, it could not be returned. From a business standpoint, I understand. I'm sure buyers replace their old scratched up DVD for the new one, and then claim the new one was scratched up. BUT from a buyer's POV, what if the new one really was scratched? We end up buying a $15 dinky Frisbee, that really doesn't have any of the design of a real Frisbee.

3. Never buy anything online on EBay that you cannot tell, if it was a good purchase for more then 10 days later -- like plants and seeds. Bought a bunch of plants and a couple of kits from PlantRanch 3-4 years ago costing close to $150. Out of that urder half made it through that year's gardening season. The annuals didn't make it through June. The ones left were all perennials, so should still be growing and alive today. I have two plants that made it through that first winter, and the biggest price I paid for any of the plants were $7! EBay gurantees satisfaction for up to 10 days! Once I was ripped off, the guy got snooty, and obnoxious, and EBay refused to help. Plant Ranch has close to 98% satisfaction rate, but really that just tells how timely the orders come in. (Not even that, really, since he sends orders out when it's time to plant them in the proper agricultural zone.) After being ripped off, I looked through pages and pages of his reviews, and got a real look at what I got myself into. Most were positive, for reasons already given, however, when he sent dead plants (he also sent plants that never grew. Got three strawberry plants that were about an inch tall when I got them, and an incch tall in August -- honestly! LOL), and customers complained, me replied back that they were difficult customers, who wouldn't call him, so he couldn't help them! (He also wanted me to call, but had no toll free number, and I already told him the problem, and how I wanted it resolved, so there was no reason to call.)

Words getting out about him though, but you have to google the name for the truth to come out. He has been on EBay for years now, and has a 98% positive feedback though. I had a business, so know, since some folks will complain no matter what. 98% is a good rating. I so hate getting screwed, so have helped spread the word, whenever given the opportunity. LOL
http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/load … 27357.html
http://davesgarden.com/products/gwd/com … amp;type=3

Of course, he also ego-searches, and when he gets negative comments, he removes them. LOL

DEFAMATION WARNING

Be wary about naming and shaming - depending on the company and the country, it may result in legal action by the company.

Perhaps best to just be generic in say things like "an online plant seller" ??

just on my view of buying online - I've never had any trouble, not that I buy much - shipping costs blow out the purchase price too much most times. Often MORE that the price of the item!!

I buy a few things...and each time with Paypal.

Always careful to check out the legitimacy of the site first.

A good deal doesn't sway me, unless it comes from Australia.

I guess I've also been lucky.

I only buy pc parts online, obviously with shipping restrictions and all that i cant import any technology into SA from the US without standing a good chance of it being eaten by customs. So i buy from Johannesburg or Cape Town and get the stuff couriered down to me in PE (about a 16hr drive).  Normally a purchase like that would cost +- R10 000 so i do a crap load of research on the place, read reviews and google the companys complaints eg: complaints about google.

If they have really ticked people off it will be on google somewhere, the last thing i do before buying is make sure i can do a direct transfer into their bank account, that way i am guaranteed that the bank knows who they are and i have a piece of paper from the bank proving that i paid. So far this tactic has worked perfectly for the purchases i make, i almost made a credit card purchase the other day but dodged it cause it started asking to many questions. So i can safely say that i have had no problems... i would never buy a monitor or screen of any sort online though, i dodge things with moving parts or fragile components. Reason being that when i made my last purchase (components for my  pc ) the courier truck rolled about an hour out of PE, after a recovery vehicle picked up all the pieces and got back here i went over to the company to get my box of goodies... i was bleak that my processor and graphics card boxes were squished (they were fine though... great packaging from intel and xfx ) but i was glad i didnt buy anything that would be destroyed by having a bit of a roll through the bush.  It wasn't just the roll that makes me avoid buying fragile things online though... it was the 105cm lcd tv bent in half that made me think twice about looking for a new screen online.

I guess what it boils down to is research... do it and you wont get shnyed easily. And buy in your own country... unless its from a well known company.. alienware for example.

matte wrote:

DEFAMATION WARNING

Be wary about naming and shaming - depending on the company and the country, it may result in legal action by the company.

Perhaps best to just be generic in say things like "an online plant seller" ??

Wait a minute! That's my usual warning?! LOL
Actually, I have strong reasons to not fear this company, and plenty of evidence that it's true. I'd love it, if he took me to court, and could always add the results to my info about him online.

I guess what it boils down to is research... do it and you wont get shnyed easily. And buy in your own country... unless its from a well known company.. alienware for example.

I gotta catch up on my computer-related info! I'm going to lose my nerd (not smart enough for "geek") status. Never heard of them before.

im gonna havte give you the simplest answer i can for this one, alienware is company that makes the ultimate laptops, laptops that blow most gaming rigs out of the water... as a matter of fact they are gaming rigs... they are beautiful I informed a friend last night that i would cut off 3 toes for one, out of my reach at $2500 though

Ryan_steyn wrote:

im gonna havte give you the simplest answer i can for this one, alienware is company that makes the ultimate laptops, laptops that blow most gaming rigs out of the water... as a matter of fact they are gaming rigs... they are beautiful I informed a friend last night that i would cut off 3 toes for one, out of my reach at $2500 though

Keep toes! It's hard to gain the ability to walk without them, and I've never met a merchant willing to trade for them. Had a guy that ate toes, but then again he ate the rest of the person gradually too. Still couldn't get a computer from him!

Fair enough, do you know anyone who accepts body hair and toenail clippings? im sure i can outsource for that

I've had no problems

I don't use ebay for stuff I need, i use it for stuff I want (only 20-something transactions in total, buying and selling). If i need something i will pay a fair price for it from a registered business and enjoy the service that comes with it - if they attempt to screw me over I've got more power to crush them (I'm talking brinks and mortar as well as online here)

My mum does but all her groceries online, every week the tesco lorry comes with the family's food and household items (and occasionally a new laptop).

for computer parts i usually use scan.co.uk and have once or twice used someone else, for cameras pixmania.com.

I've never bought clothes online, but my other half regularly sells them on ebay

One thing that you don't get online is that personal touch you get in many specialty shops - last time i went to buy a suit, a stylist helped me choose, then measured me up and recommended some very nice pieces. This week I've just ordered two out of a catalog, and it wasn't the same

this is pretty interesting...

I didn't abandon this thread, but wanted to leave it open for a bit so more people could add their stories.

However it seems apart from a few admittedly self-inflicted mistakes by WS and I, no one has had issues shopping online?

If so few people are getting screwed online, where does all the mistrust come from?

Is it because this thread isn’t reflective of the truth and many people do get nailed online?

Is it that people are just scarred to shop online because they can’t see the person on the other end and assume the worst?

Is it that I’m imagining things again and online security isn’t the issue I make it out to be?

Any thoughts?

I think a lot of it stems from the old urban myth that CC details are not safe on line - despite research showing that it is more at risk in B&M situations

Lol, and Nic comes out with the inspector Clouseau conclusion

You are right though, people only get screwed by not being cautious and missing the obvious signs of a scam. I still dont trust the idea using my credit card online (although i did by 10 dollars worth of gold... a game thing, on the wrong acc. I emailed em quickly asking em to refund me as the account was wrong and they did it within the hour ) Even the dodgy sites for buying stuff like that never screwed me.... but allas, the idea that someone can buy whatever they want just by having the numbers on your card is scary.... thats how internet cafe scams work, so sending those numbers over the net is almost as risky as leaving it on the bar when your out.

It is however nothing more than a fouled perception, most companies dont want to draw unnecessary attention to themselves so they keep it as clean and safe as possible, it only takes a few people being screwed to make that company untrustworthy - kinda like the sellers on ebay getting ranked - people saying that your stole money from them really does effect the bottom line for online businesses.

I actually forgot that i had made credit card purchases online... i remember loads of panicking when i did but the fact that i only remembered now kinda tells you how insignificant it really is.

Personally I do very little purchasing online. I have had a few occasions where the item I purchased turned out to be less than all the hoopla that the websites describe and images show it to be. I do a lot of heavy browsing/shopping comparisons and then usually go to a local store and get what I want/need.

Those of us here and in other similar forums are involved on the other side of websites. Most people when you mention anything slightly technical they get this dumb look on their face. I have given a few presentations to some of the business groups here locally about shopping online and what to look for before giving any personal and/or CC information. Surprises me at the number of people that don't check for the simple http v https in the address bar, a privacy policy or anything that mentions how information transmitted is protected.

There has never been such a serious issue about security in online shopping with me. I have always been delivered the good that I have paid for. But, one of my friend was just duped about his transfer of money online. While making your payments online, you have to be concerned about the security issues and just take notice about the fact that the site has an SSL certificate on which you transfer the money as this ensures web security and this makes your payment secure to the server of the site.

My Family and i have bought and sold on ebay,with no problems.

My sons have bought beer mats to car parts without any problems. I have bought clothes on e-bay that didn't fit so i would not buy clothes again.
I buy membership of Genealogy sites  and look ups and feel confident about the service i have bought.
You can't beat Myers on a  Saturday afternoon though and remember you can always take it back the next week!

Janet

I think most of the people who have done online shopping have been screwed up once or twice. Well, it even happened to me also. I am not much in to online shopping but sometimes its fine.
i bought a watch from online store. To check the stuff is fake or not i preferred to go for very basic thing which doesn't cost much. I got and it was working fine. Next week i bought the fast track watch. I even got the parcel from that. It was also good. But my first watch failed in 15 days. When i did complaint regarding that they said they are out of stock and than they said they will pay me back. And they did. Can you imagine...The watch is still with me and they refunded the amount.
Its not that all the Online stores are fake or cheat. Sometimes you can trust them. I haven't done much online shopping but, still I'll say sometimes we have to trust them

My first rule when buying online, is to remember these words "buyer beware". You must check out the company as best as you can. When you feel good about the company, try and make payments through PayPal for your protection.