Getting Burned When Online Shopping: Tips & Warnings

[Jon Westfall]

Recently I went hunting for a bargain. I wanted to score a new case for my K-JAM at the most ultra-low price I could, and found a seller online offering the case I wanted for a price 4 - 5 dollars lower than elsewhere, so after making sure the site looked legit (the site was found through Froogle if I remember correctly), I plunked down my cash. After a week and an email inquiry, I got a USPS delivery confirmation number, and since April 12 that delivery confirm. number has reported that USPS has been "electronically notified" of my package, but nothing more. I'm now starting to think this company packaged my case up but never got it to the post office (I know USPS doesn't offer real-time tracking, but usually they provide a notification when the item is scanned at the origin). So my goal of saving a little $$$ is now coming back to haunt me.<br /><br />But it got me wondering: Most of us buy online, and fairly often the "off-name" vendors provide as excellent of service as the "big boys" with a discounted price. However, in a small percentage of orders, something goes wrong. What tips, warnings, and suggestions do you have to share with others when buying online that can prevent these unfortunate mishaps? I know a lot of people who let stories like mine scare them away from buying online all-together, and while something like this happens the minority of the time, a good collection of tips and suggestions may help those leary of online shopping to take the plunge!

[ibmiked]

USPS Delivery Confirmation only gets scanned if dropped off personally to a window clerk. In most cases, 'manifest mailing' (large daily mailings), get dropped off on the Post Office's loading dock. As a result, the only time those packages get scanned is by your actual Postman when he/she delivers it. Hence the message you are seeing online.

Frustrating, certainly. But with UPS rates starting at 1 lb minimums, most people find that USPS Priority Mail is delivered in 3 days (including Saturday!) and only costs $4.05 per pound with no fuel surcharges like the big boys.

[WorksForTurkeys]

(1) don't pay cash; if a vendor only accepts cash, find another verndor.
(2) use a major bank issued credit card (not paypal) MasterCard or VISA.
(3) don't let the vendor ship vis Parcel Post if you care about receiving the package: Parcel Post only makes one delivery attempt. If you miss their attempt, you have to pick up the package at the Post Office (assuming you can identify which Post Office the package was dropped at). if they must ship via the Post Office, request Priority or Express Mail as they're "almost" as reliable as Federal Express.
(4) if timely delivery and inexpensive shipping are important use DHL/Airborne, UPS or Federal Express Ground (Fedex Ground is a different division from what we normally understand as Federal Express: when I miss the Federal Express Ground delivery, the carrier leaves his cellphone number on the door tag and he circles back around when I call - no tip necessary or expected for the additional service)

I purchase online from small, local (in their own locality) vendors regularly; occassionally there are "problems". (To be fair I also purchase regularly from Amazon.com and often there are also "problems").

If / when it appears that the "problem" will not be resolved, my bank issues a charge-back pending the vendor's submission of proof of receipt. I haven't lost any money since I switched from PayPal to my bank issued VISA.

[ipaqczar]

Here are some that I go by:

For online vendors - I look at Reseller Ratings, Epinions, etc.

For eBay I look at the feedback - and the type of feedback. Someone can have 8 zillion positive feedbacks but all from buying - not selling.

Always use a credit card when possible.

Dip your toe in before you take the plunge - if you find some place with great deals it is tempting to order a lot - but I try to order the one thing I really want and see how they handle that transaction before I place a larger order.

[DaleReeck]

Also, put the cost savings in perspective. I know we all like to save money and if it's $20 or $30 on a $100 or $100 or $200 on a $1000 item, that's one thing. But $4 or $5 on a $50 item? Its better to pay the $5 extra to the known element than to save that $5 on an unknown one.

[Foxbat121]

(1) Never pay cash.
(2) Never use yor real credit card. I always use my MBNA online-generated one-time use credit card numbers, even with big name vendors. You never know who's gonna hack into their system and steal all credit card information.
(3) Never pay cash.

I buy a lot of stuff online. Most of times I stick with known vendors even though I may pay a few bucks over.

[Zarlof]

The others have great ideas. This is just another that I recommend in addition.

Always verify the current status on the Better Business Bureau. A link to the verification is http://www.bbb.org/reports.asp. You may be able to use the URL to the site. Otherwise, look at the site for address or phone number information.

Good luck,
Zarlof

[pheral]

In addition to all the great points already mentioned, when i find a new cheaper vendor i've not heard of before i always make a Google search with their name. My dad bought an expensive camera from an online company without doing this first, and my first Google search on their name turned up a load of complaint sites and a lawsuit already in progress against their company!
(using a credit card as a form of insurance works well, as my dad has since had his money refunded in full by the bank)

So a Google search with the name of the company or the name followed by the word 'problem' or 'complaint' can save you some woes. Of course all companies have their customer service issues, but you can normally tell from the results whether you're looking at a problem vendor or not.

[Robb Bates]

Read ALL the details. Ask LOTS of questions. And assume NOTHING!

I was looking at an extended battery for my PPC-6700. I looked at a very fuzzy picture of the larger, bigger, stick out the back type battery and could make out that the capacity of the battery was 1400mAh. So yes, technnically, it was extended, since the original battery was 1350mAh. A real extended battery is 1900mAh. What a rip-off.

Robb

[WorksForTurkeys]

I left out one important point: I have one credit card that I use only for online purchases. The credit limit is fixed (I refused bank offerred increases), and the account is only used for online merchants - my bank's computers watch my purchasing patterns: a flag is raised whenever it sees a variance from the patterns. in addition to the amount of my individual purchases, it watches the vendors the purchases are coming in from.

I've been called about questionable purchase attempts on this card from storefront retailers (I never use this account for storefront purchases), and one time I was called because their systems noticed an unusual attempt to charge a room at the Waldorf Hotel in NYC (the police then made the arrest in the hotel room).

[tmmburke]

I purchased a PDA on Ebay for $300. I was an idiot and trusted the seller who had a zero rating. The price was too good to pass up. I figured that with the Paypal buyer protection, I had nothing to loose. I paid for UPS shipping and the seller sent me a bogus tracking number. I never heard from the seller again. I contacted Paypal and entered a dispute. Paypal came back within a day with another UPS tracking number they said was given to them by the seller. I checked it out and to my surprise the UPS web site showed that the package was delivered and the town it was delivered to was mine. Of course, I never received any package so I called UPS and found out the package was delivered to another address in my town and addressed to a completely different person. So, I checked it out by calling this person and found out it was a package with goods he ordered that had nothing to do with me.
I notified Paypal with this inormation and they ignored me saying the package was delivered as indicated by the UPS site. I explainded that this was a clever scam and that they should call UPS to get the same information I did to show that it was a scam. They refused to do this and are now closing the case.
So much for Paypal's money back guarentee. I was a victim of fraud and Paypal wouldn't even make a lousey phone call to prove it. Now I'm out $300. I also have to close my Paypal account due to their "dishonest" business practices. Lucky for me, Paypal charged my credit card for the purchase and I can file a dispute with the CC company to get my money back from Paypal.
What a mess, Buyer beware.

[kinged]

Same thing is happening to me!!

I shopped at pricegrabber site for memory sticks about a month ago. One of the store has great prices. Unfortunately I mail them personal check. They send me USPS notification with tracking number (mainly an intent to ship). But the item was never shipped. I e-mail them at least 10 times. They claim they shipped it and they say they will investigate. Now they said they file a claim. I am the one who paid and did not get the item. They should be sending me refund. I am now in dispute with them.

[dma1965]

I use Paypal all the time to make purchases on eBay. Now at least 1 out of every 20 purchases I make ends up being eithe questionable or a scam. I connect my Paypal account to my coporate Amex, and leave no balance in my account, and refuse to tie my account to a bank account, despite Paypal's constant inistence that I do so. If I get ripped off, I just call Amex, and they go after Paypal.

[fone_fanatic]

wow, what timing for this topic. i purchased something on ebay last wednesday and paid for it with paypal. on monday i got an email from paypal saying the seller has shipped the item with paypal shipping and give me a link to the tracking page. So it takes me to usps.com and just says that they've recieved the electronic shipping information or whatever it is. now i'm worried if the item will ever make it to me!
the seller has excellent feedback and was very cooperative with all the emails i sent about the item. don't know whats going wrong here...

[dma1965]

wow, what timing for this topic. i purchased something on ebay last wednesday and paid for it with paypal. on monday i got an email from paypal saying the seller has shipped the item with paypal shipping and give me a link to the tracking page. So it takes me to usps.com and just says that they've recieved the electronic shipping information or whatever it is. now i'm worried if the item will ever make it to me!
the seller has excellent feedback and was very cooperative with all the emails i sent about the item. don't know whats going wrong here...

That has happened to me many times. That does not necessarily mean anything is wrong, since the USPS does not update very quickly. Give it a few days before worrying. Live I said, about 1 in 20 is a weird transaction.

[Jason Dunn]

I notified Paypal with this inormation and they ignored me saying the package was delivered as indicated by the UPS site. I explainded that this was a clever scam and that they should call UPS to get the same information I did to show that it was a scam. They refused to do this and are now closing the case.

Wow - that sucks! Paypal really dropped the ball on you there. :-(

[genius74]

Sorry, I only look for deals at the 'Big Boys' as you put it or with retailers I've dealt with in the past.

Obviously, in 1996, I didn't know who half these businesses were and gave many a try, but I've limited myself to the stores that I buy online from or even look at to compare prices.

I never pay cash, NEVER buy from EBay, I've never used PayPal (and probably won't), and I always use an auto-magically generated CC number for online purchases.

[fone_fanatic]

wow, what timing for this topic. i purchased something on ebay last wednesday and paid for it with paypal. on monday i got an email from paypal saying the seller has shipped the item with paypal shipping and give me a link to the tracking page. So it takes me to usps.com and just says that they've recieved the electronic shipping information or whatever it is. now i'm worried if the item will ever make it to me!
the seller has excellent feedback and was very cooperative with all the emails i sent about the item. don't know whats going wrong here...

That has happened to me many times. That does not necessarily mean anything is wrong, since the USPS does not update very quickly. Give it a few days before worrying. Live I said, about 1 in 20 is a weird transaction.
Thanks for that info, I emailed the seller and they said because my paypal payment took a week to clear (BS) but said he sent it out wednesday afternoon so hopefully i get it next week because i need to send it with someone overseas.(purchase was made for a friend)

[TimFountain]

Bought an Imate SP5 from an ebay seller with PayPal. He seemed to check out OK, power seller, 100% score from 100's of people, ebay store, etc. etc. He created the shipping info in the USPS system, 3 weeks later no phone. Filed a Paypal dispute, and he claimed that he had dropped it in the USPS drop box on a street corner in Chicago and that since I didn't take insurance I was SOL. USPS said they never received it from the seller into their system.
It seems like a fundamental flaw of the USPS system that anyone can create a notice of intent to ship, and there is no subsequent tracking IF they use a drop box. Apparently USPS will have the package in their system if they sender takes it physically to a post office. I will never use USPS again. Final outcome was that Paypal sided with me as the seller couldn't ever prove he sent it, and I got my money back, so in the end a thumbs up for PP.

- Tim

[Rob Alexander]

(1) Never pay cash.
(2) Never use yor real credit card. I always use my MBNA online-generated one-time use credit card numbers, even with big name vendors. You never know who's gonna hack into their system and steal all credit card information.

I second this one. There are more problems with giving out your real cc number than just dealing with scam artists or stores getting hacked. I had a problem with Buy.com a few months ago where they wouldn't ship the product (on a $500+ order) but they wouldn't cancel the order either. They said they would cancel, but weeks after I requested it, the order was still active and for call after call the polite Indian 'customer service' reps assured me that this time the order will really be cancelled. By then I had bought the item from someone else and really didn't want them to ship the item.

Unfortunately, there was little I could do because they had my real cc number. It had been in their system since before I started using the MBNA virtual numbers. It turned out okay in the end, but it really taught me the value of MBNA virtual numbers. They don't just give you new numbers, they let you manage them. If I were in that situation with one of their virtual numbers, I could have simply cancelled the number and eliminated my exposure. My Citibank virtual number system doesn't let me do that, nor does it let me set a specific limit for each virtual number, so I use the MBNA one almost exlusively.

So I agree, always use your credit card and always use a virtual number. If you have an MBNA card, use that one. Oh, and one more online shopping tip... don't order from Buy.com. You'll think they're fine for several orders in a row, but if anything ever does go wrong, you absolutely, positively cannot get it solved.

[davea0511]

... I connect my Paypal account to my coporate Amex, and leave no balance in my account, and refuse to tie my account to a bank account, despite Paypal's constant inistence that I do so. If I get ripped off, I just call Amex, and they go after Paypal.

That's the best sounding solution I've heard yet. I might have to finally break down and get an AMEX card.

Anything to stick it to Paypal.

The virtual MBNA number thing is a good idea, and probably the best solution for non-ebay purchases, but for ebay (and I do a lot of ebay) I really like this idea.