The other day I was online and saw that Victoria's Secret was having a sale. I went to the mall, where the brick and mortar store is located, quickly tried on a bra and purchased it. I'm not a big fan of malls in general, hence why I like to get my shit and get out as they say. When I got home, I went online to order more of the same style bra and did so successfully. But, after giving it some thought I decided that $11 for standard (5-8 business day) shipping/delivery was ridiculous! I purchased 3 bras and 2 pink mini dogs and they calculate that to be $11 shipping? What the fuck! I E-mailed the company BEFORE my order had been processed, so that I could cancel the order. I called the local store to see if they had the same styles and size in stock and they did, hence the cancellation request. This afternoon I went back to the website to check and see if maybe I had missed the "cancel" button...I am a ditz and it has been known to happen. No "cancel" button and no reply via E-mail, I called the company to ask them to cancel my order.
Over the phone I was told that my order had been processed within 2hrs. after I had placed the order and that once it was processed I could not cancel or modify my order. Being that I have never had this sort of a problem ordering anything off the internet and being that this was my first time making a purchase from VS online I scoured their website for the cancellation policy and couldn't find one. I'm an avid fan of Borders, Amazon and Barnes&Noble's websites and often order from them; the shipping for stacks of books, video games, DVDs and even CDs has never cost me more than $6 for standard 5-8 day shipping and they also allow customers to cancel their orders within 3 business days. With this knowledge I used Google to look up laws/rights for online shopping and stumbled upon the FTC's website, particularly where it states that a consumer has the right to cancel an online or catalog order within 3 business days if the order is over $25 and not made from a permanent store location. I know my math isn't Stephen Hawking level, but I do know that between the 14th and the 15th is 1 day and 1 day is less than 3 days and that Friday(the 15th)is a business day. I also know that 2hrs.(the length of time it took for VS to process my order on the 14th) is a hell of a lot less than 3 days.
I was told by both a customer service representative over the phone and via E-Mail that there was nothing they could do for me, except tell me to not accept the package when it came to my door. I'd still be charged the $11. And the fact is, most delivery guys/gals don't wait for you to answer the door, they leave your package(s) on your doorstep and speed off. Plus that isn't cancelling my order. The E-Mail I recieved sites the company's reason for such quick processing; to get your items to you quicker. and this to them is seen as phenomenal customer service. But is it really customer service at all if the company is willing to infringe upon a right set aside by the FTC?
I replied to the E-Mail, making the customer service representative aware of the right and the fact that I do a lot of online shopping and know my rights as a consumer. The next step, if I do not hear from the company via E-mail tonight will be calling the customer service hotline again and speaking with a supervisor tomorrow. And on Monday, as I saved the E-Mails and can prove when I ordered the items and when I made first contact with the company to cancel my order, I will be going to the bank to stop the payment or see if there is anything I can do to have the money placed back into my account.
So, today (Sunday July 17th 2011) I called Victoria's Secret's customer service hotline again. I first asked to speak with a supervisor and the representative asked me my name, confirmed my address and asked me what my issue was...in most call centers reps. need to know what the issue is, before they hand you off to a supervisor. I asked the rep. what VS's take on the Federal Trade Commision's (FTC) "cooling off rule" was. For those unfamiliar with the rule, it basically states that a consumer has the right to cancel their online or catalog order within 3 business days. I explained the right to the rep. and she seemed a bit flustered. She asked to put me on hold while she asked a supervisor what to do and I'm fine with being on hold for a short amount of time. When she came back she seemed more flustered and explained to me why they process orders so quickly and what the process was. And then she told me that VS would credit the $11.65 in shipping charges back to my account.
Keep in mind...this was not next day delivery, this was not same day or even 3 day delivery. This was 5-8 day delivery. Had it been same day, next day or any type of express delivery I would not have the same right. This was standard delivery. I don't do express delivery and on every website, which I have previously ordered from, I have always received an E-mail explaining the cancellation procedure and on other sites the window of time is 3-5 business days for a cancellation. Other sites also wait to process the payment; they don't remove the funds from your account/credit card until your order has shipped. VS took the funds from my account BEFORE the items were shipped.
With anyone out there who has had or is having similar problems, don't be afraid to let a company know that you know your rights as a consumer. And if something seems off, don't be afraid to go seek information. Personally I doubt I will be ordering from VS online anytime soon. Most companies, especially online stores do not expect consumers to know their rights and they attempt to take advantage of that in any way they can.
No comments:
Post a Comment