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Need legal advice on refund policy for US based company

by Lazar023
13 replies
When I order something I'm happy when I receive it.

However,once I ran onto something what was not what I was promised.I told them so (they said that they'll refund me) and asked for refund,but - to my surprise - then our communication stops!
They have website,they have phone number (I called them ofcourse,only to hear voice machine each time "Leave a message and we'll get back to you soon"),they have some address (fake one,I guess;I think it's even different address on their website and on receipt from Paypal,but I can't remember that for sure),but they are somewhere in USA.

Anyway.
Since the payment was with Paypal I wrote after few days to Paypal and thing was solved (thanks Paypal).

Now...that got me wary.


And I want to ask you this.
If sometimes happens to be the same situation,where some company is promising refund before you make purchase,and after that they stop all the communication with you/ignore you,to whom I can refer to/report such thing (and get my money back)?If payment was not with Paypal,but from my bank account?

I am not from US (I'm from Europe),I don't have anybody there to do legal things in my name,so just to know with whom I can get it touch about that subject.

If it's about review I think I could maybe contact BBB.
But I'm not so interested in review,just to make sure that nobody tricks me (like that one case) and to make sure I receive my money back if not satisfied with what I ordered.


EDIT:
This can happen to anybody.
So all the answers and suggestions are appreciated (they'll benefit all of us).
#advice #based #company #legal #policy #refund
  • Profile picture of the author PPG19
    If you aren't using PayPal but your c.c. you can call your bank, explain the situation and request a chargeback or reversal which is a form of customer protection and allows you to file a complaint regarding the fraudulent transaction. Once you file a dispute, the issuing bank makes an investigation.

    In your specific case you won't have any problems in getting your money back. "Item not received" is one of the most commons reason for chargebacks.
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    • Profile picture of the author Lazar023
      Thanks for the answers guys.

      Originally Posted by PPG19 View Post

      If you aren't using PayPal but your c.c. you can call your bank, explain the situation and request a chargeback or reversal which is a form of customer protection and allows you to file a complaint regarding the fraudulent transaction.
      Maybe it works like that in USA,but not in the whole world.

      I went to my bank and ask them basically what I have said here:if I pay and don't get what I payed for,can they repeal transaction.To my surprise answer I got is like "After that there's nothing we can do.Once you transfer money from your account to other's account - it's gone for good.And we can't do anything to get it back".

      I was shocked!
      I asked them - so,what should I do then?
      And she told me:go to lawyer,it's job for him,not for us.

      So...any other ideas?
      Any institution in USA to deal with such cases?
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      • Profile picture of the author Sid Hale
        Hi Lazar,

        This sounds like you used a debit card to make payment (essentially a direct debit from your bank account). Debit (bank) cards offer no protection.

        Originally Posted by Lazar023 View Post

        I went to my bank and ask them basically what I have said here:if I pay and don't get what I payed for,can they repeal transaction.To my surprise answer I got is like "After that there's nothing we can do.Once you transfer money from your account to other's account - it's gone for good.And we can't do anything to get it back".
        If you don't pay via Paypal, you need to use a credit card. They have consumer protection that is NOT provided by debit cards.
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        • Profile picture of the author Lazar023
          Originally Posted by Sid Hale View Post

          If you don't pay via Paypal, you need to use a credit card. They have consumer protection that is NOT provided by debit cards.
          That explains what I was told,when I went to the bank.Thanks.

          So,except that (bank protection,for holders of credit cards),there is not much that someone can do,when it comes to situations where some company is ignoring costumers' refunding?Nothing else would work?
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      • Profile picture of the author savidge4
        Originally Posted by Lazar023 View Post

        Thanks for the answers guys.


        Maybe it works like that in USA,but not in the whole world.

        I went to my bank and ask them basically what I have said here:if I pay and don't get what I payed for,can they repeal transaction.To my surprise answer I got is like "After that there's nothing we can do.Once you transfer money from your account to other's account - it's gone for good.And we can't do anything to get it back".

        I was shocked!
        I asked them - so,what should I do then?
        And she told me:go to lawyer,it's job for him,not for us.

        So...any other ideas?
        Any institution in USA to deal with such cases?
        If you are transfering from one account to the other, yes your money is gone.. you want to use a Credit Card.. that is either Visa or MasterCard. In the user agreement for both of these is the process to dispute a charge. I would say just short of never pay directly with a bank transfer.
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  • Profile picture of the author BradVert2013
    The advice PPG19 gave above is all you need to do.

    I'll only add that you should avoid the BBB. They have a very poor reputation in the US (they got caught giving companies higher ratings in exchange for the company buying a membership).They also have no regulatory authority whatsoever.
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  • Profile picture of the author Kay King
    Since the payment was with Paypal I wrote after few days to Paypal and thing was solved
    It was "solved"? Do you mean you got the money back (resolved?)?

    Maybe I'm mis-reading this - but you seem to say you got a bad product...filed a complaint with Paypal and got your money back. Is that correct?

    If so, are you anticipating future problems with the other questions? There is nothing to protect you 100% from your own buying decisions. That's why you choose carefully - investigate the reputation of the person/product - and use Paypal for payment if you can.

    Any institution in USA to deal with such cases?
    I doubt if any country has an "institution" to guarantee refunds for all purchases....who would pay for that?

    In the US you have small claims court, lawyers, credit card chargebacks...etc.

    BBB is nothing in the US these days - it's a pay for play organization that's been largely discredited by the public.
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    Dear April: I don't want any trouble from you.
    January was long, February was iffy, March was a freaking dumpster fire.
    So sit down, be quiet, and don't touch anything.
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    • Profile picture of the author Lazar023
      Originally Posted by Kay King View Post

      It was "solved"? Do you mean you got the money back (resolved?)?
      Yes,resolved (English is not my native language)


      Maybe I'm mis-reading this - but you seem to say you got a bad product...filed a complaint with Paypal and got your money back. Is that correct?

      If so, are you anticipating future problems with the other questions? There is nothing to protect you 100% from your own buying decisions. That's why you choose carefully - investigate the reputation of the person/product - and use Paypal for payment if you can.
      I had case like that - in the past.
      And Paypal helped me then.

      Now,I'm asking for the FUTURE case...IF I find myself in such situation (sometime),that payment is not by Paypal,but by bank transfer...what to do then.
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  • Profile picture of the author Kay King
    There is nothing that will protect you every time - you don't need legal advice as you are anticipating problems.
    Signature
    Saving one dog will not change the world - but the world changes forever for that one dog
    ***
    Dear April: I don't want any trouble from you.
    January was long, February was iffy, March was a freaking dumpster fire.
    So sit down, be quiet, and don't touch anything.
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    • Profile picture of the author Lazar023
      Originally Posted by Kay King View Post

      There is nothing that will protect you every time.
      Ofcourse I know that.

      I'm not "anticipating" problems (like I didn't the time when it happened),I'm just asking what to do if there's such unexpexted situation.

      If you don't have anything else to say about this subject,then thank you for contribution so far.
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  • Profile picture of the author Lazar023
    OK,thing to remember from this situation - pay with Paypal or with credit card (then there's hope to get chargeback),but not debit (prepaid) card (then it's on your own risk).
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    • Profile picture of the author JohnMcCabe
      Originally Posted by Lazar023 View Post

      OK,thing to remember from this situation - pay with Paypal or with credit card (then there's hope to get chargeback),but not debit (prepaid) card (then it's on your own risk).
      Now you have it.

      Less than honest sellers use the silent treatment to discourage people from following through. They hope that you will eventually tire of speaking to their answering machine.

      If the transaction was large enough (thousands or millions of dollars), you could ask for intervention by the trade rep at your nearest US embassy, but for small transactions, you are out of luck unless you use a payment method with protection built in.
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