pietrop

After making me wait 5 weeks before they would consider my order lost, they tell me that their policy is NOT to refund OR replace lost orders shipped via the US Postal Service. Then they offer to replace the shipment -- as a special favor to me! -- if I will pay the shipping. Well, I'm sorry, but 5 weeks is too long to wait for an order, and then to suggest that replacement is a FAVOR, and to ask me to pay for reshipment .... If USPS Media Mail service is as bad as they imply, they should not use it in the first place.

bigjim25

They warn you on their site. Thankfully I upgraded to priority mail. I had one lost also out of about 9 orders from them. They replaced right away with no problem.

pietrop

They do NOT say that they will not replace orders, or that the waiting period is five weeks. It is just plain bad business to treat paying customers this way. I repeat: If the service is that bad, it should not be offered in the first place.

dvde

Actually it does on their site. It states "Not Insured", plain as day on the shipping page. Why don't you upgrade to UPS, it's insured.

pietrop

"Not insured" is NOT the same as "will not replace". It's a little late now to suggest alternatives. Thanks for being so helpfu.

Deke Rivers

you have the option of using Proiority and they even warn you ahead of time they will not replace anything lost media mail....so I woudlnt be slamming them after you were warned..they continue to be one of the best e-tailers out there..I use media mail all the time form them and havent had anything lost yet but if i do I certainly wouldnt blame them..

Easy

They are certainly not "one of the best" if they have a policy this stupid. I am no lawyer but as far as I am concerned the item is theirs until I take possession of it. If it gets lost in transit it is their problem... not mine. I have no way of knowing for sure that they even shipped it. I was considering using them for a few orders but I will be sure to avoid them now. Thanks for the warning pietrop.
Oh, an buy the way bigjim25, priority mail is not insured either. According to their site:
"USPS Priority Mail - Package NOT Insured. Delivery within an average of 2 - 4 business after order is shipped (Mon - Sat). Instances of "Lost" Shipments are reviewed on a per case basis and may require a four week waiting period for processing delays."
Reviewed on a per case basis? I guess if their CSR has a bad day you're just screwed. Either that or they think pietrop is trying to rip them off so he/she is getting a hard time. Honestly, I can't think of one other reputable etailer who won't promptly replace lost shipments - regardless of shipping method. If you can think of any others, name them. It would be a good list of merchants to avoid.

Cornfed

So who are some of the best? Deepdiscountdvd seems to be pretty popular, I've used them in the past but have received pre-orders up to 2 weeks after the release date. DDD also hurts me with the tax.

Josh-da-man

Deepdiscountdvd has been very good to me. Great prices, free shipping. They're about the only online DVD store I've been using for quite a while.

Josh-da-man

I've never used DVDEmpire before. Do they offer the option of insuring your orders at a fee? Seems like a strange policy. Most places seem to replace lost orders without insurance because A) it keeps the customer happy, and B) insurance from USPS is rather costly and it's probably cheaper to replace the odd lost package at their cost than it would be to buy insurance for everything.

dp20957

I placed 2 large pre-orders with DVDEmpire, so I hope I don't have a problem.
Deepdiscountdvd also ships by media mail. When, after 3 weeks, I didn't receive my copy of Fawlty Towers they sent a replacement with no problem. Over 2 months later I received the original package. I emailed them to send me a postage paid label so I could send the duplicate back (hey, I'm honest). They did.

I only order from Empire if they are cheaper. Otherwise I use DeepDiscount. If I should have a problem with Empire, the best thing to do is contact your chargecard company. Most major chargecards have some type of protection for lost/stolen purchases. I had to do this with DVDWAVE and CDUniverse and was given credit each time.

Note: Every site should have a pre-order manager as great as Empire.

Phibes

Please note DVD Empire and DVD Express are two different animals . As far as I'm aware Empire is in solid business shape. DVDExpress is another story completely.

Funk

I've never had one problem (other than the Leon screwup by CTHV that wasn't their fault) when dealing with DVD Empire. I don't order much over the 'net any more, but when I do, it's usually through them.

stevevt

I spun off the DVD Express posts from this thread, where they clearly didn't belong, into a new thread called "Watch out for DVD Express!" .

I'm not sure if this was intentional or not, but I'd ask that members keep to the topic at hand in situations where 2 stores might be easily confused (i.e., not bring up problems with Store Y in a thread dedicated to Store X).

-stevevt

Groucho

It's all about reading the policies before ordering. I noted their policy on Media Mail, and I'll pay the extra bucks for an insured form of shipping. It's worth it for Empire's awesome pre-order manager.

jonathan.e

I had exactly the same problem with the Universal Monsters misprice waaay back. A whole bunch of international people never got their sets (because IMO DVDEmpire never shipped them) and when I contacted them they gave me the BS line about as a "special one off favour" they would re-ship but I had to pay the shipping again. I bit the bullet and did so but I never ordered from them again as they are not an honest etailer in my opinion. Too many International people did not get their sets - Coincidence? I don’t think so. BTW, I had to wait 3 months before they’d even consider replacing the order!!!

I’d rather deal with good etailers like DeepDiscount.

mjgardenia

I was not aware of the no replacement for lost items policy - don't the credit card companies protect consumers on this type of situation?

I never had a problem with DVD Empire using Media Mail so far. Something to consider, however, is that DVD Empire allows one to add onto or delete DVDs on an open order - I received 10 titles last week and kept on adding to the list throughout the prior month whenever a new pre-order was announced and each add-on only cost an additional 35 cents media mail shipping (how many times does one place an order with a vendor then another a week later and have to incure duplicate shipping costs?).

Deke Rivers

Deep Diso**** uses Media mail too for the free shipping

Deke Rivers

Then pay the extra buck for better shipping ..they give you a choice with a disclaimer then you take that choice and get mad when something they warn you aout actually happens? wow..maybe you are best off going to a brick and mortar

rdodolak

Below is from their shipping disclaimer from checkout. Notice that it doesn't state anything about not replacing lost or nondelivered packages. Nor does it state that they are not insured.


Shipping Method - Disclaimer

A notice regarding the selection of Media Mail as method of shipping:

We at DVD Empire continue our efforts to improve the shopping experience of our customers by offering Media Mail as a shipping option for domestic orders. Many of our customers have requested this method due to it’s exceptionally low cost. While we appreciate our customers desire to save money, we do offer a few considerations regarding the selection of this shipping method:

Media Mail is a less efficient method of shipping than all other methods available on our site.
While we are in the process of adding delivery confirmation to our Priority Mail Service, and such confirmation is already available with our FedEx services, Media Mail does not offer Delivery or Signature confirmation.
We have recently surveyed our customers who have selected the Media Mail shipping method and have found that roughly 7% of all orders have taken longer than 14 days.
Geographic proximity to our shipping location in Pennsylvania does have an effect on delivery time, and should be considered when placing orders with Media Mail.

With these things mentioned, we hope you make and understand your selection of Media Mail as your shipping method of choice, and wish you a pleasant experience with DVD Empire.


However, below is from their shipping definitions page which does state the following:


Definition of Shipping Methods

USPS Media Mail - Package NOT Insured. Delivery within an average of 6 - 15 business days after order is shipped (Mon - Sat) for the Continental United States. Other states delivery times may vary. Media Mail includes no provision for tracking or insurance and has proven to be a less reliable shipping method than USPS Priority Mail. Instances of "Lost" Shipments are reviewed on a per case basis and may require a four week waiting period for processing delays.

Definition of Shipping Terms

Package NOT Insured - If the package is lost, damaged, or vandalized in shipment DVD Empire can not be held liable for the merchandise or cost of shipment.


In my opinion it would help if DVDEmpire would add this statement to the shipping disclaimer section. As I must admit, I didn't see this at first either.

Easy

The extra buck?
From the site:
USPS Media Mail $0.95 + $0.35 per item.
UPS Ground (cheapest insured) $4.00 + $.95 per item.
You'll have to explain your math yourself... I sure can't.
B&M? No. Thanks for your suggestion but I think I'll stick with Deep Discount where the prices are cheaper, the shipping is free and they replace lost shipments.

Deke Rivers

uuuuhhh...the etra buck would be for priority mail which is trackable and which dvdempire reccomends..ups is anot a mail company..nothing wrong with my math..and I use Deep Discount as well ..they are both good e-tailers

Josh-da-man

Delivery Confirmation is available for media mail.

Easy

Wow. Is this false information really presented at checkout? Anyone who cares to check with the Post Office can easily confirm that delivery confirmation IS available for media mail. I use it all the time. Cost - $.50 for packages sent media mail.

yiinhc

From DVDEmpire:
Definition of Shipping Methods:
USPS Media Mail - Package NOT Insured. Delivery within an average of 6 - 15 business days after order is shipped (Mon - Sat) for the Continental United States. Other states delivery times may vary. ... Instances of "Lost" Shipments are reviewed on a per case basis and may require a four week waiting period for processing delays.

USPS Priority Mail - Package NOT Insured. Delivery within an average of 2 - 4 business after order is shipped (Mon - Sat). Instances of "Lost" Shipments are reviewed on a per case basis and may require a four week waiting period for processing delays.

Definition of Shipping Terms:
Package NOT Insured - If the package is lost, damaged, or vandalized in shipment DVD Empire can not be held liable for the merchandise or cost of shipment.

DVDEmpire says 'Media Mail includes no provision for tracking or insurance and has proven to be a less reliable shipping method than USPS Priority Mail', but I don't see how the extra buck would give you more protection.