BestBuy.com - is this legal?
11-05-01, 09:00 AM
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BestBuy.com - is this legal?
I recently ordered a couple of DVDs from bestbuy.com and apparently they had a pricing error since the total came out to be about 4 bucks. I printed the receipt, after a couple of days I saw the charge in my CC statement and I got a shipping notice. Then, maybe a week later they charge my CC for like 45 bucks more, without sending me any e-mails or anything. I sent an e-mail to them and they replied back saying their 'legal' pages say they can adjust the price, even after I've checked out!
Now, my question is, is this even legal? Can they add any charges they wish after I've checked out and printed the receipt,
or should I just dispute the second charge with my CC company?
What pisses me off most is the fact that they did not even tell me they had charged 45 bucks more, they just silently put that on my CC. Also, the actual price of these DVDs was 35 dollars, so on top of everything they charged me 10 bucks more they should have.
Marko
Now, my question is, is this even legal? Can they add any charges they wish after I've checked out and printed the receipt,
or should I just dispute the second charge with my CC company?
What pisses me off most is the fact that they did not even tell me they had charged 45 bucks more, they just silently put that on my CC. Also, the actual price of these DVDs was 35 dollars, so on top of everything they charged me 10 bucks more they should have.
Marko
11-05-01, 10:14 AM
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This is definitely illegitimate. I'd dispute the second charge. You'll get your money back and they can't do nothing.
They can reserve the right to "fix" any pricing errors, but they have to give you the opportunity to cancel your order at the time you are being notified about the new higher price.
The moment they ship your stuff this right expires. You have bought the item at the stated price. This is a legal contract. They can't force you to return the items and they absolutely can't charge you more without any warning.
No retailer can be expected to honor obvious mispricings. But if they don't get aware of it on time and ship your order, they have to live with it. Dispute the charge.
They can reserve the right to "fix" any pricing errors, but they have to give you the opportunity to cancel your order at the time you are being notified about the new higher price.
The moment they ship your stuff this right expires. You have bought the item at the stated price. This is a legal contract. They can't force you to return the items and they absolutely can't charge you more without any warning.
No retailer can be expected to honor obvious mispricings. But if they don't get aware of it on time and ship your order, they have to live with it. Dispute the charge.
11-05-01, 11:00 AM
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Exactly what Mr. Myers said. This happened to me some time ago (for something completely different)...I got all sorts of "extra charges" on something I ordered. No big deal? Well, when the extra charges amounted to $589, it was a big deal. I disputed the charge with my CC company (after the vendor basically told me to get lost), and I got the ENTIRE charge removed (over $1,000). Well, the best part was I already got what I ordered! I got a letter from the company asking me to return it, but you can guess how fast that letter went in the trash. I still laugh at that one.
11-05-01, 11:04 AM
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If this is illegal, why would a big chain like Best Buy do something like that and endanger their reputation? Do they think (or know) that most people are so stupid that they don't dispute these 'extra' charges?
Marko
Marko
11-05-01, 12:13 PM
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Originally posted by mhantula
If this is illegal, why would a big chain like Best Buy do something like that and endanger their reputation? Do they think (or know) that most people are so stupid that they don't dispute these 'extra' charges?
Marko
If this is illegal, why would a big chain like Best Buy do something like that and endanger their reputation? Do they think (or know) that most people are so stupid that they don't dispute these 'extra' charges?
Marko
Most people don't. Heck, I have to pester my girlfriend and some members of my family to even READ their CC statements. They just look at the total and write a check. I've done some reading on this, and many people don't bother disputing the charge because they either think it will be a huge hassle (it isn't, as long as you have the proper documentation and can write a letter that makes sense), or they will "feel stupid" complaining. As for Best Buy, I doubt the change was done by an actual person; it was probably a computer error. But beyond that, it is still dishonest, and any half-decent CC company will wipe the charge.
11-05-01, 02:46 PM
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Lol. It sounds like they had this error with more than one order and while auditing their accounts they caught it and corrected it.
Whoever it was needs to check with their lawyers, because it was definately illegal.
This sounds familiar. Remember the $50 off $50 deal at buy.com? They had the gall to send out emails asking for you to either:
1. Return the item.
2. Confirm your approval so they could bill you the $50 price difference.
Like anyone actually responded to that.
Whoever it was needs to check with their lawyers, because it was definately illegal.
This sounds familiar. Remember the $50 off $50 deal at buy.com? They had the gall to send out emails asking for you to either:
1. Return the item.
2. Confirm your approval so they could bill you the $50 price difference.
Like anyone actually responded to that.
11-05-01, 04:31 PM
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DVD Talk Hero
Well, Bestbuy.com isn't the only one that does this. Staples.com put unauthorized charges on my CC bill me on the Visor Deluxe deal. No matter how much I tried, they refused to give them to me for the agreed upon price ($60). In fact, they even charged me $260 when it was selling on their site for $150. They did agree to fix the price to $150 after a lot of hassle. They keep telling me they did nothing illegal, and all that sh!t. Since I got someone else to pay for it, I let it slide, but if the money came out of my pocket, I'd refute the charges with my CC (I've done this once with Citibank and it took me less than 5 minutes)
