DDD just drained my bank account!
 

I placed a big order a few days ago (everything that comes out between now and mid December that I want).

Today, they decided to charge me for all of it, completely draining my account.

Every time I've ordered from them in the past, they haven't charged me until it shipped.

Now I've got bills I can't pay because they money isn't in the account, and if it's not there by tomorrow, I'm screwed.

Thanks to them, I've done all my overdraft protection for the next three months as well.

I think I'm done with them.

its proably because you placed such a big order. You can always apply for a loan if you have good credit... :lol: Do you have a significant other? What does he/she say?

Wow! I didnt' know that they charged before shipping. Was there fine print stating that they were going to do that (similar to Overstock's policy)?

Time to sell that plasma...or other bodily fluid! :p

Are you sure it wasn't just a temp charge? They will place a temp charge for the entire order when it is placed to make sure the funds are available, but won't actually charge you until the dvds ship. Give them a call and see what the situation is. You can always cancel and place smaller orders as the dvds are released.

From DDD website....

still :lol: about it, sorry dog

I could just picture it - "Honey, I bought a s*** load of dvds and now we have no money. Would you mind if I pimped you out for a while?" ;)

Yeah, and film it while you're at it...press your own DVDs, and reap untold fortunes in the Amateur Porn market!

Sounds to me like you used a debit card and not a credit card.

Big difference!

A debit card will allow them to take the money from your account, NOW! With a credit card they can only increase a balance against a credit line and send you a bill.

Best of luck to you!

Maybe you shouldn't be ordering so many DVDs when you're apparently that close to being broke.

WHAT!?!? No way..your wrong. A debit card works just like a credit card. Most likely when they ran the authorization for the order the bank reduced his available balance by that amount. It will however drop off in a day or two and he'll have the entire balance available again.

I use my debit card all the time at DDD...always get charged when it actually ships.

credit card rules
 

When a merchant enters a credit card agreement with a credit card processor they have to sign a contract. One of the 'rules' is that you cannot charge a customer until the day you ship the merchandise.
HOWEVER, they can authorize the transaction for the full amount and you will not have that $$$ available any more. They have not charged you for it, but you cannot access it....

Call them, tell them you need to cancel and they will release the authorization. You should have the $$$ available in your bank or credit card within 2-4 days after they process it

I suggest you read your debit card agreement.

"Charging" when shipped is not the same thing as how the money is moved. With a credit card only your outstanding balance is increased. With a debit card the money is subtracted from the account it debits from. The "when" of the issue is not relevant.

. . . but with considerably less protection against fraud if something should happen. Using a debit car online is a colossaly bad idea. Granted, there is some protection against fraud - but not nearly the package that you would enjoy if you had a real credit card.

No, debit cards do not work just like credit cards. As others have mentioned, I suggest you go back an re-read your agreement.

Among other things, you have significantly less fraud protection with debit cards. I NEVER use a debit card online or for any sort of purchase where I'm not there live to sign a receipt.

I think alot of people are confused about Debit cards. When they're used online such as at DDD they are charged like a credit card. No pin number is entered.

So when you buy a DVD for say $15.00 at DDD they verify the card by authorizing it for $15.00. This will decrease the "available" balance for withdrawl on your checking account for 1 or 2 days. However your actual balance will NOT be changed. When the DVD actually ships DDD they will charge the card decreasing both the available and actual balance.

Now onto the fraud stuff and how people think debit cards are unsafe. NOT TRUE ANYMORE. It used to be that way but not now. Since 99% of all debit cards are either Mastercard or Visa branded they are covered by MC/Visa fraud protection. So if a thief steals your card and charges $100 all you have to do is notify the bank they will credit you back the $100 within a couple days....just like a real credit card. Even better most of the bigger banks now give you an instant credit to your account after you make a dispute...making a debit card even better.

Finally one more thing. I work with MC/Visa, AMEX, and Discover cards everyday. There is no such clause in a merchants contract saying they can't charge a credit card before an item ships. They can charge you whenever they want. It's just that it's usually considered better business policy to charge when it ships. That's why places like Amazon, and DDD do it that way.

I was ready to post to correct all the debit card misinformation in this thread, but thankfully Mr. LostHiWay got it all exactly right.

I work on the issuer side of debt cards and I cringe when I see all the misunderstandings there are about this product. I guess it's the banking industry's fault for not doing a better job educating consumers. Good thing we have people here who can help clear things up.

Way to go LostHiWay! :thumbsup:

The main difference with a debit card is that during the up to 5 business days from notifying the bank about a fraud, reservoirdog is eating ramen, incurring late fees, and bouncing checks. Had he used a credit card, he would still have some money to live on.

Imagine that a thief acquired his debit card number. His bank account could be drained without him even making a purchase that month! Sure the money is eventually returned, but waiting for that credit sure sucks.

Not really equal protection in my eyes but is getting better. It used to be up to 10 business days for a credit.

From Visa

Yes, but the protection for a Visa or MC check-card is exactly the same as for a CC. It says so right on their websites.

You can always setup another checking account just for online orders. There are quite a few banks that offer free checking. Some of them even let you transfer funds between accounts no charge.

Even though you may be equally protected against fraud (and actual loss) with either a debit card or credit card, I'd still rather have my CC credit limit temporarily reduced because of fraudulant activity than have my bank account wiped out - even for a day or two - because of fraud. If a few checks (like rent or credit card payment perhaps) bounce, i won't be fun.

Same here. I'd rather lose my CC credit limit for a few days rather than lose my own money. On top of that, if you and your bank get into a fight over the debit card losses, things could get ugly very quickly.

Wow. I sure learned a lot today. :)

and I think if over 4lbs it cannot go Priority either??

That makes no sense! I sent a 15 pound package Priority.

up to 70lbs for Priority