I recently made an order from a bullion dealer online It was my first attempt at ordering from their store and I made a mistake due to being unfamiliar with the system they were using. I immediately reordered and in comments section of the order I politely requested that the previous order be cancelled. I assumed that they would actually read it. Anyway a day later I receive two emails, one saying that the money had been received for one order and the other saying it had not (for the order I tried to cancel) Again I send out an email straight away saying that I had already requested it be cancelled. I tried numerous times contacting them by phone and even left messages. I've now received an email stating that I pay a 95 dollar cancellation fee and no shipment details for the order I made and paid for. I presume they won't ship my order until I pay their hefty cancellation fee. Whilst it was my mistake, I don't believe this is anyway to treat a first time customer. I also don't believe the cancellation fee is fitting, as I tried to cancel immediately and was clearly not trying to take advantage of them in anyway. So newbies be warned, online shopping is dangerous. It seems customer service and being fair are a thing of the past. I am still yet to receive a phone call from them, ha. At the end of the day it's their loss as I planned on making considerably orders with them if I was happy with the first purchase. Just thought I would share my experience as a warning to others, some of these online dealers are ruthless and they live by the fine print.
I am probably being unfair to the majority of online dealers which I'm sure are very professional. However just be cautious
First of all, Where are you located? Most business is still in holiday break...so that would be the reason for lack of swiftness in your query. Secondly, if the dealer lose out because of you cancelling an order...you do have an obligation to cover the difference (due to spot movement or restocking costs). I believe Perth Mint, Ainslie and Perth Bullion has this clause. Thirdly, your story lack of facts and numbers, which could be the game changer in both of your order.
Bloomst I was careful to check their website to make sure they were not in holiday mode. The answering machine message also failed to mention this if it were the case. The order was only a couple of kilo. I wanted to first see how this order went down before doing anything considerably and I'm glad I did. I don't see how they could lose out as I literally cancelled immediately.
Ive never heard of an order cancellation fee that large? Is it on the website somewhere? Even if it is I would check the legality of it, Consumer laws give you the right to return anything so long as you have the receipt. simply send it back saying it's not what you thought it was, And even if so the order you have paid for is a separate one they are not able to withhold it from you until another order is paid, Or go to the bank and say it's an internet scam and challenge it.. $90- odd bucks is ridiculous for no effort on their part, Sounds like price gouging, they would have that silver in the safe anyway I always find semi aggressive but well worded letters do wonders, With social media the way it is what Net based company wants the headache over an ill gotten $90 I would write them a letter saying you will name and shame them here, Failing all that Molotovs will get your point across.. =)
Bloomst how would they recover this cancellation fee in the case that they didn't have my order for ransom? It would just be a case of, "oh damn, he cancelled." So you can't honestly tell me that dealers lose out when people cancel. If that were the case I could destroy any dealer I like by simply creating 100 fake emails and lodging 100 orders and just let them expire. This dealer only treating me this way because they have my silver and know I will pay the fee in order to receive the shipment which is of much higher value. I'm telling you these fee's are verging on a scam.
Its in the t&c of most online dealers. Live and learn or maybe try small claims tribunal. Look before you leap.
Yes I definitely learnt, I think doing business this way will be to their detriment though If anything I was expecting an apology email from them for their lack of contact and failing to return calls. Instead i get smacked in the face with a giant salami shaped fee, outrageous.
$95 cancellation fee on a couple kg? that's ridiculous provided there is nothing you have left out of this story.
I guess it's to deter buyer's remorse if spot prices change suddenly (goes down). Apmex has a cancellation fee of 35 USD, and other major bullion dealers have different amounts. I say look at the Terms and Conditions before purchasing next time.
Sorry to hear of your experience but in this modern age of electronic order processing, automation takes over. Rather than assume a note attached to your second order would cancel your first order, did you actually cancel your order ? Does your supplier provide written terms & conditions including how to cancel an order ? If so, your headline "scam" could get you into trouble if your supplier had a Philadelphia lawyer !
I would be very surprised if a company enforces a cancellation fee on a new customer, particularly if they made another order and paid for it. I would suggest speaking to the company in person before jumping to conclusions. They could all be on holiday and the emails you've received are automated.
I once ordered 10 libertad kilocoins, and some hours after my order, the item vanished from the dealers site. I got concerned, and I sent an email asking if it was sure that he could deliver them (I didn't tell him, but otherwise I would have ordered the Libertads at another dealer that had them in stock then) He told me that I coincidently ordered the rest of his stock, so no problem to deliver them, and since he was out of stock after my order, he removed the item. Guess what: 2 weeks later he sent me an email that he could only deliver 8; and he offered me some alternative kilocoins. I wasn't happy with this, and he also didnt offer me to lower my order to 8, but I agreed anyway, but decided then to never order again from him anymore. It was the dealer I bought most of my silver from. The fact is that he lied to me about that all in stock, just to not give me a chance to cancel the order and order elsewhere. I won't forget it. I had some other bad experiences with him too, for ex one of my first (and big) orders he sent me a mail afterwards that he was charged costs by the bank, and that I should pay this. I contacted my bank and they said they didnt charge anything. It turned out HIS own bank that charged him. I emailed back that it would be ridiculous that I pay something his own bank is responsible for, not mine. I never got an answer on this anymore, but the fact is again that he tried. And last, I received once a maple leaf monsterbox from him, packaged very badly, a big box filled with a whole bunch small styrofoam pieces. These of course don't hold a 15 kilo lump metal on its place, and the shipping company arrived with a ruined box, styrofoam everywhere escaping. And it's not some small dealer, but one of the biggest, if not the biggest, in Netherland, TSM. Those that are familiar with that region, know who I mean.
Heh. I've not had a problem with TSM before, but I confess I don't think I'd give them three chances to mess up my orders before I went elsewhere. Alleen een ezel stoot zijn kop twee keer aan de zelfde steen, nee? JB3
Why not name and shame? it's the only way we keep the b'tards honest I reckon. Remember, we are the buyers and we are in control at these prices...the shoe is on the other foot right now
What about when things go the other way? I completed an online order yesterday, went to checkout and couldn't. I rang the dealer who applogised, but with the holiday the bars had all sold and the website hadn't updated correctly. That's all good, i didn't expect any $90 voucher by way of compensation , we had a chat about different things, he did me a deal on some other silver, i paid him, and all was good with the world. I'd change dealers. One thing i always do (often with varying levels of success and understanding) is if I recieve poor service, I ring them and tell them. It doesn't happen all the time, but on occasion they seem genuinely unaware and want to make things right.
If this would me I would phone first and have a polite conversation about the extra charges. If this didn't go anywhere would inform them verbally I didn't intend to pay the invoice. I'd also ask them to show me the contract I'd signed saying I was liable for the costs (ink and paper version with a date). I believe clicking a box on a web site saying "I agree to T&C" is not legally binding - well at least the legal department at the place I work say its not. Chances are the small amount of money wouldn't be worth the dealers time and at worst they would black list me. However who cares, doubt I would never buy from such an unreasonable dealer again. I'd also name and shame on multiple on-line bullion forums.
