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Topic: Check online companies with BBB before ordering

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Vitallia avatar
Subject: Check online companies with BBB before ordering
Date Posted: 4/7/2010 12:43 PM ET
Member Since: 8/24/2008
Posts: 1,362
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I just thought I would let the community learn from my very stupid mistake.  I recently bought seeds from an online company without doing my homework in an attempt to save money.  I was tempted by their prices, their selection (I found seeds there I couldn't find anywhere else), and their seeming "hometown" feeling.  I was terribly wrong.  So far, it has been two months and I am still without my garden seeds.  It is spring, and I don't have them to plant with, so I have been forced to go to the local hardware store and pay twice what I would have paid had I only ordered through a reputable company back in February.  Learn from my mistake, if you are going to try and save money by ordering something online, check them out through the Better Business Bureau http://www.bbb.org/us/, which is a free service.  Had I only done this before foolishly placing my order (I thought I was safe since I was ordering through a Paypal verified vendor), I would have discovered that this company has an "F" rating for failure to mail out merchendise and has over 25 complaints filed against them through the BBB.    I've tried to contact the company, and have delivered an ultimatum...if they do not send me an e-mail with a tracking number for my shipment by Friday, I am going to file a dispute with Paypal to get my money back (nearly $40, sicne one of the seeds I ordered I could only find here so I ordered quite a bit of it), a complaint with the BBB, and an official complaint to the Federal Trade Commission who oversees mail order companies.  They have tried to scam the wrong person out of her hard earned money, and I plan to see that it won't happen again.  So learn from my mistake, and check out companies before you order from them...if they're not listed with the BBB...be cautious.  I'll keep you updated on what happens. 

ruthy avatar
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Date Posted: 6/26/2010 4:24 PM ET
Member Since: 12/9/2007
Posts: 9,601
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Sorry this happened to you.  Thanks for the info and the tip.

Ruth