Complaint about supplier

[mainemandean]

Where/how do I complain about one of the suppliers listed by Apnea Board?

I had an experience I feel others should know about. But I am not a regular here (yet), and I don't want to break any rules or customs.

[SarcasticDave94]

Where/how do I complain about one of the suppliers listed by Apnea Board?

I had an experience I feel others should know about. But I am not a regular here (yet), and I don't want to break any rules or customs.

Me? I would contact company X directly via phone, email, in-person, whichever works best for you. Try to work out the issue, IMO try to be calm, level-headed, etc. and come to a mutual resolution. Failing that, you can post, maybe on their website or elsewhere, a negative consumer experience. Filing a complaint with the Better Business Bureau may make you feel better, but I don't know if it helps resolve anything. There's gotta be more steps/directions you may consider, but that's what I got as of now.

PS You can also convey what negative experience you're dealing with so AB members can be aware of it. Of course, that doesn't mean any here can change or assist in making problem better, but we'd be aware of it and maybe can offer better resolution steps.

[Fats Drywaller]

I agree with Dave that at first it would be best to work it out privately between vendor & customer, because sometimes there are misunderstandings (for instance, the post the other day about not being able to return a used mask, which is actually normal).

However, as with that incident, I also think there's nothing wrong with posting about it and asking for opinions. Maybe it is a situation where one party or the other is obviously in the right, but <shrug> who knows without hearing about it. If the situation turns out to be no big deal, then it shouldn't harm the reputation of the company.

A silly anecdote: One time when I was young (and innocent and carefree, if not gay), I embarrassed myself badly by filing a complaint with the local BBB about an outfit that sold theft insurance to bicycle owners. My bike was stolen (in retrospect it was partly my fault for not locking it securely enough), I filed a claim, and waited ... and eventually got impatient, said "This is a bogus company", and complained to the BBB, which was totally unwarranted. I had failed to read the fine print, and my claim was actually being processed but it would take 45 days or something like that to get to a payout. So ya always gotta read the fine print, to guard against overreacting.

[OpalRose]

You should make your complaint to the supplier that you were dealing with.  Check their web site.  They have an 800#, complaint department or customer service.  

Although, we would like to hear your complaint/problem.  Mabye others have experienced the same and can advise.

Did you read this “Warning” at top of the supplier listings?

Warning:  This is a list of links to traditional Durable Medical Equipment suppliers (DMEs) who maintain their own online store. They have not been reviewed or rated by Apnea Board.  Please do your own research and use your own judgement prior to making any purchase.  Apnea Board receives no remuneration from any supplier listed here.  The order in which they are listed has no significance.   Alternatively, some members have purchased equipment via non-traditional venues such as Amazon, eBay, craigslist, garage sales & want ads etc. with varying levels of risk and success.

[mesenteria]

I add my opinion that it is always best to appeal to the sensibilities of the offending party before going past someone or over their head.  But, their policies might leave them little wiggle room, and that would mean you will have little recourse, especially an hourly paid employee/spokesperson.  If what they use as a policy is also publicly stated or otherwise available, they are within their rights to refuse to help you.

You could ask to see the owner of the business to appeal your case if the front desk/manager can't/won't help.

You could sue in small claims court.  This is almost never worth the effort and stress.  Almost.  My wife took the trouble to sue a dog owner whose loose dog mauled our leashed dog during a walk in the woods some 16 years ago.  She won.  If nothing else, she got her self-respect back up to snuff.

You could go to a governing body, chamber of commerce, government, or get a lawyer to help.  Only the latter is likely to produce results within 30 days, but there are no guarantees they'll be in your favour.

The hard part is keeping a good grip on your affront or perceived injury.  It tends to make a person loud, emotional, circular of argument, and other annoyances that will keep the tide against you...so do keep your emotions well controlled.

[mainemandean]

I think I will just say this for now, because in some ways the supplier seemed very decent, and I do think the situation will probably be resolved just fine:

This company listed the machine I was looking for, and their website showed that there were three of them in stock. So I bought one. I had PayPal send the money. The money was received.

Then a few hours later, I got an email saying that they did not have any of those in stock. Further email traffic revealed that they thought it unlikely they would get any more. I told them that rather than fulfilling the order if/when they got one, I wanted to cancel the order. I have received no cancelation-confirmation email, only an email comment that the person on the other end would inform the billing dept.

As of now, my credit card has not been credited back. It will hopefully happen on Monday. But in my opinion, that money should have been credited back to me immediately. It was their error. There is a big difference between three and zero. As of now, my credit card balance reflects the cost of both the machine I am not buying, and then one I am; IE, about double the amount.

To my mind, they were unprofessional in not keeping their website up to date, and in not giving me a quick refund. I wasted a lot of time on them, and it would take about fifteen seconds for them to credit me back.

So I would just advise that if something is listed online, you might want to call and verify if something is actually in stock. Save yourself some hassle.

I will update you folks once I see how quickly I get the money back.

[Sleeprider]

Where/how do I complain about one of the suppliers listed by Apnea Board?

I had an experience I feel others should know about. But I am not a regular here (yet), and I don't want to break any rules or customs.

I assume this is in regard to the open box System One from Supplier #2.  they have always been responsive to complaints, and I have even seen them replace machines shipped overseas...twice to the same person.  I'm sure they will take care of you. What was the problem?

Edit, I see we posted at the same time. Supplier #2 is totally reliable, and you can be certain to get full credit for your cancelled purchase.

[KSMatthew]

As far as refunds go on credit cards (I do not know how PayPal works internally), it isn't uncommon for 5 or more business days to go by before it shows up on your account. Most of that is the banking system itself, not the vendor. Banks are very quick to mark a debit, not so quick to mark a deposit. There are good reasons for this. Give it a few more days, then call back if you don't see it. The vendor's account may very well show they have applied your refund.

[Fats Drywaller]

What KSMatthew says is true. However, Paypal is quick to acknowledge the refund and might be quick to credit the bank account (I assume it varies). FWIW, the other day I had a similar incident with a different seller, Paypal acknowledged the refund by e-mail immediately, and the payment was registered in my bank account soon after that. That possible normal delay is mentioned in the mail message.

Edited to add: I just looked at the times in the e-mail msg and the bank transaction, and it was instantaneous, basically.

Edited again to add: That was with a debit card, not credit. YMMV?

[mainemandean]

I hear you, KS. Thanks.

Really, I was mainly irritated about the wasted time because an un-updated website. I am pretty sure they will refund the money; but I do want it soon.

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Fats, PayPal shows no credit yet either.