So here is the deal:
I was in the market for a set of Tein Basic Coilovers and after almost 2 months of online pricing, I thought I got a steal. Hopupracing.com had a set advertised for $845.50 with FREE shipping. Of course as soon as the money was in my account, I placed the order for them. Well, not even 10 minutes later, I get this:
On Tue, 9/15/09, hop up <hopupracing@yahoo.com> wrote:
From: hop up <hopupracing@yahoo.com>
Subject: Hop Up Racing Order 28720
To: mav_man15@yahoo.com
Date: Tuesday, September 15, 2009, 2:18 PM
Hi Tommy,
While checking stock with Tein we informed that the price has gone up on these and the current price is $1007 shipped. We have updated our site. Do you still want these for the current price?
Let us know.
Thanks
Steve
Hop Up Racing
What???? Now mind you, I have a receipt for the original and advertised price of $845.50:
Dear Hop Up- Customer,
Thank you for your recent purchase! We have received your order and are pleased to inform you that it is being processed! If you have any questions and/or concerns regarding your order or would like to obtain a tracking number please e-mail: trackmyorder@hopupracing.com or use the automated system listed below. Please allow 24-48 hours to obtain tracking information. Thank you again for your purchase and remember we value your business!
Sincerely,
Team Hop Up Racing
You can always find out the current status of your order by going to
https://order.store.yahoo.net/OS/stat?hopup1+28720+a7baba11821f3b85cae7
Date Tue Sep 15 12:00:17 PDT 2009
Ship to Tommy Monroe
----------------
Lake Charles LA 70605
US United States
3378026206
Bill to Same
modelcar 2002 Chevrolet Cavalier
termspolicies yes
E-Mail mav_man15@yahoo.com (emailed)
send-review-email no
Payment MasterCard
Name Code Qty Each Options
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Tein Basic Coilovers DSG90-LUSS2 1 845.50 Model = Cavalier
Chevy Cavalier Free JF37 00-04
Shipping!!!
Subtotal 845.50
Shipping 0.00
Tax 0.00
Total 845.50
As soo as I got the e-mail, I went back to their site and found this:
http://www.hopupracing.com/tebacochcafc.html
Wow, almost as soon as they sent me the e-mail the price changed. I replied to their e-mail. Here is the rest of the conversation, start fromt the bottom e-mail and read up:
Well I was misled by your advertising to believe that these coilovers were 845. You should stay more up-to-date on your products more often, not when some one orders something and you up the price after they order it. I'm no business man but any one can tell you you will lose customers that way and receive a bad reputation. When this kind of thing happens, you bite the bullet and let it go for the advertised price in order to keep that customer. Just my 2 cents.
--- On Tue, 9/15/09, hop up <hopupracing@yahoo.com> wrote:
From: hop up <hopupracing@yahoo.com>
Subject: Re: Hop Up Racing Order 28720
To: "Tommy Monroe" <mav_man15@yahoo.com>
Date: Tuesday, September 15, 2009, 2:31 PM
Actually, false advertising is purposely misleading a customer to believe something. We did not purposely mislead you so it is not false advertising. We were simply not informed by Tein that they raised their price for this. I will cancel the order.
-Steve
--- On Tue, 9/15/09, Tommy Monroe <mav_man15@yahoo.com> wrote:
From: Tommy Monroe <mav_man15@yahoo.com>
Subject: Re: Hop Up Racing Order 28720
To: "hop up" <hopupracing@yahoo.com>
Date: Tuesday, September 15, 2009, 12:25 PM
I appreciate your fast response. These were on your site for $845.00 for almost two weeks. The reason I chose your company because it was the cheapest and free shipping. After I ordered them at $845.00, the price changes to $1007? That is false advertising. If you can't sell me these for the price that was advertised and that's in my receipt, I would like a refund and take my money else where.
Thank you Steve
Now, what kind of crap is that? I just got off the phone with the same Steve and he said they were "misinformed" and that the price on the website is the price he has to sell them at. I told him I had the receipt for $845.50 but he basically said, "oh well". They cancelled my order. Worst customer service if I've ever seen it.
Well, what's done is done. All I know is they lost my business. Guess gravanatuning.com will get my $900 purchase.
I would like to know what others think on this matter. Please don't hesitate to voice your opinion.
I don't want you to think I'm siding with "the other guy"... but I have to say, it's quite common for something like that to happen. Unfortunately manufacturers change prices ALL THE TIME, and make it nearly impossible to keep a website 100% up to date with the correct pricing if there are thousands of products to up-keep. That's just the way it happens.
I'm sure some other companies on here can attest to this... but I've had the same thing happen TOO many times myself. I get an order for product X, and when the order is placed with the manufacturer they tell us the price has gone up. There's just no way to stay 100% current when some manufacturers seem to change nightly. It mainly happens on larger ticket items that are not stocked in house.
In fact here's a nice guy who decided I did this exact same thing to him 4 years ago and made this report....
http://www.ripoffreport.com/Auto-Parts/A-Plus-Performance-a/a-plus-performance-aplusperf-ewby4.htm
Just an FYI in your search for the Tein Basics... If you find a website that has the price under $950 or so for those, chances are they have not updated their price YET. Tein had 2 price increases in the past 12 months roughly, and any company you order from that has the price not updated yet will handle the order the same way. Best bet will be to check with the company first to confirm their price to save yourself future headaches.
Whew... that was the most I've typed on here in awhile. Like I said, I just don't want you to feel "ripped off", because with the way the price changes happen so often, it's inevitable.
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One other thing... they obviously didn't try to do that on purpose, as they know a customer is not going to be happy about that sort of price change. Things like that just cause a company to spend more time trying to rectify the order, so if they could keep it updated & correct... I'm sure they would.
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Yeah, that's not something to get upset over. The company obviously wasn't informed about Tein's price changes, and there are going to be times when a company's website isn't up to date. No need to bad mouth them just because you don't like Tein's new prices.
they could have handled it better though....
their attitude about it sucked.
Familiar Taste of Poison.
I really dont see what they did wrong. You dont know what false advertising is and acted kind of abrasive the first e-mail. So he responded.
Honestly, It doesn't make them a bad company. Did best buy give there flat screens away for 9.99 when they made a mistake. No. Now I have had companies make mistakes, and eat the cost. I got a pair of 395 dollar bindings for 79.99. Ill always buy from them because without me asking they sent an e-mail letting me know what happened and that it was there mistake so there problem. But I wont hold it against a company that does it on accident and wont give me the original price...they prolly even had a disclaimer on there site..
False advertising is the car dealership that advertised a truck for a price, confirmed it when i called and then added 2000 when i got to the dealership because they made a mistake..Twice....
IMO they were very professional in the whole ordeal. @!#$ happens.
-Chris
I agree with Jason on this one. However, personally I would have taken the loss to keep the customer satisfied and get them what they need. Sometimes though there is just too big of a difference in what was listed and what it was increased to. I do hope you enjoy the new coilovers!
I had to come back to this one... One other though.
If it's between selling the product at/near/slightly below cost... I've done that before. BUT, if it means selling the item with a $50-100 loss... there's no way that can be done.
We're in business to make money and to please customers. Without BOTH of those factors, there is no business to keep going.
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First problem is you didn't support a JBO-supporting business.
They'll always look after you.. these other guys.. F* 'em. They done nothing for JBO.
Who the hell do some of you people think you are kidding?
JBODY Customers are not
LOYAL customers. They buy their shiit wherever it is the cheapest and which ever way the wind blows!
I don't think the vendor was trying to screw anyone, that is just the reality of dealing with a mom and pop E-Store, happens all the time.
___________________________________________________________________
Hahn Stage II - Mitsu TD06-20g |3" Turbo-back Exhaust | 61mm Bored TB |
HP Tuners | Innovate WB02 | Spec Stage 3 | Team Green LSD | TurboTech Upper | Full Addco Sways | Sportlines & Yellows |
BlackEco wrote:Who the hell do some of you people think you are kidding? JBODY Customers are not LOYAL customers. They buy their shiit wherever it is the cheapest and which ever way the wind blows!
I don't think you should limit that to J-body owners... it's pretty much everyone nowadays. And there are a few of us who are loyal... but that's beyond the point.
BlackEco wrote:Who the hell do some of you people think you are kidding? JBODY Customers are not LOYAL customers. They buy their shiit wherever it is the cheapest and which ever way the wind blows!
I don't think the vendor was trying to screw anyone, that is just the reality of dealing with a mom and pop E-Store, happens all the time.
Exactly, and when trying to buy the cheapest price from some no name company look what happened. I dunno about anyone else, but I would rather pay a little more for the same part at a company with at least a good reputation rather than search for months and find some company that nobody has ever heard of, then buy from them.
Sounds like the buyer wasn't really wanting to get what he paid for anyways by using "cheap" as his primary requirement for making a purchase.
i find it amusing that SHOoff has nothing better to do but follow me around & be an unhelpful dick in even cross-forum. - Jon Mick
IamRascal wrote:IMO they were very professional in the whole ordeal. @!#$ happens.
sometimes we think (for some reason) that the company we are ordering from is God and they control all but we are really dealing with a middle man. Technology is so advanced now and we can connect around the world in seconds but it seems that manufactures still relay the information that really matters like price changes to retailers with a horse messenger and a buggy.
i was mad the first time i came across this but yeah, i just didnt realize what was really going on as well.
APlusPerformance.com wrote:Quiklilcav wrote:On another note: from what I see it's easy to think that from the other end of an email, the vendor felt that the customer was being rude, and may have chosen to simply not work with them. I can tell you from personal experience with this type of thing that whenever a customer appears to be getting rude or beligerant, it's best to let the deal go. A good amount of the time, when someone starts pushing with any kind of attacks, such as arguing false advertising, they're going to be more trouble later on. Had he been more reasonable in his responses to the vendor, he may have recieved a better response, such as a suggestion of a compromise. You will always get farther in a situation like this if you leave out any kind of attacks, and politely ask if there is something they can do for you. Chances are, the vendor will see you as a reasonable and valuable customer, and want to do what they can. Whenever you start sounding like a pain in the ass customer, most companies will not want to budge, since it will not only set a precident for future relations, but as I said, those deals quite often turn out to be more problems.
well said!
While I agree with this any decent reputable comany would have honored the price that was on the sight at the time of purchase. Being a good business means biting the bullet to honor your mistakes. The comapny should not have sent him the email to begin with and sent the coilovers.
Quiklilcav wrote:
On another note: from what I see it's easy to think that from the other end of an email, the vendor felt that the customer was being rude, and may have chosen to simply not work with them. I can tell you from personal experience with this type of thing that whenever a customer appears to be getting rude or beligerant, it's best to let the deal go. A good amount of the time, when someone starts pushing with any kind of attacks, such as arguing false advertising, they're going to be more trouble later on. Had he been more reasonable in his responses to the vendor, he may have recieved a better response, such as a suggestion of a compromise. You will always get farther in a situation like this if you leave out any kind of attacks, and politely ask if there is something they can do for you. Chances are, the vendor will see you as a reasonable and valuable customer, and want to do what they can. Whenever you start sounding like a pain in the ass customer, most companies will not want to budge, since it will not only set a precident for future relations, but as I said, those deals quite often turn out to be more problems.
Now that I look back on it, I probably could have approached the situation alittle bit more delicately. I did come off as kind of rude. The only thing that baffles me is I paid for the product at the advertised price and have a receipt showing that price. If it were my business, I would have just taken the hit just to keep a happy customer. I'm going to start buying from the .org friendly companies such as TTR, APP, Gravana, etc.
I agree with the OP and quicklilcav 100% in this case. Yes it may be a challenge to keep prices up to date, but that's part of being a good business. I've ordered from turbotech, gravana and aplus, and i never had an email come back saying the price went up. In fact you can usually get a little off the listed price via pricematching
.
E-stores have much less overhead than a store at a physical location and a showroom. They might move less product, but they really do not have to maintain an inventory. SO the least they could do is keep up with pricing proactively.
I for one will not be doing business with this vendor ever...
I'd be pissed too. Wouldn't you be upset if you went to a store, gave the cashier money for a product and they told you the price is actually higher and you owed more money? I'd do the same as the OP. Take my money and spend it elsewhere. The only thing the company did right in my opinion is immediately change the price on the website. No different then a bait and switch really.
Now if they had emailed him and told him about the mistake BEFORE taking his money, then the company did nothing wrong. But if they took his money, and gave him a receipt, they should have honored it.
actually a better way to loose customers is to not tell you the cost of the shipping & handling until it gets to your door plus taxes so thank u turbo tech racing for selling me $100 bushings and not telling me that it would be another $170 until id get it out of the post office if anything people should include the shipping fees before they send it out
and another thing turbo tech racing tranny bushings are the biggest pieces of @!#$ ive ever seen i can pour better urethane into molds and not end up with as many air bubbles have u guys actually cut one in half siriously dont waste your time BUY PROTHANE
and dude if u got your money returned back to you then dont b**ch @!#$ happens that was the manufactuer's fault not the dealers when they say mark up the current prices thats what happens and nobody is gonna loose money just to make one person happy because in the end your 1 person out of 1000 who buy from them
that is alot like what i do when instaling siding on one house @ $2 sq/ft labour & the next house itl be $3 sq/ft labour theres no discounts or waver fees its pay that or go find someone else
if it start the next day it can be driven harder
95gtzspec2 wrote:actually a better way to loose customers is to not tell you the cost of the shipping & handling until it gets to your door plus taxes so thank u turbo tech racing for selling me $100 bushings and not telling me that it would be another $170 until id get it out of the post office if anything people should include the shipping fees before they send it out
and another thing turbo tech racing tranny bushings are the biggest pieces of @!#$ ive ever seen i can pour better urethane into molds and not end up with as many air bubbles have u guys actually cut one in half siriously dont waste your time BUY PROTHANE
and dude if u got your money returned back to you then dont b**ch @!#$ happens that was the manufactuer's fault not the dealers when they say mark up the current prices thats what happens and nobody is gonna loose money just to make one person happy because in the end your 1 person out of 1000 who buy from them
that is alot like what i do when instaling siding on one house @ $2 sq/ft labour & the next house itl be $3 sq/ft labour theres no discounts or waver fees its pay that or go find someone else
1. We dont charge and handling/taxes,
we ONLY charge for shipping, that is your Canada governement for you and the taxes/duties/boarder fees you owe. This has nothing to do with us.
2. By prothane? With their holes they make in the mold, so the mount can deform in a couple hundred miles? You dont know how many prothane ones have had this issue, everyone seems to compain... It is a poor design. Also How did you get $170 in duties/taxes, on $100 in product? You are not telling the whole store here? If the $170 includes shipping (charged by us) and the other part of the $170 is your Canada taxes, that is another story... International shipping of product is not cheap, and as a customer you must get a hold of your local governement and find out this information prior to ordering. This is nothing "Turbo Tech Racing" has ANY control on.
3. What does any of this have to do with us anyway?
-Aaron
www.TurboTechRacing.com
Performance Parts For Cavalier, Sunfire, Cobalts and More!!!
95gtzspec2 wrote:actually a better way to loose customers is to not tell you the cost of the shipping & handling until it gets to your door plus taxes so thank u turbo tech racing for selling me $100 bushings and not telling me that it would be another $170 until id get it out of the post office if anything people should include the shipping fees before they send it out
and another thing turbo tech racing tranny bushings are the biggest pieces of @!#$ ive ever seen i can pour better urethane into molds and not end up with as many air bubbles have u guys actually cut one in half siriously dont waste your time BUY PROTHANE
and dude if u got your money returned back to you then dont b**ch @!#$ happens that was the manufactuer's fault not the dealers when they say mark up the current prices thats what happens and nobody is gonna loose money just to make one person happy because in the end your 1 person out of 1000 who buy from them
that is alot like what i do when instaling siding on one house @ $2 sq/ft labour & the next house itl be $3 sq/ft labour theres no discounts or waver fees its pay that or go find someone else
Plus to add, we have never had anyone complain about us, in the entire 5+ years we have been supporting this site and the community, as much as you have the last 2 months which you have been here (July 2009 you registered). If you can do so much better than us, why dont you do things yourself?
-Aaron
www.TurboTechRacing.com
Performance Parts For Cavalier, Sunfire, Cobalts and More!!!
