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Purchasing Online Gift

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colgar13660

Junior Member
Hello,

I am trying to find out some information on a gift I recently bought. I went to an online site to buy a scooter, from scootermadness.com. I picked out a scooter as a christmas gift for someone, it said it was in stock etc. I purchased the gift I got the confirmation that my order was placed , and they deducted the money from my bank account. Then 3 days later I get this email... "We are having an issue with your order. The price on this model has gone up from our supplier and we were not told. Because of this we have raised the price on our website. We apologize for having to do this. We have refunded your purchase and if you would like to shop around some more we understand.
Thank you for your understanding." So I wasted several days now waiting for my order which I assumed was already shipping, and then instead watched them refund my money and raise the price $150. This doesn't seem right to me they already took my money, is that not already an act of me purchasing an item? and them going oh wait I change my mind I want more money... What should I do? Is there some legal law that protects against this I can bring up against them? To give me what I already paid for?

Thanks
 


quincy

Senior Member
Hello,

I am trying to find out some information on a gift I recently bought. I went to an online site to buy a scooter, from scootermadness.com. I picked out a scooter as a christmas gift for someone, it said it was in stock etc. I purchased the gift I got the confirmation that my order was placed , and they deducted the money from my bank account. Then 3 days later I get this email... "We are having an issue with your order. The price on this model has gone up from our supplier and we were not told. Because of this we have raised the price on our website. We apologize for having to do this. We have refunded your purchase and if you would like to shop around some more we understand.
Thank you for your understanding." So I wasted several days now waiting for my order which I assumed was already shipping, and then instead watched them refund my money and raise the price $150. This doesn't seem right to me they already took my money, is that not already an act of me purchasing an item? and them going oh wait I change my mind I want more money... What should I do? Is there some legal law that protects against this I can bring up against them? To give me what I already paid for?

Thanks
You first should read the terms and conditions of sales on the Scooter Madness website.

Under Inaccuracies, Product Variations and Changes, it reads: "We reserve the right to correct any errors, inaccuracies, or omissions, and to change or update any information at any time without prior notice, including information pertaining to orders that have already been placed ... ScooterMadness.com reserves the right to refuse or cancel any orders whether or not the order has been confirmed and you've been charged ..." and the terms and conditions go on. To read the rest, you can visit their website at: www.scootermadness.com/terms-and-conditions.

If the company refunded your money due to a pricing error or because of a cost increase passed on to them from their supplier, you have no legal recourse.

Following is a link to Consumers Reports on consumer rights. In disputes with retailers, Consumers Reports writes: "It's generally a myth that retailers must honor a posted price if it is simply a mistake, although some stores might do so as a matter of policy or on a case-by-case basis ... An online retailer's fine print may relieve it of a duty to fulfill orders based on pricing errors."
http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/2010/09/your-rights-as-a-consumer/index.htm

There could be a problem with a company that intentionally posts false prices to lure consumers to their stores (a violation under state "bait and switch" laws) but this does not appear to be the case with your scooter purchase. Your only damages appear to be a loss of time and some aggravation, neither of which are compensable. Because of the terms you agreed to when purchasing the scooter from the website, you could not support any legal action anyway.

Sorry. The scooter would have made for a nice gift.
 
Last edited:

quincy

Senior Member
What US state?
Oops. I missed the fact that the state was missing :eek: - not that the state name (or even country name) will change the terms and conditions that govern purchases from Scooter Madness, or change colgar13660's lack of legal options.
 

Zigner

Senior Member, Non-Attorney
Oops. I missed the fact that the state was missing :eek: - not that the state name (or even country name) will change the terms and conditions that govern purchases from Scooter Madness, or change colgar13660's lack of legal options.
I agree that it's highly unlikely to change anything... ;)
 

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