gosh dang it!

itsjustbrandy

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I finally received my much awaited package from BandH today, which included 2 white umbrellas, among other things, both with black convertible covers. I go to unpackage them, and then take off the both black covers to find that they are both what appear to be dirty:

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Please excuse the lighting... These photos don't do the scuz on the umbrellas justice...they actually look a little darker than what shows.

Anyway, has anyone had this issue? i plan on giving them a ring tomorrow just to find out what they say...

I tested them out, not any visable issues, that I saw right off the bat. I just don't know if it worth the wait to send them back, wait for them to receive them, then wait 1+ weeks to get them... again... :( yes, I'm wining. lol. sorry... just very disappointed

Just felt like venting to people that may share similar frustrations.

what would you do?
 
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You are not whining. You have a perfect right to be disappointed in them.

We here on TPH frequently recommend B&H as one of the best. It is now their turn to live up to that and resolve your problem to your expectations.

Was what you bought supposed to be brand new? If so, let them pay all return shipping because they shipped you a product that is obviously not in new condition.

Make them correct the problem and let us know whether or not they did.

Shouldn't have happened in the first place....

Time for them to prove how good they are.
 
Was what you bought supposed to be brand new? If so, let them pay all return shipping because they shipped you a product that is obviously not in new condition.

Yes, they are suppose to be brand new...

However, they look like they have either been stored on a dirty floor for a while....
or maybe they were stored by a sunny window and the black dye from the cover seeped onto the white...

but still... you would think they would check the product before shipping... I dunno.
Unless, this is like a once in a lifetime happening. lol
 
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Update:

I just gave customer service a call and told them the issue, I was very polite about it... there's no need to ever be rude, I know people make mistakes...

Anyway, when I told him that I wasn't excited about ''the wait'' for shipping them back and receiving the new ones... he told me that I could purchase 2 new umbrellas, that way they would be shipped out right away. Then, go ahead and send back the dirty umbrellas, and when they receive them, I will get a refund for those.
I then asked, how am I going to know if the news ones that arrive will be clean, and not in the same predicament that I am in now... Could you please inspect them before shipping??''

He then replied, ''I'm sorry, we do not inspect the packages before sending them out.''

what?! :scratch:

I said, '' Can't you just open the plastic, that isn't sealed anyway, just to check underneath the black cover to see if there is some funk on the white umbrella?''

He said, "I'm sorry mam, its the warehouse who ships the stuff out and they don't know much about the products.''

IMO it's not hard to tell the difference between a clean white umbrella vs. a white umbrella with black markings all over it... You don't have to be a photography scholar to know a clean umbrella from a dirty one.... anyone should be able to do that. lol....

So I said, ''so you can't guarantee that my next shipment will NOT be in the same condition?"

"Sorry mam, we don't open to inspect...."

::::::::::reeeeally long sigh:::::::::::::::

I told him, "okay, this is not what I was expecting to hear, I'll have to give you a call back when I decide what to do. Is there another direct number that I can call to speak to someone that may be able to help me.. someone directly from B and H?"

He then gave me the same number i just called. lol...

ahh!! don't know what to do...

Is it fair that I have to RE-PAY for shipping the new ones back out to me... AND PAY to ship the dirty ones back??

I think not.... just MO.

Does anyone have a DIRECT NUMBER that I can call, to speak with someone that knows what they're talking about....

I appreciate any help :hug::
 
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Is anyone from there a member here like Adorama is.

The jest of what I am hearing here as to how they operate and what they say to a customer after they have done her over is just about enough for me to take them off the list of the top sellers that I recommend so highly.

I would NOT have expected anything like this from B&H...
 
So very sorry to hear this. I was a very loyal B&H customer up until 2 days ago myself. I can understand that they ship from a warehouse and possibly that warehouse isn't even remotely close to the building in which the guy answered your phone call. Personally, I think B&H is just getting to be such a huge company, that it is darn near impossible to keep customer service at 100%. I am going with smaller local shops after my fiasco the other day. Hope it all works out for you.
 
Wow, I remember another thread just the other day where someone had some sort of trouble with B&H. I've always used Adorama over B&H but they're suggested here all the time. Could be complete coincidence, but I'm pretty surprised at the troubles with them lately. Best of luck getting it sorted out.
 
This is the problem when a company is bigger. The reps cannot just go to the warehouse and inspect the product before it ship.

I had a similar experience in the past with Samsung product. I bought a 17" LCD monitor (paid over $650 for it at that time) and it went bad. It was under warranty and I had it shipped back for RMA. And the RMA replacement was defective. So they replaced the defective (the screen was blue) RMA monitor. And the new replacement is also defective (this time, the screen is blurry) as soon as I got it. I talked to the CS supervisor from Samsung, and she still cannot either replaced a new one for me nor had someone inspect the RMA since they shipped from a different location and the warehouse people over there do not inspect products. But luckily that the last one I got worked.

So for situations like that, a smaller shop maybe able offer better service.
 
Update:
I just gave customer service a call and told them the issue, I was very polite about it... there's no need to ever be rude, I know people make mistakes...
First, I apologize for the condition of the product you received. This is unacceptable and am sorry.

I cannot ID you or this transaction from the info here. If you can email your order number to me (and a brief reminder of the topic so I can winnow you email from the vast disarray of my in box) I can do a couple of things.

I can see what can be done to resolve your situation as speedily and efficiently as possible.
I can alert our warehouse manager to check the rest of our inventory.
I can alert our supplier to tell them they may have a QC issue.

The fact is our sales and customer service staffs are in Manhattan and our warehouse is in Brooklyn. That means neither our customer service rep or I can easily check our stock. It also means we have lower warehouse expenses and that helps us control prices.

We have the capability to include an internal note on an order asking the item be checked in the warehouse before it's packed. I cannot promise with 101% certainty they'll do what I ask and I also cannot promise the warehouse people are as educated as our sales staff about what is and is not the way a thing should be. While a white umbrella should be white, we also sell a lot of technical equipment and inspection by a warehouse staffer is not an ironclad guarantee.

That doesn't mean we've gotten too big anymore than it would for any of our competitors who also operate off-site warehouses. It means we erred and we're sorry and we will do what should be done to make this right.

Is it fair that I have to RE-PAY for shipping the new ones back out to me... AND PAY to ship the dirty ones back??
Nope and you won't.
 
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I don't EVER pay to return something that wasn't delivered properly. One of the reasons I don't shop at Newegg anymore. IMO it's completely unacceptable for a retailer/etailer to expect the customer to pay for the retailer/etailer's mistake in any way shape or form.

Good that a B&H rep is here and in my experience things are handled better with assistance from the forum rep.
 
I don't EVER pay to return something that wasn't delivered properly. One of the reasons I don't shop at Newegg anymore. IMO it's completely unacceptable for a retailer/etailer to expect the customer to pay for the retailer/etailer's mistake in any way shape or form.

From the retailer's perspective, the problem is not itsjustbrandy, whom I have no reason to doubt; it's the pirate who's paid for one camera or lens and wants a 2nd at no additional cost. if retailer's don't take prudent steps to protect themselves from piracy, expenses increase, and eventually, so do prices.

Often, retailers who don't explicitly charge for the 2nd item are placing a lien on your credit card. Often, it's for more than the item's price and usually they do so with no word to the card owner at all.

Good that a B&H rep is here and in my experience things are handled better with assistance from the forum rep.
Thank you.

I've had 2 recent issues with B&H, enough to make me go elsewhere from now on.

I am sorry to hear this. If there's something to be done to ameliorate this, I'd be happy to look into it.
 
From the retailer's perspective, the problem is not itsjustbrandy, whom I have no reason to doubt; it's the pirate who's paid for one camera or lens and wants a 2nd at no additional cost. if retailer's don't take prudent steps to protect themselves from piracy, expenses increase, and eventually, so do prices.

Often, retailers who don't explicitly charge for the 2nd item are placing a lien on your credit card. Often, it's for more than the item's price and usually they do so with no word to the card owner at all.

Yea when expecting a new item before returning I could see requiring some form of payment... I guess in my own experience I'm OK with waiting for bad item to get there before sending my replacement as long as I don't have to pay twice.
 
The very few times I've had to return an item from B&H or Adorama, they have e-mailed a return shipping label. So, no additional shipping cost to me.
 
Good that a B&H rep is here and in my experience things are handled better with assistance from the forum rep.

True. Even though I've never had any troubles personally, I've seen Adorama reps come in to the forum and quickly handle any issues one-on-one with the customer, which I'm always glad to see. Good customer service can go a long way, and I'm glad to see not only Adorama handling it here, but also B&H. Thanks, Henry.
 

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