HUGE HASSLE WITH SBP!

Post by **aferguson** » Fri Nov 19, 2004 9:54 am

I saw the dessert 109 had free shipping so i thought i'd order it. Since i live outside the US (in Canada) their stupid ordering system will not tell you how much the shipping charge will be until AFTER you commit to buying the item (hard to believe but true).

Because of that i indicated i would pay by money order and did not give them permission to charge my credit card. I wanted to confirm that shippng is free before i purchase.

This all happened a few days ago and i heard nothing until just now. I got an email giving me the shipping charge for my item, which is not only not free shipping but it is a huge, inflated amount for shipping! The email went on to say that if i didn't cancel my order within 48 hours then SBP would use my credit card info on file and charge my credit card! Without my permission!

I wrote back to them telling them to cancel my order if shipping is not fee as stated on their website but the contact email address given to me is invalid....the email just bounced back to me.

I don't know what they're thinking about over at SBP but this is no way to do business or encourage future sales.

If they charge my card i'm going to have it reversed and lodge a complaint against them with the Better Business Bureau. This is a prime example of everything that is bad about purchasing over the internet.

vulgarvulture · Post by **vulgarvulture** » Fri Nov 19, 2004 9:59 am

This confirms yet again my perception of that place. Over the past few years I've heard nothing good about SBP mail order. (Except Ski's personal visits to the store where he could see what he was buying.)

I avoid that web site. Have never purchased there, and never will.

I hope your shipping issue gets taken care of to your satisfaction. That is so very frustrating.

vmf214 · Post by **vmf214** » Fri Nov 19, 2004 10:02 am

aferg I went thru the same thing with them a couple months back. The "free" shipping thing sounds like bait and switch to me. Between the free shipping they quote and the $10 coupon that goes with it I almost caved and got one but looked back on my last experience with them and decided against it, good for me sounds like. I'd warn your cc company now and they'll put a block on charges from this company. They are crap to deal with when you want your money back. In my instance they ignored ALL my emails up until I lodged a fraud complaint with my cc company, then all of a sudden I got a response. I'm sure most people don't have a problem with them.....until they have a problem with their order that is. I'll not use them again. Good luck..

Post by **aferguson** » Fri Nov 19, 2004 10:07 am

anyone know how i can cancel my purchase thru their website? I logged onto my account and it just shows my purchase as pending but there is not option for cancelling that i can see.

vmf214 · Post by **vmf214** » Fri Nov 19, 2004 10:10 am

Let me root around for the email address that they finally replied with when my cc company came down on them, that may work.

vmf214 · Post by **vmf214** » Fri Nov 19, 2004 10:14 am

Give these a try if you don't already have them: [email protected]

610-364-2228 ext. 11

Hopefully there is something there you can use, I don't think you can cancel from the website.

Post by **aferguson** » Fri Nov 19, 2004 10:19 am

the contact email address they sent me in the email i got from them today is: [email protected] The 'a' is missing in the word 'comcast'. An accident i'm sure.

tmanthegreat · Post by **tmanthegreat** » Fri Nov 19, 2004 12:05 pm

I haven't ordered from here, but have been reading all the past complaints fromthe old board. Now that aferg is in on it, I don't think I'll ever try. Besides, BCA is in my state and their service and prices have been exceptional. The Toyfederation is also another good seller.

flayrah · Post by **flayrah** » Fri Nov 19, 2004 12:56 pm

I had a similar problem with SBP a couple of years ago. They refused to cancel my pre-order, and claimed an amount on my credit card had already been placed "on hold" for the charge. I finally had to contact my credit card company, and told them I had authorized no charge from this company. A few weeks later, SBP contacted me to say the pre-order had arrived, and they were expecting my MO payment. I guess they are still waiting.

Post by **p51** » Fri Nov 19, 2004 4:25 pm

BCA seems to be one of the best online military ordering sites. I haven't dealt with either site yet... but when I dfo buy the Blue Angel, no matter where it is at that time, I will get it from BCA. I've heard enough bad about SBP not to shop there... even if they have exclusives.

vmf214 · Post by **vmf214** » Fri Nov 19, 2004 4:46 pm

The Blue Angel is a BCA exclusive it's the only place to get it.

Post by **aferguson** » Fri Nov 19, 2004 6:29 pm

i got an email from them saying they had cancelled my order. Looks like problems are over..

Post by **p51** » Fri Nov 19, 2004 9:59 pm

vmf214 wrote:The Blue Angel is a BCA exclusive it's the only place to get it.

I realize that... but, they said the Big Beautiful Doll P-51 Mustang was a SBP exclusive... but BCA has it.

Mr. Football · Post by **Mr. Football** » Sat Nov 20, 2004 12:05 am

I've ordered from Small Blue Planet before without problem. FYI, having setup numerous E-Commerce sites, you should be aware that they usually calculate shipping using a module provided by their preferred carrier. It can get somewhat complicated when dealing with International shipping as the modules provided by the preferred carriers sometimes do not support it. In SBP's case, I think they use USPS Express, and I know for certain it will not calculate Canadian postage...in which case, they have to look at the order manually and then select the best postage rate. Having purchased something recently from a Canadian vendor, I will say that Canadian postage is ridiculously expensive as compared to US options.

Just thought you may appreciate a dissenting opinion. I've no connection with any vendors here other than having bought from just about each and every one. The only one I can say sucks is Cyber-Hobby.

tankduel · Post by **tankduel** » Sat Nov 20, 2004 12:13 am

I posted on the old board that I tried to buy some stuff from SBP,but they
would not accept a credit card order ,I had to effect payment some other way for my first order,then,once I was "verified' would then accept cc payments.
So,of course,I decided to shop elsewhere.
Last week I checked out Badcat Aviation,and ordered a couple of XD planes.No problem with that,as well,the delivery option I chose was going
to cost $180,so they contacted me and offered me a cheaper alternative.
That is excellent customer service!

Website · Post by **Teamski** » Sat Nov 20, 2004 7:24 am

Andrew:

You might want to call SBP direct with your order. They might be able to hook you up. If not, you could have them send the plane to me with free shipping and I will send it out to you.

I personally have had nothing but a great experience with SBP when it comes to shipped items. They ship really quick to me with no hassles so far. The problem I had was with a brain-dead teenie at the warehouse during a visit there (as mentioned by vulture). Now that pissed me off!

-Ski

mburduck · Post by **mburduck** » Mon Nov 22, 2004 9:25 am

I've heard any number of bad things about this dealer (as I have another), so I decided to avoid them. Too bad!

Mike

dangaroo · Post by **dangaroo** » Mon Nov 22, 2004 11:27 am

Count me in. I'm also going to avoid SBP.

digger · Post by **digger** » Mon Nov 22, 2004 7:16 pm

Just to show the other side of the coin, SBP has been great to me. They're shipping is always fair and if you're on the East Coast you can literally get stuff the next day, sometimes 2 days. Unreal.

I think it's safe to say that the best bet w/ etailers is not to limit yourself with self-imposed rules, especially if you've never dealt with them personally. We all have stories about SBP, BC, TF, etc....good and bad. My approach is usually who's got them (and I mean IN STOCK), what's the price and what's the damage on shipping. After that I will consider tales of glory or despair. For example - Toysnswords takes a while to ship but has great prices - you take the good with the bad.

While we're dropping names the bbi M4 is a mere 32 bucks at Goodstufftogo.net which is another great place that flies under the radar. Happy collecting to all

!