[e-mail]

[porchkitty]

I'm still having an ongoing bad experience with BuyriteGames, and after reading message boards and going to the Boycott Buy-Rite website, I thought I'd share my saga. I work 12 hour shifts from 6:30PM to 6:30AM, so I rely on the internet at Christmastime. I find I can do most of my shopping during work downtime, and with relatively few hassles. I wanted
to purchase a Super Nintendo system for my 4 year old grandson who tends to be pretty hard on his toys. However, finding a used system in stock is difficult. Buyrite also had
extremely low prices on games, so I ordered a few of them also. Besides, you have to purchase at least one game with a
system, or they jack up the cost of the system. I went through their website looking for shipping costs, etc. I was unable to locate information, so I used the prices I found on other sites to give me a ballpark figure. Buyrite doesn't give you the shipping cost until you have already given them all of your information...including your credit card number...and
the total nearly knocked me out! It came to $24.49! I've ordered furniture on line that didn't cost that much to ship! Unfortunately, the screen that includes the shipping charge is also the one which says "Thank you for your order." I turned right back around and sent an email via their customer service template to cancel the order because their shipping charges were outrageous but, needless to say, I received no response. I played the voice mail nightmare game with their number in NC after reading that they will only take phone cancellations if your order has not been processed, but never got a human. I placed
the order on November 25, 2003. I never received a confirmation email from them, nor any acknowledgement that they had cancelled the order, as requested. I did notice that the charge had already been applied to my credit card. They wasted no time doing that. So I decided I would just wait for the shipment, and make a mental note to never order from the thieves again. I did receive an email from them on December 4th when the items shipped, complete with an invalid tracking number. It was an auto-generated message which contained the following caveat: "Please do not reply to this message or email address because it will not reach Buy-Rite Video Games." The originating email address was "[e-mail]." If it looks familiar, that's because its the same email address they provide on their internet site!! The package arrived on December 8th, and my $24 shipping fee apparently didn't include the cost of bubble wrap. When I opened the box, the system was in a plastic ziplock bag, and the controller and games just thrown on top. The power supply was missing, and one of the video games I ordered had not been included. I had not been charged for the missing game, but their website states they will notify you if an item is backordered or out of stock. They do not. The SNES was damaged. In fact, they included no packing material at all and the back end was in several small pieces. I was steamed. I called the customer service number the following morning and again got stuck in voice mail hell. That being the case, I called my credit card company to place the charges in dispute. I then did a search on theultimates.com and came up with three separate
telephone numbers and two addresses for this company in Raleigh. The first person I spoke to told me his name is Tim. He sounded very similar to the person in the recording on the Boycott BuyRite website. He said he didn't package the product so he couldn't help me. He told me that I need to call the number on the website. I told him absolutely I WOULD NOT call the number on the website, that he needed to provide me with the name of the owner or get me someone I could speak with who could do something about this. He claimed not to know the name of the owner...I told him cows are purple...and he gave me the number 919-556-3400. I said, "And who is this number for, Tim?" He said, "It may be a number that can reroute you to the other store, which is where we ship for the
internet from." I said, "It MAY be the number? And I MAY BE Santa Claus, Tim. What is this number for?" Tim's response was, "Ok, it IS the number. You should get someone when you call here, just push the #1 option when you hear the guy's voice." (Just an FYI, when calling the customer service number, never select the option for people who live out of state. It loops right back to the main menu. Select the option for people who are living in NC.) I asked Tim for his last name. He said, "I'm not giving you my last name." My response to that was, well, why not? I gave you my last name. He said he wasn't comfortable doing that. I said, why not? You're
simply a retailer, correct? And I'm a paying customer. I'm entitled to know your last name. He still refused it, and I said, "Well, Tim....if that's your name...I think you're running a little scam in Raleigh, and you haven't heard the last of me." I
called the number and it was the recording again. I went through the number #1 option and got Daniella. Daniella listened to my story, then asked me if I could hold. Without any explanation, another voice came on the line. "Can I help you?" I said, "I don't know. Who are you? I thought I was being helped by Daniella." She said her name is Tina. Daniella just answers the telephone and handles local orders. I said, "Tina, can you tell me why my $24.49 shipping didn't cover bubble wrap?" She said, "Excuse me?" I explained that the box containing the items I ordered had no packing material for protection, and the system was broken in transit. I added that for the exhorbitant price of $24.49, I should get a whole roll of bubble wrap! She said they hired additional help
because they're having a busy holiday season (ugh! not good), and whoever packaged it was probably inexperienced. She gave me a RMA number, and said I could ship it back and they would ship another system when they received the broken item. I asked if they were paying for me to ship it back. She said, "We'll refund the cost." I said, "Tina, I don't think so. I
have already paid through the teeth for shipping and got gyped out of my bubble wrap. How do I know you'll refund the shipping?" She said, "Because I said so." I said, "Tina, have you ever heard the saying...I only trust 2 people, one of them is God, and you aren't the other one"....? I continued..."You need to do better than that. You need to tell me how to ship this broken item back to you at your expense." She put me on
ignore. (Don't fall for the "we'll reimburse you" routine. It is expressly written on their website that they will not refund any shipping charges for returns!) She came back about 5 minutes later with their UPS account number. I called UPS as soon as I got off the phone to verify the information. It was legit. I shipped the items back to them the following day with a letter
of explanation and instructions to cancel any future shipments, once again using the information they provide on their website against them. Tina stated they could have the items here in plenty of time for Christmas; however, their site states that it could take up to 30 days to process credits, returns, repairs, or exchanges...and longer during the holiday due to customer volume! I explained in my letter that this was unacceptable, and that I expected the full amount credited back to my VISA...including the $24.49 shipping...because the whole unfortunate situation was a result of their own neglect. I ran their IP and domain through SamSpade.org, and came up with the name of the owner, Steve Wright, and possibly a better
email address (see attached information). I believe that I may also contact their ISP and give them the link to Boycott Buyrite and all the message boards so that they know what type of business these people are running. Perhaps, they'll want to reconsider providing their internet service. Everyone with an unresolved dispute should consider filing a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission at www.ftc.gov. If they begin to see a pattern, they can refer the business to their division of enforcement, who conduct investigations of violations of consumer protection laws (including e-commerce and the internet, and online shopping). There are many ways to deal with these buzzards, all of which require persistance and patience. But a buzzard, like any other opportunist, will be the victim of its own greed. Buyrite is no exception. Keep the faith!
I'll post the outcome when I have one.

The following information was obtained from SamSpade.org:
Registrant:
Buy-Rite Video Games (BUYRITEGAMES-DOM)
3132 Calvary Dr, #107
Raleigh, NC 27604
US

Domain Name: BUYRITEGAMES.COM

Administrative Contact:
Wright, Steve (SW7587) [e-mail]
Buy-Rite Video Games Inc
Suite 107-3132 Calvary Drive
Raleigh, NC 27604
US
919-850-9473 fax: [phone]
Technical Contact:
Bednarik, Rick (RB8116) [e-mail]
11-D Commerce Way
Totowa, NJ 07512
US
973-237-9134 fax: [phone]

[Zeus]

Buy Rite employees are instructed not to give out their last names, which is actually pretty standard practice for that type of work.

No employee at Buy Rite has the power to actually do anything for you anyway. The owner, who's real name is not Steven Wright, is the only one who can actually do anything for you. The poor slobs who get stuck with answering the phones are mostly just trying to avoid getting screamed at for such offenses as telling the customer the truth.

The owner is a dispicable person who treats his employees just as badly as he does his customers. Which is why he doesn't manage to keep many of them for very long.

[porchkitty]

You are absolutely right, Zeus. Steve Wright is NOT the owner's name. In fact, the business is incorporated, and the officers are Mark Luxenberg and Ricki Luxenberg, President and Vice President, respectively. Not providing your last name in the retail industry may be the norm in Raleigh; I'm not from NC so I have no way of knowing that. It is not the norm everywhere though. In many establishments, both the first and last name of the employee can be found on their name tag. Had Tim said, "I'm sorry, we don't provide our last names," then I would have understood. That is not what he said to me, and his answer led me to believe that he had the option to do so, should he want to. I have no complaint with the employees. Tina was very helpful, and I thanked her for assisting me. With the exception of Tim, who did everything in his power to skirt the issue, the matter was handled to my satisfaction. As for the owner, I will take your word for it that he is a despicable person. At the very least, he's a sorry excuse for a businessman. I'm reading a lot of negative posts about Buy Rite, and they aren't confined to this website. This business has been around for quite some time. What surprises me is not the idea that he can still get customers or people to employ (in spite of a reputation that has to have traveled near and far by now just via word of mouth!)...what I find very surprising, in light of all the negative feedback and experiences I'm reading about, is that this person is in business at all. Things that make you go "hmmmmmmm."

[porchkitty]

I received a call at 12:35 PM today from a woman at BuyRite who identified herself as Nicole. She said they examined the box that the items were sent in, and there was no damage to the box. This is true. There was no damage to the box...only the contents. She stated she couldn't understand how the damage would have occurred during shipment if there was no outward damage. (Ok, either the lights are on and no one is home, or they're looking for an excuse to keep my money, or both!) I said, "There was absolutely NO PACKING MATERIAL of any kind in the box. I'm sure it wasn't handled with kid gloves during shipment. How the damage may have occurred isn't difficult to imagine at all!" All she said was, Uh huh. I said "the only packing material was inside the box that I rewrapped your box in". I told her she is welcome to contest it. The box was shaking when I picked it up from my PO box, I went home, unwrapped it, and that's how it looked when I took it out. She said "uh huh". She stated again that she could find no damage to the box, said "thank you" and hung up. She didn't even wait for my acknowledgement. She simply and very unprofessionally huing up. Now I'm really pissed, and if she wants a fight over charges, she'll get one.

[God]

Expect to be told to file a claim with UPS since it was damaged in transit. That's pretty standard practice.

[ReverEND]

Just like to cheer you on man.

I tried all that and didn't get far... but hopefully you can get your money back and such.

I'v found that the local game shops (most, not all) are way better... even if they don't have what you want.

its cool just to go in and look around, and talk to the people. As most the time there hardcore gamers themselves.

[porchkitty]

They sent the package via USPS. Had they used UPS, it never would have made it past their initial inspection. UPS requires 2" of packing material all the way around whatever you are shipping. Additionally, BuyRite did not purchase insurance. $24 is a lot of money for shipping. I forgot to look at the box to see how much they actually spent. (I'm sure the rest went in someone's pocket.) I refuse to file a claim with the postal service. I don't feel that it's their fault. Shippers are very up front (if you ask them) about the fact that packages aren't handled very delicately. That's why they have packaging requirements and insurance available. They always ask if you have anything breakable in the package. They must have been told "no." My complaint is with BuyRite. If BuyRite wants to go after the postal service, that's their business. They couldn't possibly prevail. What kind of an excuse can you possibly offer for such shoddy service? There aren't any. It might take longer than I'd like, but I will get my money. Thanks for your support!!!

[porchkitty]

Although I haven't been to my P.O. box to get my mail, I just logged in to my VISA account and found a credit posted on Feb. 6 for $80.46. This was the amount I was out, including shipping, for my purchase at Buy-Rite. While I don't have the correspondence from my credit card company to relay the information regarding their findings, it is apparent that I've won my dispute. If the correspondence includes any significant information, I will pass that along. In the mean time, chalk up one more loss for Buy-Rite!

[Romeo]

I used to shop at Buy-Rite in the early 90's.

The owner is a man that wears women's pants. I am being totally serious.

He is also, as you can imagine, an ass.