Upset About Customer Complaint

Decorating By reginaherrin Updated 29 Mar 2013 , 2:31am by reginaherrin

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reginaherrin Posted 19 Feb 2013 , 8:36pm
post #31 of 65

I don't get the metal boards back, it really isn't worth it to get them back.  My dad has a shop with the equipment to cut them and it is all automatic so not much time on his part and the metal is dirt cheap since he uses his vendors.  He also does them in wood and I flucuate between wood and metal, usually going with wood for wedding and metal for all others.

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fearlessbaker Posted 19 Feb 2013 , 9:01pm
post #32 of 65

I agree with Jason. You didn't charge enough. Second, give her back the $40. It's not worth the hassle nor your reputation. If I were in business, I would have the customer take the picture of the cake themselves before and have them email it and then sign off on it before they left. That's assuming they have a smart phone. This would be in addition to the contract.

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shanter Posted 19 Feb 2013 , 9:58pm
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Annabakescakes 
 My OH, works at a metal fab shop . . . . .

 

What is an OH? Is that your "other husband"? icon_lol.gificon_biggrin.gif

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jason_kraft Posted 19 Feb 2013 , 10:00pm
post #34 of 65

AOH = other half.

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reginaherrin Posted 19 Feb 2013 , 10:06pm
post #35 of 65

AShanter that is so funny, I was thinking the same thing.

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Annabakescakes Posted 19 Feb 2013 , 10:24pm
post #36 of 65
Quote:
Originally Posted by shanter 

 

What is an OH? Is that your "other husband"? icon_lol.gificon_biggrin.gif

 

Quote:
Originally Posted by reginaherrin 

Shanter that is so funny, I was thinking the same thing.

I got that from another caker on here ;-) I asked her what it was too! But since my DH isn't so dear lately, I like this better!

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ellavanilla Posted 19 Feb 2013 , 10:38pm
post #37 of 65
Quote:
Originally Posted by Annabakescakes 

 

I got that from another caker on here ;-) I asked her what it was too! But since my DH isn't so dear lately, I like this better!

HAHA!!

 

i thought it mean OLD husband. *snort*

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Annabakescakes Posted 19 Feb 2013 , 10:43pm
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ellavanilla 

HAHA!!

 

i thought it mean OLD husband. *snort*

He would LOVE that, lol, he'll be 39 this year, and he thinks that is OLD!

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reginaherrin Posted 27 Mar 2013 , 2:27pm
post #39 of 65

I am so mad, I just got an email from paypal saying she is disputing the charges.  It is well over a month later and she is just now deciding to dispute it, WTH?  And she did not dispute it with paypal she disputed it with her credit card company so I'm probably totally screwed.  I did respond and attached the picture of cake before she left and told them all the details but credit card companies don't care about the details and would easily screw a company.  This makes me not want to ever take credit cards but that would be such an inconvenience to my customers since most everyone has one and rarely ever has cash, myself included.  Maybe I will make everyone that uses a credit card sign a waiver saying their cake is not damaged and exactly as ordered, which is the reason she gave her credit card company, that it was either damaged or not as described. This totally puts a damper on my day.

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Norasmom Posted 27 Mar 2013 , 2:46pm
post #40 of 65

Yes, a waiver is a good idea, signed and saying the cake was in perfect condition when the customer picked it up and that any and all damage done in transport is the responsibility of the customer.

I am glad I don't do too many cakes.  I agree with everyone else, you undercharged, that cake is great!

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jason_kraft Posted 27 Mar 2013 , 2:56pm
post #41 of 65

A

Original message sent by reginaherrin

I am so mad, I just got an email from paypal saying she is disputing the charges.  It is well over a month later and she is just now deciding to dispute it, WTH?  And she did not dispute it with paypal she disputed it with her credit card company so I'm probably totally screwed.  I did respond and attached the picture of cake before she left and told them all the details but credit card companies don't care about the details and would easily screw a company.  This makes me not want to ever take credit cards but that would be such an inconvenience to my customers since most everyone has one and rarely ever has cash, myself included.  Maybe I will make everyone that uses a credit card sign a waiver saying their cake is not damaged and exactly as ordered, which is the reason she gave her credit card company, that it was either damaged or not as described. This totally puts a damper on my day.

I had a feeling this would happen. It's difficult to say what the outcome will be since it's so subjective, but if she loses the credit card dispute she will probably just file a dispute with PayPal next so you will probably be dealing with this for a while. Make sure you keep as little money as possible in your PayPal account since it may be frozen.

As mentioned earlier in the thread, $40 would have been a small price to pay to not have to deal with this, considering you might end up with $0 anyway.

Regarding not accepting credit cards, it's not that big a deal as long as you make customers aware of it ahead of time. If people want to order from you they will take the time to get cash or write a check. We did not accept credit cards, and every once in a while a customer would show up to pick up their cake without enough cash or a checkbook, we would kindly direct them to the nearest ATM.

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reginaherrin Posted 27 Mar 2013 , 3:06pm
post #42 of 65

She actually made 2 payments and is only disputing 1 of those payments so it wouldn't be the total amount.  I know I did nothing wrong on this cake, she got a great cake for a great price, she never sent me the pictures of the cake which probably means she never had them since nothing was wrong with the cake I'm sure and never called me the day of so I am putting my foot down on this one.  I shouldn't have to just give in to every customers demands of a return just because they think they are entitled to it for some reason or another.  If I did something wrong that would be totally different but I refuse to be threatened by someone just because they feel they paid too much.  If they do grant it to her then I will be able to dispute it again and just see what happens but I don't think it is right to just give in because she is raising a fuss.  I'm sure most others would just give in but that is showing her that there was wrongdoing on my part.

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FullHouse Posted 27 Mar 2013 , 3:11pm
post #43 of 65

Although it would be easier to just give in and be done with it, I would not.  You offered her the opportunity to show you a picture of the supposed damage, the fact that she did not even try to do that and just went to her CC company is very suspect.  I hope this all works out for you, what she is doing seems very unethical.

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jason_kraft Posted 27 Mar 2013 , 3:15pm
post #44 of 65

ARemember that this is a business decision. It's up to you if you want to try teaching the customer a lesson, but you will probably spend a lot more time on this than the amount of the dispute is worth (not to mention the emotional toll), and chances are the customer won't change her behavior even if she loses.

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costumeczar Posted 27 Mar 2013 , 3:34pm
post #45 of 65
Quote:
Originally Posted by jason_kraft 

Remember that this is a business decision. It's up to you if you want to try teaching the customer a lesson, but you will probably spend a lot more time on this than the amount of the dispute is worth (not to mention the emotional toll), and chances are the customer won't change her behavior even if she loses.

I tend to agree with this at this point, since it's so far after the fact. Just send your info in and see what happens, because that's really all you can do, but if she wins the dispute keep this in mind as a pain in the butt learning experience.

 

Taking no credit cards is the only way to avoid this these days.

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justme50 Posted 27 Mar 2013 , 4:37pm
post #46 of 65

I'm with Jason on this one. If you're in business, you make the best business decisions you can. In this case, it's a $40 complaint that could've ended in a matter of hours. Is it "right" that she can get money back if it's not warranted? No. But it's in your best interest from a business standpoint to cut your losses. You've already spent more than $40 worth  of time on this. Now you risk your accounts being frozen and all the hassle that comes with that. 

 

Never mind, an unhappy customer who got what they asked for to make a situation right  is much less likely to tell everyone she knows just what a horrible business you are to deal with. You can bet she's telling everyone she knows that you do sub par work and won't stand behind your product.

 

I would've gritted my teeth and given the refund. Also, I never take paypal or credit cards- cash only if I don't know them personally. I've never lost an order because of it.

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reginaherrin Posted 27 Mar 2013 , 6:51pm
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I am certainly not trying to teach anyone a lesson, I am not naïve enough to think anything I do will change an unethical persons behavior.  I am trying to do what I think is right in my mind.  I am not sure how much time you think would be invested in disputing this but I have spent a 5 minute conversation with her over a month ago telling me about the cake, a 2 minute email following up with her asking her to send me the photo she said she would and then nothing until this morning when I spent another 5 minutes sending a response back to paypal so all told less then 15 minutes which is no time at all.  I have done my part and am just waiting to hear back from paypal.  If they do favor her then it will be just another 5 minutes or so filling out a dispute response.  So again I am not spending that much extra time of this.  There will be an emotional toll regardless if I gave in a month ago, give in now or wait to hear a response.  And it is not exactly an huge emotional toll, just a bit upset.  As far as her badmouthing me,  I live in a big city in-between 2 bigger cities, which she lives in one of the bigger cities next to me that has over a million people living there and I doubt her 2 cents worth of talking will change anything about my business.  I have a great website that showcases tons of good looking cakes and have a lot of good reviews on the website as well as a lot of other sites as well.  In fact, she ordered from me because her daughter orders from me and her daughter actually stills orders from me.  As far as paypal, they haven't frozen my account, they have put a hold on her payment and will reverse the amount if she wins but they have no reason to completely freeze my account.  If they do and I can't use paypal anymore then that is not a big deal anyways since I just use them for deposits and I use another company to run cards when the customers pick up their cakes. 

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ShelbyLyn Posted 27 Mar 2013 , 7:10pm
post #48 of 65

My husband and I own a landscaping company and a few years ago we had a client with a contract cancel early, refuse to pay their early cancellation fees and demanded and extra mow! They told us they would go to twitter with their 10,000 followers and bad mouth us. If i have a valid complaint from a customer i am always happy to discuss how we can fix it, but i won't be bullied. Long story short, we never did their extra mow, they may or may not have gone to twitter, but three years later our business is doing better than ever. 

 

If you know you did everything right you have every right to stand your ground. Some people think that by yelling or bullying they will get whatever they want, but i am much more inclined to give a discount or free service to someone that is respectful and polite. 

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jason_kraft Posted 27 Mar 2013 , 7:20pm
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A

Original message sent by ShelbyLyn

My husband and I own a landscaping company and a few years ago we had a client with a contract cancel early, refuse to pay their early cancellation fees and demanded and extra mow! They told us they would go to twitter with their 10,000 followers and bad mouth us. If i have a valid complaint from a customer i am always happy to discuss how we can fix it, but i won't be bullied.

If a customer was not happy about the quality of the landscaping services provided by your company (given that quality is subjective) and asked for $40 off their bill as compensation, how long would you fight them over it?

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CWR41 Posted 27 Mar 2013 , 7:26pm
post #50 of 65
Quote:
Originally Posted by jason_kraft 


If a customer was not happy about the quality of the landscaping services provided by your company (given that quality is subjective) and asked for $40 off their bill as compensation, how long would you fight them over it?

Most service companies have some sort of guarantee which claims they will continue trying until customer is satisfied, so NO refund -- they just rectify the situation until customer is happy.

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jason_kraft Posted 27 Mar 2013 , 7:30pm
post #51 of 65

A

Original message sent by CWR41

Most service companies have some sort of guarantee which claims they will continue trying until customer is satisfied, so NO refund -- they just rectify the situation until customer is happy.

True, but a company centered around supplying a product or service for a specific event does not have the option of rectifying the situation since the event has already occurred.

In any case, the question could be modified to say that the customer was asking for $40 worth of services to rectify the situation.

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reginaherrin Posted 27 Mar 2013 , 7:30pm
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Shelby, I think the same way, I shouldn't be bullied just because you raise hell.  I know in business sometimes that has to happen and if is she would have sent me the picture she "said" she had and I thought that there was a possibility that I had something to do with it then I would have offered a refund and I did offer a free product even though I thought it was a bogus claim.  I worked in a retail store for about 8 years and I found that when someone wants something (usually a refund on some totally worn clothing or discount for some reason or another) that they shouldn't be getting and is stated in the policies on the back of their receipt that they would just start yelling and arguing and asking for a manager and 9 times out of 10 they would get what they wanted.  I think that is appalling behavior and it sucks that that kind of behavior gets rewarded by getting exactly what they wanted. 

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reginaherrin Posted 27 Mar 2013 , 7:35pm
post #53 of 65

Jason, with the lawn mowing company story, they were asking for $40 (or whatever the company charges) worth of services to rectify the situation which Shelby said she refused to do.  I did offer her a free product (not worth the amount she was asking) which she turned down. 

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jason_kraft Posted 27 Mar 2013 , 7:39pm
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A

Original message sent by reginaherrin

Jason, with the lawn mowing company story, they were asking for $40 (or whatever the company charges) worth of services to rectify the situation which Shelby said she refused to do.  I did offer her a free product (not worth the amount she was asking) which she turned down. 

Shelby's example was a customer who broke a contract and did not pay early cancellation fees. Unlike the quality of a product or service (which is central to my question), failing to pay cancellation fees according to a contract is not subjective.

Also see my post above about rectifying the situation when the product was made for an event that has already passed.

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CWR41 Posted 27 Mar 2013 , 7:41pm
post #55 of 65
Quote:
Originally Posted by jason_kraft 


True, but a company centered around supplying a product or service for a specific event does not have the option of rectifying the situation since the event has already occurred.

In any case, the question could be modified to say that the customer was asking for $40 worth of services to rectify the situation.


Jason, there's no such thing as a landscaping emergency and she didn't say the problem had to be fixed before an "event".

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eatmycakebaby Posted 27 Mar 2013 , 7:43pm
post #56 of 65

Thats why when people pick up the cake they sign stating 1. the cake was standing 2. I moved the box and demonstrated in front of them that the cake was STURDY .  3. that I am not responsible for any damaged cakes that I personally DID NOT deliver.  4. I TOLD THEM TO "DRIVE SLOW, SMOOTH, AND SAFELY.

 

Sounds like she is just trying to be a B**** and is hoping that you will give her the money back because she is over budget and broke from the party.  LOL IJS

 

Great cake tho I love it

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jason_kraft Posted 27 Mar 2013 , 7:49pm
post #57 of 65

A

Original message sent by CWR41

Jason, there's no such thing as a landscaping emergency and she didn't say the problem had to be fixed before an "event".

I should clarify...in the OP's situation she is making a cake for an event, and the customer complained based on product quality (which can be subjective). In Shelby's example the problem was early cancellation, which is not subjective or based on quality. My question was how a landscaping company would react to a situation where a customer complained about quality of the service, and the equivalent of $40 (either a refund or equivalent services) could make the problem go away.

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reginaherrin Posted 27 Mar 2013 , 8:00pm
post #58 of 65

1) I think you missed the part where she says that they demanded an extra mow for free which they refused to do.  2) I was responding to your question of how long she would fight them for $40 worth of service. Again, whatever they did to the cake after it left my location should not an is not my responsibility.  Who knows if she slammed on the brakes or even dropped the cake, that certainly shouldn't make it my fault.  If I buy a glass item at a store and get home and drop it on the floor I would certainly not blame the company I bought it at and demand a refund.  You are right in that there is nothing I can do to fix the cake for the event that is already passed but again if it was not my fault then why should I.  She said she did not even serve it and had to buy another cake even though it was only the top tier she said was messed up.  I have heard a lot of other stories on here where the cake fell and they just took it to the back and cut it up and still served it so she could have  easily still served the cake.  Also, she could have easily called me the day of the party as well if it was that big of a problem.  I know you will probably say she had a lot of things she could have been doing but again if it was a big part of the party and she was that unhappy then she could have taken 5 minutes out of her time to give me a call especially since they had enough time to go get another cake from another store.  So you automatically give refunds in cases like these regardless of the reason?  Say the cake was a $500 cake and they called the next day to get half their money back, you would automatically give them it since it would take too much time fighting?

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jason_kraft Posted 27 Mar 2013 , 8:06pm
post #59 of 65

A

Original message sent by reginaherrin

So you automatically give refunds in cases like these regardless of the reason?  Say the cake was a $500 cake and they called the next day to get half their money back, you would automatically give them it since it would take too much time fighting?

If the amount is relatively small I will just grant the refund. We've had a couple instances where customers ordered basic 8" BC cakes (priced at $49) and didn't enjoy them, in both cases I immediately voided their checks.

If a customer is asking for a $250 refund, then it's worth the time to investigate and see what the issue was. Again, it's a business decision.

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reginaherrin Posted 27 Mar 2013 , 9:54pm
post #60 of 65

A policy is a policy for a company for a reason and should not be altered just because of the price.  It really doesn't make sense that just because it not so much money they you would just automatically give the money back without some kind of investigation. Maybe I should start ordering cakes from you so that I can go back and tell you I did not like the cake to get my money back without having to give a good reason or a picture of the cake or even the leftover cake to show you that I did not like it.  I understand each situation can be different and sometimes there is a good reason and a refund should be given but there are also more bad reasons that do not deserve a refund.  Also, if it got around that you automatically gave refunds for cheaper cakes then I can see that hurting your business alot by having unethical people order cakes from you then demand their money back knowing you will just fork over the refund.  I can also see customers getting mad if they want a refund for a more expensive cake knowing you gave a refund for cheaper cakes to their friends or family just because it was less expensive money but wont give a refund on their more expensive cake.  If I bought a shirt for $20 and jeans for $150 from the same store and wore both items and got them dirty and then tried to take them back, even though on my receipt it clearly states no refunds for washed or worn items, and they told me I can get a refund on the shirt but not the pants because they were cheaper then I would be mad and so confused.

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