The Merch Collective cancelled my order without notice and charged me $32.11
I placed an order on behalf of myself and a few friends. The order went through perfectly fine, but 3 days later I was notified by email that the order had been cancelled. They did not try to contact me first to make inquiries, they just completely cancelled the order. To add insult to injury, they didn't even refund the entire amount. The Merch Collective charged me $32.11 to cancel my order.
I wholeheartedly applaud businesses that have good security measures to combat fraud, but to not contact the customer first shows very poor customer care.
They did not explain the exact reason why it was flagged/cancelled but suggestions were:
-Using a VPN
-Discrepancy or distance between billing/shipping addresses.
I think something like 25% of the internet utilize VPNs to protect their privacy, as do I. There is nothing inherently nefarious about use of a VPN. I don't recall seeing anything on their website warning potential customers that using a VPN may automatically cancel your order without notice.
As for billing/shipping address discrepancies. I provided my home address as the billing address, but the shipping address is a shipping depot just on the other side of the US/Canada border. Shipping items from the US to Canada can get expensive, not just shipping cost but additional duties applied are often much higher compared to picking the item up on the other side of the border and paying the duty when you cross over. Again, this is a common practice, and what if I was shipping the item as a gift? Once again, if they had simply contacted me and inquired this could have been avoided.
To top it off, one of the items that were purchased are no longer available on their website, so I can't even ask one of my freinds to place the order for us. Worse still, two of the friends that I ordered for had the opportunity to purchase the items while they were travelling, but because I let the group know I was placing the order and would order for anyone else interested, they passed. So, they missed out twice, and I'll be the one they will be disappointed with.
Do not make any purchases through The Merch Collective, as apparently there's no guarantee your order will actually go through and they'll rip you off while they're at it.
I've made inquiries with the company via several channels of contact if I could place the order again and how that would be achieved. I have not heard back from them.
Do not buy anything through The Merch Collective. They're uncommunicative and untrustworthy. Be ye warned.
29 September 2024
Unprompted review