Pinzoo deceptive homepage, limited hours of operation, ties up your money waiting for your minutes. Glendale California
The first person who wrote about Pinzoo was correct when he/she stated:
"Only AFTER they had pre-authorized my card, tying my money up with them, did a page come up saying that the first time a customer makes an order, it must be confimed by a personal phone conversation and that could only take place during their business hours of 9:00am - 6:00pm PST. "
This just happened to me. But I waited for someone to call me but they couldn't call me because I have no minutes on my cellphone. So I added an additional phone number which is my Mother's house because I am 1500 miles away from home because Dad has a brain tumor removed last week. My cellphone is my lifeline to my children 1500 miles away as Mom does not have long distance on her landline. I am also disabled and live on a fixed income.
My account status changed to... unable to reach me by telephone. So I hit the CHAT button and gave them my Mother's telephone number. They called and wanted to know if this was my home number.. "No". Then they wanted to know the nearest cross street to my home address. Ok, that was easy. Now they tell me that they'll call me back because they have to call my bank to verify my information. Hmmmm... now I'm scratching my head. This doesn't sound right. I ask "So you have to call my bank in order to charge my credit card?" Yes. Ummm, that sounds kind of weird. Why don't I just cancel the order and I'll log onto AT&T directly. OK... end of conversation.
Then I log into my bank account and find a purchase authorization from Pinzoo. Hmmm... so they DID charge my credit card and the person on the phone lied to me. Now I get back onto chat and ask them to release my fund because now I don't have enough money in my bank account to buy minutes from AT&T. They tell me that they didn't charge my card and round n round we go.
So I ask for the PIN to be given to me because they've already charged my credit/debit card. Nope, can't give me the PIN and I have to wait 24 hours or whenever my bank decides to get rid of the purchase authorization.
So now I'm sitting here with no minutes on my AT&T cellphone, no money, SSDI arrives tomorrow and at some point I might get back the money that Pinzoo charged my credit/debit card.
This service is not for everyone due to their limited hours of service and their service is NOT instant.
The homepage is deceptive and kind of close to Bait and Switch as it states the following: "All Wireless Refill Minutes are currently ON SALE and are delivered instantly via E-Mail." Instantly still means instantly, doesn't it?
Also, not listed on the homepage is some information I found by browsing their website. It appears that this may be a service that tracks all of your calls OR the call tracking may be an ADD ON service. I don't know... website is difficult to understand.
I told the person I was chatting with that I was going to report this as a scam unless they give me my PIN or give me my money back right now as I am disabled with NO MONEY. The person I chatted with did not care and told me to go ahead and report it. I hit the close button on the chat window before thinking of cutting and pasting the entire conversation. My account still states PENDING:
"Account Pending Approval: We're trying to contact you!
To insure security, your first purchase must be confirmed by phone. Order confirmations are conducted during our customer service operating hours of 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. PST, 7 days a week. Our attempts to contact you at the following phone number/s have been unsuccessful:
Phone 1: 207xxxxxxx
Phone 2: 772xxxxxxx
This process is required only on your first purchase. All future purchases will be instantly posted. If you are not physically at the these numbers above, please call us toll-free at 1-888-697-4696."
Reporting 'bait and switch' to attorney general and internet scam to FBI next.
Crystal
Portland, Maine
U.S.A.
3 Updates & Rebuttals
Crystalinme
North Waterboro,Maine,
U.S.A.
Conversation with Owner of Pinzoo
#4Author of original report
Mon, March 23, 2009
The owner just called me to try to resolve my problem. My problem could not be resolved because, as I showed him, his website does indeed lie to New Customers. He and I stepped through the pages on his site... pinzoo.com and right before I was to confirm my purchase, I scrolled down the page and read this:
Attention New Customers!
All PINs are delivered via E-mail instantly. Purchase your AT&T Go Refill Minutes INSTANT PIN online and have it delivered instantly via email. Your AT&T Go Refill Minutes INSTANT PINs will also be made available online via your secure account order history page.
All transactions are processed on our secure transaction server that ensures all customer data is safe. Our systems are audited daily to ensure the absolute highest level of security.
Your privacy Is important to us. Your personal information is safe. We will never share your email address or personal information with any third-party entity.
Need Assistance?
Our professionally trained customer service representatives are here to assist you with all your telecommunications needs:
* By Phone: Toll-free 1-888-MY-PINZOO (1-888-697-4696)
* By Email: help@pinzoo.com
* Hours: 9:00 am to 6:00 pm PST, 7 days a week.
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The owner of pinzoo agreed with me that this paragraph is incorrect. If you are a new customer, then you have to wait until a representative from pinzoo calls you to verify your information. Had I known this, then I would have made my purchase at eBay where I have purchased before and had no problem using my credit card to have a non-tangible item emailed to me.
The owner offered to set up an account for me and give me free minutes. I am not interested in this type of bribery, it does not solve the problem that I had and it does not solve the future problems that new customers will have. Their website needs to be changed to reflect their policy of verifyiing new customer between 9am and 6pm PST BEFORE sending an INSTANT pin. Until Pinzoo does this, IMO Pinzoo is using Bait and Switch tactics.
P.S. If the CEO writes a rebuttal and says that I am / was too busy with family matters to properly hear him out, this is utterly false. I am 1500 miles away from home because Dad had a brain tumor, Mom works full time and I am disabled and therefore able to be here with Dad as a companion. I am horrified at the insinuation the CEO of Pinzoo made when he told me that he 'understands that I am really busy with family matters'. Disabled does not mean stupid. And caring for a sick family member does not make someone 'too busy' to understand logic. I have a college degree and 20 yrs of experience in IT with a focus on web technologies. I have created e-commerce websites and I am utterly confused about why Pinzoo cannot or will not process orders immediately - as they advertise. If they're not going to process orders immediately, it's simple, change your advertising! Otherwise, IMO it's bait and switch.
Crystalinme
North Waterboro,Maine,
U.S.A.
Conversation with Owner of Pinzoo
#4Author of original report
Mon, March 23, 2009
The owner just called me to try to resolve my problem. My problem could not be resolved because, as I showed him, his website does indeed lie to New Customers. He and I stepped through the pages on his site... pinzoo.com and right before I was to confirm my purchase, I scrolled down the page and read this:
Attention New Customers!
All PINs are delivered via E-mail instantly. Purchase your AT&T Go Refill Minutes INSTANT PIN online and have it delivered instantly via email. Your AT&T Go Refill Minutes INSTANT PINs will also be made available online via your secure account order history page.
All transactions are processed on our secure transaction server that ensures all customer data is safe. Our systems are audited daily to ensure the absolute highest level of security.
Your privacy Is important to us. Your personal information is safe. We will never share your email address or personal information with any third-party entity.
Need Assistance?
Our professionally trained customer service representatives are here to assist you with all your telecommunications needs:
* By Phone: Toll-free 1-888-MY-PINZOO (1-888-697-4696)
* By Email: help@pinzoo.com
* Hours: 9:00 am to 6:00 pm PST, 7 days a week.
------------------------------------------------------------------
The owner of pinzoo agreed with me that this paragraph is incorrect. If you are a new customer, then you have to wait until a representative from pinzoo calls you to verify your information. Had I known this, then I would have made my purchase at eBay where I have purchased before and had no problem using my credit card to have a non-tangible item emailed to me.
The owner offered to set up an account for me and give me free minutes. I am not interested in this type of bribery, it does not solve the problem that I had and it does not solve the future problems that new customers will have. Their website needs to be changed to reflect their policy of verifyiing new customer between 9am and 6pm PST BEFORE sending an INSTANT pin. Until Pinzoo does this, IMO Pinzoo is using Bait and Switch tactics.
P.S. If the CEO writes a rebuttal and says that I am / was too busy with family matters to properly hear him out, this is utterly false. I am 1500 miles away from home because Dad had a brain tumor, Mom works full time and I am disabled and therefore able to be here with Dad as a companion. I am horrified at the insinuation the CEO of Pinzoo made when he told me that he 'understands that I am really busy with family matters'. Disabled does not mean stupid. And caring for a sick family member does not make someone 'too busy' to understand logic. I have a college degree and 20 yrs of experience in IT with a focus on web technologies. I have created e-commerce websites and I am utterly confused about why Pinzoo cannot or will not process orders immediately - as they advertise. If they're not going to process orders immediately, it's simple, change your advertising! Otherwise, IMO it's bait and switch.
Crystalinme
North Waterboro,Maine,
U.S.A.
Conversation with Owner of Pinzoo
#4Author of original report
Mon, March 23, 2009
The owner just called me to try to resolve my problem. My problem could not be resolved because, as I showed him, his website does indeed lie to New Customers. He and I stepped through the pages on his site... pinzoo.com and right before I was to confirm my purchase, I scrolled down the page and read this:
Attention New Customers!
All PINs are delivered via E-mail instantly. Purchase your AT&T Go Refill Minutes INSTANT PIN online and have it delivered instantly via email. Your AT&T Go Refill Minutes INSTANT PINs will also be made available online via your secure account order history page.
All transactions are processed on our secure transaction server that ensures all customer data is safe. Our systems are audited daily to ensure the absolute highest level of security.
Your privacy Is important to us. Your personal information is safe. We will never share your email address or personal information with any third-party entity.
Need Assistance?
Our professionally trained customer service representatives are here to assist you with all your telecommunications needs:
* By Phone: Toll-free 1-888-MY-PINZOO (1-888-697-4696)
* By Email: help@pinzoo.com
* Hours: 9:00 am to 6:00 pm PST, 7 days a week.
------------------------------------------------------------------
The owner of pinzoo agreed with me that this paragraph is incorrect. If you are a new customer, then you have to wait until a representative from pinzoo calls you to verify your information. Had I known this, then I would have made my purchase at eBay where I have purchased before and had no problem using my credit card to have a non-tangible item emailed to me.
The owner offered to set up an account for me and give me free minutes. I am not interested in this type of bribery, it does not solve the problem that I had and it does not solve the future problems that new customers will have. Their website needs to be changed to reflect their policy of verifyiing new customer between 9am and 6pm PST BEFORE sending an INSTANT pin. Until Pinzoo does this, IMO Pinzoo is using Bait and Switch tactics.
P.S. If the CEO writes a rebuttal and says that I am / was too busy with family matters to properly hear him out, this is utterly false. I am 1500 miles away from home because Dad had a brain tumor, Mom works full time and I am disabled and therefore able to be here with Dad as a companion. I am horrified at the insinuation the CEO of Pinzoo made when he told me that he 'understands that I am really busy with family matters'. Disabled does not mean stupid. And caring for a sick family member does not make someone 'too busy' to understand logic. I have a college degree and 20 yrs of experience in IT with a focus on web technologies. I have created e-commerce websites and I am utterly confused about why Pinzoo cannot or will not process orders immediately - as they advertise. If they're not going to process orders immediately, it's simple, change your advertising! Otherwise, IMO it's bait and switch.