ATTENTION **Update on 7 Spet 00**
We now only have a signed return receipt slip signed by Jerry at the end of August and still he has chosen not to refund our money. We are still waiting on feedback on our Attorney General claim. We have decided to contact the Jerry's local authority office and are looking into taking him to small claims court. He has not even remotely try to help nor offered any communication outside of 1 or 2 phone calls around the 6 month mark.

I cannot even remotely fathom what is the problem here outside of blatent theft. No merchendise, he charged our credit card for a perchase that was never received and wasted 7+ months our lives and interest on our credit card.

We will not let this drop.





ATTENTION **Update on 21 Aug 00**
Jerry still did not send money....we contacted him last week and he said he would get around to mailing it. We have given up on trying to work with this individual, we have contacted a lawyer and the Attorney General's office. We have been asked not to contact him by phone anymore regarding this issue and to keep all correspondance to Certified Mailings. We are filing for fraud and letting the USPS know our update in this.

"Jerry, if you read this, I would suggest Fed-Ex Overnight, ASAP."




ATTENTION! **update Aug 9th**
Due to a recent call with Jerry, the heading above was apparently misleading. We could not verify shipment of package(s) and since no verification was sent, nor offered to us and the time it took for a apparent claim to be filed, we were not going to assume it was shipped. However, this has caused a disgracing sore spot with LA, and after a heated and unprofessional phone call, we will change the heading to something more appropiate for the time being. We have promsied Jerry that after he sends the check out "tomarrow", we will place a update in this report stating that the matter is closed. We will keep our word.




All the following is true, and based on what we have gone through so far...I want to point out we are not attempting to "slander" Lighting Audio, nor Jerry, this is not our intent. Our concern thus far has been the excessivly long period of time for a refund....if the process only took up to a month, we obviously would still be upset as consumers, but stuff like this happens and would not have escalated to this point. This report is offered as documentation of a event that took (is still taken) place...



I ordered a set of amps from http://www.top7.com/lightning , a business called Lightning Audio. I have purchaced from them before. I ordered 2 amps. I was told they would take a few days for back shipment and asured they would be shipped prior to a stated date. 2 weeks after stated date, I check my credit card statement and find the shipping and the cost of the item has been charged.

I give the items 2 more weeks to arrive. They never do. I contact the company and was assured they were sent out at a priority rate and were insured. I give the items one more week to arrive. Nothing. I contacted the company a 2nd time, was again told they were and shipped and they would contat post office to file claim. 1 week later still no word from them.

I contact them for a 3rd time. I was told that I had to write a letter stateing I never received them and it should've been my responsilbilty to file a claim. I was not given a insurance number and I was told by the post office that the shipper was to file the claim. I placed this order in Febuary. It is now almost April. I've contacted my credit card company and all they will do is not charge interest while they "check it out".

I just got off the phone with Lightning Audio. They still tell me they are waiting for the Post Office to file and maybe if I call and help push it through, it might be quicker serivce. Feburary through May. I'm out over $600.

UPDATE: Jerry's father is now involved, apparently having business troubles, and relayed story that this isn't the first time this had happened. Still giving run around and was requested to contact USPS myself and check status. PO clerk gives conflicting reaccount of LA's story. Recontacted LA, once again, "assured" check would be in mail (to save on CC refund costs, yet I've been paying interest on this amount since it's inception) Contacted BBB in LA's local area (apparently a d**n card is sent, whoo h*o.).

This wouldn't be a concern if refund was given when PO confirmed no dilevery on package, but when they (a online business) must wait till they have money in hand (claims for missing articles....cut and dry case??!!) before considering refund?!

Will update as weeks go by.

UPDATE:
Its now July 1 2000. I have not received any phone calls or email from Jerry or his father. I called 3 times, one answer giving me the statement, "we are still waiting", the other time noone picked up. I have filed a mail fraud report with the postmaster general. We'll see what this comes up with.

UPDATE:
On the 24th of July, we call Jerry back at work. He now tells us that he wasn't going to wait for the Postal Service refund to arrive and sent us a check. It was "sent" the previous Thursday.
It is now August 2nd, still no check has arrived. Its been 2 weeks sent the check was supposedly "sent".

7 months for a refund folks....you wanna buy something from this guy??

...........OWNERS Rebuttal.........................

From: Jerry Edwards [SMTP:air1438@hotmail.com]

To: info@ripoffreport.com

Subject: Rebuttal to Claim
Sent: 8/3/00 9:45 PM

Hello,

To start with .. I feel it is very unprofessional of your company and website to post accusations about retailers then make no attempt to contact the retailer and see if this is true.. It is funny how this lady.. #########.. failed to leave out plenty of key aspects of this and lied on the report as well.. In the heading .. a matter of fact.. The shipment of amps did ship.. Where was it going?? Japan...

This shipment was an international shipment and USPS lost the amps!!! I have proof of purchase of the goods and proof of shipment as well. I just got the refund from USPS less than 2 weeks ago.. I have additionally already issued a refund to her..

Most internet sites will not even ship product out of the US.. I do it as a special thing for people abroad.. There is a ton of risk involved.. Fraudulent Credit cards, lost shipments, broken shipments etc.. USPS lost the shipment and that is why they issued a check to me for $532.. the insurance I put on it..

If she wanted a tracking number, quicker delivery, etc.. She should have paid for UPS or Fedex.. But she wanted USPS because the US military gets stuffed shipped overseas for domestic rates.. For more information purposes USPS offers no "tracking number" on international shipments.. Additionally shipments to Japan USPS you cannot even get signature required ... So point
proven.. I know she has waited a while for this and I am sorry it came out like this..

As she mentioned she had bought from me before and there was no problem. Sometimes things don't go the way we want them to.. I lost money on the deal as well.. And someone at USPS or over in Japan got 2 free amps..

Please get all the facts before posting stuff like this ... You might get yourselves in trouble..

Jerry Edwards
Lightning Audio Video and Computers
http://www.lightav.com
mailto:t7prices@top7.com
Toll free order line 877-390-1599
Technical Questions 805-528-6123

......NOTE FROM: .....badbusinessbureau.com

Sure Jerry, good story.



Consumer's rebuttal:

The item should have been sent to a APO location in Germany, not Japan. There is ALWAYS a signature (and a ID Card no less) required for insured parcels arriving inbound (any military person can attest to the long waits in line to pick up packages because of this.) Also, I do believe I asked the items be shipped Registered mail to begin with JUST for the d**n tracking number. Because of the last order we placed, we found out it was shipped insured (cheaper and no tracking number) when we called to find out where is the package! If it was shipped Registered, we could have back tracked it to point of departure.

USPS has no problem sending packages to US Armed Forces locations around the world, its very expediant for the process that's needed to travel around the globe. No there is no tracking number, because pacakges do take longer then stateside mailings and you can imangine the folks who are not used to this longer service would be filing claims left and right.

The facts I written above are correct. There was a problem with the order made prior to this last one, it took a unusual amount of time to arrive (Jerry chose to hold items to ship the same time as a backordered item...we waited 3 weeks before calling to find out this out.)
Jerry has recieved his refund from the USPS already. As soon as this check arrives, we'll let this drop. We have been VERY patient in this, even though we have every right not too. This is intolorable, no excuse should be made to have to wait this long for a non delivered pacakge or a refund. Any internet site that ships USPS WILL ship to overseas locations, period. Even if we used UPS or Fed-Ex, if we did not receive the package, we still have a problem. Sure, USPS messed up a bit, ok, but as a online retailer, a package not delivered should be compensated somehow, not leave the customer out to dry. We didn't even recieve a insurance number till we asked for it almost three months later trying to help out this company filing the claim!!

It is August 4th, we are still waiting for our check.