Complaint Review: HandsNpaws Sophistication Alley - Clifton New Jersey

I placed an internet order for a dog car console carrier on August 17th, 2006. I used "regular delivery" which is (3 to 15 business days (not including weekends or holidays). I did not need the carrier ASAP and thought 3-15 business days was reasonable. I paid with a credit card and noticed my account was charged on September 1st. By the 11th of September I still had not received my item or any email indicating the status of my order. This was past the 15 day period according to my calendar.

September 11th I emailed HandsNpaws to check the status of my order. ME: "I have not received my order yet. Can you tell me when I can expect it? Thank you.

HANDSNPAWS Email RESPONSE September 14th, 2006:

"Hi..it looks like you have three week processing selected on this order...so that's why it will ship around now, if it has not shipped already. It would normally go out sooner anyway, but we're a bit behind right now because of our new store opening. Of course, we will send you a tracking number as soon as it ships. This will be in a separate notice for you.

Actually, we have a special promotion going on right now to celebrate our expansion and that will be included in your shipping email. We are expanding with an additional location to offer our customers faster shipping, expanded product lines and better customer service hours.

As a gesture of our appreciation we are sharing with customers who have ordered around this transition time freebies and one of our grand discount coupons (25% to 35% off) with their next purchase. Coupons will be in their shipping notice. Thank you for your patience and sorry if this has been longer than you anticipated."

I would have been OK with that response had I received an email or the website had mentioned it at the time of my order.

I replied back on September 14th, 2006: "I assumed since you took my money on the 1st the item would have shipped out on the 1st or 5th. I am disappointed with your service and shipping policy. Please send my item as soon as possible since my account has already been charged for the merchandise. Thank you."

HANDSNPAWS EMAIL RESPONSE on September 19th, 2006: "Well, you assumed incorrectly. We don't ship COD. And you selected 15 business day processing and paid less shipping. You shouldn't want something for nothing. It's a very poor attitude!".

ME on September 19th, 2006: "When will my item ship???"

I received no response after the 9/19/06 email from HandsNpaws. In the mean time I found the RipOff report and read about the other customers who had had trouble with this company.

I sent 3 more emails asking for a shipping update....all very civil as I didn't want to get stiffed with no item and no refund. FINALLY on September 27th, 2006 I received an email notification that my item had been shipped and would arrive on October 3rd....it did not actually arrive until the 4th because it was not picked up or sent on the 27th but rather the 28th.

So, today October 4th, 2006, I finally received my item in a USED cardboard box with no company emblem and no plastic wrap surrounding the carrier and no bubble wrap to protect it in transit - so I have no idea if it has been previously used. I guess you get what you pay for. The prices may be low but the customer service by HandsNpaws is even lower.

I do A LOT of Internet shopping and this place is the WORST... 48 days from the date of order to the date of receipt. I guess I shouldn't be surprised since EVERY HOLIDAY that appears on the calendar (and some that don't appear on the calendar) HandsNpaws is CLOSED. So, it may actually be 15 Business Days from the time of my order when you take into account the number of actual "work days" this place has. Take for instance this week, here are their hours for the week of October 2nd,, 2006:

"Please note we will be taking a short vacation from Monday October 6 to Tuesday October 9, 2006. All orders placed during this time will be processed during this time, but will not ship sooner than Wednesday, October 10, 2006. Thank you. Customer Service times this week for phone orders (PST) are:"

Monday-Yom Kippur

Tuesday -11:00am--4:00pm

Wednesday- Closed

Thurdsay : 10:00am--2:00pm

Friday : Closed-Sukkot

Saturday: Closed-Sukkot

Sunday:-Closed-Sukkot

2 days of customer service work (9 hrs total) 3 week days off & DO NOT include the weekend. They are closed more than they are open. I should ask to see if they have any job openings. lol!

Rebecca

Stillwater, Minnesota
U.S.A.