Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/18/84; site peora.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!mhuxr!mhuxt!houxm!hjuxa!petsd!peora!jer From: jer@peora.UUCP (J. Eric Roskos) Newsgroups: net.rec.photo,net.consumers Subject: Re: New York City Camera Stores (47th Street) Message-ID: <1931@peora.UUCP> Date: Fri, 24-Jan-86 13:38:40 EST Article-I.D.: peora.1931 Posted: Fri Jan 24 13:38:40 1986 Date-Received: Sat, 25-Jan-86 08:46:55 EST References: <163@batcomputer.TN.CORNELL.EDU> <4841@alice.UUCP> <490@mhuxl.UUCP> <11498@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU> Organization: Concurrent Computer Corporation, Orlando, Fl Lines: 57 Xref: watmath net.rec.photo:1790 net.consumers:4010 > I too had similar problems with 47th Street. Unfortunately, I didn't use a > credit card and ended up getting beat for about $100. I've found this discussion interesting, since 47th Street Photo is my favorite mail-order photo store -- I order a very large amount of equipment and supplies from them. I like them because they are reasonable, efficient, and don't retroactively bill me for "additional shipping" the way some of the others always do (e.g., B&H, just yesterday, sent me a roll of VPS404 film, 12 sheets of (thin) mounting board, and billed me an additional $2.00 (in addition to the $5.50 I already sent) for shipping.) For $5.50 FSSP has always shipped similar items without an additional charge. I tend to feel that people who have complaints about mail order companies of this sort often have unrealistic expectations of mail order companies. If you order by mail, you should order something that's advertised in the catalog, expect it in 30 days (as provided by law) unless they say it will take longer, and not expect to be able to have the amenities of arguing with the dealer over price, delivery dates, etc. that you have from a local store. You should also know what it is that you're ordering before you order it, to avoid disappointments if the (usually brief) descriptions in the catalog suggest to you something that the item doesn't turn out to be. You should also be careful to document everything in case of disputes. You can't expect the impossible, like deciding 30 days is too long, cancelling the order, and then refusing to pay for it because it had already been shipped when you cancelled the order; nor expecting complicated order changes after you've placed the order. These are the things you pay extra for from a local dealer. If the company acts in a fraudulent manner, New York has a very effective District Attorney's office to get the problem straightened out, equipped with fill-in-the-blank (by the D.A.'s office) forms which they send to the company saying "deliver the merchandise in ______ days and notify us that you have done so, or send the customer a refund." I know firsthand that this works even with companies who end up on 60 Minutes for mail fraud. (However, if you do enough buying by mail, trying numerous companies, it is inevitable that you may eventually encounter a dishonest one, and thus should use caution with new ones.) Regarding the use of credit cards... I would be more wary of using a credit card, since it provides a greater opportunity for someone to obtain and use your credit card number illegally. On the other hand, with a money order the *most* you can lose is the amount of the money order (as compared to a check, where the check could be altered). While you have the right to dispute the amount on the credit card bill, the total amount involved may be much larger than what you originally paid (especially since many companies reserve the right to add additional charges after shipping the item to cover "additional postage and handling charges"). -- UUCP: Ofc: jer@peora.UUCP Home: jer@jerpc.CCC.UUCP CCC DNS: peora, pesnta US Mail: MS 795; CONCURRENT Computer Corp. SDC; (A Perkin-Elmer Company) 2486 Sand Lake Road, Orlando, FL 32809-7642 LOTD(2)=a "A people without history is not redeemed from time, For history is a pattern of timeless moments." --TSE