where's my ipod? bah!

[Hamilcar]

I ordered an ipod nano from the tossers that are mydv 12-12-05. It was intended as a christmas present for my niece (whose ten year old brother died of cancer earlier this year). I (foolishly) paid for the item with my debit card, and noticed that the money was debited from my account on 15-12-05 (at least in my case they did debit the correct amount rather than conning me with a conversion fee). I had already emailed inquiries@mydv.co.uk to ask when I would receive the item. No response or acknowledgment. On Saturday (17-12-05) I managed to connect to their 'live chat' crap. Here is the log:

Sandra: Welcome to our live chat service, allow me to introduce myself as your chat representative.
Simon: g'day
Sandra: You too
Sandra: How can I help you?
Simon: I sent an email on Monday asking if you could advise when my order would be delivered, but I've had no response...
Simon: The order no is #*****
Sandra: Your order is currently being processed at the warehouse and will be shipped out as soon as the warehouse sets a shipment date for you; also you will be emailed that information
Sandra: I can assure you that you will receive the order before Christmas since you have placed the order well in advance of our cut-off time.
Simon: well that's okay then...
Simon: when is your cut off time/
Sandra: The average delivery time is 7-10 days.
Simon: ta

Suffice to say still nothing has arrived, and when I check my order online it is still shown as not dispatched - so hardly likely to arrive by christmas. Now I find the 'live chat' simply asks you to type a message and then sends it and disappears, and of course the phone number (allegedly answered till midnight) is not answered.

Sadly it was only this evening that I thought it would be an idea to do a search on mydv... Clearly I am not alone. So far I have telephoned my bank (Halifax), who were not particularly helpful - as I paid on my debit card, the money has gone straight from my account. I explained the possibility that mydv had gone into liquidation, and the lady at my bank seemed to think the matter was out of their hands (her response was along the lines of "oh dear"). She gave me a phone number given by mydv when taking the payment, but on trying it (0207 669 4270) found it no longer worked...

Do you think there is a likelihood that the ipod will materialise? If so, will it actually be the one I ordered? Given their inability to answer the phone/acknowledge email, how would I go about cancelling my order and demanding a refund? And is it true that debit card payments do not have the same protection as credit card payments? Grrrrrrr.

[misty30xx]

you are definately not alone...
my advice is this...i am with the halifax and i also paid with a debit card..
Be persistant, get on the phone to halifax and state that you wish to file a chargeback, do not take no for an answer. It is not out of their hands.
Halifax have just refunded me the chargeback amount and are investigating myDV. so they are aware... if it helps ask to speak to nicola rafferty on the phonelines 08457 20 30 40. when presented with the automated request dont push any buttons just let it connect to an advisor, ask for nicola and explain...tell her you are aware you are not the only halifax customer with this problem and she will fill out a chargeback over the phone for you then email it to your local branch for you to go in and sign...

good luck and be persistant...

i found the best time to ring myDV and get a response is before 8am...

[bazzzar]

Hamilcar

I had the misfortune of being left in the dark with myDV. I ordered my Ipod on the 6th Dec, after two weeks of being told, sorry 'GUARANTEED' that I would receive my Ipod in time for Christmas, I have now had to pursue it further with my bank, but the bank are now saying that I will have to wait 30 days before the claim can be passed onto it's disputes dept. I also paid by Debit card, but I think you still get the VISA backing (as it's a VISA Debit). I thought I would try to wind up one of the robots on the Live chat session, but it didn't work, same old answers:

Sandra: Welcome to our live chat service, allow me to introduce myself as your chat representative.
P***: hello
Sandra: Hi
P***: is it possible to tell me if my order has been dispatched
Sandra: Can I have the order number please?
P***: *****
Sandra: Your order is currently being processed at the warehouse and will be shipped out as soon as the warehouse sets a shipment date for you; also you will be emailed that information
P***: i was told by a gentleman I called last week to expect it this week, this item was meant to be a christmas present, and how do i contact sales if there is no answer on the phone, i have been trying since 9am, it is now 14:20
Sandra: This is a result of the high holiday call volume we are currently facing. For simple shipment inquiries we are proactively emailing all customers and we request that you be patient, as you will get your products for the holidays. If you need to change your address, etc. I would suggest you call back in the morning at around 8-10am GMT that's when the call volume is low.
P***: and what about the extra money that was debited from my card, the site said the item was 129.95, but 132.55 was debited...isn't that illegal not to inform the purchaser of extra money being taken?
Sandra: As of Dec. 10th this will never happen to you or anyone else again. At the same time I would like to tell you this was because our previous bank completed all transactions in dollars not GBP. This is what caused the overcharge. Please give me a moment to request to have that amount put into your account within the next 7 to 10 business days
P***: could I have a full refund then and take my custom elsewhere?
Sandra: You will have to call our customer service dept and have a word with the order review dept and they will be able to assist you better with the cancellation request Since we are Chat support we can only provide you with limited information and we are not authorized to take cancellation on Chat sessions
P***: ok, i will inform my bank of an illegal transaction and they can persue it further...i am totally dissatisified with the lack of communication and not being able to talk to anyone via phone, all I wanted was to order a item for a family member, but get left in the dark in the process as well as being ripped off....thanks for the help that you have given me anyway...Have a nice day
Sandra: Thank you for chatting. Good-bye.

After this chat session, I was really cheesed off, so I sent a threatening email - the usual stuff, lawyers etc and also requested the cancellation of my order. That was on the 19th Dec, no surprise that I have yet to receive a reply? So, the bank WILL be dealing with it after Christmas, and all this for the saving of £10....Jeeeze, how tight am I :head:

Please forgive my spelling! :crazy:

[prawnstar]

Sandra: As of Dec. 10th this will never happen to you or anyone else again. At the same time I would like to tell you this was because our previous bank completed all transactions in dollars not GBP. This is what caused the overcharge.

This part is interesting, and there have been reports people have been charged correctly. It also implies that the "new" bank will be charging in GBP...

Can anyone confirm if this is the case?

[climp66]

I have been charged correctly in GBP after purchasing an ipod nano. Maybe they are getting their act together!! Personally, I think there's more chance of George Best winning the world cup for England.

[mercinary]

I agree. They are attempting some things to get the A.G. off of their back. It would appear that the overcharging could have been a mistake. I do wonder how much overcharging they got away with though!

Note that they still aren't advertising that all items are shipped from the US, nor are they advertising exactly what SPEC the products are!

-Merc

[Laney]

I ordered the ipod mini on 121205 as it was the only place that had them. I really should have known better lol. They have now disappeared off the site, so god knows what will turn up, despite being asured by Tanya that i will receive the ipod mini. Thanks Tanya, yeah rite. I have took the advice of leaving it to my credit card company to sort out. Luckily it was for my 16 year old son who understands whats happening, i would have been gutted if it had been a present for my younger son. Has anyone actually received an ipod mini and was it all in tact lol. I am not sure what should be with it now that it has gone off the site now. Does anyone know what i should expect?

Laney

p.s does anyone know anywhere else where i could purchase an ipod mini now?

[prawnstar]

IDoes anyone know what i should expect?

p.s does anyone know anywhere else where i could purchase an ipod mini now?

I would look on ebay. This is the only place that you can now get the mini. Also the descriptions they have should tell you what is included.

This is similar to what happened with my camera. myDV weren't even aware it was no longer a current model and so if out of stock they would be unable to get anymore. When I pointed this out they removed it from the website. I would suspect it is the same for the iPOD mini...