"It's frustrating to place an order and have something other than what was ordered shipped. That's what happened here when I ordered a two-wire Toshiba OEM AC adapter for my new laptop. I received a three-wire model instead. When I called Impact the "customer service" person actually had the gall to question me as to why the three-wire was inadequate! In short, not only wasn't it what I needed, it was not what was advertised or what was ordered. They did with some prodding pick up the return shipping but (1) they should have shipped what was ordered and (2) not questioned why the "substitute" was inappropriate (their web site said that they had over 100 of the model I actually ordered in stock). They were slow to admit their mistake and insincere in so doing. I've handled consumer protection matters for nearly three decades. I'd like to give them the benefit of the doubt and chalk this up to a simple mistake (which does happen) but the failure to immediately and adequately make it right makes me think there may be merit to the other less than stellar reviews. That's unforutnate, at a minimum.
The response illustrates the disingenuousness of this company. They advertised one product and shipped another and say there's no difference. Not only is the incorrect and illegal, it's stupid. Anyone knows there's a difference between a two-prong plug and a grounded three-prong plug. The latter is thicker with a larger footprint. Without an adapter a three-prong won't work in a two-prong device or outlet. If I wanted a three-prong device, I would have ordered one but I didn't. I ordered what was advertised and that is exactly what should have been shipped. “It is deemed deceptive advertising … to make, publish, disseminate, circulate or place before the public … an advertisement, announcement, statement or representation of any kind to the public relating to the purchase, sale, hire, use or lease of … merchandise … which advertisement, announcement, statement or representation is part of a plan or scheme the purpose or effect of which is not to sell, purchase, hire, use or lease the … merchandise … as advertised.”
I really didn't want the $38.40 refund (which has yet to be posted). I wanted what I was legally entitled to -- exactly what was advertised and ordered."
"This company defines "Bait and Switch". I purchased a couple parts for my old priter from them, the site was easy to use, the products were clearly described and searched. So I placed my order before 5pm expecting it would ship that day as it says on their site. That night I get an email from them stating "Due to the fluctuations in inventory quantities as well as market prices" the price for my $9.95 is NOW $44.95. "apologize for any inconvenience. If you require further assistance, please call". That was it! So I had to call them, they informed me it was in their fine print. I told them to cancel my order. Went out to their site afterwards, price still shows $9.95. I call that bait and switch, BUYER BEWARE.
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Thanks for the reply to my feedback. It should be very helpful to any poor unsuspenting buyer who might have found something on your site. Putting something in your terms and conditions does A) not make them true, nor B) make them the right thing to do. Based on your T&Cs why wouldn't you just randomly apply prices to your items, let the customer buy them and then send them the price they pay so you can save time updating your 250k products. Show one price, charge another, it's called bait and switch, regardless of what you put in your T&Cs. Interesting side note: all the ratings on your site are "Excellent" but on the 3rd party sites no so good... hmmmmmm. I'm guessing you hand pick those reviews?"
"Buyer Beware! Called to order a power supply. Asked several times if it was new or refurbished. I was assured it was a new unit. They did ship it in a timely manner, but when I installed the unit, it made a horrible racket. I called Impact Computers and told them the problem and the urgency in my needing to get this unit replaced because this is a very important computer for our work. She said that I would have to ship the unit back (at my cost) and they would send me a replacement WHEN they got the unit back AND tested it to make sure I wasn't lying about the unit being defective. I asked why I had to pay for them sending me a defective unit? She said it was on the website but since I called the phone number instead of placing on the site I did not know this was their policy or I assure you, I would not have ordered from them. I sent the unit back via FedEx (to have tracking number) they got it, but then told me the would have to order a replacement since they didn't have another in stock. Looks like they would have done that when they knew I was sending the defective unit back. They did refund my money, however it was minus the shipping I paid in the first place to have it sent to me. So effectively I spent $16 to have a broken piece of junk sent to me, tied up my time and left with a down computer for a week and a half. If you buy from them, make sure you get a magnifying glass for small print. I can't imagine a company making the consumer pay for junk parts.
Just noticed this in a further post... Yuri stated..."If we send you an incorrect item or the item is defective and you wish to get a replacement we will ship the item back to you via UPS 3 Day Service at our expense.
When they got the broken unit back, I was told it would take more than 7 days for the new unit to come in and be shipped back out. To me this is a breach in your own contract. I should have been refunded the full purchase price and Impact Computers should have sent a call tag for the broken unit.
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I've read the reply from impact computers. Right is right and wrong is wrong. If you send someone a faulty piece of equipment you should offer GREAT customer service and not put your faulty problems on the consumers shoulders. A full refund was in order. If the luxury of time had been available to me, I could have waited the WEEKS it would have taken to straighten this mess out. Instead, you have a policy in place that (in my humble opinion) knowingly STEALS! "
"On 9/30/10 I placed an order for a Hewlett-Packard 4.8V battery-backed write cache (BBWC) module with requested 2 day delivery because we needed this part as soon as possible. On 10/5, I still had not received the part. I contacted this company for order status only to be told that their system was down and I would have to call back. After suggesting to this person that he should have someone call me back once the systems were back up, I did receive a call from another person later in the day. This person very much lacked customer service skills as well. She indicated that the package had been shipped, but due to us entering the wrong zip code it was being held at UPS. After speaking with UPS, they verified that there was an incorrect zip code entered although upon reviewing my order confirmation, I discovered that we had in-fact entered the correct zip code. Impact Computers was the one that actually entered the zip code wrong and delayed my package for several more days. When I called Impact to get a refund for the 2 day delievery cost, I was advised that they could not give a refund due to it was their vendors fault. This company does not stand by it's policies clearly stated on their website and they very much lack customer service. I will never use them again! "
"Power supply went bad on my business computer, overnighted a new one from Impact Computers and electronics. it was delivered on time, but was defective, called customer service, would not ship, new one until they received the defective one back. Could not wait that long, my business is severely crippled without a computer. Paid $61.31 + $13.70 for overnight and return shipping and was only refunded for the price of the part. I sent a letter back telling them the situation and told them I expect a full refund, that it was not my fault the first one was defective. Part was advertised as new (have my doubts that it was new) should not of been defective. I would not order anything else from this company and would not recomend ordering anything from this company in no way shape of form. I might as well have thrown $75.01 out the window. Dean E Champion, CMC Automotive Repair"
"I work as a Network Administrator for a managed services company in the Toronto, ontario, Canada area. We had a Smart Array card fail on a customers HP Server. I called HP and they did not have the part, I called Impact and they had the part at an excellent price. It gets even better. From the time I placed the order and until I received the card, it was less than 24 hours. I could not even rebuild a server in this time. That is outstanding service. I will definately be calling again."
"At least 2 sales individuals were impatient, even when taking the sales order. Part was told to be in stock and would ship "today". Part was not in stock. Never received any confirmation/acknowedgement emails. Prices match OEM part prices. There are significantly lower prices to be found even with a simple search. Despite this, the customer service lady was very nice and took feedback without complaint.
We will be avoiding this company. If you do order a critical part from them - be sure to have them manually check warehouse/availability. Watch out for the sales team if they're having a bad day."
"This never arrived after 6 weeks. They are refusing to follow up, stating that it could take up to 90 working days, despite their website stating clearly 5-10 working days. Absolutely disgusted!"
"I ordered a Dell 500 sheet printer tray. Was sent a lexmark white tray. RMAed the wrong tray back to impact computers and got an email saying it was recieved and they had infact sent me the wrong tray on 7-8-2010. Called them today 8-3-2010 to find out why they have not sent me the new tray and was told they could no longer get the tray. I checked there website and found that they still have 6 instock but the price has gone up $40.00. If they are going to not replace there mistake because the price went up then they are not worth shopping. "
"On my first request I recieved a reply indicating that they did not have the item. However, within 24 hrs. they called me. The next conversation I had with thier staf member, I waS told that they could not ship until august 25th.. Again with in 24hrs. I recieve a call telling me that they would ship with in 24 hrs.. Impact Computers does not know the meaning of enough. They will continue to service your needs until all avenues have been exhausted. They are relentless."
"To Whom It May Cocern:
Your staff at Impact Computers & Electronics in Hollywood, Florida provided me with friendly service and I have received my order in a timely manner. I was also pleased the item, thanks so much for your time and assistance. I will recommend my friends and family to shop at your store in the future. Again thanks.
Sincerely,
Mrs. Valenica Gilbert"
"Went to their web page and ordered a - IBM Thinkpad Keyboard Bezel Assembly 27L6746 - directly from their web listing. WRONG PART. Because this ltem was sent in a dark pink plastic sealed container I was unable to determine that this was not the right part. Now I will have to pay their 25% restocking fee. Product was received at impact on the 9th of July and today is the 25th. and I have not received my credit yet. This company is a scam and does nothing to satisfy the customer. I would bet that they will just reseal this item and sell it again and make another 25% and get the product back again. Don't deal with these people.
Reply to the explanation offered by impact. The part I order was the part YOU listed on your web site. I did not order the wrong ... YOU don't have the correct part listed on your site. stay away ??? don't worry I won't be back P.S. it has been 18 days since they received their incorrect part back and they have still not issued a credit ... you out there be the judge
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"Unfortunately, this company is in the business of fraud. A customer finds a specific product on their website, orders and pays for it, Then Impact Computers ships out a cheaper similar product. If the customer notices, they then have to pay to ship it back, AND a restocking fee. My complaint went all the way up to 'Yuri' who said the owner of the company refused to pay to ship back the incorrect product that they sent (and was worth about $30 less than the one I paid for.) And he doesn't care.
Here are a whole bunch of other customer complaints:
http://www99.epinions.com/Impact_Computers_Online_Stores_Services
I ordered and paid for a backlit keyboard for my laptop, and they sent a different product number than the one I ordered, WITHOUT the backlit keys. They will not send me the one I paid for and will only accept a return if I pay for shipping and a 'restocking' fee. I am currently pursuing fraud charges with VISA and the Florida State against them.
I will be surprised if they are still in business next year. But until then, beware and do not waste your money with them!
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Notice in their response below that they say they will pay to ship the correct item, but they do not mention the restocking fee or that the CUSTOMER must pay to ship the item back (even when THEY send the wrong item.)
I challenge them to deny these things!
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If you are one of the many customers that have been cheated by this company and their so called 'policy,' please see this link and follow through with your fraud claim:
http://www.pcguide.com/buy/pur/prob/abu.htm"
"Order hadn't shipped after a week, so I called to see what was up. They said they'd tried to get a hold of me by calling me three times and e-mailing me (which they hadn't). They said that the part I had ordered was no longer in stock and that they'd have to get it from a third party.... which was going to more than double the price of the item. Sounds like a good old bait and switch to me."
"As others say, this merchant showed an item in stock, they sent an email confirming that the item is on the way. Papers in the box indicate the correct item. Another item was sent instead, without my approval and without notification. They then tell me I must pay to ship it back and pay a restocking fee for their mistake.
I am going to have the credit card bank issue a charge back because this is fraud.
Do not use this scumbag company of thieves."