Ever been refused a sale?

[Mindsflight]

Okay so a few days ago i ordered new boots, and today after being charged, payment cleared etc i recieved an email stating that the amount had been refunded without reason by the seller and that i am unable to purchase from them. There are no problems with my bank to warrent such an action, has anyone been in this situation and come to the conclusion that maybe discrimination is involved? This was from a big brand website btw not ebay, i could understand it happening on ebay for good reasons, but this was a well known company... any thoughts? feel free to tell me i am overthinking it haha, have a great day and a better tommorow everyone and happy christmas, kwanzaa, hanukkah and holidays

[at9]

Most likely they were out of stock and did an automatic refund. Did the email imply that you could *never* buy from them? Or is it simply that they couldn't fulfil your order on this occasion? I placed my first order with Aldo the other day and was surprised to get a phone call from them the following day. Turned out their card processing systems wanted additional verification which I gave and there should be no further problems. A friend of mine has been e-marketing manager for a couple of firms and has told me that there are various reasons why some orders are flagged for special attention. A combination of country of origin, amount and other factors. These criteria are, of course, not published and will differ from compnay to company.

[Dr. Shoe]

I would say that the irem being sold out is the most likely reason. I can't see there being any discrimination because for all they know you could have been buying them as a gift, especially this time of year. Please don't worry about it.

[sabotalot]

I've never had any problems at retail outlets. I have bought two pairs of shoes on Ebay; 1 pair of pennyloafer-style Troentorp clogs, and one pair of 4.5" high-heel clogs. No problems with these either.

[Mindsflight]

Thanks for your replies, the email said... "Here at ````, we take the security of our customers very seriously and to protect it we routinely check for anything that gives us cause for concern. As a result, unfortunately we have had to cancel your order (no. )". But i know there are no issues with my bank account, i am awaiting a reply to an email i sent to them. It found it odd that they gave so little information, as the transaction had already been approved the day before they sent me the email. Ive bought literally hundreds of items online and never had this issue before.

[BobHH]

Usually when an item is out of stock, they tell you it is unavailable and ask whether you want to order something else or cancel the order, in which they will issue a refund. Doesn't sound like that is the case here. I could be they had a bad experience with a similar credit card number or address or name or something, so they don't tell you why.

[Dr. Shoe]

Did the name and address for the postage match the name and address of the bank account holder? Even ommitting the"Mr" from the mail-to address when it is present on the bank records can cause problems.

[at9]

All of what the good doctor said plus the small but unpleasant possibility that your card has been cloned and used fraudulently elsewhere. Just because you've had no trouble before doesn't mean it can't happen.

[Mindsflight]

Did the name and address for the postage match the name and address of the bank account holder? Even ommitting the"Mr" from the mail-to address when it is present on the bank records can cause problems.

yes, they match, except the first line of address, but i explained that to them as my bank wont allow me to have my full address as my billing address, but usually when there is a problem with the address, my bank will refuse the transaction, as i said i havent had this problem before so i dont know what is different with this seller, i sent them an email but i doubt il hear from them soon due to the time of year. I always make sure that i perfectly fill in the payment form, so any problem they have with it cant be fixed. My exact postcode is shared by many houses on my street so maybe it is due to a problem with another person covered by same postcode. Either way il just have to wait and see, i cant get what i was going to buy anywhere else either, which is dissapointing, ah well. Again.. thanks for your replies.

[at9]

The acceptance or refusal of your transaction is not usually done directly by your bank. The retailer's card processing company (sometimes a bank, sometimes one of the specialists such as Worldpay) will check your details and flag problem transactions. The precise anatomy of a card transaction is not obvious to the avergae card holder, or even to a retailer. Quite sensibly, the criteria for rejection are not published. One hears of embarrassing cases where a person has his card rejected while shopping in person. If this is an attempted fraudulent usage then fair enough but it can happen by mistake too. If you have one, it's worth trying a different card.

[Confused]

Different companies have different rules and regs. I had a £300 order go through without a problem from one online transaction only for a £12 online transaction to be declined the following week because my telephone number did not match what my bank had on record. When I changed the details of my telephone number with my bank I still had to contact the online retailer via that particular telephone line to verify my identity as my card was black listed with the site. I would not sweat too hard about it.

[roniheels]

If it were me, just for my personal satisfaction, I would politely contact the company and tell them that you did not understand the reason for this occurrence and just for clarification sake, why was this transaction voided. Let them know that you are concerned that it is not a banking issue or a possible identity discrepancy. There may be nothing to it, or there might be something you really do need to pursue.Good luck.

[at9]

No point in asking. You won't find out. The refusal was by the card processing company who do not tell the retailer.

[Tech]

No point in asking. You won't find out. The refusal was by the card processing company who do not tell the retailer.

According to the O/P... It was the seller who refunded the approved payment...

There have been a few occassions that I've had to do this, and typically, its where a customer provides NO landline phone number, and their given address doesnt match the card address, yet the card payment was still authorised and went through, as most systems will check the address a customer gives, to see if it matches the address held by its bank, so if we get back a "No match", and said customer provides no landline number that we can trace and verify, then we just turn them away and refund the money back to the card, and put it down to fraud.

[hhboots]

yes, they match, except the first line of address, but i explained that to them as my bank wont allow me to have my full address as my billing address ...

... There have been a few occassions that I've had to do this, and typically, its where a customer provides NO landline phone number, and their given address doesnt match the card address, ...

I would say Tech hit the nail on the head. Most likely it was the variation in your address line (either the company didn't take the time to read your explanation or they just felt there was too much risk), that caused them to refund.

[wood&metal]

I can back up Tech on this.. And if the sale is fraudulant, and goes through, not only does the seller loose the product, but the seller is also liable for the full cost of the product back to the credit card company....AND, depending on the card processeing company the seller uses, there is usually also a fine imposed on the seller by the credit card company... It's a loose-loose-loose situation for the seller..

[Mindsflight]

Thanks everyone for your replies, i've been too sick to type/reply recently, i got a refund from them, they are the only company that did the style that i wanted but ah well i guess i'l forget it. Happy New Year everybody