Info and forum posts by 'Draco'

This user hasn't used our main site yet, so has no main account at present.

Joined on: Friday, 15th August 2003, 11:46, Last used: Sunday, 25th March 2012, 18:45

Access Level: Mostly Harmless

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This user has posted a total of 17 messages. On average, since joining, this user has posted 0 messages a day, or 0.02 messages a week. In the last 30 days, this user has posted 0 messages, which is on average 0 messages a day.

Recent Messages Posted:

Play.Com – What Customer Service?

Last month I placed an order with Play.com for a specific version of the DVD 'The Sentinel.' The price at that time was £3.49. This item was then listed on my order page as 'Awaiting Stock.'

Today, over a month later, I noticed that the version of 'The Sentinel' I wanted was listed again at a new price of £9.99 and "In stock ¦ Usually dispatched within 24 hours."

I sent Play.com a message asking why my copy had not been despatched to me.

They replied:

"We are sorry that we have not yet been able to supply you with your order, which is currently in the process of re-stocking; please be aware some products can take up to 28 days to come back into stock."

I asked them again to explain why my order status was defined as 'Awaiting Stock' when it
was clearly being listed elsewhere on their site as available.

Their response this time was:

"We are sorry that we have been unable to complete your order. Unfortunately this item was only available in limited quantities and all stock has now been sold. As it is unlikely that we will be able to offer the item again in the near future we have cancelled the order".

Of course I can always place an order with them for the DVD at the new price and it will be posted off within 24 hours (usually).

http://www.play.com/DVD/DVD/4-/5192137/The-Sentinel/Product.html?searchstring=The+Sentinel&searchtype=r2alldvd&searchsource=0&urlrefer=search&strefer=r2alldvd&searchfilters=s{The+Sentinel}%2bc{57}%2b

Space:1999 - Blu-ray - The Complete First Series £29.99

If there are any fans of Space:1999, grab yourself a bargain.

Networkdvd has the Blu-ray set of The Complete First Series available for £29.99. I ordered a set from them recently and that was the final amount I paid. It arrived after a couple of days and came by Recorded Delivery.

The quality of this limited number product is outstanding.

http://www.networkdvd.net/product_info.php?cPath=91&products_id=1213&osCsid=8061369c4aeb495ef94475bf373d08b6

Play.com Customer Service?????

I bought a set of `Star Trek: Next Generation - 20th Anniversary Complete Boxset (49 Discs)` from Play.com.

When I reached Season five, I came to a disc which proved to be faulty. I contacted Play.com and advised them of this.

I subsequently received a reply from them in which they said that I should contact their Customer Service Team who would arrange for the disc set to be uplifted.

This uplift would be on a certain date and sometime within the hours of 0900 to 17.30.

There was no mention of a refund or a replacement set of discs.

I sent them an e-mail and asked if it was possible to get just the single replacement for the faulty disc. Alternatively, if this was not feasible, could they at least give me a more flexible uplift time slot.

As I hadn`t received a reply from them after two months, I sent them a letter.

I received an e-mail from them two weeks later and I enclose a copy and paste of part of that message, which thanks me for my e-mail.

"Thank you for your email.

We are sorry to hear that you have a faulty product. We understand the frustration this may cause but unfortuantely we are unable to replace individual discs, and the boxset itself has now become unavailable.

Please accept our apologies for any inconvenience caused to you in this matter. We hope that this response answers your query. Should you require any further assistance please do not hesitate to contact us via the Helpdesk section of the website."

I`ve been a customer of Play.com for 6 years and during this time I have placed over 200 orders with them.

If Play.com think that is the right and proper way to treat a customer, then let them come onto this site and explain their reasons why.

Stargate 15th Anniversary Blu-ray bargain

The old expression `It pays to shop around` saved me a few quid this morning.

I wanted a copy of the "Stargate 15th Anniversary Edition [Blu-ray]" and noticed that Play.com had it listed as a UK release on 22nd February and at a cost of £16.99.

I checked the USA Amazon site, noted that the disc is declared as `All Regions` then ordered a copy from them. Total cost including postage to me is £11.87. (The actual cost of the disc is $11.99.)

So you think you know PayPal?

Over the years I`ve bought many items from a variety of sources, paying for them by PayPal.

I recently bought an item from the ioffer site in the USA. As there was an option to pay for this by PayPal, I felt confident that I would be covered in the event of anything going wrong.

Unfortunately, something did go wrong, the DVD disc that I`d ordered proved to be both faulty and incomplete. There was a full minute missing from the start of the movie on the disc.

After 6 weeks of getting nowhere with the seller, I contacted PayPal and made a claim.

Here is an extract from their reply:

"I have reviewed the details of your account and can tell you that our policy is to investigate claims filed for items that are significantly not as described if they were purchased on eBay and were paid for with PayPal (using the category `eBay item` and the respective auction number).

Since you purchased your goods independently of eBay or have not marked your goods as eBay items while paying through PayPal, we are not able to investigate your claim."

So there you have it; if you pay for an eBay item by PayPal, you have a chance with a claim in the event of something going wrong. Otherwise forget it.

RE: Star Trek: Next Generation - 20th Anniversary Complete Boxset (49 Discs) for £49.99 with Play.co

Box set now £128.99 with Play.com. Well done to everybody who took advantage of that earlier bargain price.

RE: Are there any Blu-Ray players that can play R1 dvds??

I bought a Panasonic Blu-ray DMP-BD50 Player recently from Richer Sounds in Edinburgh.

I got a pleasant surprise when I tested it with a region one disc and discovered that the video and audio playback was excellent.

I tried several more region one discs and got the same results.

The machine was a standard model and was not chipped or modified.

For reference; page 14 of the manual states "Signal from PAL discs is output as PAL. Signal from NTSC discs is output as 'NTSC' or PAL 60."

On the Specifications page, the Signal System is listed as PAL/NTSC.

Hope this helps any prospective buyers

RE: Toshiba HD DVD players

Hi!

I'm looking for an HD DVD player and I'll be willing to buy the one you described at the price mentioned.

Regards…Gus Bruce

Post Office Charges

I received a package yesterday from the U.S.A. containing some DVD discs.

The total cost of the goods was £20.44 and I had to pay £11.56 in charges before I could receive the package.

I have already been in contact with HM Revenue & Customs about these charges.

They informed me today that:

"Imported goods with a value of £18 or more are subject to VAT. DVDs are charged at the standard rate of 17.5%. 17.5% of £20.44 is approximately £3.56.

The remainder of the charge in this case appears to be the element levied by the carrier"

So according to HM the Post Office has charged a fee of £8 for their efforts and remember I've already paid postal charges at the other end.

So be warned when you're ordering goods from abroad - you might not end up with the bargain you expected.

I've written to the Post Office to ask them how they justify those charges.

RE: Help with customs charges.

When I wrote my previous message, I had another order on the way from DVD Pacific. It arrived this morning and I got hit again. This time on an order of £18.66, the charges were £7.45.

The real frustrating thing is that one of the (two) discs, cost a mere £3.13 and should have been included in the previous package.

RE: Help with customs charges.

I received a package recently from DVD Pacific. The value of the goods was £19.43 and I got hit for charges totalling £7.30 - this was made up by Import VAT of £3.30 and 'Royal Mail Clearance Fee' of £4.00.

RE: The Shield season 2 Going Cheap Anywhere?

I received an order today from DVD Pacific. The total cost of the items was £19.43 and I got hit for a total of £7.30 for charges. This consisted of Import VAT at £3.30 and 'Royal Mail Clearance Fee' of £4.00. I wasn't all that amused I can assure you.

I sent an e-mail to DVD Pacific about these charges and they said:

"There is a crackdown at customs in the UK and they are paying close attention."

"What you want to do to avoid customs is to keep your order under £18..... this will exempt you from any duties or taxes. However, you will find more often than not that there will not be an issue..."

All very good advice if you want an order for under 18 quid.

RE: Store4DVD - Caution!

With reference to my previous message regarding Store4DVD. A big well done to them as they now state if an item is in stock or not. This change in policy highlights the value of DVD Reviewer.

Store4DVD - Caution!

A few facts regarding Store4DVD

They don`t state if their goods are in stock or not, so the item you order may not be immediately available and in fact, may be on `back order.` The customer is not informed should this be the case and you just have to wait.

They don`t have a telephone number and they only receive mail from the Post Office on a weekly basis. Too bad if you`ve had to return a wrongly sent order.

They are very slow to respond to e-mail enquiries and remember, that`s the only direct contact you have with them.

They charge you for your goods immediately after you have placed an order.

So you pays your money and you takes your choice. Me? I`m still waiting for an item I ordered over 5 weeks ago and with no delivery date in sight.

This item was edited on Tuesday, 19th August 2003, 11:37