Custom Dynamics charges a 20% restocking fee on returns - BEWARE

[Bob Denman]

There's a point here; that might have been "lost"... :shocked:
The Original Poster of this thread had errors in his order, that were of his own making...
Custom Dynamics only did what they were asked to do: only he didn't ask for what he actually wanted. :gaah:
Take the 20% hit; and try to do a better job next time...

 

[wyliec]

There's a point here; that might have been "lost"... :shocked:
The Original Poster of this thread had errors in his order, that were of his own making...
Custom Dynamics only did what they were asked to do: only he didn't ask for what he actually wanted. :gaah:
Take the 20% hit; and try to do a better job next time...

Couldn't agree more with what you've said.

 

[bruiser]

I ordered a part from a company in Wisconsin. I ordered what was on their parts breakdown. What I got was not what I needed. I called them direct and the CSR said that what they showed was correct for that model and serial number. I sent the part back knowing there was a 15% restocking fee. Will I order from them again? Probably. I ordered from them before and didn't have a problem.

Having said that, I have returned items that had a restocking fee and not been charged the fee but given a full refund.

I recently ordered some lights from TricLed to replace one that had failed on my wife's RTS. The strip that failed was three years old. I contacted Reggie by e mail to give him a heads up and, at his request, sent a picture of where the LED failed. I was not expecting any type of remuneration. But he and Cindy took care of us.

 

[Bob Denman]

I recently ordered some lights from TricLed to replace one that had failed on my wife's RTS. The strip that failed was three years old. I contacted Reggie by e mail to give him a heads up and, at his request, sent a picture of where the LED failed. I was not expecting any type of remuneration. But he and Cindy took care of us.

That's why they're the best! :2thumbs:

Well... that; plus the fact that their products don't normally fail in the first place...
Top-notch quality can allow a company to do that! :thumbup:

 

[MRH]

Here is a bit of math that most people happens in retail:

If you purchase an item for $100 with a credit card, the retailer likely sees $97 of that money after MC. Visa or Amex take their chunk.

If you return that item and they credit you $100, they will pay that fee AGAIN.

At the end of the process, they have paid $6 in fees, and that doesn't account for their time.

I'm not passing any judgement on this particular situation, but it something most consumers don't know - I think they assume the credit card companies refund the fees to the retailer, but in fact it is the reverse.

 

[scooterexpress]

Here is a bit of math that most people happens in retail:

If you purchase an item for $100 with a credit card, the retailer likely sees $97 of that money after MC. Visa or Amex take their chunk.

If you return that item and they credit you $100, they will pay that fee AGAIN.

At the end of the process, they have paid $6 in fees, and that doesn't account for their time.

I'm not passing any judgement on this particular situation, but it something most consumers don't know - I think they assume the credit card companies refund the fees to the retailer, but in fact it is the reverse.

Your statement couldn't be more true but as a retailer I feel customer service is first and me personally I will eat that small fee just to keep you as a customer and any future customers so many places today lack customer service and that really bugs me so when I decided to become a vendor I vowed to put the customer first me second,some might say your losing money that way but I don't see that.jmo
Jim

 

[MRH]

Your statement couldn't be more true but as a retailer I feel customer service is first and me personally I will eat that small fee just to keep you as a customer and any future customers so many places today lack customer service and that really bugs me so when I decided to become a vendor I vowed to put the customer first me second,some might say your losing money that way but I don't see that.jmo
Jim

As I said, I'm not addressing your specific issue - you're probably right. I've heard issues with CD before, and personally I'd be hesitant to order from them again (although I have in the past with no issues).

I wanted to look at the larger picture. Nordstrom's is famous for their very liberal refund policy, but to shop there one also pays a premium. Refunds are never "free", rather the loss is accounted for in the price the consumer pays for the goods. A question to ask is "Am I willing to save 5% on an item, knowing that I'll pay 20% if I opt to return it?"

 

[Trickie Dick]

There's a point here; that might have been "lost"... :shocked:
The Original Poster of this thread had errors in his order, that were of his own making...
Custom Dynamics only did what they were asked to do: only he didn't ask for what he actually wanted. :gaah:
Take the 20% hit; and try to do a better job next time...

BS. I'm sure you would just grin and bear it and order again, right. Just forget the fact you just paid that company hundreds of dollars. Hell, they should be writing you a thank you note. It's called taking care of the customer.

 

[KAPike]

I could understand having a policy like this in a niche market. I sure someone has ordered $800 in product, looked it over and decided not to keep it and sent it back. In that case the buyers should "pay to play" and the vendor should not bear the financial cost for someone the "check it out".

I don't think this happen in this case. This was an honest mistake on an $800 order and the duplicate item was immediately returned. In this case it would seem like the vendor would show a little compassion and as a courtesy would not enforce the re-stocking fee.

CD has weighed the cost of this policy with the cost of bad press on the forum. This is not the first time this policy has been debated on this forum. It looks like CD believes it's in their best interest to maintain their re-stocking fee. They must make enough money on their re-stocking fees collected to justify the loss of a occasional $200-800 order because someone on this forum bought for another vendor who does not have a re-stocking fee.

 

[hchays]

I ordered a Kaoko throttle assist for my 2013 RS from C.D.. It actually only fit up to a 2012 due to the 2013 going to fly-by-wire throttle. i called them explained that their catalog was wrong. They did some very quick research and found that I was correct. They paid for return shipping and refunded all of my money.
I personally think that if the buyer makes the mistake on the order the buyer should either pay the shipping OR a restocking fee. If the seller makes the mistake then they pay shipping and return 100% for the price. That is what C.D. did for me and I am very pleased, just wish they would have researched the products before they printed their catalog.

 

[IdahoMtnSpyder]

What's right by the customer and business owner, both, can be a tough call sometimes for the small business operator.

Years ago I had a printing business where I did composition and printing. I got tired of hassling with customers who expected me to reprint an entire $100 order at no charge because of a small typo in the composition. So I established the practice for larger orders of having the customer closely check a proof copy, and then sign the proof under a disclosure statement that stated they approved the composition. If the printing was correct but there was a typo, they ate the printing cost of the job. If they wanted to pay for the reprint, which I would discount, I would correct the composition at no charge. If the proof was signed and I screwed up the printing, then I ate the printing cost. After all, if the customer paid a composition company to prepare the copy and took the original to another shop to have it printed, the printer was not liable for a typo and cost of reprinting. I had to come up with a policy that afforded me the same protection as I was the one who did both phases of the job.

There was one job I didn't reprint because I didn't think the typo was serious enough. The customer never brought me another job. That was a bad decision on my part and one of the reasons I established the above practice. Another time a customer was upset the type was so small on placemat menus I printed for him. I pointed out the disclosure and statement and said, "Sorry, you saw the proof and approved it." Needless the say he was not happy, but I did not lose money on that job either. His restaurant folded soon after so I didn't lose future business anyway.

 

[Vrooom]

I ordered a Kaoko throttle assist for my 2013 RS from C.D.. It actually only fit up to a 2012 due to the 2013 going to fly-by-wire throttle. i called them explained that their catalog was wrong. They did some very quick research and found that I was correct. They paid for return shipping and refunded all of my money.
I personally think that if the buyer makes the mistake on the order the buyer should either pay the shipping OR a restocking fee. If the seller makes the mistake then they pay shipping and return 100% for the price. That is what C.D. did for me and I am very pleased, just wish they would have researched the products before they printed their catalog.

This experience makes me wonder what a buyer should charge a company for the time and effort to fix their mistakes?

 

[MikeinGA]

I bought a windshield from CD and it didn't fit my RS-S. I was going to ship it back, until I read the restocking price and postage. It took a few hours to fit a finish it. Now they are on the bottom of my vendors list. I did write a warning on the product review, said the windshield had to be fit and finished before you could install it and may take a few hours of your time. CD does not handle the windshield any longer. BUT if I caused the problem with an order, I have no problem paying the restocking price and postage.

Mike

 

[Bob Denman]

BS. I'm sure you would just grin and bear it and order again, right. Just forget the fact you just paid that company hundreds of dollars. Hell, they should be writing you a thank you note. It's called taking care of the customer.

Nope... But I would take a bit more care in ordering in the first place...

 

[bluestratos]

I am sorry but I believe they should be more flexible and take the size of the order in consideration. It is easy today to hit the wrong button and double order something. I think the customer would expect to pay shipping but a restocking fee, especially 20%, just chases future business away. I never cut off my nose to spite my face but given the option I will buy from another vender.

 

[happyspyder2039]

I am sorry but I believe they should be more flexible and take the size of the order in consideration. It is easy today to hit the wrong button and double order something. I think the customer would expect to pay shipping but a restocking fee, especially 20%, just chases future business away. I never cut off my nose to spite my face but given the option I will buy from another vender.

:agree:

 

[Ramjet]

Listen this is their policy and the person who you spoke too has little if any "power" to change or deviate from the policy. If you were really unhappy then you should of have taken the time to speak on the phone to a manager. Inventory has caring costs and processing has costs.

Did you know the costs with overhead for retailer can be as much a $50.00 per order thats why some paces have minimum orders amounts.

Did you know that the average for carrying costs on inventory is 1% per month?

Did you know that you can write off "dead inventory" but it is still loss the write off amount is less than the original purchase value less carrying costs so the business looses money.

Did you know that the specifics on carrying items is based on need and that derived from orders for that part?

You should have tried a manager but you should also try and understand that their is cost to doing business that cost may or may not come in two ways in this case Policy to offset your mistake and loss of you as customer who would spend $________ over the next year or so?

 

[cyclelover63]

I agree a manager should and would look at the big picture..All of the money spent in advertising to get the customer to his site and spend $800.00 goes out the window for $19.00....If the owner of the company knew this happened,he would probably go through the roof..I know I would if I was the owner...We all get caught up in rules and covering our behinds...Sometimes a step back and understanding goes a long way...Sign of the times,I guess...

 

[lookerjdc]

+1 for Reggy

JT

+10 for Reggy/TricLED

I love his products, have been doing business with him for years and he has never let me down when and if a problem arises

 

[lookerjdc]

I am sorry but I believe they should be more flexible and take the size of the order in consideration. It is easy today to hit the wrong button and double order something. I think the customer would expect to pay shipping but a restocking fee, especially 20%, just chases future business away. I never cut off my nose to spite my face but given the option I will buy from another vender.

I did pay for the return shipping and had no problem doing that... and I agree, given the size of my order some 'flexibility' on their part would have been nice, but since they are going to be so anal retentive about it, I will never buy from them again

I walked right past their display at Bikeweek yesterday, and no, I didn't flip them the finger as I walked by.... lol