SOFTWAREOUTLET.COM IS A SCAM!!

[rmims404]

I made the mistake of ordering some software and a flash drive from these crooks. Order was placed 1/13/08 and they promptly charged my credit card. The only response from them has been the initial email when I placed the order telling me they were billing my credit card. No response from them since after 6 emails. I have set up a complaint to the BBB and I plan to see if I can get a refund somehow. Beware!!!! DO NOT ORDER ANYTHING FROM SOFTWAREOUTLET.COM. You'll never get your stuff. Update Sunday 1/27/08. Reveived an email from the BBB in Calif. and they told me to wait up to 2 weeks to hear from them again as they have contacted softwareoutlet.com. I also received a response (Fri 1/25/08) from "Google" checkout support. They have not been able to get the company to respond either. Google checkout support said that they would contact me within seven days regarding a refund. So, I guess it's a wait and see issue now. I may go ahead and get a dispute of charges process started with Mastercard anyway. Tell everyone you know not to order from softwareoutlet.com.Update Monday 1/28/2008. Finally some satisfaction but not from softwareoutlet.com. Bank Of America whom I have my Mastercard with told me they would set up a dispute claim on this so I would not have to pay it. Thank Goodness. PLEASE TELL EVERYONE YOU KNOW. DO NOT DO BUSINESS WITH SOFTWAREOUTLET.COM. THEY ARE CROOKS.Update Thursday 2-7-08. I have received a refund, finally. Only this time I got a bonus. The dummies at softwareoutlet credited my account twice. Ha!! I'm going to end up making money on this deal, unless they catch their mistake. What a bunch of morons!!

Hello rmims404,

Thanks for submitting your review at ResellerRatings.com and for posting. You should try to call your credit card company asap to initiate a chargeback of your funds.

[nomaxim]

I second the charge back suggested by Lara.

The current BBB report gives this company a "F" rating. The report also shows that our of the 277 complaints received by the BBB in the last 3 years, the company has not responded to 99 of them. That's better then a 30% chance they will ignore the BBB.

Shame really. Years ago this company was a somewhat decent source for cheap OEM software and older games. I quit using them around mid-2006 because one of the five pieces of software I ordered was not compatible with XP. This was not noted on the website.

Review page here at RR gives them a 1.54/10 lifetime at present.

[justinaparr]

I make every on-line purchase using American Express. Almost anyone can get a Blue card, and the advantage is that most purchases are insured, and you can initiate a dispute on-line through their website. They will withhold the money from the vendor until they respond to YOUR satisfaction. There are additional benefits, such as automatically extending the manufacturer's warranty, insurance against loss / damage, etc.

I have used Amex's dispute process, and they went to the mat for me.

American Express is a great company. There are quite a few vendors that won't do business with American Express because they claim the margin is too high, but most of the ones I've seen won't do business with Amex because they know they will have to jump through hoops to resolve a dispute or write the disputed amount off as a loss -- In other words, the vendor knows they will have to be "honest".

[frostbitetwice]

The company saying is, prices so low we can not afford to ship them...

[jkuchs]

I had the exact issue when purchasing software on 1/10/2008. I was given a reaponse today from Google checkout that they will contact me within 7 days. Shall I wait to for them to respond? Do they refund my account or do you suggest that I call the bank for a more proactive approach? Thanks!

[nomaxim]

Originally Posted by jkuchs

I had the exact issue when purchasing software on 1/10/2008. I was given a reaponse today from Google checkout that they will contact me within 7 days. Shall I wait to for them to respond? Do they refund my account or do you suggest that I call the bank for a more proactive approach? Thanks!

Welcome to RR.

Google Checkout is rather new, I've only used them a few times myself.

From what I've been seeing from others suggests that they are somewhat better the PayPal. At least I haven''t seen any reports of problems with people getting their money back from Google Checkout in cases of non-delivery. I don't see any reason not to give them the 7 days. CC's generally give at least 30-45 days from the date the last billing statement was calculated.

However, if you used a debit card then that may be a whole different problem.

[rmims404]

Originally Posted by jkuchs

I had the exact issue when purchasing software on 1/10/2008. I was given a reaponse today from Google checkout that they will contact me within 7 days. Shall I wait to for them to respond? Do they refund my account or do you suggest that I call the bank for a more proactive approach? Thanks!

Google did finally respond with a refund of my money. They actually credited my account twice and finally realized their mistake and took their money back. I cancelled the credit card I used so they couldn't take any more. My credit card company also helped me since I did not get the merchandise. Good luck!!

[Joshua Ellison]

I ordered from these guys in May 2007, and have been jerked around for almost a year, which included a complaint (#98212957) through the Better Business Bureau, which went completely ignored by SoftwareOutlet.com owner Bill McIvor, and in August was closed as "Unresolved". On January 31st, 2008 I went so far as to visit them in person while in Santa Ana, CA on business. I took one of Bill McIvor's business cards, and I had them write out the check and show it to me, and they told me they just had to wait for Bill McIvor to come in and sign it. I was on my way out of town and risked trusting them to send it to me, instead of waiting 4 hours for him to show up. It's been nearly three weeks, and sure enough, it's not coming. I am AMAZED that a class action settlement hasn't been filed yet.

Anyhow, through all this, I somehow missed the most obvious refund option: Call your credit card company and dispute the charge. I called Chase and the whole procedure took 6 minutes. The best part? Not only did they they credit me, but I had the associate I spoke to confirm that they do indeed pull the money from Softwareoutlet's account.
Now, this may or may not work, depending on your credit card company, but I know Chase (aka United Mileage Plus) does it, I know American Express does it, and with enough people taking their money back instead of waiting helplessly for it, perhaps we can shut down this fraudulent business, or even better, maybe that would get their attention and they clean up their act and make good on their promises!

For anyone looking to contact them, here is everything I have (off of Bill McIvor's business card), though don't hold your breath, I've been calling and emailing since May of '07, and I've NEVER received a response. If you live in California, or are in L.A. on business, go visit them in person, and demand your money back on the spot. Don't wait, or you won't get it. They are located about 5 minutes South of Disneyland.

SoftwareOutlet.com
2431 S. Anne St
Santa Ana, CA 92704
714-979-6800
714-434-4799
bill@softwareoutlet.com
ricardo@softwareoutlet.com

[The Merg]

Joshua:

I'm quite impressed that your credit card company let you dispute a charge from over 7 months ago. That's why it is always important to use a credit card when ordering on-line. If you don't get your product, they send you the wrong item, or send you a defective item and they will not respond to your requests to rectify the matter, you can always dispute the charge (sometimes almost a year later).

- Merg