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posted Oct-18-2005

Here is the email explaining what happened to me:

This will be my last attempt to work things out with you by either phone or email rather than to report a fraudulent transaction to my Mastercard company. What’s happened so far:

9/13/05 – I placed my order for your “MiniMax7DKIT” at the website price of $1059.99, and a spare battery for $69.99 from salesperson Sean. The kit is a Minolta 7D camera body plus a Minolta 28-100 lens. Total charge = $1195.25 including the high shipping and insurance charges. (The exact same camera body alone without any lens was priced $80 cheaper at $979.99 as “MiniMax7D” on the website, and still is.) The full charge was placed against my Mastercard by you that same day. I was told before I ordered that both camera and lens were in stock, ready to ship, and would reach me in 14 days since I chose the least expensive ground shipping, otherwise sooner.

9/14/05 – I called back and cancelled the spare battery before shipping and was told that a refund for $69.99 would be made that day to my Mastercard account.

9/26/05 – I called on the 14th day to ask why my order had not come yet. Was told you had promised 14 business days, not calendar days. Was told camera and lens were not in stock when I had ordered 9/13/05 (opposite of what you said at the time of the order), but that you would still get it to me within the originally promised 14 business days by shipping both camera and lens by 2 day priority shipping at your expense later that week with an email and tracker number to come to me by email when shipped.

9/29/05 – Got an email to say order was shipped and with tracker number. Tracker number revealed shipment was by ground service, not priority as promised. You chose to save yourself some money rather than do what you had promised me.

10/6/05 – Package arrives on 17th business day since order was placed. Not within 14 as promised. And only item shipped was camera body, no lens. Invoice was in the box and a copy of it is attached to this email. Does not specify either “MiniMax7DKIT” or “MiniMax7D”, says “Minolta Konika Maxxum 7D 6.1 Mega Pixels - $1059.99” instead. I’ve never before seen a situation where the order is placed by item number, but the resulting invoice does not include that information, very curious this deliberate vagueness.

10/7/05 – Called the next morning to ask why no lens had been delivered when it had been ordered and paid for. Was at first told I had ordered the camera body alone. I pointed out that if so I had been charged $80 too much as the price charged was for the kit. Was then told on the same call by the same person after checking (with me on hold 5 more minutes) that OK you ordered the kit, but the lens was out of stock both when ordered (when I was told it was in stock along with the camera body) and when the body had been shipped 9/29/05. But (in a remarkable coincidence) the lens had been shipped to me 10/6 (the previous day) as it had since come into stock. And the promise was made that you would email the tracker number that day for the shipment made the day prior. No email came then or since. No lens has arrived. Also asked about the $69.99 credit and was again told it had been made 9/14.

10/17/05 (today) – I called again to ask about the missing lens and the missing $69.99 credit. Was told lens did not ship on 10/6/05 as I had been told on the call made 10 days before. Was told it was now “in shipping”, and that you would confirm the exact status and phone me in the next 3 hours to tell me when it had or would ship and what the tracker number was for the shipment of the lens. Was also again told the $69.99 refund had been made 9/14/05 and you agreed it should long since have reached my Mastercard company. It has not. It has now been more than 3 hours since my call and you have not phoned.

What do I want at this point?
• As promised by you several times I expect a refund of $69.99 for the spare battery.
• And by end of day tomorrow 10/18/05 either send me email with a tracker number indicating the Minolta USA merchandise 28-100 lens has been shipped, or else a further refund of $80 reflecting the difference between the $1059.99 charged me for the camera-and-lens kit and the $979.99 price advertised on your website then and now for the camera alone which is what you actually sent to me.

This review was modified by twa on October 19 2005 12:04:50 AM

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