Provide Commerce Inc

Review: PersonalCreations.com uses tricky wording and hides shipping charges in hopes that customers won’t notice. They advertise 'Free Standard Shipping on order above $49' but then hide a ridiculous $20 standard shipping fee until the very last confirmation page, in the very bottom right hand corner, that you must scroll to see, in tiny letters, far far UNDERNEATH the confirm button. (see pic1) ...Because they hope people won’t notice, just click confirm, and not balk at the offensive charge they're trying to sneak past.

PC has an entire checkout page dedicated to ‘select a delivery option’ (see pic2), why do they hide the standard delivery fees from this page?? Fees that their consumer thinks is free. They’ve already collected my address at this point, why try to trick the shopper and hide the standard fees? “Complexities of the System” is the excuse in tiny grey writing on a separate page (see pic3), which is utter ridiculousness considering the programmers they have working for them. This fee is a deliberate omission.

Other reviews online show the same issues with many many other clients. When I spoke to their customer service, I had barely started to complain when they hit me with their script for how & where the charge was displayed. Yes, reading off a script, because this is clearly a reoccurring problem that they probably have to deal with hourly. Why use a business practice that tells your consumers that you think they’re dumb and leaves them feeling tricked? Fix the problem for petes sake! But it’s not a problem, is it, they're doing this on purpose, which is why this is so offensive.

Oh yes, then to top it off, without permission they've added me to 7 more sister-company’s mailing lists, in 3 categories.. 17 boxes for me to find and uncheck to make sure they don’t spam me! Seriously what is wrong with these people? Anything for your bottom line, I guess.

Never again; soulless companies like this are a huge problem in this country, and I won’t support it.Desired Settlement: Stop claiming that standard shipping is free for orders above $49. Fix your ordering system so that your standard shipping charges are clearly displayed, selected and approved of before final ordering. Fees for shipping should be openly shown on the 'shipping options' page, not hiddenly-tossed in on the very bottom of the order confirmation page. And maybe try treating your customers with a little respect instead of treating them like is.

Business

Response:

We limit one discount per order which is stated at the bottom or our homepage. This customer had already taken advantage of an offer for 25% off of her order. As far as her suggestions on how to restructure our website I have forwarded her comments on to our website design team. We apologize if her experience on our website did not meet her expectations.

Regards,

[redacted] Customer Service Specialist

T 866.526.9426

F 858.638.4725

E [redacted]@ftdi.com

An FTD Company

–––––––––––––––––

FTD Companies, Inc

4840 Eastgate Mall

San Diego, CA 92121

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.

My complaint is not one of promo codes & discounts, as claimed by the representative. The problem is that this company HIDES charges in a preditory manner. Furthermore, this company is clearly aware of the problem, yet refuses to fix this ongoing issue. Shipping charges and added fees should be clearly marked, not 'snuck in' in a deceitful way.

Review: I placed an order with ProFlowers only because I received a $25 credit due to the fact that I was so unhappy with the first order I received from them. I selected a delivery date of 2/10/14. I got an email later in the evening on 2/10/14 saying that they were unable to deliver and wanted to know when my next desired delivery date would be. I selected 2/11/14. The order did not come. On 2/13/14, I called customer service and asked them about the order. She responds, "What do you suggest I do to correct the problem?" Delivery of my order would have been appreciated...Then she says that they will deliver it that day and that I would be hearing from the local florist that day. No one contacted me. I call again on 2/14/14 and speak with another representative who says, "We will deliver it as soon as possible." That is not an acceptable answer considering it is already 5 days later than expected, and today is Valentine's Day...not "as soon as possible". Their only solution to correct the problem is to issue a 30% discount. This is also not an acceptable answer because there is no way I'm going to be spending more money with this site. Extremely dissatisfied would be an understatement.Desired Settlement: I would like to have 1 of 2 things happen. Either 1) my order is still fulfilled as well as my refund request, or 2) I would like a store credit for the full amount that the flowers would have been without the previous $25 credit I had received.

Business

Response:

Good Afternoon,

We have reviewed his customer's order [redacted] and find that it has been refunded in full. In addition a Gift Code [redacted] with a value of $50.00 has been sent to this customer's email address [redacted]@yahoo.com.

Thank you, [redacted]

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.

Regards,

Review: There was an error in the processing of orders and I was charged 3 additional times. Those charges caused me to incur overdraft charges of $39 per charge ($39x3 = $117). I was refunded the charges for the 3 additional orders, but not the charges I incurred from my bank as a result of the error in processing by Personal Creations. I have brought this to the attention of customer service numerous times, along with documentation of the charges. I get the same email back stating that I will hear from some one in 1-2 business days. I have not received a response or a refund.Desired Settlement: Refund of $117 ($39 x 3)

Business

Response:

Hello Team,

Review: Ordered a gift for an active duty service member who is recovering from an extensive surgery, was set up to expect a delivery on a specified date. Upon creating a user account, was unable to track my order. Purchase is pending in monetary account. Spoke with customer service on 11/18/2013, and was assurred the order was "on hold" and was due to be released on this date. Tried again to track my order, and was still unable to do so. Called and spoke with customer service again, and was told they had no findings as to the reasons why the order could not be validated nor tracked. Was told that the order had been deleted. Order was placed on 11/16/2013, due to be delivered 11/19/2013. This was my expectation. I then asked to speak with a supervisor, and was informed that nothing could be done. That the order was "under review" since 11/16/2013, and that nothing could be expected to happen.Desired Settlement: I would like to see proper expectations set up for customers. I understand there are preventative measures that need to take place to protect customers against fraudulent transactions, however this should be specified in the expectations with providing the service to customers. It may seem like a minor situation, but means a lot to the consumer.

Business

Response:

Originally we had given this customer a 30% discount to do a replacement order to her recipient. Since the cancellation of her original order was our error and we did not followup with her promptly we have issued her a full refund of that replacement order. We have emailed her directly to apologize and inform her of this refund.

Regards,

My husband was going to surprise me by ordering flowers from Proflowers and have them delivered. Yet after his experience with this company it turned out to be no surprise. After selecting the flowers and going through check out, no where on the check out does it talk about fees besides tax and delivery. It was until he process the $50 order that the confirmation listed more fees ( valentines fee not listed anywhere) charging $88 for the order. By not telling a customer of all the fees until they hit submit and see the confirmation is a scam. When he called customer service in a matter of 5 minutes after submitting the order and asked for a refund for this deceit, they told him it was already in shipment and they could not refund him. On top of paying $88 deceitfully they could not promise to have the shipment by a particular time on the day scheduled, but asked him for me to stay longer at work to receive them. This is ridiculous and wrong, this company should not be in business.

Review: I ordered flowers online from ProFlowers around lunch time today. At checkout it stated my card would be charged ~$35. At night time as I was checking my email I noticed Proflowers sent a confirmation email. I opened it and saw they charged my card $70.95. I called to cancel my order and received horrible customer service AND they told me I could not have a refund. They charged THREE delivery charges! I can understand paying $5-$15 in delivery but NOT $30+. That is crazy!Desired Settlement: Full refund of $70.95 and any other hidden charges they have charged my card.

Business

Response:

Good Morning,

We have reviewed the customer's order#[redacted] and see that the order was refunded in full at the customer's request. This refund was processed on May 9, 2013 in the amount of $70.95. Refunds generally take 5-7 business to be reflected in the customer's account.

The delivery charges on this order reflected the standard delivery of $12.99 and an additional delivery charge of $19.99 because the order was going to Hawaii. Regardless of the day of delivery all orders going to Alaska and Hawaii will incur this additional fee.

Sincerely,

Review: I have e-mailed the company several times about my order having an almost $17 charge. I asked them several times for the Handle and Care fee back of $4.99. They responded by telling me they'd get back to me. I waited over an hour and saw the guy responding to other customers on [redacted]. I post a comment on [redacted] and I get a person telling me that he couldn't respond to me because the whole time, which was a lie. He had time to respond to me.

They gave me an outlandish excuse for the shipping costs being so high stating that they handle each item with care, so they charge $4.99 for that. While other companies like [redacted] and [redacted] don't hit you with a handle and care charge. I e-mailed them back to cancel my order or give me back the shipping cost for handle and care. They never responded, and sent the package anyways without e-mailing back. Especially, after they said they would e-mail back on [redacted]. I am not the only customer is is upset with their over priced shipping because another customer who has ordered from them before said they'd never charged that much for shipping in the past.Desired Settlement: Lower shipping costs and take off Handle and Care charge. Refund me my shipping costs of almost $17. That's $11.99 for shipping and $4.99 for handle and care. If they never had handle and care in the past, and their shipping was cheaper in the past, then it should have stayed that way.

Business

Response:

Good Morning,

I have reviewed this customer's account. As a courtesy we have refunded the requested amount, delivery and care and handling for a total of $16.98.

Our delivery fees are shown on the order confirmation page and also available via the the details link found on the calendar page.

Thank you,

Review: I placed an order using a coupon code. I paid using [redacted] When I checked my statement, they charged almost DOUBLE the amount at checkout.

Does NOT seem legal nor ethical or me to click on a complete transaction ~ which means we both agree to what the web page says ~ and then charge MORE.Desired Settlement: ProFlowers should NOT be allowed to charge double the amount AFTER checkout.

Business

Response:

Good Afternoon,

I have reviewed this customer's order # [redacted] which shows that this order was deleted in our system. The cx was never charged.

I am including a copy of the order totaal details shown on the confirmation page prior to confirming the order.

Sincerely,

Review: Earlier today I received an e-mail from ProFlowers that contained false/bait and switch advertising. The subject line of the e-mail is "Your Recent Birthday Purchase for [redacted] Qualifies You for 50% off!" [redacted] is my mother, and I recently sent her flowers through ProFlowers. I saw this e-mail subject and thought 50% off sounded like a great deal. However, I opened the e-mail and saw that the actual promo code contained in the e-mail is only for 10% off, not 50% as promised by the e-mail subject line. I do not make a habit of complaining about such things, but this is really bad. I am sure many other customers were tricked into clicking on the e-mail because 50% off is a great discount, only to find out the actual discount is far less. I have a screenshot of the e-mail if needed as well.Desired Settlement: I would like Proflowers to provide me with a 50% off discount code as promised per the subject line of the e-mail. I would also like them to comply with the Revdex.com's Code of Advertising moving forward and to refrain from including false advertising in their e-mails.

Business

Response:

To Whom It May Concern,

We have reached out to this customer, please see email below;

Dear [redacted]

Thank you for contacting ProFlowers through the Revdex.com. We appreciate you taking the time to bring this situation to our attention, and sincerely apologize for any confusion our advertisement has caused.

We currently have our 100 Blooms of Peruvian Lilies with the Coral Glass Vase discounted by 50% off (item 30146679). The initial cost is $44.98 which we have strike down to $29.99 plus with an additional 20% off bringing the cost to $22.49, which is 50% of the initial cost of our item. We are always happy to honor our promotional offers.

This is not at all the experience we wanted you to have and apologize for any confusion you’ve experienced with our website and pricing. For this reason we are sending you a gift code to be used on your next order with us.

Your gift code [redacted] for the amount of $25.00 is valid and active through 6/4/15. This gift code can be used over the phone or on

any of our six websites: ProFlowers, RedEnvelope, Personal Creations, Shari's Berries, Cherry Moon Farms, or ProPlants. Our gift codes should always be entered in the

Special Codes field box on the Review Order page before you check out and confirm the order. Entering the code in a different location may cause your discount not applying to the order properly

If you have already placed your order, please let us know and we can either apply your gift code number to your order or refund you the appropriate amount.

Once again, please accept our apologies. Your satisfaction is our foremost objective, and it is only through your feedback that we learn whether or not we are achieving our goal, so please do not hesitate to contact us with any additional comments or concerns you may have.

To reach us, you may email us at [redacted] or call us toll-free at [redacted] We are available Monday through Friday, from 7:00 AM to 6:00 PM Pacific Time.

Gift Card Terms & Conditions:

This Provide Commerce Gift Card expires one year from the date of issue. No dormancy fees will be charged. This Gift Card may be used only towards the purchase of products at the following Provide Commerce web sites or phone lines: RedEnvelope, ProFlowers, Shari’s Berries,Cherry Moon Farms, ProPlants and Personal Creations. The Gift Card value is not redeemable for cash, check or credit, except where required by law. Provide Commerce is not liable for lost or stolen Gift Cards. Lost or stolen cards cannot be replaced or refunded. If a Gift Card is presented for purchases with a price less than the face value of the Gift Card, the unused amount will remain on the Gift Card and can be used for other purchases. The Gift Card holder is responsible for all taxes, duties, fees and assessments arising out of use of this Gift Card. This Gift Card cannot be resold for commercial purposes. This Gift Card is not valid with previous purchases, same-day or international delivery, or third party hosted products (e.g. wine). A complete set of terms and conditions, subject to change at any time without notice, is available on the participating Provide Commerce web sites. Provide Commerce Gift Cards are issued and sold by Provide Cards, Inc., a California corporation. The balance on this Gift Card is solely the liability of Provide Cards, Inc. Use of this Gift Card constitutes acceptance of the terms and conditions.

Sincerely,

Consumer

Response:

Good morning!

I appreciate ProFlowers' response and find this to be an acceptable resolution. I do ask that they work harder moving forward to ensure that their promotional advertisements and e-mail headers are very clear and not misleading, but I feel that my specific concerns have been appropriately addressed.

Thank you!

Sincerely,

Review: I ORDERED FLOWERS ONLINE FROM PROFLOWERS. I PAID FOR THE FLOWERS, THE SHIIPPING FEE AND AN ADDITIONAL $4 FOR GUARANTEED DELIVERY ON VALENTINES DAY. THE FLOWERS WERE NOT DELIVERED ON NVALENTINES DAY. I CALLED PROFLOWERS AND THEY SAID THEY WERE ABLE TO REFUND THE PRICE OF SHIPPING AND THE $4 GUARANTEE PAYMENT. I UNDERSTAND THAT THINGS BEYOND OUR CONTROL DO OCCUR BUT TO SPECIFICALLY CHARGE ADDITIONAL MONIES FOR A GUARANTEED DELIVERY DATE AND THE GUARANTEE CONSISTS OF THE RETURN OF SHIPPING CHARGES AND IRONICALLY THE FEE TO GUARANTEE THE DELIVERY ON A CERTAIN DAY IS RIDICULOUS. IF YOU DO NOT PROVIDE A LEGITIMATE GUARANTEE, DON'T CHARGE FOR ONEE OR AS A MINIMUM EXPLAIN YOUR WARRANTY.Desired Settlement: REFUND OF MONIES PAID FOR FLOWERS IN ADDITION TO SHIPPING CHARGES AND DELIVERY GURANTEE CHARGE

Business

Response:

We have issued a full refund to our customer and I have contacted him via email today to advise.

Regards,

Corporate Customer Service Specialist

provide-commerce

4840 Eastgate Mall

San Diego, CA 92121

Phone: [redacted]

Email[redacted]

<a title="http://www.proflowers.com/

http://www.proflowers.com/blocked::http://www.proflowers.com/" href="http://www.proflowers.com/" target="_blank">[redacted]

Review: I placed a order with them online for some flowers and my total was $55.00 when it comes time to confirm your order you are unable to see the charges. When I got the bill my charges were now $95.00 this was charged to my debit card without authorization. They purposely deceive consumers to think they are paying a certain amount but when they get their bill it's double! I tired to call and cancel my order and they refused to 5 mins later!Desired Settlement: This is out right stealing! How do we fix a thief?

Business

Response:

Good Afternoon,

In reviewing this customers account we see an order # [redacted] was placed on February 12th for delivery on February 14th. High volume days such as Valentine's Day will incur additional costs for delivery. The order total is always viewable prior to confirmation.

The customer contacted us and the order was deleted in our system on February 13, 2014

Sincerely,

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.

The company continues to purposely obscure the true cost of the purchase when ordering online. Furthermore initially they refused to cancel my order I had to stay on the phone with them for 2 hours before they finally agreed to cancel my order.

There people originally had told me they could not cancel my order and not until I further escalated the phone call did they finally agree to cancel, but by then 2 hours on the phone had elapsed. I am not the first customer to complain about their tactics here are some links you can see for yourself complaints are mostly the same. [redacted] please let me know if you would like more examples of this thievery of a company.

Regards,

Business

Response:

Good Afternoon,

In response to the customer's rejection All of our customers can see exactly what they will be charged for the order so they may have the option to confirm the order or not. The below screen is the total for [redacted]’s order. [redacted] did place this order online and went through a 20% discount link as shown on his order. Also, when a customer views our calendar it will show if there is an extra charge attached to the standard delivery fee. The is no deception and all is very clear, we do our best to have a customer friendly site. [redacted]’s total was increased due to a Guaranteed delivery date of February 14th.” Please see attached screenshot of customer's order totaal as well as a view of the calendar the customer sees during the order process. Thank you, [redacted]

Review: Advertises as a professional florist and charges extreme pricing for goods and delivery and when flowers arrive they are not done by a florist there or even outsourced to a local florist, they are shipped fed-ex and not even an arrangement as advertised. I spent 120 bucks for two dozen roses with teddy bear, I love you stick, a card, and some chocolates, mind you this is for valentines day and my wife has to open a fed ex box with items shoved in and she had to put together and make the arrangement herself. It is dishonest to sell an arrangement that is nothing but junk in a box the recipient has to put together, not to mention a let down to recipient and an embarrassment to the sender.Desired Settlement: Advertise what they send...a do it yourself kit and also stop claiming to be florists when they do not send a floral arrangement.

Business

Response:

Good Afternoon,

We have reviewed this customer's order #[redacted].

This customer's order has been refunded in full.

Thank you,

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution would be satisfactory to me. I will wait for the business to perform this action and, if it does, will consider this complaint resolved.

Regards,

Review: I recently bought a order for my mother through Proflowers for Valentines Day because of a promotion they advertised through Bill me later ([redacted]) stating 20% off when ordered with Bill Me later.

I made a pretty simple purchase of two items which both totaled up to $155 at checkout after the delivery charges and all were added. The discount of 20% was suppose to show up at the checkout, but after the purchase was completed the discount still did not show. I waited a bit to see what the receipt emailed to me would say, but it too did not show the discount. 20% of 155 is quit a discount when dealing with this much of a purchase you know.

I then contacted Proflowers through a email explaining about this incident and asked when I would get my 20% , since ordered through the Bill Me Later like it showed advertised. Proflowers responded

Dear [redacted]

Thank you for contacting us about your recent order. We apologize but the order has already processed in our system and we can no longer make any changes.

We do appreciate your business and apologize for this inconvenience. If you have any further questions, please do not hesitate to contact us. We are available to you 24 hours a day, seven days a week and we look forward to serving you.

Best Regards,

I have wrote them again stating that the reason I order through them was because of this promotion Get 20% off on purchases $39 or more on Valentines day flowers and gifts at ProFlowers.com offer end 2/28/2014.

[redacted] This was not honored after notifying them and since they have told me there is nothing that can be done I am reporting them for a false advertisement as this is what it would be defined as.Desired Settlement: To correct the final price to get my 20% as advertised