Tree Classics

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
All the time and effort this company has taken to deny that they sell low quality products at a premium price probably cost them more than it would have to just fix their defective product or even just send out some replacement lights.  But, you can clearly see what type of company you are dealing with.  Would rather argue with their customers when they are clearly in the wrong then simply make good on a promise of quality that they never lived up to.
Regards,
[redacted]

Revdex.com:I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.[To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, we would like to know your view on the matter.]Regards,[redacted]

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint.  
For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
In their answer Tree Classics says, "In this complaint, the customer is requesting to return the tree for a full refund and have all return shipping be waived. This again is not an option as the customer was outside of the return time frame for the clearance tree they purchased and declined the options we offered.  At this time we are willing to accept the tree back with a 20% return fee and the return shipping would be at the customer’s expense or the customer can wait on the section to be manufactured.  We have taken note of this complaint and will have a supervisor contact the customer to discuss the matter and see if some kind of resolution can be reached."
[To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, we would like to know your view on the matter.]
 
Tree Classics has lied about and omitted several of the conversations I had with them regarding the tree. The tree arrived at my house November 20th and when we went to decorate it Nov 28th and it did not work. I called them that weekend and I wanted to send the tree back immediately.  They claim in their response that "in my conversation with them they advised me the tree we ordered is a clearance tree and all sales are final, as was stated on the website. Clearance items are only able to be returned within 10 days of purchase and have a limited warranty of 30 days".  In fact they did not make that statement to me. It is a lie. Their representative assured me there would be no problem as I was within the 30 day warranty. End of the warranty subject. He told me they would send me a new section before Christmas rather than me having to send the whole tree back. He told me to use the tree until the new section arrived and then donate the defective section.  They never did any trouble shooting with me as they state in their response. We spent 4 hours trouble shooting the problem according to the directions that came with the tree before we called the company. They never said anything about sending me a string of lights (which was ridiculous and they are still unopened). The lights just showed up at my door when I was in fact expecting the new tree section before Christmas. When I called the following morning to find out why they sent me the lights I was told not to worry that the new section was coming. I was not told I would not have the new section before Christmas. In fact, they sent an email 3 days later telling me it would be shipped Dec 19th unless they let me know otherwise. The section never came and I was not notified of any change of shipping date. I was not told it had to manufactured before it could be sent until I called the company in January and then to be told it wouldn't ship until the summer in  August or September is just totally unacceptable. I talked with several representatives in January and when I finally talked to Put and she said there was only a 10 day warranty. Eventually when I talked with [redacted] she told me to write an email to Mr. [redacted] if I wanted higher management to contact me.  I was never told [redacted] would be handling my complaint from here on until I said I was filing a complaint to the Revdex.com on February 3rd. I expected to hear from "higher management".
I want all our money back and they can take their defective tree back. They need to send me a pre-paid shipping label to send  it back. 
Their communication is despicable and they are totally untrustworthy. 
I want to be done with this company!
 
Regards,
[redacted]

As stated in our previous response, we are sorry for the
frustration the customer has expressed with their order. In the customer’s
complaints they state that the refund is unfair since the full coupon amount
should not have been deducted from the amount of the refund. With the refund of
this item the amount on the order no longer met the requirements for the coupon
value.
We have since reviewed the order further and determined the customer’s
order qualified for a different coupon to be applied.  The new coupon issued resulted in a refund in
the amount of $40.00 to the customer’s account. A refund was issued in the
amount of $40.00 on January 21st, 2015 to the customer’s card used
for the purchase. We have complied with the customer’s request and dispersed
the coupon throughout all items on the order. As the customer has received a
total refund in the amount of $89.99 for the tree storage bag we feel this
matter to be resolved.
 Ultimately the
customer did file a chargeback and we are awaiting response on the outcome of
the case from the financial institution.
 
Regards,
Tree Classics Customer Service

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
I am not accepting the response from Tree Classics for the following reasons. First, I ordered 2 prelit Christmas Trees that are clearly defective and will not stay lit. The bulbs literally blow and blacken by the dozens. It is not a simple process of replacing an individual bulb as each time this happens we must remove and test dozens of bulbs to try to figure out which ones have caused he entire string to go out. The reason for the time gap in our complaints is that these are seasonal items (Christmas) so we do not have them up all year. After spending hours replacing bulbs in 2014, when we packed them away we finally had them all lit. Upon setting them up for the 2015 season we encountered the same issues as last year and contacted Tree Classics customer service again on multiple occasions without receiving a resolution.
In the first photo attached you will see this tree has approximately half of its 1200 bulbs not lit. In the second photo attached you will see underneath the angel is out and since this photo was taken the bottom is also not lit. Once again this Christmas we spent hours replacing dozens of bulbs and after all this effort we still spent our Christmas with two partially lit trees which we spent over $900 on just last season. The reason we allowed tree classics to send the light strands (which they failed to mention that they did not send on 12/21 as promised and did not arrive until after Christmas) because we were desperate to get our trees lit for Christmas as we had run out of replacement bulbs. However, we do not consider this a solution anyway and we have not used them because we paid for two prelit trees which have been professionally strung with permanent lights and we are being asked to try and replace them by restringing the trees ourselves. Hanging light strands on a tree is not the same as having prelit trees. While they keep hiding behind this 30 day warranty they are failing to admit that these trees are obviously defective at the time they were sold and therefore they should provide a refund.
Regards,
[redacted]

Hello, We are sorry for the frustrations that the customer has expressed with their tree. As stated in the customer’s complaint, they purchased their tree on December 15th, 2013 from a company by the name of Christmas Home. Tree Classics has since purchased the name and assets...

of Christmas Home. Even though we are under no legal obligation to replace any part that is not working, we have chosen to honor the customers’ warranties as a courtesy. On December 1st, 2015, the customer contacted us in regards to a lighting issue within a section of their tree. When there is an issue with a tree, we go through a troubleshooting process to verify the stated issue. The reason we do this is because often times a stated issue is nothing more than a loose bulb or something else minor which is easily adjusted to resolve an issue, and is not an actual defect. As the troubleshooting did not resolve the customer’s issue we provided the customer the options of being sent replacement light strands or 15% off of the cost of a new tree with our warranty included. The customer declined both of these options and requested that we issue a full refund for their tree instead. We advised the customer that since the order was placed on December 15th, 2013 that they were ineligible for a refund. At this time, we are still willing to honor the offer of replacement light strands or 15% off of a new tree with a new warranty. In order to take advantage of either option, the customer will need to contact us so that we may assist them with this. Regards, Tree Classics Customer

I ordered a tree that was suppose to have all clear LED lighting (soft/yellow) . LED lighting is more expensive than regular lighting. not a problem. I was willing to pay the extra money for LED lights. When the tree arrived and we plugged it in we noticed the lights were different shades of white: clear white and yellow/soft white. There's no denying our tree has a mixture of regular lights (cheaper price) and LED lights (more expensive). I noticed several other complaints on Tree Classic website regarding the same issue. I called to report the problem and the representative who took the call admitted others have called in with this same problem and they are aware of the situation. My options were to send it back at my expense plus a 10% restocking fee or I could use my warranty plan which entails taking photos of the tree, at each section, showing where EACH INDIVIDUAL light is different and how many lights are different. They said they would send me a replacement tree but there's no way of knowing if the new tree will, in fact, have all the same color of clear lights. The rep also indicated it happens over time the lights will fade different colors. How could/did the lights fade if I purchased what I thought was a new tree?? It appears the company is falsely advertising trees with all LED lights but they don't put all LED lights on the trees. I find it odd there were several other complaints regarding the the same issue. For the price that is paid (hundreds of dollars) one would hope the tree is of standards. The tree weighs 70lbs., the price to ship that back is outrageous. This company should pay for the return since they did not provide me a tree with all LED that I paid for to begin with. I will not do business with a company who did not provide an advertised product and also makes the customer pay for returns. I would not return the tree if it had all LED lights. It did not come that way, so why should I have to pay to return it?

Hello,
After further review of the customer’s complaint we have determined
to honor the customer’s request for a full refund. We apologize for any
inconvenience this may have caused and regret the time it has taken to resolve
their issue. We are currently in the process of issuing a refund check that
will be mailed out to the customer. At this time, we feel the matter will be
resolved once the customer receives the check for the amount paid.
Regards,  
Tree Classics Customer Service

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted] and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
[First of all, when you purchase a Christmas tree in August, you don't put it up until December.  The tree was brand new and as soon as I took it out and put it up it didn't work.  Second of all, Tree Classics did nothing to try and resolve my issue.  I called numerous times only to be on hold for so long I had to end up hanging up.  I then would send an email which would send back an automated response that someone would contact me shortly. It would be at least a week before they would send another email and all they would do was ask me to troubleshoot which I had already told them I had gone through every troubleshooting step before I ever contacted them.  Since they had no response for that, they then a other week later asked me to send pictures of the tree, which I did.  Thirdly, I NEVER requested a more expensive tree as a replacement nor did I request free shipping.  I asked that they send me a replacement to the top portion only of the tree since that was the part not working.  Their only reply was that I had to purchase all new lights from them for the BRAND NEW TREE I just purchased.  If you google other complaints about this company you will see that people who bought the replacement lights weren't able to get them to work.  I do not feel after spending $400 on a pre-lit tree that I should have to purchase all new lights for the tree and then go about restringing the tree myself.  Doesn't make much sense to me.
Regards,
[redacted]

[redacted]
I was not refunded in full. The refund was $943.49 with no breakdown or explanation as to the difference between the original purchase amount...

(1117.94) and the refunded amount. 
$943.49 was refunded on December 3, 2015 to PayPal balance.
Paid with
Bank of America x-0876
Your backup is VISA x-7604
Ship to
[redacted]
[redacted]
[redacted] ** [redacted]
United States
Transaction ID
[redacted]
 
Seller info
TreeClassics
[email protected]
Your purchase
Order Number 143516 $1,117.94
Item #[redacted]
Shipping $0.00
Tax $0.00
Purchase total $1,117.94
Fee $0.00
Total $1,117.94
Yesterday, PayPal called Tree Classics on my behalf and told them I had filed a complaint with WI Revdex.com d/t to no response or refund for nearly 8 (EIGHT) wks. PayPal resolved the issue on the spot with them. Tree Classics NEVER ONCE contacted me during this time other than email “auto response” that they would update me and to “be patient”. Sad that it took this much stress, time and effort on the CUSTOMER’S part to finally get them to respond to PAYPAL. But never to me. There is a problem with this company. One of the MANY Customer Service reps I talked to actually sighed and said she “was aware that this company is running a scam”. She said it’s sad to work there. And I’m sure for every one of the similar complaints filed with WI Revdex.com about this company, there are 10 who didn’t take the time or effort to do that. This company has fraudulent practices.

This company takes ever opportunity to charge you fees if you change your mind. I ordered a tree and within 24 hours (on a weekend), I asked to change the tree I ordered to a different tree. Their response was that it was too late. The order had been sent to "the warehouse". (Their voice message said they were closed until Monday.) What "warehouse" did it go to on the weekend I ask? No one was filling any orders on the weekend. My order could have been modified. In fact, my order did not ship until Tuesday. They had every opportunity to stop the order. Their customer service rep via e-mail said I had to return it and pay the return shipping and then I could order another tree. When the tree arrived, I simply did not accept it and it went back. I knew I would have to pay for the return shipping fees but didn't know they would also charge me $50 for an "unauthorized return"! I have never heard of such a thing. Additionally, this item was sent back over 3 weeks ago and it wasn't until today when I contacted them about my refund that they investigated and then sent me a reply. If I hadn't contacted them, I doubt I would have heard anything from this company. My refund was close to $100 less all their unreasonable charges. Does this sound like a company you want to do business with?? I lost almost $100 on this purchase. I simply wanted to change my order but instead Tree Classics took the opportunity to charge me their ridiculous fees. I would never recommend this company to anyone else. At the very least, they could have apologized for not refunding my money sooner and waived certain charges. Not a chance.

Hello,
We are sorry for the frustration the customer has expressed with
the warranty process. On December 3rd, 2014 the customer contacted
us with an issue regarding a replacement section to their tree that was shipped
to them...

in January of 2014. We advise customers when we send a replacement
section to open it upon receipt and confirm everything is correct, if any
concerns please to contact right away so we can resolve. The customer waited to
express concerns regarding their replacement section until 11 months later. We requested
that the customer provide us documentation of the section received so we could verify
and request the correct section be sent. On December 5th, 2014 we submitted
the request for the availability of the replacement section. As the section was
available we shipped it to the customer on December 14th, 2014 and
the customer received it on December 18th, 2014. As we have complied
with the customer’s request as stated in this complaint and ensured they
received the section before Christmas, we feel the matter to be resolved.
Regards,
Tree
Classics Customer Service

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.[To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, we would like to know your view on the matter.]
Regards,
[redacted]

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted] and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
I received a phone call (that I still have on my voice mail) that I would receive a new tree in early summer. On August 14, 2014 I contacted to company regarding the tree and was told it was out of stock. On August 23, 2014 I contacted them again and they indicated they would send it to the escalation team. I contacted them again on September 23, 2014 and again was told the tree was out of stock. On October 15, 2014 I called again about the tree and it was still out of stock. On November 4, 2014 I was told they were escalating to a manager for a refund. The next day, November 5, 2014 I was told there would not be a refund and to choose another tree. 
After going on line, the company did not have another 9' prelit clear LED tree in stock. On November 6, 2014 I contacted the company again inquiring if the tree was ever in stock. The agent indicated the tree had been in stock and sold out in the summer. I had to bring it to company's attention that the tree was back in stock (according to their website) in December. I was told they could not guarantee delivery to me, but their website indicated they could ship to a customer's house in four days.  As a result, I had to obtain another tree for the holidays. Our Christmas wasn't going to be held hostage by an irresponsible company.
The bottom line:  The company had the tree in stock twice in eleven months and couldn't follow through and ship it in time for Christmas. Their business is Christmas trees, and it is a time sensitive product. A Christmas tree shipped in January is of no use to me. I demand a refund of $649.99 for not shipping a tree in the eleven months prior to Christmas. 
Regards,
[redacted]

Hello,
We are sorry for the frustration the customer has expressed...

with their order. The customer placed an order for an artificial Christmas tree over the phone on December 31st, 2015. On January 7th, 2016, the customer contacted us by email, expressing dissatisfaction with the appearance of their tree, claiming that it was not as pictured on our website, and requested to return the item. All of the pictures of our products are authentic photos that have not been altered in any way.  When a tree is new and out of the box, it does take time and effort to extend the branches and shape them. If you do not spend the time doing this, the tree will not look as full as it can be shaped to look. We responded to the customer’s email and advised them that they would be able to return the tree, but they would be responsible for the cost of return shipping as they were dissatisfied with the product. Our return policy, which is a part of the terms and conditions agreed to at the point of the sale, outline this information. We provided the customer with the option to use our return labels at $19.99 per box, or advised them that they could select their own shipping method and provide us with the tracking information once they have it.
The customer emailed us back on January 7th, 2016 to verify our return address and confirmed that they would be using their own method of shipping to return the item. At this time, we have not been notified of the return tracking information. As soon as we can confirm that the item has been returned, a full refund will be issued in the amount of $149.99 back to the customer’s card used for the purchase.
Regards,
Tree Classics Customer Service

Tree Classics has the absolute WORST customer service I have ever encountered. Their policy states they will send you replacements if anything is damaged or not working. That is not the case. I bought some lights after talking with a sales rep for quite a while trying to figure out what lights would work for my tree as I bought it quite a few years ago.. finally we decided on some lights. They arrived in small manila envelopes.. since I couldn't see if they were the right lights for my tree I opened one... they were not the right lights. We called and found out that since I opened the package we couldn't return those lights! (so why don't you put them in a plastic bag so I can see without opening?) Then we had to pay the shipping to return the lights that were wrong. then we had to pay for shipping of different lights and we got those today and they DON'T WORK and they basically said TOO BAD..they could care less. Both time my boyfriend was on the phone approx an hour being transferred around by uncaring is....DO NOT buy anything from this company... they [redacted]

Hi,
 
We regret the problems the customer had.  Upon management review, we have determined that the second order was placed in error as the customer states.  We are issuing a refund today, 2/14/14, for the remaining amount ($103.99), and the  customer should see...

the refund as soon as their credit card company issues the credit to their account.  We apologize for all of the inconvenience this error caused the customer, both that the order was mistakenly placed, and that when it was brought to the attention of customer service the error was not resolved as it should have been.  We will work to ensure this type of mistake is not replicated with future customers.
 
Regards,
Tree Classics Customer Service

Hello, We are sorry for the frustration the customer has expressed with the clearance warranty process for the trees they purchased.  As stated in our previous responses, the customer contacted us on September 22nd, 2014, to notify us of a lighting issue with one section of one of their tree, and as the customer was within the 30 day warranty timeframe, we shipped a replacement section on October 13th, 2014, and delivered to the address provided by the customer on October 17th, 2014. The customer did not contact us again until December 15th, 2015 to notify us that they were still having the same issues with their tree. It was at that time that they notified us that they were also having the same issues with the second tree that they had purchased. As the trees only came with a 30-day clearance warranty for both lights and foliage and the customer was now out of warranty by date, as a one-time courtesy, we offered to send out light strands at no cost to the customer in an attempt to fix their issue. The customer understood and accepted this option. The customer has received ten replacement light strands at no cost to them outside of their warranty time frame and they are now outside of the 30-day clearance warranty as their trees were purchased in 2014. Our policies, which are a part of the terms and conditions accepted at the time of sale, outline this. While we can appreciate the customer’s frustrations, we are under no obligation to provide the customer with a resolution. At this time, we consider this matter to be resolved, and the customer’s request for a refund is not an option. Regards, Tree Classics Customer Service

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted] and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
First and Foremost, I would like to say that I have my own documentation regarding the numerous calls I had with customer service about the issue with the tree.  I also, have a voicemail, from customer service, saying that the part was being shipped.  I also have the documentation from the bank regarding what was said to them.  I find it ridiculous that this company is expecting the customer to take care of a faulty tree.  As for the empty warehouse... I bought the tree back at the beginning of November and called about the issue the same day it was received.  There wasn't a single tree in house that had the part necessary to fix the problem two months prior to Christmas?  Even if they didn't have it then, they are displaying the EXACT same tree for sale on their website now and still can't manage to send the part?  What are they doing if someone buys the tree right now?  I no longer want this tree, even if it was complete, or want to deal with this company anymore.  
Regards,
[redacted]

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
In their response to my dispute, Tree Classics has refused to note the following:
1. Regarding the gaps ("flip paths"0 on the tree:  My husband I have spent literally hours attempting to properly position the Flip tree as Tree Classics recommended in early November when we contacted them about the problem. We "pulled them out, positioned, and shaped them in front of the flip path," just as describe in their response to this dispute. Nothing has worked. The tree still has significant approximately 1-ft gaps on each side and bears no resemblance to a natural tree, nor to the picture on the Tree Classics website. Through these gaps, the plugs for the lights are clearly visible. We received one e-mail advising us to try this procedure, then when it didn't work, we called Customer Service multiple times in November. During one call, the customer service representative even looked at a model of the Flip Tree in their office/showroom/warehouse (not sure) and confirmed that she noticed the same problem. In our attempt to salvage the tree so that we could set it up in our house for the Christmas season, we attempted to turn one of the sides with the gap toward the wall, but a section of the lights then stopped working on that side. We have had to make additional purchases of wide ribbon and large ornaments to attempt to fill the gaps; this yet another expense add to the hundreds of dollars we have already spent on this tree. Despite all of these attempts--pulling limbs together, repositioning them, shaping, using ribbon, turning the side with the faulty lights toward a corner of our room--the gaps still remain. 
2. Regarding delivery: On their website, Tree Classics clearly states that they ship via FedEx. Please see the URL: [redacted] However, they did not use Fed Ex, nor did they help us resolve the shipping problem due to the wrong number provided by their warehouse. Furthermore, how can they blame their warehouse for this error? Isn't their warehouse part of their company? Tree Classics sent us a faulty URL, did not contact the shipping company My Seko on our behalf, and thus I resorted to finding My Seko's number myself and called them directly or my tree would still be sitting in their warehouse. 
3. Regarding contacting customer service: Per Revdex.com at the beginning of the dispute process, our understanding of the protocol was that we should not speak directly with Tree Classics until the process was complete. This is why we have not responded to the 2 calls Tree Classics has made in the meantime. Again, prior to filing this complaint, both my husband and I spent *an entire month* attempting to resolve this matter. We are willing to contact Tree Classics again after the dispute process is complete, but are not optimistic that we would reach a satisfactory resolution with Tree Classics.
This tree cost $419.77. Apologies from Tree Classics are insufficient to correct the multiple issues and poor customer service we have received from this company. Please intervene on our behalf to make sure that other customers do not experience the same problems.
Regards,
[redacted]