Microspot.ch often appears near the top of the pile on toppreise, but if you actually order something you will find that they are in fact one of the most expensive companies.
I've just bought a pocket digital camera which was advertised on their site with free delivery. Seeing as they also had the smart leather case for it, I added that to my shopping basket too. Bearing in mind that the bulkiest item (camera) had free delivery and both arrived in the same box I was amazed that they charged me 7.85CHF for delivery of the leather case which weighs virtually nothing. And they also charged 6.25CHF for delivery insurance, which admittedly is optional but would you risk an expensive camera going missing? And then a credit card charge on top (for being such a difficult customer ).
Delivery insurance (6.25 CHF)
Credit card fee (8.40 CHF)
Shipping costs (7.85 CHF)
This will certainly be my last shopping experience with microspot.ch
Sorry to hear that... but (I'm jumping to conclusions here) I take it you did not read any of the AGBs (general business rules or what it's called) when you ordered...
I noticed with a lot of people I know that they simply don't read what they sign for or order on the internet and are really p*ssed off afterwards....
Hopefully a better experience next time...
Edit: OOOOPS - just re-read it and saw it's only for the case... pls ignore my rambling.
Its a good point, I need to check my UBS credit card contract.
However I am actually going to write a strongly worded letter to this outfit because this 25CHF camera case has actually cost me over 14CHF to have delivered since both the delivery cost and insurance only apply to the case and not the camera, which was supposed to have been delivered by insured post for free.
I think normal post has insurance up to 500 francs value. You might want to check this but that's what my postal guys tell me in the office.
I'm not too sure about whether these companies are permitted to pass on the commission for using the credit card - that might also be an interesting investigation....
Surely it's the company who should be concerned with delivery insurance. It is their responsibility to deliver the item to you. If it gets lost or damaged they take it up with who they contracted to deliver it (not you) and you have a claim against the retailer as they didnt fulfil their side of the contract to deliver to you what you ordered. So I think skipping the insurance doesn't weaken your position.
I have never ordered with them, but their site states that a box must be ticked for insurance...
If they are not allowed to add the CC fees, they will simply add these charges on top of any order - I don't see why people who order against invoice should have to pay that...
I quite like Microspot, they usually have the best prices and their customer service was awesome the one time I had a problem.
So if you want to take that as bias when I say what I'm about to say, go ahead.
The credit card fee is a bit high, I admit. Solution: use bank transfer, which is free.
The free delivery was only on the camera, the site is clear about that, and no one forced you to get the case. The delivery insurance was also completely optional.
I can understand your annoyance in the heat of the moment, but to me it's quite clear that most of these problem stem from your own (self-admitted I might add) inattentiveness and hurry when you made the order.
I would understand if these were hidden charges, but you had the option to say no (or use a free alternative, in the case of the CC) to all of these every step of the way.
Absolutely, but you cannot deny that they are being very naughty charging delivery + insurance when the case was dispateched in the same box as my camera, had they arrived as seperate deliveries I might have understood. In addition why are they charging delivery insurance when Die Post already guarantees delivery upto 500CHF? The reason I chose it was because I didn't want my camera to go missing, but in hindsight I was a bit naive or duped to use a stronger word.
As for alternative methods of payment, I already have an account with microspot and have used them before for a car stereo where I did pay by UBS bank transfer. It took exactly 10 days for the payment status to be updated (I checked daily and even sent the UBS payment receipt), but by then the stereo was out of stock again. So from placing the order to getting my stereo took almost 4 weeks.
I would never buy anything from the internet using bank transfer! if the co. goes titsup you have lost your money, if the item breaks and the co. is being a pita about it you have no come back, at least with a CC you can put in a claim and have some protection.
Yes, there's always that risk, but you can be afraid of anything in that case. Even paying cash at a store. What if the store closes?! Oh noes. Basic common sense and a minimum of research will tell you which internet retailers are reputable, thus not at a risk of going out of business in the near future or unlikely to screw you over, and those that aren't.
Weird, I remember them being quite prompt about changing payment status. When an item I ordered was out of stock for more than a few weeks, I called and they apologized and quickly gave me the option of either getting my money back or using the money as a gift certificate for another order.
I won't deny their order system is slightly convoluted, and all the extra charges (if you don't order the on-sale and free shipping items) can be a bit annoying. But when their stuff is on sale, they have the best prices in Switzerland, maybe even in Western Europe.
Anyway, let's class this under "different folks, different experiences" before I start sounding like I work for them or something.
Microspot accepted to refund an SD card reader I bought from them after it turned out that it did not meet the specifications advertised on the manufacturer's web site. Customer service was polite, although not as efficient as one would wish (the card reader was sent back and forth several times before they realised I did not want it any more).
As for delivery, I share your frustration regarding the costs, Mr Castro. I also ordered several articles together and they were delivered separately, with shipping fees incurred for items not marked for free delivery. I assume this is due to products being sent directly from suppliers to customers. Things could be more transparent.
Ordered a printer and paid for it on 28th Sep. Just found out the article which originally in their site "auf lager" was, cannot be shipped before 28.Oct.
And I am supposed to have now "ein bisschen Geduld" as they wrote in email.
Microspot is owned by Coop I think. Only problem I have with them is shipping. Often products are listed as in stock but ship couple of weeks later. So paying with card for faster shipment does not make sense with them. However, they also ship in part and often some small things arrive in several big boxes by DHL.
Steg PC is best for delivery. I often get it next morning for orders before 16 PM.
Been pretty pleased with digitec.ch myself recently. Have ordered a printer, PC parts and a 50" plasma off them over the last couple of months. Paying by CC invokes a small charge, but immediate dispatch, whereas there is a 2 day delay for online transfers to complete, but at no extra cost. Everything arrived promptly the day after dispatch.
I ordered a printer from Microspot.ch for the office, this printer was by order only in stores and I hoped that it would be less hassle.
Now, the printer is 2'000 chf, was supposed to work on Mac, network and just be great...
In turned out a complete S***T, awful printing quality, colors bad, lines unclear. So they said it needs an update, which could only be done on PC. I was also missing stickers around buttons and looked like it was already once returned.
I asked to return it, even to buy another or exactly the same, but working one from them and it was refused! I even had to ask a lawyer to take care of it, but to no avail. They put the file into collections, saying that in their general conditions there is no returning possible. Small print...
They did get a service for the printer on a warranty (though another company), which solved most problems, but I am not happy with its quality. We are an architectural office and we pay a lot of attention to our line and colors.