Eddie Current customer service story

Discussion in 'Headphone Amplifiers and Combo (DAC/Amp) Units' started by thoth, Dec 6, 2019.

?

How much is EC responsible for the lost amp?

  1. < 5%

    40.6%
  2. 25% (give or take)

    21.7%
  3. 50%

    23.2%
  4. 75%

    10.1%
  5. > 95%

    4.3%
  1. YMO

    YMO Chief Fun Officer

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    Why you sent something that cost almost $4k uninsured? Sorry, but cheapasses who tax dodge deserve what they get. Even when taxes in general suck.
     
  2. RobS

    RobS RobS? More like RobDiarrhea.

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    No it's not. For how much that amp costs, I would take every precaution I could to make sure it arrived safely to me even if that means spending another $1k on shipping. If you can afford a $3500 amp, you can afford to cover whatever its going to cost to have it shipped to you. I don't have sympathy for people who buy expensive shit and ain't doing all they can to protect themselves.
     
  3. m17xr2b

    m17xr2b Friend

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    Kick a man while he's down don't you.
     
  4. RobS

    RobS RobS? More like RobDiarrhea.

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    Penny wise pound foolish.

    Or is it a fool and his money are soon parted.
     
  5. elmoe

    elmoe Friend

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    It's less about the customs spiel, afterall thoth requested the value not be declared so there's no reason for Craig to request it be insured again on the way back in this case. It's more about not being upfront about costs, threatening to not refund deposits after charging unknown fees, and the lack of care/decent communication thereafter.
     
  6. Psalmanazar

    Psalmanazar Most improved member; A+

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    The insurance protects the shipper. Sometimes a dealer will charge you for separate insurance that's not real shipping insurance but just basically is an agreement that you pay more and if your package is lost, he will mail out another one. At least that is how it works in the metal buying world. But that is not real shipping insurance.

    Always ship everything valuable registered and insured. Build it into the shipping price. Don't be afraid to use freight for heavy and expensive shit. Fed Ex or UPS or DHL for expensive stuff too small to freight. I don't trust the USPS to protect expensive stuff in the USA. I've had them lose rare ass records worth hundreds of dollars in the local post office or local distribution place and they only got to me months later. They just misplaced a CD for a few days. In Central Europe? Some people I know get packages delivered to commercial businesses they have an arrangement with because they will be stolen by gypsies if delivered to a house during the day. Also the couriers might not deliver to residential units like the post will.
     
  7. skem

    skem Friend

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    I think it boils down to one question:

    Does Craig have an obligation to deliver a working amp? or merely to ship out a working amp?

    If, as most people here have been saying, prevention of shipping damage is the shipper’s responsibility—then it is only logical to conclude that it is on Craig to deliver a working amp in the first place. When he failed to do so, everything that follows is part of Craig’s responsibility to make right.

    If he wants to be a terse Porker and not give specific return-shipping instructions and, worse, not offer to pay for return shipping when the original fault is on him, then he has to suck up the consequences.
     
  8. Pogo

    Pogo Friend

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    I strongly recommend to Thoth that he delete all of his public posts stating that he requested and received a shipment with an undervalued customs declaration and which infer that he made an international shipment with an undervalued customs declaration.
     
  9. Mithrandir41

    Mithrandir41 Friend

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    We don't do deleting here.
     
  10. LetMeBeFrank

    LetMeBeFrank Won't tell anyone my name is actually Francis

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    Once Thoth requested the package be shipped uninsured and at low declared value the responsibility shifts to Thoth, especially considering Craig was going to insure it and declare the correct value initially.
     
  11. m17xr2b

    m17xr2b Friend

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    Nothing would have changed if the first shipment was insured.
     
  12. bazelio

    bazelio Friend

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    Additionally, Craig didn't fly to Romania and ship the package uninsured back to himself in the US. So even if we want to say the shipper is always responsible no matter what, Craig was the receiver (not the shipper) of the lost uninsured package.

    EC is dumb to agree to misrepresent value to customs and ship a high cost item uninsured, IMO. But regardless of our opinion on that, it's just not the issue here (lucky for EC).
     
  13. RobS

    RobS RobS? More like RobDiarrhea.

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    I agree with @skem , the insurance talk is a red herring. It's still on Craig at the end of the day to deliver a working amp to the customer. And blaming the Romanian post service for being corrupt and other stuff is bullshit.

    Thoth was foolish to ask not to have it insured but since that only protects the shipper then that's Craig's problem for agreeing. I suspect he doesn't know it covers him and not the buyer. Otherwise he wouldn't have asked Thoth and probably would have insured it and declared its real value. And what bazelio says:

    Yup.

    The only reason I'm giving Thoth grief about it is from a buyer's perspective as he should have taken some extra precautions for such an expensive purchase. Don't cheap out on getting stuff shipped overseas, get more information on return policies, total shipping cost, etc.
     
  14. m17xr2b

    m17xr2b Friend

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    I never liked the double box solution of EC, twice the chance of issues.
     
  15. LetMeBeFrank

    LetMeBeFrank Won't tell anyone my name is actually Francis

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    Craig might have been able to get reimbursed for the return shipping if he was able to file an insurance claim on the initial shipment and then issue a return shipping label to Thoth. Instead he let Thoth figure out the return on his own.
     
  16. m17xr2b

    m17xr2b Friend

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    So why wasn't it the same for @k4rstar when he received a scratched damaged amp and @purr1n had to mediate? Too bad he's banned.
     
  17. Zhanming057

    Zhanming057 Friend

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    Double box avoids the issue of having a single package that's "overweight" by courier standards that's going to be a lot more expensive than shipping the parts separately.

    Re: OP's latest revelation, it's terribly stupid to ask to skip insurance but Craig should know better. Doesn't change the situation, although OP should never ship anything internationally without insurance ever again.

    To people who think that I'm shitposting - you're the reason why manufacturers and retailers think that they can get away with one line replies and a general lack of support. You're buying a $4,000 amp and it's not your job to do due diligence on behalf of the manufacturer.

    On Craig's end, this is why no matter how small a company you are you need to have a clear TOS and outline potential liability issues. Otherwise it's a mess for everyone involved. I doubt that Craig is fully liable legally given the circumstances, but customer service should be much, much more than the legal minimum.
     
  18. Hands

    Hands Overzealous Auto Flusher - Measurbator

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    I would say you implicitly agreed to not just be responsible for it being lost but also damaged on delivery. That you were OK being held responsible for it being lost (full value out the door) is a heavier burden than at least getting something to your door. At least then not all value is lost.

    Might I have recommended instead you sought out a local business or individual to repair the amp? Plenty of competent folks around. Craig may even have reimbursed repair fees, though, again, you passed on insurance.

    If you don't get shipping instructions, assume the highest common denominator, not the lowest. Go with the best shipper and one that's fully insured. Unless, of course, you are willing to again roll the dice and assume all responsibility if something goes wrong.

    I'm not saying I don't understand your choices in the matter, or that customer service could have been better. I get it, really. But I think your expectations are misaligned based on your choices and assumptions.
     
  19. yotacowboy

    yotacowboy McRibs Kind of Guy

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    I'm not going to jump on either side here, but just offer that in the handful of times where I've had a customer (in a different recreational hobby) that felt like they got shafted for a complete loss (usually due to an out of warrantee failure, or denial of warrantee claim, i.e., manufacturer deemed the claim outside of coverage), I've offered the customer a replacement at my cost/wholesale, and that seemed to keep them happy. I could afford to eat the loss on profit, but not the loss on parts. When retail margin is 35-50%, that's close to getting the replacement for half price. Especially when I get to keep the customer, rather than drive them away due to one shitty situation. There's an opportunity cost embedded in a failure to meet customers needs in odd situations.
     
  20. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    Yeah, we wouldn't want Ceaușescu's secret police finding out.
     

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