I have a current chargeback dispute pending with Barclays. Long story short, I ordered some software from a shady company in Germany. The software didn't work. I've read plenty of reviews afterwards that all had the same problem I had. I contacted them for technical support. After 5 days, I still hadn't received a reply. I requested a refund. They finally replied and wanted to run me through a battery of techincal diagnostic tests first to see if they could solve the problem. They couldn't. At one point, I even got an e-mail from the president of the company saying that I never sent in any technical support requests. Huh? So after getting the runaround, I requested a refund again. They denied the request.
I contacted Barclays to dispute the transaction. I sent in all supporting documentation like my e-mail exchanges, copy of the software log files with errors listed, etc. They initiate the dispute. I get a call from them 30 days later. They want me to send in a letter from ANOTHER merchant that verifies that what the previous merchant has provided is inadequate or faulty. So basically they want me to contact some merchant who has nothing to do with the original merchant to take a look at the software and the installation on my computer and confirm everything that I claim.
1.) Why would any other merchant get involved in a dispute that has nothing to do with them?
2.) Why would any other merchant get involved without charging me some sort of fee? (probably more than the original cost of the software)
Does anyone else find this strange?
Starting Score: 714
@CreditHammer wrote:
@sosabe77 wrote:I have a current chargeback dispute pending with Barclays. Long story short, I ordered some software from a shady company in Germany. The software didn't work. I've read plenty of reviews afterwards that all had the same problem I had. I contacted them for technical support. After 5 days, I still hadn't received a reply. I requested a refund. They finally replied and wanted to run me through a battery of techincal diagnostic tests first to see if they could solve the problem. They couldn't. At one point, I even got an e-mail from the president of the company saying that I never sent in any technical support requests. Huh? So after getting the runaround, I requested a refund again. They denied the request.
I contacted Barclays to dispute the transaction. I sent in all supporting documentation like my e-mail exchanges, copy of the software log files with errors listed, etc. They initiate the dispute. I get a call from them 30 days later. They want me to send in a letter from ANOTHER merchant that verifies that what the previous merchant has provided is inadequate or faulty. So basically they want me to contact some merchant who has nothing to do with the original merchant to take a look at the software and the installation on my computer and confirm everything that I claim.
1.) Why would any other merchant get involved in a dispute that has nothing to do with them?
2.) Why would any other merchant get involved without charging me some sort of fee? (probably more than the original cost of the software)
Does anyone else find this strange?
They're assuming you purchased the software because you wanted/needed it.. So since the software you received doesn’t work they also assume you went elsewhere and purchased a working version.. They are asking that whoever you purchased a new/working version from that they say "yes, the software he received is faulty"..
That's a lot of (incorrect) assumptions!
@john398 wrote:Just curious how much money are we talking about here?
$99 for the software. I'm sure if I have to bring in another "merchant" to look at it, they will charge me something near or greater than that for the labor.
At $99, especially if you have no other disputes, they should write it off and call it a day.
@guiness56 wrote:Who is requesting this, the CCC or the merchant you bought it from?
Barclays, the CCC.
@enharu wrote:
It's really weird. You should try calling Barclays again and talk to a different rep. Maybe it's just confusing because its a software and generally software isn't refundable anywhere regardless of where you buy it.
I asked to be transferred to a supervisor, and he got on the phone and pretty much reiteritated that this is part of their dispute process for this particular type of merchant. He said they do this because "they are not experts" (his exact words), so they need something in official letterhead from a reputable company in the same or related field that backs my claim.
On another forum, someone said that they ordered a tablet from a deal site using a Barclays card. The item was delivered in a condition way less than described in the item listing. They disputed with Barclays, sent in pics, documentation, etc. Barclays still wanted them to get another merchant to back their claim. They had to go pay a local computer shop to look at it and verify their claims. They ultimately won the dispute this way, but they had to put out a little more money.
All in all, I will probably just take this as a $99 lesson not to use the Barclays card again.