Disappointed in How They Handled This

[tweetylori]

We were at Epcot in July and purchased a cute little brass tea set for my MIL. It was only $12...came with a teapot, little cups and a small tray to set them on. I don't know how, but the box didn't have the tray in it when we got home. I watched them pack it up, so I'm honestly clueless how it couldn't be there.

Anyway, no big deal, the whole set was only $12, I'd be glad to purchase a tray for it. Couldn't find a phone number anywhere for the shops in Epcot, so I called the main Disney number. Got a very sweet rep who was not allowed to give out phone numbers, but did put me on hold until she got up with a store manager in Morocco, where we had purchased it from. She put me through to her who put me through to someone else. She told me they couldn't sell the tray separately...fine, I'll buy the whole set again, it's only $12...my MIL is worth it

But then she asks me if her manaager had told me what shipping costs would be. Uh, no...but it can't be much, they're light as air and tiny. Puts me on hold and comes back saying it'll be $10 to ship it! I told her there was no way it could cost that much, even to ship it from Morocco! She said, well it was. So I said, that's it. Last straw. It's not that my MIL isn't worth it, but I have my limits to what's fair or not. By Morocco

So I went to World Market here and got a stand for the tea set for $4.

 

[safetymom]

I don't find $10 to ship it unreasonable. Nowadays no matter where you buy something the shipping is like that.

What did you want them to do for you? Did you ask them that?

 

[WDWLinda]

That really stinks...I would have suggested calling Disney merchandising (sorry, don't have the #). We bought the collector's metal monorail toy for my son ($15 in MK) and it broke shortly after we got home. I called them to reorder, and they sent me a new one for free - said there was a one-time free replacement. I bet if you could describe it to them and tell them what happened, they'd locate it and you might have better luck.

Sorry this left a bad taste in your mouth!

~Linda

 

[B'rer Karen]

I'm sorry you were unhappy. I do have to agree that $10 shipping is not unreasonable. I ship packages of all weights and sizes every day and if you use a carrier like Fed Ex or UPS and ship for overnight, 2 day, or even 3 day service, it's a bit pricey. In the future you could ask them what method they were going to use to ship it and then ask them to down grade it (so if they were planning on shipping it overnight, ask them to ship it ground).

 

[tweetylori]

Maybe I'm too used to Ebay, but $10 to ship a $12 item that doesn't weigh much? It's a miniature! I've had heavy hard-cover books get shipped to me for under $4. That doesn't seem much?

 

[tweetylori]

Originally posted by WDWLinda
That really stinks...I would have suggested calling Disney merchandising (sorry, don't have the #). We bought the collector's metal monorail toy for my son ($15 in MK) and it broke shortly after we got home. I called them to reorder, and they sent me a new one for free - said there was a one-time free replacement. I bet if you could describe it to them and tell them what happened, they'd locate it and you might have better luck.

Sorry this left a bad taste in your mouth!

~Linda

I think the shops in Epcot are independent of the regular Disney merchandising stores. That's my understanding. The manager in Morocco can set up their own way of doing things, I do believe.

 

[B'rer Karen]

Originally posted by tweetylori
Maybe I'm too used to Ebay, but $10 to ship a $12 item that doesn't weigh much? It's a miniature! I've had heavy hard-cover books get shipped to me for under $4. That doesn't seem much?

Again, the method is everything. For example, if I send a one pound package Fed Ex first overnight for 8 am delivery from NC to OH, it could cost $25. If I sent it priority overnight (10 am) it might be $15. If I sent it standard overnight (4pm), it might be 10. If I sent it 2 day it might be 8 and if I sent it express saver it might be 6. You should always ask which carrier and method are being used. USPS and UPS would have different rates than Fed Ex.

 

[princssdisnygina]

Did you try returning it to the Disney store? I know when you buy items at WDW you can return them at the Disney Store if you would like. You could have returned it and ordered another, you still would have paid shipping but wouldn't have had to buy it twice. Just a thought.

Gina

 

[Golter]

I think $10 would be about right to ship it from WDW. This is one that you'll just chock up to an accident. I know if your like me, things generally will work out. You'll get a break on something else unrelated and make up the money. Its an inconvienence and a disappointment, but I think Disney did all that could be expected of them. If it would have been from any other store other than an individual country in EPCOT, I would almost guarentee they would have sent you one for free.

I have had wonderful expierences when I've had a problem at Disney. They have always made things right, whether it was their fault or not.

 

[bigtinkfun]

We have a family run book distribution business. Every now and then, our warehouse will mess up an order and something a person ordered will not arrive. Maybe they'll have ordered 5 books and been charged for 5 books, but that fifth book will have escaped from the box or whatever. Or they'll get book X instead of book Y. Or they'll get a damaged book.

No matter, if the customer ordered something and did not get it, here is what we do:

We ship them the book they purchased, but did not get, no charge for shipping. No mucking about.

I learned that from Walt.

Tweetylori purchased a tea set at Epcot, a Disney theme park. She didn't get all the pieces to her set. When she got home, and called the shop, they should have answered with: "I'm terribly sorry to hear that, ma'am, and I do apologize for the inconvenience. May I have your address so we can send you the missing piece?"

Would Walt have done any less?

 

[Tigger&Belle]

I totally agree with bigtinkfun! It's not as if the OP was asking for the entire set to be sent free of charge. Something happened to part of it somewhere in the process and it should have been sent free of charge.

T&B

 

[BonnieA]

I also would have complained that I didn't get a piece, bet they would have sent it.
I bought a packaged plant leaf from Epcot's Land pavilion. It didn't grow. I emailed WDW, gave them the package UPC and price. They sent me a replacement. The leaf only cost me 99 cents originally. They sent it UPS, probably cost them $5 to send it, wrapped it with packing in a huge box (compared to the plant leaf envelope).

At Universal I bought a pen some years back. The price sticker left a mark when I tried to remove it. The mark was sticky with adhesive and I couldn't get it off. I wrote and told them about it. They called me on the phone and gave me instructions how to remove the mark. It didn't work so they sent me a new pen, no problem.

 

[kathylovesdisneyworl]

Originally posted by bigtinkfun
We have a family run book distribution business. Every now and then, our warehouse will mess up an order and something a person ordered will not arrive. Maybe they'll have ordered 5 books and been charged for 5 books, but that fifth book will have escaped from the box or whatever. Or they'll get book X instead of book Y. Or they'll get a damaged book.

No matter, if the customer ordered something and did not get it, here is what we do:

We ship them the book they purchased, but did not get, no charge for shipping. No mucking about.

The original poster did not say if wasn't in the box. She said she watched them pack it up for her so she doesn't know what happened to it.

I don't think the $10 fee is that unreasonable. It is for shipping and handling and that seems about what I would pay for almost anything I have shipped now.

 

[jtjarvis]

Originally posted by safetymom
I don't find $10 to ship it unreasonable. Nowadays no matter where you buy something the shipping is like that.

What did you want them to do for you? Did you ask them that?

I have to respectfully disagree. $10 is exorbitant. The most S&H should be for an item so light, or even heavier, is about $6.95. I say the most. My DH has a direct mail business, which is why I know the going rates. $10 is just some silly number they pulled out, IMHO.

 

[Ilovestitch]

I think Disney has certain prices they ship stuff at that the CM you were talking to has no control over- here's an example:

Say you bought a little charm for one of those italian bracelets on disneystore.com. The shipping for that would be $7.95- eventhough its a tiny little thing that weighs nothing. Could you imagine calling disneystore.com and asking the person on the phone to just go ahead and mail it first class for $1.00?

I don't think the CM's at Epcot have a little mail scale and shipping supplies in the back room and just felt like ripping you off- the shipping charges are probably all at a set amount based on the dollar amount of the item- it probably includes tracking/insurance, etc. The CM's don't have control over the set shipping costs.

That said, if I bought something at WDW and the CM forgot to include a piece of it and I knew I didn't lose it myself, I would have just called and said that when you opened the box a piece wasn't there and that you need a replacement. If it was Disney's fault I can't imagine them saying they won't send you a replacement. -Stephanie

 

[princess pooh]

Sorry that this wasn't handeled to your satisfaction. Can you call back and tell them that the set was missing a piece and you want it replaced? After all you paid for it and you didn't receive it.

I love the stores in world showcase but they can be difficult to deal with if a problem comes up.

 

[kathylovesdisneyworl]

Originally posted by Ilovestitch

That said, if I bought something at WDW and the CM forgot to include a piece of it and I knew I didn't lose it myself, I would have just called and said that when you opened the box a piece wasn't there and that you need a replacement. If it was Disney's fault I can't imagine them saying they won't send you a replacement. -Stephanie

Would agree that if poster thought that Disney forgot the item Disney would just send out another one. I got the impression the poster is not saying they didn't package it so in turn wanted to buy a new one.

 

[tweetylori]

Thank you bigtinkfun! That's exactly what I wanted to hear. Something along those lines. I called being as nice as I could, not blaming anyone, and willing to even incur some expense to fix the problem, but it didn't seem fair that I was gonna have to pay another $12 for a whole new set (when I needed one piece)AND $10 shipping on top of that. I also never asked for any kind of specific shipping or time involved. As light and small as this stuff is, they could've stuck the little tray in an envelope and stuck a couple stamps on it and it would've been fine.

So bigtinkfun...what's your company and how can I buy things from you?

 

[WDSearcher]

Originally posted by tweetylori
Thank you bigtinkfun! That's exactly what I wanted to hear. Something along those lines. I called being as nice as I could, not blaming anyone, and willing to even incur some expense to fix the problem, but it didn't seem fair that I was gonna have to pay another $12 for a whole new set (when I needed one piece)AND $10 shipping on top of that. I also never asked for any kind of specific shipping or time involved. As light and small as this stuff is, they could've stuck the little tray in an envelope and stuck a couple stamps on it and it would've been fine.

Chances are, first off, that it's not a Disney-owned and operated store. Most of the WS stores are independently owned by vendors from within the country represented. So you're not dealing with Disney, per se, you're dealing with the specific shop. So there's a difference there in expectations.

That said, the thing that probably would have made the biggest difference is if you'd have asked "What kind of shipping do you use?" If the answer was, "Next day air," then $10 is a bargain. If it's, "I take it to the post office on my way home," then that's another story. But I do agree with the poster who said that if you order things from catalogs, then the shipping prices are set based on price, not based on how much something weighs. I order a 1 oz. wooden snowflake ornament from a place in Colorado and it costs $10, I pay $4.95 shipping. I order a 2 lb book about the wooden ornament from the same place for $10, I pay $4.95 shipping. That's just how it is. But, chances are, $10 was for the quickest way (whether it be overnight, one-day or two-day -- whatever the "quick" standard is for that vendor) to get it to you. Not the most economical.

 

[tweetylori]

Thanks for all the suggestions/comments.

I have to disagree that $10 shipping for a $12 item that is being RE-B0UGHT is reasonable. I also realize that this Moroccan store is not part of the Disney ones. For those of you that think I should've questioned the shipping charges further, I assure you, I did. I was told that was what it was according to her manager. No big deal. I've solved this on my own. I just want people to know that I would've liked to have come on here with a post that said : "I loved the way they handled this!"

Their choice. Their way of doing things. To each his own. To each his own who they do business with as well.