WHOLESALE CENTRAL USA - LIARS!!!

I joined this drop shipper after paying $69 for a "lifetime membership". I noticed they had the ipods for a reasonable price plus an extra 20% off if youre a member. That is what sold me because those are a very hot item on ebay. I sold about 20 of these ipods almost immediately on ebay and put the order through. Their description stated that delivery would take up to 3 weeks, which I then stated in my auctions' description. They then changed their delivery time to 2-6 weeks, which I also stated my auctions' description and people still bidded knowing this.

Well, it has been longer than 3 weeks and after many emails and excuses first stating that the ipods will ship 9/22 and then stating that they just received a bulk shipment of 250 ipods on the 22nd and that they will be "packaged and shipped asap" and I will be provided the tracking numbers for all the orders this week. My customers have been very patient up until this point and I dont blame them at all... Ive very upset with this "company" and will never deal with them again.

If they were out of stock on these ipods, they should be up front and honest about it and not try and make it sound better by saying delivery will take up to 3 weeks and then 6 weeks.

Im wondering if these ipods will ever ship and if I will have to file fraud charges against them to get my money back and refund my customers. They said I can cancel the orders and get refunded and I asked how long it would take to get refunded. They said "Our refund policy states that refunds will be issued once funds are recovered by our distributor. The average refund is 2-3 weeks." So I just decided that if ALL the orders will be shipped this week for sure with no more delays, then I will leave it as it is and not cancel because I cant wait another 2-3 weeks (on average, which means it could be longer) to refund my customers who have already been waiting a month or more.

I HAVE NEVER BEEN SO FRUSTRATED!!!

I simply stated in the auction what was stated by the supplier in regards to shipping taking up to 3 weeks and was under the impression that they will be loyal to their shipment. I'm new at this and only started with this supplier due to health problems (I'm only 23) and other circumstances where Ive had to quit my job, on top of recently being hospitalized for 3 weeks on strict bed rest because I was having twins (born premature at 29 weeks on 9/19/06) and trying to have some sort of income coming in... Im doing the best I can. I had a lot going on besides trying to show my husband, who was only trying to help me out, how to respond to emails from my ebay customers and hoping that he does everything right... I have been very stressed and still am and I apologised for all the inconvenience this has caused my customers. Hopefully they will continue to be patient and understanding.

:: sigh ::

Never pay a membership fee to use a dropshipper, ever. For every legit dropshipper, there are ten scammers like this company.

Sorry, internet business take as much time and love as brick and mortar business to be successful.

Hopefully your twins are doing well.

You have just described the exact reason many, many, many sellers do NOT use drop shippers.

Not to be the messenger of bad news ..... but ...... If the items are not shipped soon and your buyers start asking for refunds, you telling them they have to wait for you to get the refund from the drop shipper is NOT going to go over very well. If I was one of the buyers and I decided I want a refund, I would want it NOW ... not 2-3 weeks from now. If payment was made by PayPal, expect to be hearing from them soon since the buyers will start filing for Item Not Received.

I don't sell what I don't have in my hot little hands.

There are even ones who don't charge memberships, states ships within 5-7 days for less then $100, states no minimum, And still doesn't ship!!!

BigfootDepot wrote (View Post): › You have just described the exact reason many, many, many sellers do NOT use drop shippers. Not to be the messenger of bad news ..... but ...... If the items are not shipped soon and your buyers start asking for refunds, you telling them they have to wait for you to get the refund from the drop shipper is NOT going to go over very well. If I was one of the buyers and I decided I want a refund, I would want it NOW ... not 2-3 weeks from now. If payment was made by PayPal, expect to be hearing from them soon since the buyers will start filing for Item Not Received. I don't sell what I don't have in my hot little hands.

Unfortunately, Ive learned this the hard way. I dont know how Im going to refund 20 people almost $400 each if this doesnt go through. They all paid through paypal and Ive already got 3 people filing chargebacks to get refunded. Theres no money in my paypal account and I hope paypal doesnt dip into my personal bank account to refund them their money -- Does anyone know if paypal would do this?

I will also be filing fraud charges against them so I can get the money back that way if they dont ship by the end of this week, hopefully, and refund everyone.

I need all the help I can get on this one...

You could tell your customers that you ordered the products from WHOLESALE CENTRAL USA and that they are the ones causing the problems or even direct them to this thread. It might make them more understanding. But before you really can do anything you need to contact WHOLESALE CENTRAL USA and find out if and when the ipods will be shipped or start the process on getting refunded. How did you pay them paypal creditcard. Maybe you can file a chargeback on them.

My time is never use a dropshipper unless they require a tax id or resellers license otherwise they are not legit.

psunite wrote (View Post): › How did you pay them paypal creditcard. Maybe you can file a chargeback on them.

I used the paypal debit card. Would I be able to file fraud charges still even though its not the credit card?

Call the number on the card immediatly to report the charges as fraud. If it was a regular VISA, you would be fine and could get the cash back in 1 week. PayPal? I'm not sure. I been burned by PayPal twice. I'm convinced there is NO Buyer/Seller protection. I cancelled it and will not use FeeBay / Paypal again. Your better off with a real merchant account.

I would start calling ASAP. If this so called wholesaler has screwed anyone else it start showing up with the banks VISA records.


A bad deal like this could put you out of business fast.

I hate reading stories like this.

Paypal blows. They locked up my account with over $800 in it and I can't get them to unlock it. I will never use them again.

Going down the road I suggest you (and others who may read this) might take this piece of advice which applies to everything from online transactions to shopping for auto insurance; BEFORE you decide on a product, CALL THEIR CUSTOMER SERVICE DEPARTMENT. If they make it difficult to find a phone number or they have you on hold for over 5 minutes, that means they're avoiding customers or alot of people have problems with them. Paypal is notorious for lengthy wait times, if you're even lucky enough to find their phone number. It sounds like Wholesale Central probably has similar wait times.

It is a shame that some folks who profess to be dropshippers consistenly drop the ball. But please dont stereo type us as we are all not bad folks. some of us work very hard at what we do.I was up till 3 am last night making sure all our weekend orders were prepared to be processed the next day. I didnt have to but actually I was a little insomniac. I do that occassionally. we pride our selves in fast effective and efficient service. Inventory is a tricky devil , we prefer to work on the safe side of the fence. Our inventory level has a tickler and when it hits 100 our site automatically removes the item and we reorder, that normally has been quite sufficient for any orders coming in. I tell folks that if you see it we have it. If you dont see it we probably still have it. Now occassionally we do have items that are not running items and are limited quantity, but we do specify this in the listings. and no dont pay membership fees, that to me is just flat out a ripoff. why should I ask someone to pay me to buy from me? hmmmmm cause I can I suppose . we choose not too. we do ask for a minimum first purchase, but in all honesty I have waived that for some time now and think I am just going to eliminate it all together. anyways we are not all bad there are some of us that are very good and i would .like to think we are one of those! we dont thrive on disgruntled customers for sure. when I get time I am going to put a forum on our site , join the BBB which I should have done a long time ago, and also incorporate bizrates internet rating system which we cannot retract, it is similar to ebays feedback and run by Shopzilla. its a way for us to not only hear customer comments but to police ourselves and make dam sure we get up in the morning and service our clients well! I wish it was an industry norm , maybe someday as we evolve checks and balances will become a norm !
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WoW - it's too bad more 'business folks' aren't like you - caring about the customer!!!

I too am sorry to hear this. In reference to the question about 'can Paypal dip into my personal account to cover the refunds' - the answer is YES - if you have that account tied to your PP account. If it's not associated with it, they can not - but will try to tap the account you've provided to them.

I hope that makes sense, and I'm sure sorry for your problems!!

I guess I was a bit off topic lol, yes they took $1400 from one of our accounts causing checks to bounce and reversed 2 transactions to our vendors after calling them and telling them to put my payments on Hold. they then froze one of our accounts for six months. Paypal can do what they want. Sometimes it is difficult figuring out who the real villians are. I am very sorry and do hope they dont put you thru that.

worldofwholesale wrote (View Post): › I guess I was a bit off topic lol, yes they took $1400 from one of our accounts causing checks to bounce and reversed 2 transactions to our vendors after calling them and telling them to put my payments on Hold. they then froze one of our accounts for six months. Paypal can do what they want. Sometimes it is difficult figuring out who the real villians are. I am very sorry and do hope they dont put you thru that.

WoW - I didn't think so - you brought up a valid point IMO. Often the actions of one/two can 'twist' the whole perception of an industry/market. It's good for sellers to know not 'all' function as the one mentioned in the OP!!

Am I right that they can only 'tap' the account you have tied to PP? I believe that's what I read a long while ago when I first set up with them?

Well that just sucks! I hope they dont dip into my personal accounts! I tried to look that up on their site and it said that they would just put a limitation on the account until the balance is brought back up if it's in the negative due to buyers complaints. I already have 3 complaints of non-receipt, which I dont blame them for doing because I would do the same thing just to make sure my end is covered... but that has put my account into the negative and so far Paypal hasnt dipped into my personal accounts yet.

I did manage to get refunded from this supplier. I basically told them that if they dont ship the ipods by a certain date or if I dont receive my refund by that date either, I have enough info on them to put them out of business. To that, they immediately issued a company check, which arrived the next day with tracking, for the full amount. I called the issuing bank to verify that the account was legit and it was; I just wish there was a way to see if the actual funds were in the account so I can go ahead and start refunding these people without having them wait even longer.

I just wish I could find a legit, honest dropshipper so that I can make some extra money. I just had twin girls and havent been able to work since February, putting my husband in a tight spot and all stressed out. I feel so hopeless and worthless if Im not contributing somehow...

Thank you guys for all your advice. Youve definitely giving me some good insight!

Heather:

I'm so sorry this has happened to you! Please don't feel helpless and/or hopeless! One thing about life - we can't control what others do, only what we do!

You're working very hard to make this right for your buyers and your business! Keep putting one foot in front of the other, and open, honest communication with your buyers will 'maintain' your integrity!

My bank can typically confirm the funds within 24 hours. With all the wired transactions vs. snailmail now adays, you might be able to call your bank, explain the issue and ask them to expedite the processing of fund(s) transfer.

It's worth a shot! Hang in there, and don't give up!! Hug your twins (and your hubbie), cuz you'll come out of this OK!!

<<<<HUGS>>>> from KS!