Igia, Tactica International fraudulent charges, unwilling to refund Ripoff New York New York

On 11/27/05 I ordered one Igia lazer storm vacuum. It was supposed to cost $120 plus shipping. The ordering process was completely automated. The first thing you do is enter your credit card number. After the card number is entered, the automated operator offered many products all of which I declined (with the exception of the ONE vaccum. At the end of the telephone call, there was no way to cancel and no verification of the amount to be charged.

On Dec 2, 2005, I discovered that $353.70 was charged to my debit card. I immediately attempted to call the telephone number the bank gave me. After being on hold for nearly two hours, I hung and an researched the company. When I discovered this web site, I called the bank to submit a dispute. The bank told me that unless someone used my debit card without my permission, they could not help me. When I insisted that the charge amount was wrong, the bank said they could do an investigation but would have to freeze my bank account. I would only be able to transact my banking from the teller.

Since I didn't want to freeze my account, I decided to pursue Igia. I called the Igia corporate headquarters and was immediatly connected to customer service. The representative said that I had ordered FOUR vacuums. I cancelled and was told that the refund would take 15 to 20 business days to post.

On January 11th 2006, I called again inquiring about my refund. I was told that there were delays in processing, but that my request was processed on Dec 27. My refund would be posted 15 to 20 business days after Dec 27.

I called my bank again asking how I could dispute the charge. The bank sent me some forms to complete. I mailed the forms back to the bank on 1/14/06. On 1/17/06, the bank credited my account for the $353.70.

Still not wanting Igia to get away with this, I called on 1/18/06 inquiring about my refund. I was told that there were additional delays and that it would take 15 to 20 business days to process the credit. I asked to speak to a supervisor. I was told that someone would call me back within the hour. No one returned my call.

On 1/19/06, I called again to Igia customer serivce. I was told that they put a rush on my refund and that I should expect the credit by Feb 3, 2006. I asked to speak to a supervisor and was told again that someone would get back to me in an hour. No one called.

Melanie
Shaker Heights, Ohio
U.S.A.