Zelig B.

[Updated 11-25-13] AjRichies is an unscrupulous business that conducts deceptive business practices. Numerous complaints appear on several consumer-watch websites. Similar complaints have been reported by many customers. Do not do business with them! If you are taken in, don't waste your time trying to deal with them. File a complaint with your bank's consumer claims department and request a full refund for your credit card transaction. Since phone calls and e-mails are routinely not returned, it is unlikely that they will successfully dispute a customer claim when a bank attempts to investigate a sale and negotiate a settlement.

AjRichies conceals unfavorable terms and conditions of sale on their website. They charge a 15% restocking fee and a 10% fee for refused shipments. A common complaint is that sales people call back customers after an initial sale is made to upsell accessories that are exorbitantly priced. If this is not accomplished, deliveries are long delayed or do not occur at all. All sorts of excuses are made. Customers who thought they were getting a deal wind up being charged more than advertised prices or get wrong products.

The history of my purchase is revealing in many ways. Over the phone, I was persuaded to purchase a $3,000 "package deal" for a camera body, 2 lenses, accessories, and extended warranties. I naively agreed to the sale without an itemization of prices. An e-mail with a confirmation of the sale and a tracking number was promised, but it was never received. Unlike many other customers, I actually received my shipment in a few days. The shipment enclosed a sales invoice which did not show any unit prices for the ordered items. In fine print at the bottom of the receipt was a 15% restocking fee policy. Another policy was absent that states that incorrect and missing items are replaced, but no refunds are allowed.

At the time of purchase, I was never informed orally or in writing of the restocking fee policy and other terms and conditions of sale that are buried in the website. When the restocking fee for a phone sale was questioned, the policy was justified by explaining that the policy appeared on the website. However, when one looks carefully at the language on the website, it explicitly states that the sales policies apply to website orders. There is no mention of phone transactions.

Several of the delivered items were lacking. The camera and lenses were defective in packaging and were missing items. The camera and lenses were missing original manufacturer's certificates of warranty. This placed in doubt whether the items were new products and US warrantied. It was evident that the camera body was restocked merchandise that had been resold. Manuals and accessories were missing from the box. Extended warranties that were purchased were not what they were purported to be. Insured replacement and repair costs were limited in amount and accidental damage was explicitly excluded contrary to the representations of the sales person.

I called the company and obtained the unit prices for my order. After accounting for the actual prices of the order and the prices of comparable products on the internet, I determined that I had been overcharged by $700. When I complained that I had been overcharged, an offer was made to adjust the sales price by $700. This was a clear acknowledgement of an overcharge. I refused the offer to the surprise of the sales person. I was intent on not doing business with AjRichies and getting a full refund of my money. I returned the entire shipment and bought identical equipment from Amazon companies to my satisfaction.

When I received a Return for Refund form enclosed with a return merchandise RMA, I was charged $450 for a 15% restocking fee based on the original inflated price of $3,000 and not the offered adjusted price of $2,300. Interestingly, the language of the form contradicted some of the return policies on the internet. It stated that items that were incorrect or missing things would not be charged a restocking fee. When I last contacted AjRichies on October 29th, they surprisingly promised me a full refund by November 1st. However, I never received it. I then contacted my bank to file a claim.

In the case AjRichies planned to object to my bank's credit card claim, I sent the bank a 7 page memo with various attachments and 4 unanswered e-mails to document the circumstances of my purchase. My bank credited me immediately after doing an "investigation" on the day I made the claim. I am sure that they had no better luck than I had in attempting to reach AjRichies when I repeatedly called them on different days and was placed on hold for one and half hours before I gave up.

The lesson I learned is always to investigate the reputation of a company before making a purchase. I feel quite safe making purchases on Amazon. They have very good customer support, and they back the sales of the companies that do business on their site. My wish is that someone would warn all potential customers and shut down AjRichies. AjRichies's business address is not the place where they actually do business. It's a storefront in an apartment building in Brooklyn. It can be viewed on Google Maps. The location is obviously used only for shipments to conceal the true business address of the company. This prevents frustrated customers from serving legal papers on the company. An enterprising person in New York would do a great service to many dissatisfied customers by staking out the storefront and following shipment carriers to the actual location where shipments are processed and hopefully where the sales office exists. I am angry that so many people have been hurt by AjRichies.