SparesBox Bait&Switch or Unreasonable Consumer?

Tuttorix on 25/12/2020 - 19:08

Hey OzBs, so I purchased a BigBoi Mini Blower for $236.95 on Black Friday Sales due to $50 off on $250+ spend and $10 off from Welcome Discount Code. This is the product: https://www.sparesbox.com.au/part/bigboi-blowr-mini-touchles…

Now here's the issue: I received an email stating that estimated time of dispatch was 2 weeks from date of purchase when it's usually 24-48 hours but that's fine cause lots of orders. No worries. A week later I get an email saying they no longer have any stock available and can NOT get any more stock as the supplier has cut off supply, yet it is still available to add to cart and order on their websites more than a month later. I was asked if I wanted a refund and I asked them to honour the sale, where they said that the supplier can no longer provide stock, and their supplier is the manufacturer themselves (BigBoi) yet are somehow still sending out stock. Now, here's the thing. Do I give up and go buy it elsewhere for $45 more cause I'm being unreasonable, or does it feel like bait & switch which I should push/report to ACCC?

Automotive

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Comments

  • xuqi on 25/12/2020 - 19:24
    +1

    Push ACCC for what? Get your money back and move on.

    Leave them accurate reviews to warn others.

    • Tuttorix on 25/12/2020 - 19:56

      What if they can supply but they just don't wanna honour pricing. Also it would bait and switch if it's advertised for sale with no stock supply.

      • xuqi on 25/12/2020 - 20:34
        -1

        Is it worth your time and effort?

        Given the issues you've experienced trying to buy it, how do you feel their after sales support would be, should you need it?

  • Slippery Fish on 25/12/2020 - 19:31
    +3

    They did not bait and switch… they said they can't supply lol.

    • Tuttorix on 25/12/2020 - 19:57

      Well how would I know that if they still have it available for purchase?

  • Nitrollparty on 25/12/2020 - 19:42
    +1

    i guess his problem is that you can still "add to cart" and continue to give them $$ for a product they can no longer supply

  • Switchblade88 on 25/12/2020 - 20:46

    You paid that much money for a fan & a hose??

    Ozito brushless jet blower + 2x batteries + charger is about half the price.

    If you still want a hose, well - you're in Bunnings anyway, right? Duct tape FTW.

  • peterpeterpumpkin on 25/12/2020 - 23:02

    Using Live Chat during their business hours, ask them anonymously if they are sending out that product. If they are, it's a classic example of bait and switch.

    But I won't beat around the bush.

    The crazy thing about Sparesbox is that they KNOW their website is already in suspicious territory with Australian Consumer Law thanks to their unique stock notification system. You won't know if a product is in stock until you try to add it to the cart! Visit several hundred of their product pages and have a look for yourself. Here's just one example of the first distributor rotor I clicked on:

    Add the product to cart and you get the message:
    "The part is Out of Stock.

    Provide us your details and we will advise you on Bosch Distributor Rotor GD829 availability."

    You might argue they just hired the world's dumbest web developer, but then try and explain why these long-term out of stock products (yes, I've followed them for months) even have their prices reduced during their almost fortnightly sales!

    I haven't tried to match their prices (with delivery) at Supercheap yet, but that may be their only benefit to the Australian public (if Supercheap gets baited by Sparesbox's weird stock system). Most people I know never get to use their welcome credit…

    • Tuttorix on 25/12/2020 - 23:59

      The thing is. You can actually add it to cart and fully check out. There is no " stock not available" notification. So it straight feels like bait and switch. I'm probably going to just get a refund then report it to ACCC with evidence.

  • wouldntyaliketoknow on 26/12/2020 - 12:59
    +1

    Sounds about standard for sparesbox…

    They're customer service is a joke as well

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