When you see a product on a TV show, you may be more inclined to buy it.
Alma Singer, of Fort Worth, learned of a flower business featured on the show "Shark Tank" and was anxious to place an order.
She placed an order with Eco Flower, a company that makes floral arrangements out of wood or recycled materials. A few weeks went by, but nothing was delivered. So, Singer sent Eco Flower an email to check on her order.
The company apologized and said they were backlogged on orders. It also said, in part, "unfortunately, we cannot provide a time frame for you. We are doing our best to ensure that this situation does not take place again."
Singer tried to be patient, but another month went by and her flowers were nowhere to be found. She emailed the company again and asked for a refund.
Eco Flower said they were faced with a severe refund delay, but she'd get an email once the refund goes through. A few months later, there were still no flowers, and no refund.
That's when Singer called the NBC 5 Responds team.
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We emailed Eco Flower. They never responded to our questions, but two hours after we emailed them they sent Alma a full refund of $60.
Singer did a lot of things right in this situation, but there were some red flags.
Here are Samantha Chatman's Solutions:
• When you're doing business with a company that's new to you, always do a Google search.
• We Googled "Eco Flower BBB" and found that the company had an "F" rating with lots of similar complaints.
• You also want to keep a paper trail, like Singer did.
• If the company offers a refund make sure you get it in writing in case things go south.
• Keep in mind, new businesses can get behind when they're ramping up production or dealing with sudden demand.
