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Why you should check Social Networks before you buy

By 11 Comments

Normally I do my due diligence when buying online. This one time though I didn’t cause I thought I knew about this company, but turns out… not so much.

I placed an order May 20th with Rollabind by calling the number on the website and actually got what I presumed to be the owner on the line. I wanted to get the purple basic discs (72) and the a couple of shells in an assortment of sizes that were not listed on the website and he seemed accommodating. My card was charged the next day but after waiting 2 weeks, I still had not received my order so I started to call and email. No response.

On June 13th I went back to the website and this time clicked on the Facebook button. First glance told me that they hadn’t posted anything since July 2011. Wow! Then I looked and the “Recent Posts by Others” and low and behold there were over 50 other people posting that they also never received their orders. Their Twitter account also seems to have gotten hijacked by a disgruntled employee that didn’t get paid.

So I started researching. I found that the domain registry was through Network Solutions but I could narrow down who the hosting company was other then it was in UK. Sent a couple emails but didn’t really get anywhere as I kept getting lead to hosts that were very scammy and didn’t have any way of contacting them. Network solutions finally returned my call but just said to contact the hosting provider.

In the mean time I went to my bank and filled out a charge dispute but got otherwise caught up and didn’t find much out.

Yesterday I was going though my bookmarks and was reminded about it so I started looking into the hosting provider again. This time I found 3 email addresses and fired off another email. One of them replied fairly quickly and while they were not the one, they provided me with the actual contact info. Now were getting somewhere!

So I emailed Heart Internet Ltd who responded very quickly with this:

Hi Karissa,

Really sorry to hear about this – I’ve done a bit more Googling about this company and noticed that the Better Business Bureau has received 64 complaints about them of the last few years -> http://www.bbb.org/south-east-florida/business-reviews/bookbinders-equipment-and-supplies/rollabind-in-boca-raton-fl-90026345#

I’ve disabled the site, and it won’t be turned back on under any circumstances.

I’m not familiar with how fraudulent activity, such as this, is handled in the US, but I hope you are able to get your money back.

Best Wishes,
Daniel
Abuse Department
Heart Internet Ltd

Hallelujah!!! I got the site down!!! I feel like I’m in the Internet Protection Mafia! LOL! Now no more unsuspecting people have to go through this hassle. Which BTW I still haven’t gotten the refund yet.
I setup a site change detection to notify me of any changes just in case they think that they can surf to another hosting provider and relaunch the site.

So the moral of this story is ALWAYS check the Facebook & Twitter to see if there is anything unsavory going on.

And when you have a vendor that you love (Levenger.com and the Circa notebook system) just stick with them.

 

::Update 7/25/14 4AM::

My change notification worked and looks like they surfed their hosting to GoDaddy! I am now contacting them to see if they will shut it down.

No matter how many hosting companies that they keep surfing to, I will keep contacting every single one of them about this.

Actually I am going to file a police report tomorrow as well so this can be investigated through all the proper channels.

 

::Update 7/30/14 10AM::

GoDaddy has responded with this:

Support Staff Response
Dear Karissa, Thank you for the message. We have reviewed your complaint but at this time we are unable to take action without a court order. GoDaddy does not allow illegal content on our customer’s websites. However, as a hosting provider, it is not our place to determine if the site you have mentioned is actually engaging in illegal activities.

GoDaddy regularly works with courts and if you suspect any of our customers are using their website to engage in any illegal activities, please help us by obtaining a court order. Please report any other details or additional information via our online abuse form here https://supportcenter.godaddy.com/AbuseReport/Index?ci=22420.

It is the domain name registrant’s or site administrator’s responsibility to review and maintain their website. If you feel that the Website displays incorrect or outdated information please contact the site administrator to request a change. If you feel that the Whois information on a domain is incorrect or outdated please contact the domain’s registrar to request a record update. If we are the registrar, please report invalid Whois data to us.

Regards, Content Abuse GoDaddy

 

So very frustrating!

 

::Update 8/2/14 6AM::

 

They have removed the links to their Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, and LinkedIn sites.

RollabindSocialButtonsRemoval

 

Pretty self incriminating if you ask me. I don’t think they have access to those accounts any more as there was an unhappy employee that posted his feelings on Twitter and they haven’t been posted to for a couple years.

Also note the Authorize.net button. I forgot to mention earlier that I called them too, and while they were unable to take any action, the did log my complaint and the guy ended up telling me that the account was slated for cancellation due to unrelated reasons.

 

::Update 8/28/14 6AM::

Its been over a month and I still haven’t gotten refunded from my bank. I was talking about this at my WordPress KC Meetup tonight which made me realize that time is flying by. I’ll make some calls tomorrow and see what I can find out. I am also going to start a spreadsheet to tally all the money that they have scammed out of unsuspecting customers.

 

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  • Any further update on this? I am starting a business and I have found that Rollabind has the best prices on the discbound notebooks. I have spoken with the owner a couple of times and have had email contact with him. I just sent him an email voicing my concerns about all of the complaints I have found online and to see if he has any kind of “money back guarantee” if the products don’t ship in time. I also received an anonymous email from someone warning me about him. I think it was an employee.
    This could potentially a HUGE opportunity for him, but I’m scared to use him! Other suppliers (Levenger & Myndology) are twice as much 🙁 But I guess it’s worth it for good service…. I’ll keep you updated on my findings. 🙂

    • Ohh dear God, stay away from them!!! I never got anything resolved from them on it took 3 months for my bank to refund me. I promise that you will regret ordering from him. He has done the same thing with someone else with a $5000 custom order.

      See on http://www.ripoffreport.com/r/SJ-Creative-LLC-Rollabind/internet/SJ-Creative-LLC-Rollabind-Ordered-5022-worth-of-notebooks-NEVER-RECEIVED-new-lies-ev-1049028

      There are reports on here complaining about $30, we sent him a check for $5000!!! FIVE THOUSAND DOLLARS HE CASHED & OUR NOTEBOOKS ARE SUPPOSEDLY “ON THE WAY” for the past 6 WEEKS. everytime I am miraculously able to get a hold of him once I have assaulted his phone with calls, I am just fed a new line of excuses, and constantly “I think they are ready, they should be ready, let me call and check” and there isn’t a whole lot more I can yell at him demanding a tracking number or a refund.

      I would try working with Levenger to see if they can work with you at all. Yes they cost more, but at least you know your going to get your order.

      Karissa

    • Ohh dear God, stay away from them!!! I never got anything resolved from them on it took 3 months for my bank to refund me. I promise that you will regret ordering from him. He has done the same thing with someone else with a $5000 custom order.

      See on http://www.ripoffreport.com/r/…

      “There are reports on here complaining about $30, we sent him a check for $5000!!! FIVE THOUSAND DOLLARS HE CASHED & OUR NOTEBOOKS ARE SUPPOSEDLY “ON THE WAY” for the past 6 WEEKS. everytime I am miraculously able to get a hold of him once I have assaulted his phone with calls, I am just fed a new line of excuses, and constantly “I think they are ready, they should be ready, let me call and check” and there isn’t a whole lot more I can yell at him demanding a tracking number or a refund.”

      I would try working with Levenger to see if they can work with you at all. Yes they cost more, but at least you know your going to get your order.

    • Mrs. Magee

      Did you order from them or not? This is the best site I’ve found for getting discs in so many size and colors. I was being charged for international delivery on my order (I’m in the U.S.) and emailed them about being charged too much. They responded with the correct shipping costs and said all they needed to proceed with my order was my credit card info. At this point I had already found all of the negative reviews. I replied, with my knowledge of this, and we’ll see if they get back with me.

      • Yes I ordered, but never received them. How did yours turn out?

        • Mrs. Magee

          I have now ordered multiple times successfully. I paid with PayPal and told the company owner I was in contact with that I would file a PP claim if I did not receive my products. Before ordering I contacted him and told him I’d read all the negative feedback and said I was hesitant to order but that if he would provide me with some samples I would feel more reassured. He did send me samples. I’ve had no trouble ordering with them but the website is quite a mess and the newsletter emails that are sent out are full of typos.

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  • Oh, my! Found my way here from another blog. I almost placed an order with them today! So glad I didn’t and found this info. Thanks ever so much!

    • Your welcome! So glad I saved you the headache. Ya’ll are inspiring me to start up a dedicated website to bring the awareness of the fraudulent ways of Rollabind!

      • Ooops…. Just checked the email account I use for shopping and reminded myself I DID place an order. Sounds like that could be money down the drain but fortunately, not very much.

  • E Springer

    Thanks for your diligence and publicity. I had been poised to order, excited about the many colors available through rollabind compared to Levenger (for classroom kids’ book projects). Ah well, boring black it will be! (Yes, Levenger has other colors, but at crazy prices, not in bulk.)