I shopped at Deals on Western (just south of Lawrence, between Lawrence and the L, on the west side of the street) yesterday. Today I found out that they charged my debit card twice. I called the card company and they said someone from the store would have to contact them. I tried looking Deals up on the web, but a search phrase of “Deals Chicago Western” assumes I want to stay in a hotel for a good price.
I try the old-fashioned way, 555-1212, and ask for “Deals on Western in Chicago” and there’s no listing! Now I’m upset. Looks like I’m going to have to actually go to the store, and there’s no guarantee that anyone will be able to help me in person. I need a phone number, to go to corporate if I have to.
How can a retail store, in this day and age, not have a web site, or at least a phone listing??
Any suggestions on how I can find a phone number for Deals? (it’s a dollar store-type place, with a grocery section, which is why I like them, but it is a trip to get there.)
Wow, if you’re in the area, that would be great. I just need a phone number for someone in finance so I can get my card credited. It didn’t go through the first time (seemingly) so he ran it again, and it worked. It wasn’t until a little while ago that I found 2 charges, of the exact same amount, on my account details page.
I’ve never eaten at Spoon Thai. If you’re coming from Evanston, it must be good!
Here in Danbury we have the telephone company’s retail store - where you buy phones, etc. It has an unlisted number. I swear it. And just to be sure, I just this minute tried again to get that number from the Information Operator. It’s still unlisted.
We moved down here from western Massachusetts back in March of 1974, and I soon learned of this idiocy. You can imagine why this is so. Management doesn’t want the clerks to be bothered with phone calls. Instead you must call some other number and tell the person what you want. After that, I don’t know what happens. I was so infuriated I never tried.
Anyway, in November of that same year ('74) I went to the rather large Hardware Department of a big store here.
“I’d like to buy a snow shovel, please,” I said to the clerk.
He looked me straight in the eye and answered earnestly, “We sold it.”
Danbury. It used to be the armpit of marketing. Either it’s not so bad now, or I’ve gotten used to it.
The person I spoke to said their name is listed under “Nothing More Than A Dollar”, not Deals. Seemed strange to me, as NTLAD was in tiny script next to the huge Deals logo but there you go.
Oh, and I ended up at TAC Quick for lunch instead, It’s on Sheridan just to the S of the el tracks south of Irving Park…my fave thai place in the city.
I get a (pretty great) seed catalog from a company in La Honda, California called J.L. Hudson, Seedsman, which proclaims “I HAVE NO BUSINESS OR PERSONAL TELEPHONE. Please do not call anyone named Hudson who is listed in the La Honda directory, as you will only disturb someone not connected with me.” There’s no retail store, but they do have a website (www.jlhudsonseeds.net.
Thank you! I just saw this so I’ll have to try calling tomorrow. I have a feeling I’m not going to get my money back because I couldn’t contact them right away. It’s only $36.00, but that’s $36.00 that I could use and they didn’t earn. Argh.
You’re wonderful for going out of your way to help me. I appreciate it very much. I’ll have to try that Thai place. I love to go to Thai restaurants mainly because, while also liking the food, I LOVE Thai Iced Tea.
Thanks for the stories E = mc² and Ichbit Dubist. Hard to believe, but I believe it.
You can always protest the charge in writing. There should be instructions on how to do so on the back of your credit card statement. That’s worked for me twice when I’ve been double charged.
Doesn’t surprise me that it was listed under something else. Some of the directory assistance operators I know keep little notes all over their cubicles with how to find certain hard-to-find listings that keep coming up. If it were truly non-published, the operator (or that little recording) would probably have told you so.
Here’s some phone company jargon: An “unlisted” number is not found in the phone book, but can still be obtained from DA. A listing that is not found in the phone book or through DA is called “non-published”. They can still find the name, but there will be no phone number in their computer.
I suspect that they get a lot of “But it’s a business, it has to be there!” in DA, just like I on the “0” side get a lot of “But it’s a business, it can’t be busy/disconnected/out of service/ringing with no answer!”
That’s not true; that credit card company person was just leading you on. (They make more money if you just let this drop.)
You can dispute a charge entirely on your own, and Federal law requires that the credit card company has to deal with it, even if the merchant never responds at all.
Otherwise how could anyone ever recover fradulent charges by scam artists? They would obviously just never respond.
IDNHMPBIDSAAHISLN (I Do Not Handle Money Professionaly, But I Did Stay At A Holiday Inn Select Last Night)
Yes, but he was using a DEBIT card vice a CREDIT card. IIRC, no part of the Consumer Credit Protection Act under which you can dispute the charges apply to debit cards. If you have a MC or Visa-logoed debit card you may have some recourse similar to the credit card holders, but AFAICR it’s only at the discretion of Visa/MC and/or the bank the debit card is issued from - any protection offered are not federally mandated as they are by the CCPA or the FCRA.
I know from experience that getting your money back from bad Debit charges is a LOT more difficult (or at least it was last year) than with a real Credit card, at least with my bank.
