Since I posted on Belfast Groupon about changing expiry dates after purchase, I have gotten a number of supportive emails from other Groupon customers who have had problems with their service. In fact, Groupon have changed the Terms & Conditions on numerous deals in the UK. Why? Because these mistakes and problems make Groupon a HUGE profit!
So I would like to share some cases of Groupon fraud I have heard about this week:
1. A woman bought a Groupon deal £15 for a 3 hour driving lesson. She tried to book online and couldn't. She phoned the company, they never picked up and a short time later the number was no longer in service. She went to the address provided for the company, and there was no driving school there. She queried people who lived on the street and they had never heard of the driving school.
2. A user bought a Groupon voucher for Hello Canvas on Jan 28, 2011. The terms of the voucher were that it expired in 3 months, so it should expire April 29, 2011. After I posted about the discrepancy in expiry dates, she checked her voucher and found out it is due to expire the 29th of March which is only 2 months.
3. A man bought a Groupon voucher for his girlfriend for a massage. The terms & conditions did not state anything about specific days or times to use the voucher. When she telephoned to book the massage the company stated they only do massages on Mondays and Tuesdays. He asked Groupon about this several months ago and they have never gotten back to him with a refund or the ability to use the voucher on a suitable date.
4. People have booked a deal at the Clarion Sligo Hotel, and are unable to get booked in for a room 'as the deal is so popular'. People who have booked this deal before say that they have not been able to stay in the main hotel with this voucher, but rather were booked into a room in a 'minging apartment block down the road.'
5. Belfast residents have ordered a BT4 Beauty Voucher. They are trying to book at BT4 Beauty and are being told that BT4 is having problems with Groupon and are therefore cancelling all Groupon bookings. Groupon have repeatedly told all these customers that their BT4 vouchers have expired, but the customers have shown proof that their vouchers have not expired. Groupon are now 'working on a replacement venue' for people who have bought these vouchers.
6. Belfast Groupon offered a voucher for Paul Shapiro a few weeks ago. The email stated that the voucher would expire May 11, 2011, but when the vouchers were received the date on them was changed to April without notice.
These are just 6 of the most recent problems happening with Groupon. And these problems and mistakes all make Groupon a large profit.
'How?' you might ask...
When it is a hassle to redeem a voucher and they go unredeemed Groupon keeps the profit from every unredeemed voucher. Lots of money!
Changing expiration dates and not notifying customers also makes Groupon a large profit. If customers do not know the dates have been changed and do not redeem their voucher before expiration Groupon keeps the cash.
Also, making customers wait a very long time to receive services, refunds, or customer service has left many customers so frustrated, they just write off the voucher as a loss. Again, more money for Groupon.
Beware Groupon customers!!!
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