I am an ex-USN electrician and a DIY homeowner. On January 10th, I ordered some Elite Lighting Sloped Housing IC Recessed fixtures for installation in my pitched ceiling from CCL. I submitted everything through their website order form including my credit card info with the CVN. The amount was about $275. The lights were delivered within a reasonable time. No problem.
I then placed an order on February 2nd to complete Phase II of my lighting project. This included 10 more of the same fixtures and trim for all. When I went to order via their website, it demanded that I provide a fax number. I don't have a fax number. So, I typed 999-999-9999 so that the form would pass the form validation.
I then received an Email from one of their customer service people telling me that they couldn't process my order without a fax number. I asked her why and pointed out that I had just ordered some product from them a few weeks ago. She kept telling me that it was for "my protection" so that I am not charged "a penny more than" the amount of the order. I decided to TRY and reason with these people.
When I contacted them on the phone, I was talking to a second customer service rep. She was telling me that they need a fax number this time because the order was $650 instead of just $275. She said that they need a signature, which is why they needed the fax. So I asked her what the limit was for an order before they demand a fax number, so that I could split my purchase up into smaller orders without providing a fax number. At this point, she put "George" on the line.
After proceeding to insult me on the telephone, I asked this jerk why they were asking for a fax number now and not three weeks ago. First, he told me that they ask for this information for ALL orders because the credit card industry has passed laws regarding ecommerce which take effect this year. Rubbish!
In my current occupation, I happen to write software for a company that deals with credit card fraud. I am very keen about the ins and outs of credit card fraud, credit scoring, laws, etc. When I told him this, he changed his story and said that they ask for a fax number randomly. He couldn't get his story straight.
I told him to cancel the order, I was going to one of his competitors. However, I didn't want to leave it to chance, so I sent an Email back to the customer service rep telling her in writing to cancel the order. I also cited the reason as a lack of trust since they seem to be lying and conducting business in a shifty manner by demanding my signature for an online purchase when absolutely NO other merchant online does this. It's assinine.
I further informed them that if they charged my card or if I found that there were any unauthorized charges that trace back to them, since they now have my CVN, I would prosecute them to the full extent of the law and also seek damages in civil court. I also informed them that I was going to report them to the BBBOnline and Elite Lighting for attempting to gather credit card information needlessly, since a fax number and signature are not necessary for an electronic charge.
This is where George the moron began harrassing me on my cell phone and threatening to sue me for slander. After several calls - the idiot actually called me and left harrassing voicemails in which he identified himself both with the caller ID and by name - I decided to notify them in writing, via Email, that any further contact from them was unwelcome and would be considered harrassment. I sent this to the customer service rep, since she was an obvious conduit to George.
The response to this was that she told ME to quit harrassing her or she would sue me for slander. Apparently, these are NOT very educated people.
I would strongly suggest NOT ordering from CCL. The owner is a childish jerk who seems to be quite unstable. I wouldn't advise trusting them with my personal information.
Go ahead, George, sue me. This is all my opinion anyway.
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