I purchased a Brother HL-5250DN Printer from the company in late May for approximately $156, which included the shipping. I had found the company on Pricegrabber.com, and they advertised the lowest price.
When I opened the product I noticed that there was no toner or drum in the carton. The carton specifically says that it is refurbished and it includes a drum and toner. Consequently, I thought there was a mistake.
So, I called the store to find out why the drum was missing. I was told that the item does not ship with a drum, and I asked why since it specifically says the refurbished printer in the box has a drum. Ashley, the owner's wife, told me that all of The Printer Depot's printers do not contain a drum and it says that right at the front of their Website, www.theprinterdepot.net. She added that if I wanted the drum it would cost an additional $93.
This was completely absurd since the printer was advertised for $127 on their Website, but would cost $277 for the drum, toner and shipping all for a refurbished unit. I understand it said no toner on their Website but it certainly did not mention, no drum which is nearly $100 and the most expensive part of a printer. The truth of the matter is I could have purchased the printer brand new, factory-sealed for $199 from PC Connection with a drum, toner and free shipping. Consequently, I told her this was not what was promised and I was returning it.
She told me fine, I will get you a RMA (return code) but there is a 25% restocking fee. She said that was also listed on their Website. So, I checked out the website. First of all it does not mention that all of their printers do not have drums and toners.in fact, it says nothing at all about that. I then checked out the link for the printer I purchased and nowhere does it say there is no drum! I also checked their shipping and return policies (attached). Again, it does not mention anything whatsoever about a restocking fee.
I do not know if their company thinks it is an Internet Pirate, just waiting for someone to order from them before they make up rules to try to put the screws to the customer and try to defraud them of money. Their sham is really simple. They do not say anywhere that their printers have no drums and when a customer receives their printer without a drum they have two options. Either The Printer Depot tries to sell them the drum they should already have for a ridiculous price which makes their printer much more expensive than a legitimate company sells it for. Or when the customer realizes they have been defrauded by them and wants a refund they mention a bogus 25% restocking fee which is also not listed anywhere on their website! Incidentally, I have screenshots of every page should they try to change their site after the fact.
Either way they win and the customer loses as they try to pull this sham on customers to dupe and defraud them. This time they met the wrong customer. I ordered the printer from PC Connection as previously mentioned and received the very same printer. However it was brand new and it included a drum, toner, and free shipping all for $199. This is $78 less than the refurbished printer they tried to upsell me on for things that I should have already received with my order!
Their company is a sham. None of these things that they tried to defraud me with, the missing drum, the 25% restocking fee, are mentioned on their shoddy Website.in fact, when one pulls up the shipping & returns page it comes back as a syntax error. Furthermore, I looked at their ratings from Pricegrabber and Yahoo and they are extremely low. Many others have mentioned the very things I am mentioning now.in fact, I do not even see their company listed on Pricegrabber anymore. I suppose they got tired of dealing with the constant complaints about The Printer Depot.
Consequently, their company has been defrauding customers for sometime now, as they invent new rules as they go to try to scam money from a customer. The drum was supposed to be with the unit as it even says so on the box, and nowhere is it mentioned that there is no drum with the unit. Had I known that I would have never ordered the item in the first place. Furthermore, nowhere is it mentioned on their Website about restocking fess for anything whatsoever!
*Update*
After I sent a letter to the owner Carols Valencia and his wife Ashely, they did not have the courtesy to respond as a decent company would. They simply tried to manipulate their Website after the fact to say that the item included the drum and show a 25% restocking fee.
These items were not there originally and it just goes to show how sleazy they are. This is the worst merchant I have ever dealt with, and I can see why they received such deplorable reviews from so many customers!
Avoid this company like the plague! They will try to rip you off anyway possible.
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