On Saturday, November 14, we received a knock on the door from James Olward. He offered us a free carpet cleaning and a can of Glade Air Freshener for the opportunity to demonstrate the Kirby Vacuum cleaner he was selling. He assured us he would be in and out in 30 minutes. We agreed.
James demonstrated the machine over the next 3 and a half hours later he finally told us the price of $2,000. We told him we were not interested. He continued to pitch his machine for the next half an hour, making calls trying to lower the price and practically begged us to buy from him so he could win some vacation contest. Up to this point, he still had not cleaned the carpet. It was only after I insisted he shampoo the carpet or leave that he finally shampooed a five foot by five foot square of carpet. I informed James I would not be purchasing a vacuum from him.
The second supervisor, Artis Webb, showed up at our door. A total of four and a half hours later he offered us a deal we were finally willing to accept just to get them out of the house. We should have called the police, but ended up just taking the deal. $1,284 for the machine, a years worth of bags and belts, and a "honeymoon" period where we could have someone from the company come out to clean all of our carpets to ensure we knew how the machine worked.
The catch was, by contract, we had 3 days to let them know in writing if we wanted to cancel the contract. Specifically, the contract states:
"You may CANCEL this transaction, without any Penalty or Obligation, within THREE BUSINESS DAYS from the above date (11/14/09). If you cancel, any property traded in, any payments made by you under the contract or sale, and any negotiable instrument executed by you will be returned within TEN DAYS following receipt by the seller of your cancellation notice, and any security interest arising out of the transaction will be canceled.
If you cancel, you must make available to the seller at your residence, in substantially as good condition as when received, any goods delivered to you under this contract or sale; or you may, if you wish, comply with the instructions of the seller regarding the return shipment of the goods at the seller's expense and risk.
If you do make the goods available to the seller and the seller does not pick them up within 20 days of the date of your Notice of Cancellation, you may retain or dispose of the good without any further obligation.
If you fail to make the goods available to the seller, or if you agree to return the goods to the seller and fail to do so, then you remain liable for performance of all obligations under the contract.
To cancel this transaction, mail or deliver a signed and dated copy of this Cancellation Notice or any other written notice, or send a telegram, to..."
On Monday, November 16, I went to the local post office and sent them via certified mail the signed cancellation notice. We received confirmed delivery for Wednesday, November 18. We complied with the requirement of filing the cancellation within 3 business days. We also called and spoke to the secretary to confirm she received the notice. She assured us she did and she would have the supervisor, Artis Webb, contact us to arrange for pickup.
On Monday, November 23, Artis Webb returned to our home unannounced. He claimed he was just in the area and stopped by to pick up the machine. I informed him he was supposed to call and make an appointment to which he could only apologize, but did not intend to leave. I also informed him that we had not yet received our refund and he assured us we would by November 28 (10 days after they received the cancellation notice). I allowed him back into our home to pack up and take his machine because I did not want to violate the cancellation notice by not allowing him access to the machine within 20 days.
It is now December 9, and we have not received our refund. My wife has called the offices of Metro Rhino Distributors no less than three times a week since November 28. Every time she has called she is either put on hold indefinitely or told the person she needs to speak to is not in.
I called yesterday myself and when the receptionist told me the Finance Manager was on the phone, I demanded she give me a direct contact number for her. The receptionist gave me the cell phone number of Christine. My wife called Christine directly this morning. Christine was furious someone gave up her cell phone number and informed my wife she has not been to work in weeks and was currently on her way to North Carolina because her daughter recently gave birth to a premature baby. My wife told her we were past waiting for our refund and Christine told my wife she would get to it when she was ready and hung up.
Again, we called to contact the office, asking to speak to the manager or owner directly and was placed on hold for twenty minutes. That is when I decided to file this report and I plan to call the police later today.
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