small claims court

[Jill-o]

My visa company won't refund me....i was advised to take AU to small claims court. Anyone agree with that? And do you think I'll win? I'm strongly considering this. I think it may be the only thing that works.

[ducksqueak]

Go for it! I didn't think it was going to get into this, us taking them down individual by individual, but it's happening. I actually thought this was going to play out in a class action lawsuit. If you file a lawsuit, I hope you realize that there are costs involved. It requires money to actually file the suit and then you will lose money for time off work---that sort of thing. You will never get this money or time back. You are not allowed to sue for it. The way to help you shoulder court fees is to go the People's Court way. (Don't laugh at me!) You get paid for your appearance and wouldn't you like to see Ross get his name destroyed on NATIONAL TELEVISION???(I'm sure he wouldn't mind coming on. He gets paid for his appearance as well.) I also think the People's Court pays for your travel if you are located outside of NY. You know what? Just call up the People's Court directly and get your case on. I'm from NYC. Tell me the day you are taping and I'll come support you. I'll even be a witness. And if it airs, keep us all informed.

[JPP13]

Jill, I would advise you to pursue the matter further with Visa. Most people here were originally told that they were not getting a refund, however the further you climb the ladder, the more receptive people became. Keep bugging people at Visa until someone agrees to listen to you. Provide them with all your documentation, etc.

Regarding Small Claims. To me, I wouldn't waste my time. Here's why.

First, you have to file suit. That is going to cost you anywhere from 50 - 150 dollars depending on where you live. Next, you have to get whats known as 'service' on the company. This is typically done by serving either the corporate representative designated by the Secretary of State in each state that UA does business. At a minimum, this will need to either be certified, or hand served. Thats not free either.

So at this point you have probably invested perhaps 100 dollars or so, seeking the money you are owed. Now, the easiest part will be proceeding to court (and you will go to court where you have venue, which is where live primarily, if you get service in that location). I would bet anything that AU will not respond to your pleadings. This would mean that you will win by default. In winning, you will get what is known as a default judgement against AU. That would include whatever they owed you plus your costs.

Now what? Well, this is the problem. You have a judgement. Its a piece of paper. You would now need to enforce the judgement. This would mean going to California and attempting to have it enforced by the sheriff. Good luck. The reality is, for this amount of money, you are not going to get much help. If you live anywhere else other than near AU, you are undoubtedly screwed. Furthermore, if AU divests itself of assets or goes bankrupt, you again are screwed.

I hate to be the bearer of bad tidings, but the reality is you would throw good money after bad. This brings me full circle. Go back to Visa. Complain to the authorities. That, I'm afraid, is your remedy.

[Jill-o]

Thanks for the advise. The only thing is that i sent visa a complaint letter...all my emails...my receipt...my visa statements with both charges...and a copy of my customer service sheet showing that the double charge was acknowledged...and they still wouldn't do anything...my bank said it was too late for them so they talked to visa directly for me and visa wouldn't do anything either. That's when my bank advised me to take them to small claims court. So should i just try to keep talking to them?...I'm not sure what else to do really.

[JPP13]

Jill, did you try the managers at each place? Thats whats worked for most of us. Ask to speak to supervisors, etc. If that doesnt work Im not sure what to tell you.

[GaryEA]

I agree. You should stick with Visa. Small claims court will be ignored by AU in the long run. Hell, ex-employees that were never paid took them to court, won, and still never saw a dime.

A question for everyone; In filing the claim, doesn't Visa have to realise that AU consistently changed the release date, and everytime they did that, it affected Visa's timetable on how long you can file a claim?

I thought someone else here had originally been turned down, but when it was illustrated how AU passed each projected release date, Visa turned around and filed for a refund.

Smack me if I'm off on this one.

Gary

[Jason R]

Gary, i think that a list of "Overcoming CC Objections" would be a very good tool. I am currently inundated with emails from people who have been turned down by their credit cards.

I agree. You should stick with Visa. Small claims court will be ignored by AU in the long run. Hell, ex-employees that were never paid took them to court, won, and still never saw a dime.

A question for everyone; In filing the claim, doesn't Visa have to realise that AU consistently changed the release date, and everytime they did that, it affected Visa's timetable on how long you can file a claim?

I thought someone else here had originally been turned down, but when it was illustrated how AU passed each projected release date, Visa turned around and filed for a refund.

Smack me if I'm off on this one.

Gary

[GaryEA]

I agree Jason; Having a such a guideline would be very helpful to all involved.

I'll look into it after I get home (I'm still at the Shore). Hopefully, it can be stickied onto the forum or added to the FAQ.

Thanks,
Gary

[fnordboy]

My bank wouldn't do anything for me either. Pissed me off. Under normal circumstances I would have told them to kiss my @ss and switched banks, but I have very good connections and hook-ups at the bank.

I paid by debit card, if you can't tell already.

I am not one of the ones email Jason about it though.

Gary, i think that a list of "Overcoming CC Objections" would be a very good tool. I am currently inundated with emails from people who have been turned down by their credit cards.

[Howard]

The answer to the small claims court question is: It depends.

Yes, it costs you money to file, to serve, to garnish, to re-garnish, to re-file in the state of venue, to re-serve again...

Technically, you are not out those funds if you are able to enforce your collection. All monies spent on trying to enforce the judgment are added to the final amount of your judgment, an amount that accrues interest depending on your state.

If you're going after $200, $300, $400... it's probably not worth the effort to go to court, and if you can't collect in the end you end up doubling your losses. For larger judgments, pursue it until you collect or until you tire of it. (Ross, if you're lurking, I'm not the least bit tired yet. In case you were wondering.)

[starbug]

Well I've been told that I'm getting my money back from the credit card company.

I sent them all my correspondance with AU and a long explanatory letter. It has taken them 3 weeks but they have done it, without quibble, without fuss and with only one follow up phone call from me.



What helps is that my credit card company are very customer friendly. For the past two years or so they have had a stated policy that wherever you buy something over the internet and suffer some sort of fraud they will refund you the money you lost. This covers situations such as non-delivery of goods, someone accessing your card data and using it to buy things for themselves etc etc.

Anyone who has a credit card out there who has been told they can't have a refund, make sure you emphasize that you made your purchase on the internet. I'm fairly sure this could make a difference as I can't belive my CC company are the only ones to have this sort of policy.