"Wendy", Can you Hear Me?

What is one to do when one has ordered something from an online 'Catholic apostolate' that says it will take up to three weeks to send it out, does so, but when the package gets to you, there is only ONE of the objects that you ordered in it, not the six that you have ALREADY paid for? That they already HAVE the money for, taken out of your account almost as soon as it was ordered?

When you have sent not only ONE, but many emails TO this 'Catholic apostalate', and have gotten only TWO in response, NEITHER telling you what they intend to do about your order, with no offer to replace the missing items or to refund your money???

My order was placed on Feb 16, 2007. It came on March 9, and I wrote immediately. I sent two emails, one apologizing for leaving the subject line blank. I showed 'Wendy' that I had made TWO purchases recently, one for almost $33 on 2/9/2007, and this one for nearly $72 on 2/26/2007. The first had come. The second was disappointing, as it was NOT correct.

She answered both, one saying she would look into it, the second saying that they had mailed out the six, was the package intact, and the cost of the shipping. She sounded like she was saying I was accusing her, so I sent back another stating that was not the case, but that I WAS disappointed that the order was not correct. I told her I had not noticed that there was a stamp on the envelope saying that it had arrived in my town damaged, and that it had opened very easily. I described the look of the package/envelope.

She has NOT responded since then! I wrote again on Mar 16, saying I was still waiting to hear what she was going to do about my order. And I sent a third saying I had still not heard from her, on the ORIGINAL email with the copy of the two orders, giving the length of time I have been waiting for a response.

It is now getting more than frustrating. The courtesy of a response, even stating that she won't act until the Post Office tracks the package, ANYTHING, has not been afforded me. I am at a loss. She already HAS my money. 'Stopping payment' is therefore not much of an option, and even if I chose that route, it would cost ME money to do so!

Am I to be penalized for a package that did not make it through the mail intact??? Am I 'out' of the items ordered AND my money due to something that is the fault of the packer OR the Post Office, or ... both?

What is a person to do when this provider calls themselves a Catholic Apostolate, and yet STILL sends more emails with 'offers' when they have not yet taken care of a problem? Three or more such emails with 'offers', etc, have come in the time I am waiting for a personal response telling me what is going to be done about my Feb 16th order. That is almost insulting, IMHO. Most certainly, it is disingenuous; it is crossing a line of respect.

Write, offering ways for me to spend or donate more money, when there has been no resolution to a current problem.... ONE of the emails even being mailed with an implication that it is for a select group of people.

I am considering a letter to both the Bishop of their Diocese and the BBB. But I am not certain that is something that I want to do. Had I even gotten an email staing that she has not yet heard from the Post Office, that she was sorry this happened... anything... I would not be feeling this way.

But when they call themselves a Catholic Apostolate and then ignore a customer who has spent over $100 in a week's time on products that never arrived.... it is NOT a good business action, NOR a good Christian action.

If I do not get some resolution soon, I will write more, and I will be naming the Apostolate here on my blog.

God bless!

ADDENDUM April 2, 2007:

Today, I received a response that the missing portion of my order is on the way. Yesterday, I received two emails from a family member saying that he would personally hand the email to the one I had been trying to correspond with, and he said that he was sorry this had happened. Today's email simply said "Remaining (merchandise) on the way. God bless."

That was all that I wanted to know, and now I await their arrival.

God bless.