Sears.com charging unsuspecting customers for service deals
When you shop for a major appliance at Sears.com, the default setting may cost you much more than what you bargained for.
I went online to buy a new washer at Sears. But when I added the appliance to my cart, something else got added -- a 5-year service contract for $309. I didn't ask to buy that. I wasn't asked if I wanted to buy it; it just appeared along with the delivery charge.
The same thing happened to Edgar Dworsky, founder of consumerworld.org, when he went to the Sears website to buy a refrigerator. in his case, the service contract automatically added to his cart was $469.
"I'm really upset, and I think it's a very sneaky practice, frankly," he said. "Some consumers are probably not scrutinizing their cart. I mean, how many shoppers have in their mind, 'Oh, I'd better check the cart just to make sure they haven't slipped something in there that I didn't order'?"
Dworsky tried adding various appliances to his cart, and the same thing happened every time.
"It should just be the same way as in your store. You decided to make the purchase. You're asked, 'Would you like to sign up for a service contract? We have a 3-year plan. We have a 5-year plan. Here are the prices.' And you can opt-in if you want. A consumer should not be made to have to opt-out of something they never asked for to start with," he said.
While the service plan charge can be easily removed, you have to catch it.
The lesson here is clear: when you shop online, you really need to check the cart carefully before you hit the "buy" or "submit" button. You need to make sure the retailer hasn't slipped something into your cart that you didn't ask for.
What does Sears say about all this? In an email, the company‘s Larry Costello writes:
"Since 2010, we have selected the purchase of a protection agreement as the default and clearly displayed that choice. The customer must click to confirm that choice or select another option prior to moving forward in the order process."
Costello says the company has received "very little negative customer feedback" about its up-sell policy. Even so, he says, "now that it's been pointed out as an item of concern, we've made a decision to provide customers with the default choice of declining the protection agreement." He says that starts today.
Dworsky says he is "thrilled that Sears is doing the right thing" by making their extended warranties an optional add-on, just as other major appliance sellers do.
More Info:
Sears Reverses Course After Being Accused of Cramming Major Appliance Orders with Expensive Service Contracts
I went online to buy a new washer at Sears. But when I added the appliance to my cart, something else got added -- a 5-year service contract for $309. I didn't ask to buy that. I wasn't asked if I wanted to buy it; it just appeared along with the delivery charge.
The same thing happened to Edgar Dworsky, founder of consumerworld.org, when he went to the Sears website to buy a refrigerator. in his case, the service contract automatically added to his cart was $469.
"I'm really upset, and I think it's a very sneaky practice, frankly," he said. "Some consumers are probably not scrutinizing their cart. I mean, how many shoppers have in their mind, 'Oh, I'd better check the cart just to make sure they haven't slipped something in there that I didn't order'?"
Dworsky tried adding various appliances to his cart, and the same thing happened every time.
"It should just be the same way as in your store. You decided to make the purchase. You're asked, 'Would you like to sign up for a service contract? We have a 3-year plan. We have a 5-year plan. Here are the prices.' And you can opt-in if you want. A consumer should not be made to have to opt-out of something they never asked for to start with," he said.
While the service plan charge can be easily removed, you have to catch it.
The lesson here is clear: when you shop online, you really need to check the cart carefully before you hit the "buy" or "submit" button. You need to make sure the retailer hasn't slipped something into your cart that you didn't ask for.
What does Sears say about all this? In an email, the company‘s Larry Costello writes:
"Since 2010, we have selected the purchase of a protection agreement as the default and clearly displayed that choice. The customer must click to confirm that choice or select another option prior to moving forward in the order process."
Costello says the company has received "very little negative customer feedback" about its up-sell policy. Even so, he says, "now that it's been pointed out as an item of concern, we've made a decision to provide customers with the default choice of declining the protection agreement." He says that starts today.
Dworsky says he is "thrilled that Sears is doing the right thing" by making their extended warranties an optional add-on, just as other major appliance sellers do.
More Info:
Sears Reverses Course After Being Accused of Cramming Major Appliance Orders with Expensive Service Contracts
