Experiences with Deals.com.au aka Zoupon?

Lleena42 on 19/09/2011 - 18:07

Hi guys

There seems to be an abundance of backlash against Scoopon in this forum. I'm just wondering what your experiences have been with getting a refund from deals.com.au aka zoupon, if any? Are they as terrible as Scoopon?

My sister had warned me about the perils of buying group deal vouchers online but I think in some instances it can be good value, depending on what you buy

Unfortunately I've come to realise through a recent experience that services don't seem to be one of those good experiences, and that as a zoupon holder
1) you're treated as a second rate customer
2) that they are booked out weeks in advance for zoupon holders ONLY
3) they claim to have no availability when really, they simply don't want to fit a zoupon customer in.

It doesn't say anywhere on the coupon that there's restricted availability for zoupon customers and had I known about that, I wouldn't have purchased it

Would love to hear about your experiences with this company

Thanks

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  • bluedufflecoat on 19/09/2011 - 18:37

    My experiences with zoupon / deals.com.au have been mixed, but generally more positive than negative.

    Positive:
    I've been to some establishments and got really good service and everything was great, e.g.
    Italian Brasserie, South Melbourne - good food.
    Clear Water Car Wash, South Yarra - great service.
    Body Health & Creation, Melbourne CBD - good massage.
    IPL & Beauty, St Kilda - great service.
    Fusion Cruises, Sydney - was ok.

    Neutral:
    Some places have been just ok, not so great when they change the terms on you and at the end, you can't help but feel you might have been taken for a ride, though not too much.

    Fratelle, Camberwell - haircut, style, blow wave etc… thought maybe some of the other services were quite dear.
    Kedai Satay, Melbourne CBD. They wouldn't let me make a booking for a Friday afternoon, EVER. But the food is good.
    Diamond Cleaning Service - ahh, who didn't have any problems with them? I did get a refund though!
    Ibuki, Flinders Lane - went out of business but Deals should have automatically refunded my money instead of waiting for me to ask.

  • pauly on 19/09/2011 - 21:03

    Have you used the voucher? I think most group-buy companies wouldn't refund you the cost of the voucher if you have redeemed it. I've heard a few good ones would actually give you some sort of partial credit to be used later, but I'm not sure if deals.com.au would do the same.

    Can't rate the customer service at deals.com.au myself as I've bought nothing from them, but reading from member experiences here so far, I'd say they're probably one of the better ones.

  • me on 19/09/2011 - 23:44
    +1

    Steer clear.

    If the deal partner you buy with is good, no problems.
    But let there be a problem…and you'll spend forever trying to argue with deals.com.au as to why you as the customer should get a refund. From my experience, they refused to listen to HONEST statements about a DISHONEST business, and instead engage in lies with the business partner, resulting in unfair treatment for the customer.

    Mod — Removing personal attacks.

    • bluedufflecoat on 20/09/2011 - 09:01
      +1

      I had a similar experience getting the refund for Diamond Cleaning Service. It took a lot of effort, but at least I got my money back.

      Essentially, they give you a bit of a run-around, saying there was some confusion (because zoupon changed its name to Deals) but it is a run-around. I quoted someone's experience here on OzB (how they don't return calls and I'm not going to stay at home and wait for them not to show up) and they relented and gave my money back. So, that's why I'm kinda neutral.

      I think you just have to be careful what services you buy… if lots of vouchers have been sold, you would expect that the business would have a lot of difficulty meeting the demand and to therefore stay clear from those deals.

  • Private Collection on 20/09/2011 - 09:40
    +1

    I have gotten two refunds from them for businesses where I did not use the service. In one instance they gave me $20 extra credit as a goodwill gesture. Much better than scoopon.

  • finance on 21/09/2011 - 15:18
    +1

    i guess you'll just need to be very selective of what you buy, and try to buy reputable business also.

    As far as i know, no one seem to have any luck with cleaning companies.

    I've bought a few different deals from them, they were all ok.

    the last hourly massage i got only went for 40mins but that's more the business problem. Hard to augrue as it's 'here say'. (massage place next to brighton beach station) still cheaper then the normal price though.
    would never ever go back there again, wont have anything positive to say either.

    I like to read the fourms and reviews on different offers to ensure you get what you are promised. If i can't find any info. then i usually dont buy it. If i do i know i'm taking a risk!

  • ksvs on 13/10/2011 - 18:25
    +1

    I bought stuff from deals.com.au.. not very happy at the moment since they dont check whether the business is genuine. The IPL business name yuan's massage and beauty on collins st didnt delivered at all..

    Instead I was treated like a second class citizen. I was yelled at for asking safety questions about the treatment, since I was in pain when the treatment started. Peggy, the one doing the IPL even told me she wasn't used to the IPL machine, since she has only used it 2-3 times.

    Sadly deals.com.au didnt back me up!! Instead told me that she was fully trained!! OHHH, and how on earth would you know that?? Its not as if she had a degree on IPL. So disappointed with the service. But I didnt ask for a refund though.. i'm not sure cos ive redeemed it already. I'm so frustrated!! Paid $99 to get treated like garbage

  • leena42 on 17/10/2011 - 23:30

    I'll let you all know how it goes.

    To pauly, no I have not used the vouchers because it has been near impossible to book - I've had bad experiences with Scoopon and the infamous "subject to availability" clause so I always try to avoid those deals. However this deal did not even insert that line so I thought it would be safe. Now I discover they have restricted availability for Deals customers ONLY and I am firmly against that - it is NOT fair trading if they do not advertise that when they make the sale! This is not what I paid for!

    I have been asked to prove that I tried to book earlier than the last few weeks of expiry - not an entirely fair request considering people generally do not have a readily available paper trail. I have just trawled through months of mobile phone statements to locate precise times I called the service provider - not an easy feat I tell you!

    I will certainly be a lot more wary in terms of what I buy from here on forth.

    However, that being said this is the first negative experience I've had so far with Deals. Hopefully the first and last.

    Mod — remove personal reference.

  • jlemelb on 06/09/2012 - 20:35

    Stay clear of them.

    I am still trying to get my refund for a hotel deal where I had tried for a week to make a booking and got no response from the hotel. Deals.com.au made up some childish excuses saying emails were filtered …. now little did they know they're trying to fool an IT guy.

    They kept telling me to wait for 24 hours and see if I had a confirmation by …. surprise surprise, I waited for a week and still had no confirmation for my booking.

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