Legal Question in Consumer Law in Pennsylvania
Good morning. I recently purchased several articles of clothing from a major department store. I used my Mastercard for the entire purchase (not the department store's card). At the end of the transaction, the cashier handed me a card and said it was for money off a future purchase and that it expires in a week. I didn't ask for the card nor did I intend to use it as I was having major surgery a day later. Now, I just tried to return one of the items that did not fit. I had my valid receipt ( it doesn't expire until the end of May), my Mastercard and the unused item with tags attached. They told me that they would only refund a portion of the price back to my Mastercard. The remainder was used to fund the unwanted, unused, expired promotional card they handed out at the purchase. There was no issue with expired receipt, damaged merchandise, etc. It was simply a way for them to keep a portion of the purchase price. I still had the unused promotional card and wanted to give it back. The manager verified that even though I was paying Mastercard the price of the item, they could only credit the Mastercard for a portion of that price. I told the manager that it did not seem legal. She said that it is. She also said that for "today" she would be willing to give me another unwanted promotional card to replace the amount that they were going to keep, thus forcing me to spend even more money in their store. All I wanted was for my total refund to be returned in the form in which it was purchased. I imagine this would add up to quite a profit for this company. What it boils down to is that the customer is unknowingly funding a promotional card that has an expiration date and becomes free money for the store a week later at expiration. There is no explanation when given this card, it was given as if it were the kind of discount card/coupon that we all receive in the mail and choose whether or not to use. is this legal? Thank you.
1 Answer from Attorneys
Whether the department store's conduct is legal or illegal is dependent on many factors. Each store is entitled to have their own return policy, but those policies have to be made known to you in some way. For instance, many stores have "re-stocking" fees which are applied to any returned merchandise. It certainly seems wrong that you were not entitled to a full credit on your mastercard. There are 3 steps you should take. First, you should claim to mastercard, in writing, about this incident. Mastercard should, (but not always will) contact the department store and withhold payment of that part of the purchase price until the dispute is resolved. Second, you should report this incident to your local Better Business Bureau. The BBB attempts to resolve such complaints by dealing directly with the the department store. No business wants to have complaint listed on their BBB profile. Finally, if all of this fails, you should file an online complaint with the PA Bureau of Consumer Protection at:
www.attorneygeneral.gov/complaintforms/bcp_form.aspx -
Good luck.
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