Buying Parts Online...

[davidsuserid]

I had to buy a part for my bike this weekend and went online to find the best deal. I found a place in Maine that had the best deal and also had the best deal on expedited shipping. There was no indication on the part page or ordering page that the item was not in stock (as their site claims there would be if it was) so I assumed I would get it by Wednesday or Thursday at the latest. I emailed them today just to get the shipping information (which was supposed to be sent to me upon shipment) and they said they had to order the part and that they wouldn't even have it until next Monday to ship to me. Come to find out, all Suzuki parts must go to them first before they go to the customer, I don't know if it is just them or if that pertains to all Suzuki parts dealers. Anyway, I checked the website and found that it is IMPOSSIBLE to do anything with the order after you press submit without incurring some kind of charge, whether it be restocking fees or even outright canceling the order 2 minutes after you place it would incur a 10% fee (shipping and freight is included in the total they take the 10% from BTW). So needless to say, I have to wait until at the earliest next Wednesday for a part my local dealer could have had this Friday.

The moral of the story is to PAY ATTENTION, read all the fine print and terms and conditions and any other B.S. about ordering BEFORE you order, so you don't get into this mess.

Oh yeah, the name of the place was www.alpha-sports.com if you want to know who to shy away from.

If anyone else has other online retailers to add to this list, this may be a good place to start a "horror story thread" with URL's and company names.

I also have an issue with JCWhitney (ridiculously slow shipping with incorrect "ship by" info on the pages) but at least they have an actual return policy with no absurd BS fees.