ConsumerWatch: Black Friday Shoppers Lose Deals After Glitch
MOUNTAIN VIEW (CBS 5) -- It used to be Black Friday shoppers had to wait in line for hours to catch the best deals. This year several retailers including Fry's Electronics posted their Black Friday deals online, but it was not without headaches.
Shopper Arundathi Guruajan thought he had a chance to snag a brand new TV for a bargain on Frys.com. "I jumped online, it was there and I grabbed it," she said. Shopper Greg Misakian also purchased a new TV through Frys.com.
But days later, after Black Friday deals had expired, both Guruajan and Misakian received an email stating their transaction had been canceled.
CBS 5 ConsumerWatch has also received numerous complaints from viewers who said they got the same email from Fry's Electronics.
Shannon Jernigan who made a purchase explained what happened. "They supposedly had some type of technical error which allowed more TV's to be purchased than they had in inventory and they wouldn't be honoring those orders," she said. In the last four days, The Better Business Bureau received 66 complaints.
Fry's Electronics is not the only retailer who reported computer problems. Target and Buy.com had similar problems. But that's no consolation for those who missed out on other Black Friday offers.
"I didn't look for any other TV deals," said Jernigan. Former US attorney Anthony Brass said computer error or not, online retailers are obligated by law to offer the Black Friday purchases consumers believed they purchased. "They lost the opportunity to seek deals elsewhere and when they lost that, they gained the right to seek redress against Fry's," he said.
Early this week, Target and Buy.com agreed to honor affected customers the same deals Black Friday offered. Soon after, Fry's Electronics told CBS 5 ConsumerWatch they would also contact all of the affected customers with instructions on how to get their backordered purchase.
Brass said consumers who come across this problem should know the store is responsible for the difference between the sale price and the actual price. If the store still doesn't honor the price adjustment consumers could take the case to small claims court, he added.
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