I’m suspicious that NZgameshop.com is a scam. I see there is an Ozgameshop.com, too. They operate out of the UK and goods never arrive. They supply a form for you to sign for a refund; there is no possibility of a replacement. Looking at Facebook yesterday after googling “review”, it seems this is a common practice and there are many very upset customers.
I don’t want to give them my signature, on top of the other information I gave in making the order. It does smell fishy to me. Other people’s experiences with them?
You are correct they are a UK company and are fully a UK company for NZgameshop.com, but have an Australian presence of via Wigglebug Pty Ltd, that is registered with ASIC since 2018. Their address is a PO Box at Collins Street West, Vic, 8007. While I thought all Vic postcodes were 3xxx, Auspost verifies that postcode as being ‘post office boxes’.
I would not categorise them as a scam. Most of the recent 1-star reviews on Productreview are about delivery time, a problem internationally and domestically with Auspost being overwhelmed. We have a tracked parcel that has been sitting at Somerton Vic for the past month for example. Auspost seems as or less responsive than Ozgameshop responding with empty platitudes and a ‘please wait longer’. It is ‘the times’.
Not having tracking numbers? Inexcusable. It does seem like their order fulfillment varies from country to country, and product to product whereby there may be some Australian stock and references to ‘distribution partners’. A guess is they are a mix of having stock but also sell product that is drop shipped directly from one of their suppliers or ‘partners’.
I don’t buy games, but if I did I would probably give them a miss, at least until there is evidence they up their game. Considering how it appears they source product getting a replacement could be problematic, so if they offer and give a refund so one can re-order I would not consider that a worry.
Further, they are claiming up to 45 days delivery here, not unreasonable at Auspost, but unreasonable for online merchants to have to work with. Auspost seems to either be delivering in a reasonable time while some parcels seem to get lost on the bottom of piles not to surface for extended periods, hence long stays at Somerton Vic or other depots.
Last comment, since they take payment by paypal and credit cards, a buyer is protected by the ability to dispute/chargeback although one needs to keep their eyes on the clock that limits when those can be lodged, especially if the product is not delivered for an extended time. It might be Aupost, or it might be the business, but that option is a safety net.
Looking online, there is a wide range of different reviews on a range of different sites which tends to indicate it is a legitimate business.
Looking at reviews, there is a minority of complaints (<5%) which have indicated a very tardy delivery time, or deliveries weren’t received when the review was made.
It appears they may post from the UK, and if they use standard sea freight (which is liiely since they offer free postage for larger value orders), at the moment this can take many months (3-6 months where in the past it would have taken 4-6 weeks).
I am surprised they need a signature, but you can print your name, running write your name etc instead of your usual signature. They won’t know the difference, and possibly want a signature for authenticity/validate the refund request.
Your replies were reassuring. I will go ahead and try for a refund through PayPal in the first instance, otherwise supply a non-standard version of my signature on their refund claim form.
The reason I chose to buy through NZGameshop was that I thought they were based in NZ, so delivery times would be shorter. Next time I will be more careful. Now I need to buy my dad an extra good Christmas present, since he didn’t get a birthday present! One thing is certain: that will be the first and last time I try to purchase from Gameshop - NZ or Oz.
I suggest for computer games you have a look at the humble bundle online store. Many of the games will require Steam to be installed but others will be downloads, you can gift them all you just need an email address for the recipient so they can access the provided key or download link.
They also have bundles that get better deals normally as you pay more, entry level usually a US dollar. The bundle offers are time limited as to when you can make an offer and change throughout the year. Bundles can be games, downloaded books/comics, productivity software ( gaming, cooking, programming etc).
PostScript: My parcel arrived in NZ two months late, in mid-December. This was surprising, as I’d already sought and received a full refund through PayPal. I emailed the company (NZGAMESHOP), informing them and requesting advice about what to do, but no reply has been received. I’m guessing insurance covered the cost of the refund for them. I’m happy to have my money and the product, too (!), but it doesn’t seem a good way for them to do business. I wonder why they don’t supply a tracking number for their deliveries??
Thank you for posting of the successful outcome. Yes, it does seem somewhat poor management of their business to have such poor consumer contact issues.
No, the business will be out of pocket. Business insurance doesn’t cover small costs such as these as the excess will be far greater than the value of the product. As you have been refunded, technically the product you received isn’t owned by you, but still owned by the company.
As you have received the product, I suggest you make contact with them and advise that the product has now been received and that you would like to pay them for it or return it to them. Keeping it could be seen as a fraudulent or deceptive action in the eyes of the business and authorities.
Edit: I have had one experience of getting refund and very much later (3 months from memory ) getting the original order delivered. In the meantime I had reordered using the same business. When contacting the business they advised that since I has reordered and the reordered item arrived in a timely way, I could keep the additional one free of charge. It happened to be a tablet cover…which I only needed one, but still have it as a replacement when the existing one needs replacing through wear and tear.
I did this the same day the product was delivered to NZ - or so I thought, until just now…
While checking dates just now, I have just seen that my email message actually went to a “noreply” email address, so I now realise the company has not received the notification of delivery.
I will rectify, being an honest soul… If I hadn’t posted the update today, while on holiday, this would not have been noticed in the busyness of life. I still can’t understand why they don’t provide tracking. How many others have had the same experience as me but not repaid the refund once the product arrived?
With deference to @phb, a business man who has ‘been around the block’, it is common that when something goes awry and has been refunded in one or another way, be it insurance, a payment service covering it, or a business writing it off, it becomes more trouble to the business than they deem it is worth to try to correct, final value dependent. They often gift the product or ignore ‘it is found how do I pay you/return it’ overtures.
Assume the business receives an insurance payment from […] for lost goods and a month later a customer reports the goods arrived. Did they get a refund or replacement goods? If they received a replacement and then the original there is a return shipping cost someone has to pay for a return/restock that affects the overall transactional cost. Ignoring that, will the business have to adjust their books and then refund to the insurance provider that then has to adjust their own books?
My point is not about doing what is right or wrong but that it is not just an ‘easy bank deposit’ at the end of the day.
Looking at their website they have information about lost in transit items…
An order to a UK mainland address is not classified as lost in transit until 10 working days after dispatch date. Orders to the EU is not classified as lost in transit until 15 working days after dispatch date. Orders to all other addresses are not classified as lost in transit until 20 working days after dispatch date. If an order is still not delivered after these timeframes we will issue you with a replacement(s) or a refund at our discretion for the lost item(s). If a refund or replacement(s) is issued you may receive a short form to complete by the original courier company to confirm you did not receive your delivery. If this form is not completed or you state the original item was received but have informed us that it was not, we reserve the right to pass your details on to a debt collection company to recover the cost of your order and all related expenses including those of recovering the debt.
Lost in post claims are limited to 3 claims per account and address.
After 90 days an order can no longer be declared as Lost in Transit.
Since it appears you have received a refund (payment reversal) through PayPal and didn’t follow the above process, it is important that you do notify the business otherwise you may find debt collectors knocking at your door (or receive a letter of demand). It is possible they have received notification of its delivery.
Such action indicates they do not have transit insurance for items sent to their customers, and will recover debts incurred where items have been delivered but refunds have been made/replacements given.
In the pet supply store I used to work in, if a written off item was recovered writing it back in was also logged and offset our final shrink. So unless it was a commonly written off item (eg live fish) we would always add them back in
I have written to NZ Gameshop advising them of the situation (correct email address this time) and am awaiting their reply. Will let you know how they respond…
Final post, I expect. I emailed NZgameshop between Christmas and New Year, letting them know that their product (for which I’d received a refund) had been delivered.
I received a very warm response from their Trainee Customer Service Advisor, appreciating my getting in touch. I was given instructions as to how I could make a payment using PayPal’s “send money” option.
This was easy enough to do, although I’d bought the product for a price in NZ dollars, so paid what I calculated to be the equivalent in AUD at that time, which PayPal then converted to UK pounds and paid to the company. Not sure how close that would’ve been to what they originally charged, but haven’t heard from them since then, so guess they’re just happy to receive an approximate amount.
Through this whole experience I have come to the realisation that NZgameshop is doing their best, although I can’t understand why they don’t provide tracking. I will not buy from them in future, due to the long delivery times that I and others have experienced, although I understand the current global shipping crisis is creating very long delays. I originally ordered a gift to a family member in NZ from this company, thinking from their name that they were based in NZ and delivery would be quicker. I was wrong!
