Consumerist: florists

Royal Flowers Hikes Price After You Order Flowers For Mother's Day

Chris Walters — Sun, 11 May 2008 12:46:16 EDT

Ian in Pennsylvania says Royal Flowers tried to scam him on a recent bouquet purchase:

With it being Mothers Day, I was shopping around for flowers to send to my mother. I checked the normal big sites since she lives in another state, like 1-800 flowers. I decided to check the local company I use, since they are always cheap and service is great. So I found a great piece significantly cheaper than the other sites. I place the order and everything is going great.

Then I received the following email.

Mr. XXXXXX,

This is in regards to the order you placed going to XXXXXXXXXXXX.

We received a message from the filling florist. They need a total unit price of $54.00 to complete your order. Please respond to this email or call 717-273-4090, ext. 5035, between the hours of 8:00 - 5:00 with your wishes.

Thank you.

Diane,
Customer Service

Ok...so their contracted florist now wants more money. You have to be kidding me? They are asking for $7 more to fulfill the order, putting them well over all the competitors (like 1-800 flowers). I'm appalled that they would even consider to ask for more money after a transaction has been completed.

We hope you canceled your order with them on principle and went with another florist, Ian. You may want to also contact your state's attorney general's office and file a formal complaint that the company refused to provide the service at the price you both originally agreed to.

(Photo: blmurch)

FTD.com Delivers The Bill, Forgets The Flowers

Carey — Sat, 16 Feb 2008 13:02:51 EST

FTD.com forgot to deliver flowers to Tip's girlfriend on Valentine's Day, but that didn't stop them from delivering the bill. When calls to FTD.com didn't go through, Tip launched the fearsome Executive Email Carpet Bomb. He wrote:

Perhaps $75 is not a lot to you. Perhaps the happiness of your customers does not mean a lot to you either. Perhaps, for a company that's been around for nearly 100 years, you simply forgot to mark your calendar that yesterday was Valentine's Day.
Well, $75 means a lot to me. What means even more is the happiness of my girlfriend. I was fully aware that yesterday was going to be Valentine's Day...same day every year...which is why I thought ordering flowers for her to be delivered at work on 2/14...Valentine's Day...was a good idea. Your site said it would be possible to deliver that day, even when the order was placed on the 12th. For those of us busy working in hi-tech companies across the land, ordering online from the florist that's been around for nearly a century seemed like the thing to do at the time.

But yesterday came and went, and my girlfriend received no flowers. Calls to FedEx pointed the finger at FTD. And an email and calls to FTD Customer Service - 800-736-3383, option 3 - were pointless, as the calls were dropped due to "heavy demand" or some such nonsense. Kinda like the guy that owes you money not answering his door when the collector comes a'callin'. So...fair enough...no flowers. Valentine's Day came and went. I purchased some flowers from a local store instead, and we went on to enjoy our special day, despite your efforts of sabotage. At least I wasn't billed...

So what happens today...I check my bank to find out that YOU STILL CHARGED ME $75?! The cycle begins again. Another email to FTD Customer Service (just got the automated response). More calls to your failed Customer Service phone tree. And my blood pressure, typically low, is shooting through the roof.

Well, sir...I expect you to make this right. I want my money back. Immediately. Oh, and sending my girlfriend some flowers to make up for your failure wouldn't be a bad idea either.

I would appreciate a prompt response.

- Tip

PS - Looks like 2007 was a pretty good year for you, Mr. Soenen... I see you sold off a LOT of shares, and I'm just going back through September of last year. How nice for you. I bet you and your family had a wonderful Christmas.

Taunting can be its own gift, but it won't help your cause nearly as well as a chargeback. Let the bank fight FTD.com while you apologize to your girlfriend. Of course, FTD and the other florists hate issuing refunds, so don't be surprised if the flowers arrive today.

Relying on internet outfits to express your love is not a winning strategy. Show you care by taking ten minutes to visit the local florist. You help a local business, speak to helpful people, and—this is the key part—walk away with flowers.

(Photo: Dr. Hemmert)

Some newlyweds are suing a florist for $400,000 ...

Chris Walters — Wed, 17 Oct 2007 22:16:56 EDT

Some newlyweds are suing a florist for $400,000 for messing up their wedding. They say they paid 30k for centerpieces of rust, fuchsia and dark green at $465 a pop, but were surprised to see cheaper flowers used to create pinkish-white centerpieces that ruined the overall look of the room. The florist says he has proof they got what they asked for and will counter-sue. We say we're in the wrong business. [Reuters]

(Photo: Getty)

FTD.com: Sorry, We're All Out Of Roses

Carey — Sat, 22 Sep 2007 09:17:22 EDT

Online florist FTD.com, "the world's oldest floral services organization," told reader Sean that they were out of roses. Sean had ordered a flower arrangement for his wife to celebrate their sixth anniversary. When he presciently called on the day of the anniversary to verify that his order had been received and processed, Sean was told that his flowers were not available, but not to worry, since FTD still had five minutes to deliver his arrangement. Puzzled, Sean instead tried to order a simple bouquet of roses. He writes:

Don't buy from FTD Flowers aka FTD.Com. Sept 19th was my 6th anniversary and decided to surprise my wife at work with a beautiful arrangement of roses. I order flowers online before their cutoff time. I pay the near $100 and go my merry way.
I was on my way to work several hours later when I decided maybe I should call the FTD toll free line and verify everything is correct. So I call FTD Customer Service and give them my order number and was advised by the Customer Service Agent that the arrangement I requested and paid for was unavailable for delivery. So I was like why wasn't I told or called that it was unavailable. FTD agent advised me they would have called me to advise. I said when? She did not know. She did advise me that the cutoff for same day delivery was at 2pm. I had 5 minutes. So Im like ok...How about simple dozen roses, nothing fancy...just beautiful roses. She advised me that all their FTD Florist did not have roses. I was like your kidding , she said no. Nothing was available to be delivered and it was techinically before their "cutoff time."

So I look online for a florist business in the area I wanted to send them that was also a FTD Florist and called them and asked if they had a dozen red roses in stock. Yes they said. Plenty but we close in 4 hours at 6pm. I said thanks and hung up.

So my warning is to people not to use FTD. Not only do they not care about customer service and their customers by not calling them when they ordered something for same day delivery, they also are lying about availability of their products.

The convenience of online florists is consistently undermined by the headaches they cause. If you need flowers, save your time and money and call your local florist.

(Photo: TonivS)

Class Action Suit Drives Scammers Into Bankruptcy

Carey — Sun, 09 Sep 2007 13:54:15 EDT

Missouri florists have bankrupted a New Jersey telemarketer accused in a class action suit of tampering with phone book listings to siphon callers away from local businesses. The telemarketer, TTP, purchased phone book listings under the same names as local florists, but did not provide an address; the listings appeared side-by-side, but when local callers dialed the number without an address, they were directed to an out-of-state call center that tacked on a handling fee and submitted the order to a different area florist.

"The primary objective of both lawsuits is to get TTP out of Missouri," said Gregory Leyh of Gladstone, the attorney for both class-action lawsuits. "TTP cheats by pretending to be a local florist so it can fool consumers and steal the legitimate business of Missouri florists. At least for now, TTP is no longer in the floral business in Missouri."
TTP's president, Thomas Meola, said the company could no longer afford the cost of defending the lawsuits.

"This is a victory for us," said Debbie Fulton, owner of Gladstone Florist on North Oak Trafficway. "We noticed our business began to pick up this summer, when it is normally down. Then we found out that the telemarketer had disconnected the phone."

TTP has come under fire in the past from the attorneys general of Delaware and Virginia. If you see two listings in the phone book, remember to call the one with an address.

Local florists score victory over telemarketing scheme [KCCommunityNews]
(AP Photo/Greg Baker)

Today's Tip For Adulterers: Don't Use 1-800-Flowers

Carey — Wed, 08 Aug 2007 17:17:08 EDT

A Texas man is suing 1-800-Flowers for $1 million after a thank you note from the web florist outed him as an adulterer. Leroy Greer specifically asked 1-800-Flowers not to send him a receipt for the cuddly stuffed animal and dozen long stemmed roses he ordered for his mistress. Despite his request, 1-800-Flowers sent a thank you note to his house several months later, prompting his wife to ask who the hell got flowers. She called 1-800-Flowers, which gladly faxed her a copy of Leroy's order form that included the following message meant for his mistress: "Just wanted to say I love you and you mean the world to me! -Leroy." Above The Law has the legalese:

Breach of contract action in which the defendants agreed to keep the plaintiff's order of flowers for his girlfriend private, with no record of the transaction mailed to him at his home or office.
Months later, the defendants sent a thank you card to the plaintiff's home, and his wife called the defendants for proof of the purchase. The defendants faxed the plaintiff's wife proof of his order of flowers for his girlfriend, which resulted in a divorce being filed.

Shucks, we thought giant internet florists could be entrusted with secrets. Maybe Leroy should have sent his mistress flowers from the local florist instead.

Lawsuit of the Day: Greer v. 1-800-Flowers [Above The Law]
Greer v. 1-800-Flowers: An Update [Above The Law]
(Photo: candiche)

How To Save On Funeral Expenses

Carey — Sat, 21 Jul 2007 13:34:11 EDT

Dearly beloved, we gather here today to remember that the funeral industry is a sales-based profession with tips and tricks like any other. Consumers often lower their guard in deference to the pain and reverence that accompanies funeral planning; yet just because you are bereaved, doesn't mean you should be taken for a sap. Here are a few tips to keep funeral costs manageable:

Don't Embalm: Embalming is a creation of the American funeral industry and serves no purpose whatsoever, preservative or otherwise. Don't let any funeral director tell you that it is required by law. It isn't.

Buy Direct: Funeral parlor coffins and headstones carry outrageous markups. Use the power of the internet to buy both directly from the manufacturers.

Buy Local: Where do you think the funeral parlors get their flowers? Go directly to the source and buy from your local florist.

The best way to save on a funeral is to plan ahead and resist the temptation to overspend, which often stems from pain and guilt, rather than any direct need for a lavish funeral.

If you have a morbid curiosity for more information, check out Jessica Mitford's comprehensive examination of the funeral industry, The American Way of Death.

Burial Insurance [The Dollar Stretcher]
(Photo: ljcybergal)

Roses Are Not Red, They're Invisible.

Meg Marco — Mon, 30 Oct 2006 19:05:18 EST

A rose by any other name might smell just as sweet, but that requires the rose be there in the first place. Dave learned this painful lesson when he tried to order his wife roses.

Dave, that poor bastard, is still waiting for his refund. We guess he shouldn't have ordered invisible odorless roses, but at least they are hypoallergenic...

The other day I decide to order up some roses for my beautiful wife on our second wedding anniversary, a dozen Red Roses. Now my wife works downtown Boston in the financial district where there are literally 50 different florists around. I call up Louis Barry Florist, just a couple of blocks from my wife's building.
I place the call to Louis Barry Florist at around 9 am which should give them plenty of time to deliver the flowers 2 blocks, before my wife leaves work at 5. 3 o'clock rolls around and there has been no call from my wife thanking me for the roses.

I call over to Louis Barry Florist and the woman says "the flowers went out a long time ago". Same thing at 4 o'clock.

At 4:30 I call my wife and ask if she received any flowers (surprise ruined), she has not. I call over to Louis Barry Florists and he says the flowers have already been delivered. I explain to him that this is not possible because my wife has no flowers on her desk. He says "the driver has delivered the flowers to your wife". I say no he didn't, my wife is leaving work now, thanks for embarrassing me and refund my money now. The gentleman at Louis Barry Florist says he has to wait and check with the driver tomorrow.

Tomorrow?! So now I call my wife, and in desperation I ask her to call Louis Barry Florist and explain to the gentleman that she has not received the flowers. Louis Barry Florists insists to my wife that she has the flowers.

I am so mad. I should of recorded the conversation I had with this guy.

I just spent 80 bucks on phantom roses for my wife on our second anniversary.

By the way, Dave, we're on to you... if you forgot your 2nd anniversary and this is just an elaborate scam to earn forgiveness while publicly smearing an innocent florist... Damn. Good idea! Who was your wife talking to on the phone? Your brother? You shyster!