Jose R.
outside of continental US requires payment with bitcoin
Note: I live in Puerto Rico. Some websites are weird in that they don't ship to here, but others do it with no issues (I even get free shipping most of the time) because we're a part of the US, just not part of the contiguous 48 states. Some morons think we're a completely different country on-par with Brazil and Venezuela. So my experience: Made my order with my amex. Right around the time they closed, I get an email saying I need to send in a picture of my ID to verify the purchase. Odd, and I was worried that the domain was not @dopeboo.com but it was a REALLY good deal so I ignored my gut and complied. Boy do I regret it. Next morning, 10am eastern I get an email where I'm told my order was canceled. I replied to the email because it says "to reply if you have any questions", and a few seconds later it bounces and Gmail tells me the reply was blocked. I place a few call to the provided phone, each rings until I get to voicemail. I get on the "live chat" and I get talked down to regarding how there's a lot of fraudulent purchases "from countries such as yours" and that as a result they only accept bitcoin payments. I cant believe it. You're refusing my amex after YOU accept it, process it (i got the message on my phone confirming it) and ask me for A PICTURE OF MY ID over the flipping internet, only to turn around the next day and tell me you want bitcoin. The CS rep told me [[copy paste:]] "Bitcoin is a very legit company and you are free to use it or not use it." meaning: "We've been sketchy AF this far, so you can either send us money thru this non-refundable means, or go kick rocks". 0/5 worse than trying to talk to my ex.
Response from DopeBooMay 15, 2019
Hi Jose: I'm the co-founder of DopeBoo and I'm very sorry to see your note. I share your frustration but the ID you provided was not legitimate and even said "not for real id purposes". Please also accept my apologies for the miscommunication with our customer service department. I'd like to provide a few comments. First, as you might expect, attempts at fraudulent purchases run rampant online and especially at an online headshop. When we first opened we shipped plenty of product both in-and-out of the domestic USA, including Puerto Rico, and we unfortunately experienced tremendous levels of fraud. Because of this, we have risk software as well as added personnel who evaluate and make the final determination on each purchase. In other words, our customer service team does not make the call. Customer service reps are, however, sometimes able to convince our risk department to change their stance. In fact, I happened to see this order come through and also chimed-in with the hope we could process the order. Unfortunately, this was an instance where an unsuccessful attempt was made. Going against our risk department has quite a few consequences and was not possible. Therefore, the only other option was Bitcoin. With respect to our email and phone number, these have and always will be active; we have never blocked even a single address and we never will. This said, an unforeseen technical glitch quite possibly could have occurred (on your end or ours) and understandably escalated your frustration even higher -- I'll extend my apologies for that as well. My email is [email protected] should you have any trouble in the future. Based on your experience I can fully understand your viewpoint, and not wanting to shop with us. Evenso, and given our restrictions on processing, I still would like to find a way to earn and keep your business. Yes, Bitcoin takes a minute to set-up but it's actually a great payment platform. If you'll set that up I will send you 2 of those awesome GRAV pipes for the price of 1. Either way, your note and consideration are both very much appreciated. Warmest, Dean