Complaint Review: netflix.com

Three other friends and myself started using netflix. The first few weeks were good. Everything arrived on time. None of the dvd's were scratched or anything.

Then after the second payment I would only have two sent out at a time instead of three. I dont live that far away from them so shipping should only take about a day or two. I sent an email and complained about the service, they blamed it on the post office.

I then noticed that every new item that would come in would go into the VERY LONG WAIT status. My friend had complained a while ago about new items not being available to rent and they told him they didnt plan on such a large response to this dvd..but then it happen again...and again..and again...and again.

How many times does it have to happen before someone said Hey, we are not purchasing enough items to keep our customers happy?

To make a long story shot, so far, I have had to go to Block Buster to rent the new stuff (items always available) and three of my friends have already terminated their service with Netflix and I sent them email letting them know that if I have to go out and rent one more new dvd that I will cancel service as well

I too used the service for about 3 months with no problems. However, when it came time to cancel the account, it took one month longer than expected. This is in large part to MY failure to read the email sent to me to cancel by telephone, and correctly read the screen instructions to cancel.



You can not cancel online. You muct call a 1-800 number to cancel the account. They clearly say this on the website. (Again my problem was because I read the screen too fast and failed to call in as instructed.)

I received my DVD for Mother's Day with a free trial certificate and Netflix has given me many happy Saturday evenings since TV is terrible on that night. I recommend it to everyone I meet with a DVD.



When returning two of the movies they were lost. I reported it on the internet and it was no problem. They sent me my next two movies. All of my movies have been playable. There is a Netflix in Duluth, Georgia and it only takes three days for me to have a new movie to view. I was surprised tro jhear that anyone was having a problem. I think this is a great concept and will remain a loyal customer.

After seeing the Editor's Comments, I decided to put in my two cents worth since I agree with Carrisa. By the way, the only way I am affiliated with Netflix is as a customer.



I started my service with Netflix at the end of November 2001. As of April 19, 2002 I have received 31 DVD's, of which only one has been defective. The DVD in question would not play, when I took it out of my player it was cracked. To be honest, I'm not sure if it was cracked before or after I put it in my player. (Now, I make sure every DVD is in tact when I receive it). Anyway, I went to their website, reported the bad disk, they had me send in the disk, and as soon as they received it, they sent me another. No questions asked!



My turnaround time for sending a DVD in, and then receiving a new one used to be about 6 days. However, since April it has only been taking about 3 to 4 days. This is because my return DVD's are now addressed to Tacoma, WA instead of San Jose, CA. So they must have expanded. In March I upgraded to the $24.95/4 movie plan, primarily so I would always have 2 movies available on the weekends. However, since the turnaround time has gotten better, I may go back down to the basic $19.99 plan.



To date I've paid $3.80 per movie that I've received. (not counting the one broken one) But, I still have a couple of weekends left in April, to watch more movies to lower the cost. So even if I only watch 2 more movies this month, I'd be at $3.56 per movie. Which I agree is probably slightly more than I'd pay at a rental store. However, I don't have to drive, wait in line, and best of all there are no late fees! In addition, we tend to rent more indie and foreign films, not the big blockbusters, that most stores only carry one copy of, thus making it difficult to get a hold of. With Netflix, they are almost always available. True you don't always get your first choice with Netflix; they too have to deal with availability. Thus far, this has not been a concern for me.



I can definitely see where Netflix might not work for everyone. Especially for people who live far away from a distribution center, thus increasing the time for delivery. I can also see where their advertisements for free trial periods could seem to be misleading. However, people also need to read their policies and understand what they are getting into. I'll also agree that Netflix may need to improve their customer service, especially in the area of how to deal with ex-customers. However, I don't think they are out to screw anyone.



Some recommendations:

1. Inspect every DVD when it arrives, to make sure it isn't broken.

2. Do not use a debit card for payment, as this will make it more difficult to reverse charges.

3. Save the emails that Netflix sends you when they send you a DVD, until you receive the DVD. If you are really paranoid, save all emails they send you .

4. Check your rental queue often, so you know what the status of your DVD's are.

5. If your thinking about joining, send them and email to find out the closest distribution center to you is. If you live in New York, and California is where the DVD's are coming from, this may not be for you, since the delivery time will take longer.

6. If you chose to cancel, and you don't trust Netflix, send the DVD's back certified mail. That way you'll know that they received them. Sure this will cost a few dollars, but could save some headaches.

By phone, a netflix rep informed me their 'free 2 weeks' *actually* means free 10 calendar days!! Anyone would think this meant 14 days, since their ads say nothing about work days or week days. This might explain why Frank was charged when he shouldn't have been.

SUGGESTION: perhaps best to verify offers by phone or email.

This email is a rebuttal to RipOff #4765.

It was sent by Carissa at bluelighteningjeep@earthlink.net.



free cd movie rental from netflix.com - ha !. free movie cd rip-off ! *REBUTTAL ..Netflix is good (#4765)



They filed the following rebuttal to the above Rip-Off Report:



Their email: bluelighteningjeep@earthlink.net

Their name: Carissa



Their relationship to the company: Supporter



Rebuttal:

I also received a ticket with my new DVD player giving me two weeks of free trial with Netflix. The DVD's got to me in a very timely fashion, and the website is easy to use, and there is a lot to choose from. It's hard to complain about a service that lets you rent as many DVD's as you want in a month and have 3 on hand at a time. Blockbuster costs over $4.00 for just one. Unless you don't watch DVD's very much and would not spend $19.95 a month on them then it is a good service. They also have a plan for "lite" users that's around $13.00 a month and you can rent as many as you want but have two on hand instead of three. If the DVD's are scratched then let them know...you can get scrathed DVD's from any video store because you never know who has rented them, or how many kids have chewed on them! So far I have enjoyed the services of Netflix as it is convenient for me as a disabled to be able to get them right to my mailbox

and mail them back out. Getting to the video store is quite an effort just to rent for me, not to mention returning them on time. I recommend the service.

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EDitor's Comments to the above REBUTTAL:



OK, call me a real skeptic. Anyone who knows me, knows, I say it like I see it. I say what I feel.



We do welcome all REBUTTALS even though I do not believe this one is an authentic REBUTTAL from a real customer. The alleged supporter left noting out as if it were written by their Public Relations Department.

Your full of it! ... just my opinion. :-)

This email is a rebuttal to RipOff #4765.

It was sent by Danielle at na@na.com.



free cd movie rental from netflix.com - ha !. free movie cd rip-off ! (#4765)



They filed the following rebuttal to the above Rip-Off Report:



Their email: na@na.com

Their name: Danielle



Their relationship to the company: Supporter



Rebuttal:

Just my two cents. I also got the free deal with a new DVD purchase and checked out Netflix (which is a DVD RENTAL service, not a free disc giveaway). It was EXCELLENT and their service was timely, impressive and precise. I didn't stick with it because I didn't have a need to rent DVD's in the mail on a regular basis. But I've recommended the company to others. I don't understand your complaint and nobody else should be

steered away from them. Netflix is a good & fairly priced DVD rental service. Of my 13 or so free rentals, all were correct and played fine!