Taking cash before the product exists!

[alex98uk]

I pre-ordered an Asus 5850 1GB from Scan for £227. It was a pre-order with no ETA. A day later Scan had taken the entire amount out of my account. Whilst it's probably legal, i'm not sure it's morally right to take money before the product is ready for dispatch, let alone in stock.

It caused my rent to bounce (wasn't expecting the cash to go out so quickly!). So, I cancelled, went to Dabs who were selling the same card for £201 (free P&P) with a 1-2 week ETA. They confirmed that no payment is taken until the product is in stock and ready to dispatch.

I think Dabs's means of payment is a lot more respectful to the customer. Thoughts?

[AthruZ]

from the posts at reviewcentre about dabs I think you may be waiting months for the item after you have paid for it.

[Growkin]

Dabs always chuck around their ETAs which is what I found when looking for updates on the 5770s and the 5870s.
In regards for scan, I felt the same when I ordered mine and switched around the orders, but I prefer it cus if the prices goes up, I have already paid the cheaper amount.

[AthruZ]

Thats a good point growkin...I was looking at an OC bundle at OCUK for £649, went back on Jan 1st and it had jumped to £715
Maybe alex would have been better just sitting tight?

[Chris P]

alex98uk

Payment is taken on placement of the order so stock can be allocated once it lands, of course an order can be cancelled in full if stock takes longer than expected.

Best Regards

[alex98uk]

Hmm... OK, I didn't know that Dabs has a tendency to be vague about their ETA's. Could Scan not price match them though

Well, unless Scan's price drops, i'm going to stick tight. I have been PC'less since late November now (XFX RMA grrr...), so what's a week or two more.

[alex98uk]

Damn, well I looked around the net at Dabs reviews and they seem abysmal at customer support, much like OcUK. I cancelled their order, so for the 3rd time now, I have money but no card!

I was going to order again through Scan and just stick with it, but prices went up over the last day

[AthruZ]

yep..damn the V.A.T man!! There is a lesson to be learned here I think...dont really need to tell you what that is though.

[david@scan]

Yes - I believe it's only the vat that's different on the previous and current pricing.

[alex98uk]

Ah well, I should learn not to trust my instincts and to stick with the heard. Just placed an order again Scan for a 5850.

Guess i'm right at the bottom of the queue for one now. Hopefully i'll get one when the new shipment comes in. ETA?

[mufa]

i guess u could have bought the NVIDIA GeForce GTS 250 .. would've been cheaper.. and it has a lesser chance of crashing

[Growkin]

Bar the bios flash I had to do with my 5770 Ive had no issues with crashing with the card

[alex98uk]

i guess u could have bought the NVIDIA GeForce GTS 250 .. would've been cheaper.. and it has a lesser chance of crashing

Only thing is that my toaster is powerful than a GTS250

58xx or bust! I would have gone Crossfire 5770's, but my UD3R only has 1x PCI-E slot (until I go i7!)

[Growkin]

They are damn good cards, but I needed a quick replacement and not alot of cash to throw at it

[rabbid]

I pre-ordered an Asus 5850 1GB from Scan for £227. It was a pre-order with no ETA. A day later Scan had taken the entire amount out of my account. Whilst it's probably legal, i'm not sure it's morally right to take money before the product is ready for dispatch, let alone in stock.

It caused my rent to bounce (wasn't expecting the cash to go out so quickly!). So, I cancelled, went to Dabs who were selling the same card for £201 (free P&P) with a 1-2 week ETA. They confirmed that no payment is taken until the product is in stock and ready to dispatch.

I think Dabs's means of payment is a lot more respectful to the customer. Thoughts?

I have pre-ordered from both companies in the past. Not had a real problem with either.

One item did take a bit long from Dabs (yes sliding ETA!) but it was about £40 cheaper there at time of order and even their own price increased by £29 by the time it shipped to me. Perhaps they hoped if they made me wait long enough I would cancel the cheaper pre-order? (pure speculation)

I think its made clear Scan takes payment right away so you either make the decision to buy or not!

There can be problems with taking the money later too, for example if its a few weeks later and you have forgotten about the payment coming out, then suddenly can find yourself overdrawn/limit.
At least when its taken at point of order you can make firm accounts for it.