The Better Business Bureau Serving Metropolitan New York is issuing a consumer alert about two e-commerce websites claiming to be located in New York City. Consumers have submitted numerous complaints and reports to BBB about online sellers JerseyEasy and Hudashdy, alleging they are being charged for merchandise that was never delivered.
These two websites appeared on BBB’s radar just in time for the holiday shopping crunch. Hot ticket gift items listed on these sites include collectible action figures, appliances, stuffed animals, dolls, and popular video games. To date, consumers have filed 25 complaints about JerseyEasy and 6 complaints about Hudashdy with BBB, all since November 15, 2019.
According to consumer complaints and submissions made to BBB Scam TrackerSM, JerseyEasy and Hudashdy provided consumers with functioning tracking numbers from verified shipping companies. Despite delivery confirmation notices, the packages never arrive at the proper address. Several consumers report disputing the charges via their payment processor, but because the shipping services marked the packages as delivered, consumer disputes were denied.
“While holiday shopping, it can be tempting to move quickly through the purchasing process,” says Claire Rosenzweig, President and CEO of BBB Serving Metropolitan New York. “It’s important to purchase from businesses with good customer track records and to do thorough research before purchasing from an unknown seller online.”
As of December 20, the company websites were still live at jerseyeasy.com and hudashdy.com, indicating that the alleged scheme is still active.
The BBB of Metro New York displays “F” ratings for Hudashdy and JerseyEasy. Reasons for the rating include concerns with the company’s operations, unsubstantiated claims of “5000+ reviews,” time-limited sales, and its failure to address complaints filed with BBB. To date, BBB has not received a response to any of its communications. In addition, mail was recently returned by the U.S. Postal Service as “Attempted Not Known” from the address shown on both websites, 72 Greene Street, New York, NY 10012. A Google Map shows that this address is the location of a legitimate retailer in NYC.
To help avoid negative online shopping experiences, BBB Metro New York recommends:
- Using a credit card for online transactions for an additional layer of purchase protection.
- If using a payment processing service, be sure you clearly understand the terms and conditions for disputing charges.
- Restrict ecommerce purchases to only established retailers with clearly disclosed policies.
- Check bbb.org to see a company’s Business Profile and review BBB Scam TrackerSM.
- Find the contact information listed on the company’s website. If an address is provided, a search on Google Maps may show if the location appears to be valid. If a phone number is listed, make a quick call to determine if it’s a working number or even affiliated with the company.
- Look to see if a company has a social media presence to get a sense of its online footprint. Social media profiles linked from a company’s website can sometimes be misleading or direct to profiles of unrelated businesses.
- Use a domain registration website (such as https://www.whois.com/) to discover how long the website has been in existence and if any further contact information is available.