Anybody get their $9.99 52" flat screen tv???

[Keola P]

Funny story on the news last night...



I heard someone actually tried to order 40 tv's!!!

 

[Andy Chase]

Smart guy, if Best Buy wouldn't have cancelled the orders he coulda made a lot of money reselling them.

 

[Andy Cabrera]

I read that in the morning several TV were bought on the internet but best buy would not honor the price and the credit card charges will be refunded...



I'm no lawyer but wouldn't that constitute a binding contract by Best Buy since they were charging the credit card for the item which they have in stock?



I'm sure somebody will be suing Best Buy soon.

 

[George T]

Yea, I would have to agree with cabrera, if somebody bought the TV before they fixed the price and BestBuy charged their credit card...than they technically have to sell it to the customer. JMO

 

[TomT]

They are not obligated since it was obviously a mistake. If you put a used car for sale on a web site for $3000 and it mistakenly came up as $3, would you feel obligated to sell it for $3.

 

[Doctor CAD]

I got a Blu Ray player for $50.04 from a mistaken ad. It was supposed to be with a big screen, you got the Blu ray for $50.04.



The company honored the ad and took their lumps, I will use them in the future because of that.



However, $10 for a $1600 item is just stupid if you think they will honor that.



I bet the $50.04 was cost, so at least they didn't lose anything, but the TV cost is probably closer to $1200.

 

[swshawaii]

That's what the "disclaimer" on the bottom in fine print is for. It's all about that.

Numerous times our store has advertised product to have the ad agency "misprint" a price.

Several people "demanded" the misprinted price to no avail, including a lawyer or two.

 

[Mike Roncarati]

Yeah, that's obviously a gross error. I would't expect to get it at that price. You'd be wasting your time trying to sue, but I'm sure people will.

 

[Andy Chase]

When I worked at Gander Mountain, we had similar issues. We advertised "Double the Difference" It was supposed to mean that if Another Store had an item we sold for $100, and they were on sale over there for $90, we'd refund the differnce and then again, so we'd sell it for $80. People thought we'd give them the difference and then double if off the matched price so they'd want it for $70. Eventually they changed the name of the police becuase too many people were getting confused. I don't think people will win too many lawsuits against best buy on this issue, maybe if they charded the credit cards the full $1799 price or didn't offer the credit of $9.99 on their cards JMO.

 

[EddieS'04]

I wouldnt think they would be obligated until, item is shiped. My guess is they have a checks and balance system at time of shipment. Many cases that is when the info goes to the bank the Card is with.

 

[Andy Cabrera]

That's what the "disclaimer" on the bottom in fine print is for. It's all about that.

Numerous times our store has advertised product to have the ad agency "misprint" a price.

Several people "demanded" the misprinted price to no avail. Several lawyers included.

That's where the "legal" comes in. The disclaimer would protect from having to sell it at the erroneous price, hence you can refuse the demand.

Since the credit card was charged as a "paid in full" not a deposit, the item was legally sold.



Interesting arguement?

I'm sure someone with nothing better to do will sue.

 

[Thomas Rogers]

Cabera said:

I'm no lawyer but wouldn't that constitute a binding contract by Best Buy since they were charging the credit card for the item which they have in stock?



I'm sure somebody will be suing Best Buy soon.

You are right....



You're no lawyer!



An online sale and a charge on a credit card is not a binding contract. Errors like this happen all the time. They usually get caught well before product ships, and the e-tailer either cancels the CC transaction, or credits it. The fact that the CC transaction was completed with the wrong amount means nothing, and binds nothing.



There is no binding contract, nor is there "bait and switch."



Mistakes happen.



99.99% of the people that jump on these types of mistakes KNOW there has been a clerical entry or some other error and are hoping to be able to exploit the error. Shame on them, especially if they cry foul afterwards when the product doesn't ship.



I guess they are the same people that when the cashier gives them too much change they just smile and pocket it.



Like I said, shame on them.



People that would sue over such things just hurt us all in the long run as companies have to pay to fight baseless lawsuits.



TJR

 

[Andy Cabrera]

People that would sue over such things just hurt us all in the long run as companies have to pay to fight baseless lawsuits.

Welcome to America...land of the free & home of the stupid lawsuit.

I'm not saying that they would be successful, just saying someone is bound to sue.



Shall we recall just a few:



1991, Richard Overton sued Anheuser-Busch for false and misleading advertising under Michigan State law. The complaint specifically referenced ads involving, among other things, fantasies of beautiful women in tropical settings that came to life for two men driving a Bud Light truck. In addition to two claims of false advertising, he included a third claim in his complaint in which he claimed to have suffered emotional distress, mental injury, and financial loss due to the misleading Bud Light ads. The court dismissed all claims.



1995, Robert Lee Brock sued himself for $5 million. He claimed that he had violated his own civil rights and religious beliefs by allowing himself to get drunk and commit crimes which landed him in the Indian Creek Correctional Center in Virginia, serving a 23 year sentence for grand larceny and breaking and entering. What could he possibly have to gain by suing himself? Since being in prison prevented him from having an income, he expected the state to pay. This case was thrown out.



1996, the family of Patsy Ann Byers sued Oliver Stone, Warner Brother, and others involved in the making and distribution of the movie Natural Born Killers for an unspecified amount. They claimed that the movie caused Sarah Edmondson and Benjamin Darrus to go on a crime spree which resulted in Edmonson shooting Byers during a robbery, leaving her paralyzed from the chest down. The lawsuit was originally filed in 1995, against Edmonson and Darrus, the actual perpetrators of the crime spree. Stone and the others involved with the film were added in 1996. The portion of the case aimed at Stone and his associates was dismissed in 2001.



2000, Cleanthi Peters sued Universal Studios for $15,000. She claimed to have suffered extreme fear, mental anguish, and emotional distress due to visiting Universal Studios Halloween Horror Nights haunted house, which she said was too scary.



2001, Linda Sanders and other family members of Columbine High School shooting victims sued 25 movie and video game companies for $5 billion, in a class action lawsuit.They claimed that were it not for movies includingThe Basketball Diaries and videos games including Doom, Duke Nukem, Quake, Mortal Kombat, Resident Evil, Mech Warrior, Wolfenstein, Redneck Rampage, Final Fantasy, and Nightmare Creatures, the massacre would not have occurred, and that the makers and distributors of the movies and games were partly to blame for their loved ones deaths. The case was thrown out and the plaintiffs were ordered to compensate the video game and movie companies for their legal fees.



2002, Edward Brewer sued Providence Hospital for $2 million. He claimed that the hospital was negligent because it had not prevented him from raping one of its patients. The judge ruled that any damage Brewer suffered due to his crime was his responsibility for choosing to commit the crime, and that the hospital had no legal duty to protect him from that choice.



2003, Andrew Burnett sued Sara McBurnett and the San Jose Mercury News, claiming they had caused him to suffer mental anguish and post traumatic stress disorder. Burnett filed the lawsuit while serving a three-year sentence for killing defendant McBurnetts dog in a road rage incident, claiming that the incident had caused his suffering. The case was thrown out.



2005, Austin Aitken sued NBC for $2.5 million. He claimed that an episode of Fear Factor caused him suffering, injury, and great pain. He said that watching the contestants eat rats on television made him dizzy and light-headed, causing him to vomit and run into a doorway. He judge said the case was frivolous and threw it out.



2006, Allen Heckard sued Michael Jordan and Nike founder Phil Knight for $832 million. He claimed to suffer defamation, permanent injury, and emotional pain and suffering because people often mistook him for the basketball star. Heckard dropped the lawsuit later that year.



Bottom line...there is always someone willing to create a frivilous lawsuit over something stupid just to get something for nothing!

You are right....

You're no lawyer!

OH and BTW TJR...thanks for the Dig.

 

[Andy Chase]

What about the case that started all the frivolous lawsuits...The idiot lady that spilled McDonalds coffee on her and sued becuase it was hot...Or the case of the burglar breaking into someone's house, tripping on a toy or something else on top of the basement stears which caused him to fall down the stairs and get injured, I believe he broke his leg(s). Both cases, the idiots won their lawsuits.

 

[Carey Frennier]

Wow. Seriously? Someone broke into someones home and was injured...sued the home owners and won? WTF! That actually makes me pretty angry. I wish I could read the details of the case. There is no way it's that simple.

 

[Mark K 2]

Then there are the parents who tried to sue a nearby hospital and doctor for doing a circumcision on their newborn son. They claim they didn't realize the procedure would leave their son without a foreskin.

 

[Shaun Tucker]

Andy,



I was working at a Mcdonald's during that case (not the McDonald's restaurant where it happened though). I remember hearing that the complaint was actually that the lid was not on tight enough or that the worker didn't take due diligence to ensure that the lid was on securely. I think the lady may have ended up with second degree burns on her legs.



I'd be pissed off it it happened to me too. Would I sue? I'm not sure. :unsure:

 

[Thomas Rogers]

Shaun t, Andy,



I followed the McDonald's case closely. The net of the prosecutions case was that McDonald's willfully and knowingly brewed and served its coffee at a temperature far too high for safe human consumption. The prosecution was able to show using data from coffee brewing manufacturers like Bunn that the temperature was somethink like 30+ deg F higher than the industry norm, and that undoubtedly the reason for the dramatically increased brewing and serving temperature was that it allowed McDonald's to use less coffee grounds per pot but still get a good dark brew.



Put simply, the prosecution made the case that McDonalds served dangerously hot coffee, much hotter and much less safe than its competitors, and it did so in order to save money.



When you look at the case like that it sheds a whole new light on things.



P.S. I STILL think McDonalds coffee is served too hot. I buy coffee to drink it, not to wait a 1/2 an hour to drink it.



TJR

 

[Andy Chase]

TJR, I guess I was unaware of the true specifics of the case, all I remember is that because of that incident, they had to put a Caution, Hot Coffee on their cups (as well as pay her x number of dollars).



Here are some more examples: (some of them won)

1. The television show "Jackass" is being sued by a Montana man for plagiarizing his name, copyright and trademark infringement and defamation of character as well. In 1997, this Montana man legally changed his name to Jack Ass in order to raise public awareness about the perils of drunken driving. Mr. Jack Ass is seeking $10 million in damages.

2. A former Houston ambulance driver stopped for doughnuts while taking an injured youth to Ben Taub Hospital. The youth's mother filed a complaint against the driver and the driver is suing the city for intentional infliction of emotional distress.

3. A woman who attended 'Halloween Horror Nights' at Universal Studios is suing for $15,000 in damages for extreme fear, emotional distress and mental anguish.

4. Barney the Dinosaur sues the San Diego Chicken. The San Diego Chicken is a sports stadium mascot who, while doing a routine, pummeled a Barney look-alike. The judge threw out the case saying that the act was clearly parody and would not cause trademark confusion.

5. A New York City woman was awarded $14.1 million by a state supreme court jury after she was hit by a subway train as she was patiently laying on the tracks in an apparent suicide attempt. Later, the reward was cut 30 percent, to a mere $9.9 million, because of her "comparative negligence."

6. A California couple sued Bally Health Club for loss of consortium and emotional distress for a cyberspace romance on the man's part. Apparently, the man cut his hand on the towel dispenser at the health club sending him home for a few days where he decided to roam in an online romance.

7. A man is suing the Utah State Prison, saying the prison is violating his right to practice his religion by failing to provide him with a "vampire" diet. The man also filed a complaint that he was denied a conjugal visit with his "vampress" and denied to right to the sacrament of drinking blood.

8. In a "liar, liar no pants on fire case", a California nudist sued an event organizer when he burned his feet while doing a fire walk, after being told the activity may be dangerous.





And my favorite:

A US man is suing a cable television company for making his wife fat and

turning his children into "lazy channel surfers". Timothy Dumouchel, from

Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, is demanding nearly $3,000 and a life-time supply of

free internet service from Charter Communication. He claims he asked the

company to disconnect the service four years ago but they never did, reports

the Fond du Lac Reporter. "I believe the reason that I smoke and drink every

day and my wife is overweight is because we watched the TV everyday for

the last four years," he said in a written complaint. Dumouchel called Charter

to stop his cable service in August 1999 and was taken off the billing but not

the cable service. As a result, he and his family got free cable for four years.

 

[Thomas Rogers]

Andy,



McDonalds also dropped the brewing temp of their coffee by about 20 or 30 degs F as part of their response to the lawsuit.



TJR