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Finding a great deal online is very satisfying.

All the retailers you’re familiar with are saying one price, but you’ve done a little searching online and found a moerse saving.

Obviously, you should always exercise caution when looking at the results that crop up in the Google results, especially under the ‘Shopping’ tab.

As an example, let’s assume you search ‘laptops’ – we’re talking about the tab that appears to the right of ‘Maps’:

If you’re the sort who uses this method to try and find the best deals online, you’ve likely seen a retailer called PC Link Computers crop up pretty regularly with very competitive prices.

Halt and think twice, because South Africa’s Consumer Goods and Services Ombud (CGSO) has warned consumers to beware when transacting with the retailer.

It says there’s been a recent “substantial increase in consumer complaints”, reports MyBroadband:

Over the period from 1 April 2021 to 29 April 2022, the online PC hardware and accessories retailer has racked up 215 consumer complaints at the ombud.

According to the ombudsman, there are currently 134 open cases against PC Link Computers.

“Due to the non-cooperation by PC Link in resolving complaints referred to them, the CGSO has been forced to terminate these cases and report them to the National Consumer Commission for possible investigation and enforcement.”

…The CGSO said it is clear that PC Link is employing bait marketing where it advertises goods as being available, with no intention to deliver the goods ordered.

The company’s pclinkshop.com website has disappeared, and pclinkshop.co.za also returns no results.

There were sufficient complaints against the company last year for MyBroadband to reach out for comment.

At that time, a representative said the following

…the complaints against them mainly stem from customers who don’t realise there was a difference between PC Link’s .co.za and .com shops.

The .co.za store offered locally sourced items that distributors have indicated were available at their South African warehouses.

On the other hand, PC Link’s .com site offered importing services that were affected by global supply chain disruptions.

Refunds were issued at that time, but recently consumers look to have been left high and dry.

Consumer review site Hellopeter is full of highly disgruntled, one-star reviews. These are all from the last week alone:

As the review below alleges it’s unclear whether the site also operated under pclink.co.za, but that address now redirects to clicktobuy.co.za.

That is unsubstantiated.

If you have been stung by PC Link Computers, the CGSO says you’re still required to lodge complaints with the National Consumer Commission (NCC) in order to try and get a refund.

It may be an exercise in futility but it’s still worth a shot.

Remember, when you see a deal that seems too good to be true, it often is.

Swinging past Hellopeter and searching the business name to find consumer reviews can save you from some real headaches down the line.

[sources:mybb&hellopeter]