Just want to give everyone a heads up that I got taken for $400.00 By J. Derrick Perry of DP Rail models in NC. Some of you may know him from facebook, or his own website.
I sent him the $400.00 Last Feb. To do a custom GP7 for me, he assured me it would be no problem, and was more than helpful at first. Then 5 months or so went by and it was excuse after excuse after excuse. From moving, to the parts on back order and so on… He then assured me everything was fine, and time was the issue. (all the while he was still taking orders, completing and selling other models, that came after mine)
I asked him for some simple communication, and he showed me some pics of the model in progress. (about 2 hours tops worth of work)
Another 5 months or so had passed, no updates, no models, and worst of all NO CONTACT AT ALL! After countless emails, and phone calls to no real avail, I told him I would be contacting a lawyer as well as the Better Business Bureau, if he wouldn’t reply…
To that, he simply wrote back “dont threaten me…” “you’ll get it when I do it” He also removed his phone numbers from his website, deleted me from his facebook pages, unlinked my website, and removed the progress pics of my train from his site.
The best part is if you email him, asking for a complex custom model… He can get it to you by the end of the month!
SO BUYER BEWARE!!!
He has all the information to contact me, but thinks he can just hide and ignore me becuase of our locations aren’t close. I have all the documentation of each contact, the original contract, and paypal recipts. Point is the guy is a bum. I don’t understand what the problem is… I just simply want want I paid $400 for, am I wrong???
OMG! That sucks. Do you know where he lives, do you have an address? For that kind of money, I would take a road trip and pay him a visit, and knock him on the head with your GP7.
Seriously, I would take him to small claims court.
Sorry to hear of your difficulties with this individual. I’m not an expert on Paypal but you mentioned you had Paypal receipts. Doesn’t paypal have some type of buyer protection feature? Maybe you could contact them and they could help you get your money back.
It’s probably past their buyer’s protection window-- BUT, if you pay your paypal charges via a credit card (or one of the better debit cards), you probably DO have recourse through them-- extended warranties, ombudsman services, consumer fraud and complaint departments, investigative services, etc. They have the ability to make a merchant’s life pretty miserable if they are so inclined. And I’d wager that would even include a paypal merchant, if the funds originated from the credit card.
Try contacting his states Attorney Generals office, it’s not fraud,but it could be. They may be able to give you advice to correct the problem. At this point, I would just ask for a refund. Caveat Emptor!!.mh
The idea of some sort of buyr protection is an interesting one which I will be looking into. Thanks for the advice… I really just wanted to warn others of his shady business practice.
I do have all of his contact information, including home and phone numbers, address, and so on… He refuses contact. And of course offers NO REFUNDS! Would expect anything less right! I would gladly settle for a refund, or just some simple communication. His work looks great and I did want the model, but I see NO reason for ignoring me…
That is the reason I would not pay more than 25% down for a custom work, By Credit card {though a cancelled check in court woudl do better, I think}, and balance only upon completion of the product to my satisfaction.
I would NOT pay 100% up front.
You wouldn’t even know, by pics, if it really was your model or not as decals for liveries can nowadays be photoshopped in, and you wouldn’t know if he bought a $45 Bachmann {great runners BTW} off the shelf and just “customized it” for you or something.
Maybe it’s just me, but custom ordering a $400.00 from someone I don’t know and can’t meet with personally, would be something I wouldn’t do, it just rubs me the wrong way, I guess you could say…
Buyer beware.
Report him to: YOUR state’s AG, HIS state’s AG, The BBB, FIle a small claims court in YOUR area {he will have to appear at YOUR court i believe and I believe the sale could easily be considered to have originated at your point of sale, not necessarilly his}, If not, or evenso I would , file a small claims court case with Judge JUDY {maximum TV coverage that can litterally RUIN any business-SHe is the most watched woman on TV and the most popular TV Judge} and see what happens, If he doesn’t show up at YOUR court {Or Judge Judy’s}, I believe it’s automatic award to you in your favor.
Buyer beware on custom ordering.
Maybe it’s just me, I don;t know but I would beware custom ordering and paying up front 100%.
Wonder if he has a business license. You could do some research and if you find out he doesn’t, report him to his state and fed tax people. I’m sure they’ll want their share of business taxes and any others that are required.
As an aside $400 would be a first class airbrush, compressor and a lot of shells to practice on until you felt you could paint the engine yourself. That is what I would do in the future to prevent a reoccurance
Just a caution on the Better Business Bureau. There was an expose about that organization a few months ago on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. In a nutshell, if you don’t pay your dues to them, they tend to reduce your rating. So, whether or not this information is true, I would be cautious about the assessment. Every business is in receipt of complaints over time.
I think it would be prudent to lock this thread now that the originator has had his vent.