Cheryl of Lake Charles, LA, writes:
I purchased an Abslide from a infomercial and when I placed the order was told that shipping and handling was $10.00 but when I received my credit card statement I was charged $49.95 for S&H. I have returned the unit because in my opinion it was junk.

I also contacted the company to inquire why I was charged so much for S&H and they told me the infomercial stated that. I watched it again and still did not hear that. Like I said I agreed to $10.00 S&H. They told me that they did not have to refund S&H and there was nothing more they could do.

Dana of Pace, FL, writes:
I ordered and received an ABslide from Sylmark, Inc. I found the product to be ineffective and returned it. The company would have received the returned product by about Aug 6th. Since that time I have tried to contact the company re my refund but have been unsuccessful. The Customer Service mailbox is always full. The message gives an email address and fax number to reach them. I have tried both but received no reply.

I saw your recommedation to another complaint telling them to inform Sylmark that they are violating an FTC rule. In their case, they never received the product but were billed. Have they violated FTC rules in my case where I got the product, returned it but have no refund? I want to proceed in contacting them so they finally act but don't know what laws I have on my side. Please advise.

If the company accepted the returned item, it is obligated to issue a refund.

Nefi of Canoga Park, CA, writes:
We ordered an Abslide in January of this year, and we were told it was going to be 6-7 weeks delivery. We waited 3 months and tried calling a customer service line for 2 weeks without being able to speak with a person, the line either busy or ringing with no answer. When we finally were able to speak with someone we were told that it was backordered and they sent out post cards stating this but never got one.

The customer service rep. said that the product would be shipped out any day and we would get it in 2-3 weeks. We not only got charged more than double the amount of what the Abslide cost, but we did not get anything in the time promised. The problem with overcharging got resolved in about 2 weeks, but we still not received any product.

We had waited 2 more months and decided to try calling again, but unable to get a live person this time. We called the order line for the Abslide to see if they had another number to get in contact with somebody. We were then given a customer service number in our area, which we have tried calling every day during their business hours and have been unable to contact anybody at that number, due to the fact it is either busy or nobody answers.

We have sent a complaint letter to them, since we could not get anybody on the phone but still we have not heard nor seen any results. We ordered it in January to have an exercise equipment in the house but now my wife is pregnant and cannot do that kind of exercise. Also this has stressed her out very much trying to contact the customer service lines with no luck, and this is not what she needs when she is pregnant.

Nefi should write -- not call -- the company and tell them that they are in violation of the Federal Trade Commission's rules regarding delivery and that unless he receives an immediate refund he will make life difficult for them.

Report Your Experience
If you've had a bad experience -- or a good one -- with a consumer product or service, we'd like to hear about it. All complaints are reviewed by class action attorneys and are considered for publication on our site. Knowledge is power! Help spread the word. File your consumer report now.