MaximumPC 2008 11

Sonic Confusion

I’m a Canadian, and I need

help getting my $731.

back from the U.S.-based

company Sonic Electronix

(www.sonicelectronix

.com). In January, I ordered

some electronics and paid

by certified check. I repeat-

edly checked the site, and

my order status always read

awaiting payment.

On February 12, I decided

to go to the bank and cancel

the check. Two days later,

I received an email saying

my order had been shipped,

though my order status still

read awaiting payment. I sent

an email saying I had can-

celed the check and no longer

wanted the products. The

company stopped the pack-

age in shipping, and I never

received any merchandise.

I went to the bank because

I hadn’t received my reim-

bursement after a few days. I

was told that canceled checks

from the U.S. can take up to

four months to return. After

four months of waiting, I had

the bank investigate and was

told that Sonic Electronix had

cashed my check and that the

bank couldn’t recover it.

I sent Sonic an email in

June detailing my problem.

My email wasn’t answered. I

phoned a few days later and

spoke with someone who said

he would investigate. Guess

what? I never got an email. I

phoned again on Friday, July

11 and spoke to a manager.

She told me she would speak

to accounting and call me back

that same day. After not receiv-

ing the call, I called her again

and was told they had figured

out the problem and would

send me a check in the mail.

Now, I’m aware that mail

is slow, but here it is July 31,

and I still haven’t received

a thing. This money was

unrightfully taken from me

almost seven months ago, and

I’ve spent more than enough

money on long-distance calls

to California trying to get

them to fix their mistake. I

no longer want to have to

fight for my money. Please

help me.

—James Farres Goodfellow

The Dog contacted Los Angeles-

based Sonic Electronix and

was told by a spokesperson,

“There was a misunderstanding.

First, the customer had said the

check was voided and when

that happened we took some

measures without verifying it

with the bank. Sometime later,

the customer called us saying

the money was deducted, but

the order was canceled, so he

wanted a refund. We promised

to send him the check. The

accounts payable supervisor

was going to do it but had some

complications and after some

time, forgot about it.

The customer never con-

tacted us back to ask where

the money was, so we were

totally ignorant of the situation

until now, when we are getting

this complaint.

You may tell the customer

that we will send the check by

certified mail. A confirmation

will be sent by email. We apolo-

gize for the inconveniences.

And by no means did we try to

take advantage of the situation.

It was just an honest mistake

that we are willing to amend.”

The Dog informed James

that the check was, umm, in the

mail but also did some sniffing

around Sonic Electronix, as

well. The scent? Good. At least,

according to the Los Angeles

chapter of the Better Business

Bureau, which gives Sonic

Electronix a solid B, which,

according to the site, designates

“a good rating that still implies

reputability. The rating may

relate to length of time in busi-

ness, a past problem that’s been

corrected, or something else

that does not cause problems

for consumers. We believe

a company with this rating

would generally conduct busi-

ness and respond to any com-

plaints satisfactorily.”

About 62 complaints have

been filed regarding Sonic

Electronix in the last three

years, but the overwhelm-

ing majority were settled

as either refunds or order

fulfillment. Sonic Electronix

also gets a clean bill of health

from ResellerRatings.com,

which shows that in the last

six months the company has

received a rating of 8.99 out of

10. In ResellerRatings’s world,
    that’s pretty good, so more than
    likely, this is an anomaly.

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