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11/10/2007 - Elaine/Morris writes:
What a scam! We order 1 and they ship 2. Numerous calls get no satisfaction. You only get lies and the run-around. They say, "don't worry." "Someone will call you back." "The supervisor is in a meeting, but will call you back" (even on Sunday, now that's dedication.) Of course, nobody ever calls. They give you wrong numbers to call, they give you fax numbers. Some of the numbers they (he) gives you returns you to him. I'm guessing the same clown answering the phone is also the owner. When you think of it, what a clever scam. Keeping the amount of the scam to a few hundred dollars would in most cases dispossess someone from pursuing litigation. I would suggest and hope that fellow travelers in this scam report this fly-by-night outfit to the cable channel, the city who issued the business license, Better Business Bureau (though I doubt they are a member)and anyone else you can think of(pardon the preposition). I'm probably being cynical by thinking that "customer service" answers complaint calls from his mobile phone laying on the beach in Carmel.

11/8/2007 - gloria writes:
I ordered one tobi and when I asked what the total charge to my card would be she said she was off the page already and I would have to call customer service. I said I would hold while she checked, and after about 15 min. came back and said $149. Instead they shipped two and charged my c.c. $311. When I called was told if I kept both they would give me a credit of $40 and that it would take up to 30 days to send one back and get a credit put back on my card. Also I could give one to a friend. That was when I knew I was in trouble, so I said make it $60 and I would do it. It has been over a week and still no credit, and after reading these blogsI dont expect one.

11/7/2007 - sheryl writes:
Iordered over the phone on 10/28 and tried to cxl. within 30 min. told to call back the next day to cxl. at 7am and told the order had been fullfilled. well i work as a shipping mgr. for a fortune 500 co. and let me tell you no product ships in less then 24 hours. they said they couldnt cxl. and i have to refuse. since then i have asked for a tracking# so i could contact my contacts with USPS (are they in on this?)and cxl. this and then i am told by USPS. at my local postal service this was actually shipping to a similiar address not mine. so i called back and now they are telling me to wait two days and if i still dont get it they will refund everything but the shipping which comes to about 30.00 when i was told that my shipping was under 20.00 and that that this would take about 6/8 weeks to cxl. which by the way means they can charge my cc. again for the second payment and i would now have to fight them on this payment refund. still dont have prod. confirmed this was delivered at address that is similiar to mine and they are denying they got it so now i am responsible for something i did not get or will ever get. i have asked to speak with a sup. or mgr. and i have been deflected and told no. this company is a scam and not real. i would not be surprised to finde about 20 people sitting in a sm. office taking calls and orders and down the line will start seeing other charges going to my cc for things i did not order. how do we go about getting this looked into by the police or other fed. fraudulent policing organizations? i am in the middle of filing a complaint with the BBB. but all they do is take complaints. my instincts tell me we all need to get together and get this taken care of before we have identity theft showing up in our banks and credit reports. this company is fraudulent. i am by the way filing a complaint with the postal service also.

10/30/2007 - mary writes:
I ordered the Tobi on Aug 26th. I called to cancel on the 27th after reading these stories. I was told that my order could not be found and that I had to wait 24-48 hours. When I called again I was told that my order had been placed under the wrong number and that it had been shipped out already. I told them I called to cancel and they said it was too late. I was told to just refuse the shipment. That shipment did not show up until Oct 12th!!! I did refuse it and have called them at least 20 times and have been getting the run around. I was also called several times by Tobi and harrased. They wanted to know why I cancelled and that that was very wrong of me to cancel and that they will loose their commission if I did and so if I keep it, I will get free shipping. I have tried everything to settle this and think that now I am out the money and don't even have the travel steamer to show for all my trouble. Please don't order this item. This company is a total scam!

10/30/2007 - Tim writes:
My girlfriend was impressed with the results of the Tobi steamer as shown on TV. I ordered one for her. They sent TWO steamers, and billed my credit card for $200. At no point in the company's confirmation email did they mention a) an order number, or b) the total amount billed. Every time I call customer service they put me on ignore for long periods of time. Unless you enjoy being very frustrated, I would recommend that you not deal with these people.

10/30/2007 - Margaret writes:
I ordered this item...hoping I could save on having items pressed at the cleaners. I have no real complaint with the item however, I ordered one and was sent 2 of them. I called and theiy stated at the bottom of the screen I should have put in a quantity of one. I gave them the benefit of the doubt since I didn't pay attention. I was billed on my credit card for over two hundred dollars and have yet to be credited for the one that was returned. Called the customer service and they stated they never received it. It costs over 21.00 to return. I did add insurance and confirmation mail so that saved me...otherwise I would have to take their word, they never received it. I also am being billed every month for 29.95. Both Tobi's have been paid for so why am I being billed 29.95? I got the runaround so I have now filed a complaint with the Better Business Bureau. I will not do business with this company again.

10/22/2007 - Ayanna writes:
Plan and simple. Works "ok" but not worth the money. Buy an upright iron. It will work the same. On TV it makes everything look so easy and appealing. Not the case. While you are steaming the garment, you must make sure you straighten and hold the fabric to get a smooth finish.

10/16/2007 - Levar writes:
Well like the rest I tried it it's not even worth $49.99. The unit they sent me was used don't ask me how but it was. I called them and asked for a refund. I forgot to tell you they also charged me for the three year warranty without my consent. I paid the rush order fee they said there was a back order of. In the end they got me for the shipping & handling.

10/12/2007 - Rita writes:
BOTTOM LINE: DO NOT BUY TOBI STEAMER: My story is not unlike most of the rest of the reporteed scams on the Tobi. I ordered the steamer which was supposed to accompanied by a Travel Tobi for trying the Tobi Steamer. 1st of all I paid for expedited shipping and didn't receive the Tobi for 1 month. They had not charged my credit card so I had given up on the shipment. However, it did arrive without the Travel Tobi. I called the company and they told me that it was backordered and if I would call in Sept it would be shipped to me. I tried the Tobi. What a joke. The steamer that they showed on TV had to have been 2 feet taller than the one I got or it was being used by midgets. It was clumsy and I could not hold it by the handle. I called the company and received a return # and I returned the steamer. I was assured @ that time that when I called in September I would receive the Travel Steamer. You know the rest. I called, they couldn't send the Travel Tobi without sending & of course charging me with another steamer. Free shipping. I've been down that route before. Rita

10/8/2007 - Rosie writes:
I have had the same terrible experience of not reading the reviews before I decided to purchase this product. After I ordered the product I read the reviews, went through the process the same day and tried to cancel my order with the run around that they could not stop the shipment. They are a very underhanded company, I immeditely sent it back to them. The shipping and handling is a big profit to them and I believe that is the only way they make money. I have had no such experience ever with ordering products online, however do not order from this crooked company, unreal experience!

10/3/2007 - Deann writes:
ordered on Saturday-received the high sales to get it shipped fast,but said no-on Sunday I called and wanted it stopped-was advised I had to call on Monday-did so-was then adv it had already been shipped-I asked how could that be, just ordered on Sat! They dropped $39.95 off price-I still didn't want it but it had been shipped!-received the "POC" or "POS" does not matter-both apply--returned 9/21 at my cost by UPS of $15.00--so far no credit to my card..

10/2/2007 - Karen writes:
In June 2007 I ordered the following: 1 Tobi (4 payments of $29.95), 1 Tobi Tree ($19.95 plus $9.95 shipping), 1 Tobi Travel Steamer (Free plus $13.95 shipping). Offered then for promotion were 20 hangers free and a travel bag free. The total order should have been $163.65. In August '07 I received a phone call from a Tobi rep advising me my credit card would not process because of incorrect input of the spelling of my name. The error was corrected and I was advised my order would be shipped immediately. In September '07 I contacted the company to get an update on my order which still had not arrived. I was advised my order would be shipped immediately however the Travel Steamer was still not available. I was assured there would not be any additional charges for the separate shippings. In September a partial order arrived which did not contain the Travel Steamer. I contacted Tobi again only to be reassured my order would be completed in the future. I noticed my packing slip had some erroneous charges for expedited shipping and a warranty. There was not a line item for the Travel Steamer but I was assured this was customary and I had not been billed for the additional charges. Today, I recieved a letter from Tobi claiming there was an 89.85 balance they had been unable to bill my credit card company and which they threatened to report to collections. I immediately contacted Tobi and paid the charges. When I asked where the rest of my order, the Travel Steamer, was I was advised I could order the Travel Steamer for an additional charge of $39.95. Well, everything went down hill from there. I was then advised that each time there had been contact with the company my order had been rewritten. The newest order now contained new shipping charges and a warranty and the Travel Steamer had been deleted. Nine representatives, nine calls later no one knew anything. The number provided for their corporate office disconnects after a recording stating their hours. I asked that my conversations be recorded. I was denied the opportunity to talk to a supervisor after waiting an aggravate total of 32 minutes. Every statement I tried to make was interrupted. I could hardly understand the reps who spoke broken English and I was hung up on three times. I have been charged $45.50 more than I expected and was told the original order totaled and still have not received all of my order.

9/25/2007 - Doris writes:
My experience with the Tobi steamers is odder than the rest though I was also scammed for 30.00. I too was taken in by the infomercial and ordered the steamer, refusing extras at exorbitant price add-ons camouflaged as shipping fees. I opted to pay all at once and was charged 149.78 on 8/15/07. I never received the steamer though I knew it would take about 6 weeks for delivery. Without a plausible explanation I received a credit from Tobi on 9/24/07 for 119.80 (apparently the Canadian price). I immediately did a search for "Tobi scam" and ended up at this website. Although I have been ripped off for 30.00 for nothing maybe I should consider myself lucky after reading all of the horror stories. If the Tobi track record for customer service holds I am unlikely to receive an additional refund though I am going to try through my bank.

9/21/2007 - Kristen writes:
I excitedly ordered The Tobi online and when I got it, the DVD was missing. I called and they said sorry, they'll send it out. Okay, so I put it together intuitively and was stunned when I realized that the hose, which looks nothing like the Informercial, is covered in material, but more importantly, is heavy, inflexible and impossible to use with only one hand! NOTHING at all like the easy way they do it on TV! I was told 1)the fabric is to prevent burns from the hot hose, and 2)inflexible to keep the steam from backing up. SO, I found that the hose works best BACKWARDS to the unit, and then I can use only one hand! At least it works, however I am not happy that it isn't as easy to use as on the Informercial!

9/17/2007 - Joseph writes:
June 2007 I ordered one tobi they sent two. My bank account was debited for two. I sent one back a month ago with the return lable sent to me. I called customer service today,September 17,2007 customer service claimed they heve'nt received it. From the beginning I told one of the reps I would pay to send it back so that I could put insurance insurance on it,the rep told me (why should you pay to have it sent back when you can get it done free) I said ok. Bad mistake. I used the lable they emailed me therefore according to the post office I could'nt put insurance on it,nor could I send it priority.

8/27/2007 - Kevin writes:
Avoid this company at all costs, they are scammers, I tried to give them the benefit of doubt and tried the product, it was sub-standard did not work well. I tried several times to reach them, everytime I asked for a manger they said that they were in a meeting. (absolute Lie) I reminded them under CA. law I have the right to speak to a manager. When I asked for managers name they only gave me a womens name of April. I asked for the corporate address and they refused and gave me another number 800 259 1652 to call. This company is violating laws / and being fraudulaent.

8/19/2007 - Tammy writes:
I ordered in mid July the Toby Steamer after I had watched the Comercial on Tv.The Operator tried very hard to make me order more attachments,but i refused and told her i wanted nothing but the tobi steamer.OK,in the first week of August i have a $ 269 Charge on my CC.I called Customerservice and they told me they had sended 2 Tobi!!Long Story short,i told her i only had ordered 1,she told me if i do not want the second tobi to give it away as a gift or so.After telling her i do not want the second tobi,she says i can send it back because i have a 30 day return garantie!Ok so far so good,but now it's the 19 August and i still dont have the product.This Company is a big Scam and i'm surprised that they can advertise on television.

8/18/2007 - Pam writes:
After watching an infomercial I decided to call and order the Tobi Steamer. I changed my mind after being put on hold, but they called me back and said they had my number in their call log and wanted to know if I wanted to order. I said I would, as long as I got the Tobi steamer, the promised attachments, and the promised travel steamer and free shipping. They agreed. I waited for several months and the Tobi steamer was continually on "back order." I finally called to cancel the order and they would not let me, and miraculously the steamer arrived about a week later, sans the travel steamer. The Tobi steamer is a mediocre product that is bulky and not nearly as effective or easy to use as the infomerical portrayed. I called to find out what happened to my promised travel steamer, and was told it also was "back ordered" and would be send to me for an additional shipping charge when it came in. I reiterated that I was not to be charged shipping and they agreed and made a note. I called today to see the status of the travel steamer. They told me they were in stock, but that it was not part of my order. I insisted it was, and they said they would send it, but for the $13.95 shipping charge. I asked for a supervisor and they gave me a "corporate number." I called that number and the representative told me also that my order did not reflect the travel steamer and asked who I talked to. I have talked to so many people now I told him I didn't know who the original person was. He told me that he would have to go back and listen to my original conversation that was recorded, so that he could verify that I was promised the steamer, and someone would call me back next week. I decided I did not like this idea so I called back the first customer service number, and the same guy answered that supposedly was at the different "corporate number." I told him I was sick of all this and wanted to return the steamer. I am going to try to return the steamer but fully expect a hassle and a fight to get my money back. This company is full of lies, rhetoric, professional stalling tactics, and misrepresentations. BEWARE!!!

8/18/2007 - Sabrina writes:
This is the FIRST and LAST time i order anything from TV or the Internet! I wanted this product so my husband would look nice for work and I would "save time" on the laundry. That is bull. I will go back to using an iron it is much easier than dealing with these people. I wish the FTC or someone would shut this company down! I am completely unimpressed with this product and the service. First off Operators are not standing by! I waited for a crazy amount of time to "get in on the deal". I wanted to order within the 30 minutes for the "FREE" hangers, tree, pet hair cleaner etc. You have to order online. They have now changed the website. The boxes were checked already for you. You had to uncheck them to not receive all the junk. I forgot to do that so I went back, my order still went through anyway. I called them the next morning and could get no one on the phone to cancel my order. When I unpacked the machine it took 3 hours to get together properly. I finally got sick of it and threw the instructions away and got it together within 15 minutes. Secondly, I filled it with distilled water so as to extend the run time; it took 45 minutes to warm up. I began to try to use it in the recommended way as shown on the infomercial, complete disappointment. You can not steam dog odor out of a couch. That makes it worse. My couches now have to be wet vacuumed because I can’t stand to sit on them. Pillows in the bedroom had to be washed and sterilized in the washing machine, because the steamer just made them wet. The blankets had to be taken to the cleaners at a cost of 260.00. You must be diligently careful because it is really easy to burn yourself with that Tobi. I burned myself with this product more than once in a 24 hour period. Finally, over a month later (after i have used it once); The company calls me and asks me how do I like it. I say o.k. The guy they says “The full amount had not been charged” and they needed me to give them another 100 dollars basically to complete the transaction. I said FOR WHAT? And why did it take this long to contact me about this? The additions were the shipping charges, to numerous to mention...and everything else he could pile on there. I told him NO. I repeated the commercial to him and he refuted me! I watched the commercial again convinced I was wrong. I’m not! They charged me the whole thing on a payment plan basis, and then wanted more money! The advertising is dishonest, and the people are rude. I paid for it so I’m not sending it back. I ordered in the time allotted and they are now hounding me for money, everyday every couple of hours. I was told by Tobi that they would put this on my credit. I can’t sue them it is a waste of time and money. Ill trade it back but I’m not sure they wont take more money out of my account than returning what I have already paid. The product and the aggravation it causes are NOT worth 4 easy payments of 29.95. The payments are not easy and neither is the experience in anyway pleasant. I sure hope the reps as seen on TV got paid to sell that well. They suckered me. They charge the whole thing at one time. I’m not sure what to do I just know I’m tired of having my phone ring every 30 minutes all day even on Saturday and Sunday, because they want me to be a nice little consumer and play dead. NO NO NO NO NO.

7/25/2007 - David writes:
Anyone that has seen the infomercial for the Tobi Steamer by Thane Direct knows that it is very compelling advertising, promising to save you tons of money off your dry cleaning bill and saving you tons of ironing time. I have never bought anything from an infomercial before, as I don't trust them. However late one night, in a sleepy, zombie-like state of mind I found myself irresistably drawn to the Tobi Steamer and placed an order. The next morning, when I came to my senses and realized what I had done, I immediately called in to cancel my order. I also called Visa to try to block the transaction. What I learned from those two phone calls was a real eye-opener: First, the product was advertised in Canada for $119. However, the amount charged to my visa was a whopping $185! When I asked for the breakdown I discovered that in addition to paying $119 for the product, you also have to pay $30 to ship it to North York, even though it is shipped from warehouse in Mississigua. Next, they charge you GST and PST on that amount (no big deal). But here is the real kicker - the prices are quoted in U.S. dollars!! When I called to cancel the order I was given the run-around and told to call a different number. When I called that number they said I have to call back the next day because "the computers weren't updated with the order information". When I called back the next day, I was told the product had already shipped and all I can do is refuse delivery at the door, whereupon the product will be returned to sender and my charge card credited. I have yet to see whether THAT will happen. Oh and more thing. When I originally placed the order, I was asked if I want to pay an extra $15 or so for "rush delivery". Rush delivery means delivery in 1 week instead of the regular 3 to 4. Obviously I said no, but as I subsequently learned when I called back to cancel, the product still shipped the next day! When I asked them why I was invited to pay extra for rush delivery when they knew the product was in stock and could be shipped the next day, they said I just got "lucky" that it shipped right away. Scam artists!

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