My AWFUL experience with Blue Zoo

bat21 · 07/02/2015, 01:15 PM

- Ordered a 1.5" Fiji Exquisite Wrasse because I want a juvenile to grow into my tank.

- Received a 4.5" fish with an injured mouth.

- Since I only had a 5 gallon QT expecting a 1.5" fish, I was forced to buy a 20gallon tank so the fish could have room to swim, a larger powerhead, a cover for the tank, and antibiotics for the injury. All together, about $150 of extra money to try to save this fish.

- The fish didn't make it unfortunately.

- After several emails and a phone call, and being ignored for almost 2 full weeks, I finally get a response that says they will refund the fish but not the shipping, even though they sent me the wrong fish and cost me an extra sum of money directly because of this.

- This is the obnoxious response from the owner, explaining how they purposely sent me something I didn't order (and did not bother to simply call and ask me if that was ok) and still refuse to refund the shipping charge, with zero regard for the incredible inconvenience this caused me:

We do not refund shipping expenses under any circumstance. This is clearly stated in our policies which are agreed upon at time of purchase. We will however give you free shipping if you like on your next order if that order is less than 140.00. Just mention this email in the customer notes.

As for the perceived mistake, from our, and I do mean my, perspective, there was no mistake made. You requested a very specific coloration of this fish and you are probably aware that at the size you had purchased, this coloration would not have been present. You would have ended up with a juvenile or best case scenario a female with no signs of what the male coloration would be since all females of this species are identical no matter what geographical location they are collected.

Since you had a very specific color request which we take seriously, the pullers picked for you one that met your guidelines. The order had to run by my desk for approval because the animal was larger than what was paid for. I approved it without any up charge requirement because you are a new customer and we thought you would be happy with the animal being the color you requested.

This transaction has been closed and there is nothing more than can be done with it. Take care and have a blessed day.

Mark Martin
Owner/Founder Blue Zoo Aquatics

Thanks a lot Mark. You really did me a huge favor. I hope you do great things with my $40.

BlueZooAquatics · 07/02/2015, 03:53 PM

Thank you for sharing. We really do appreciate any and all feedback which gives us a chance to improve our systems.

It sounds like you are unhappy about not receiving a shipping refund for the order. The truth is we simply cannot refund shipping which is handled as a completely separate cost center from the normal COGS. Mr. Martin did very clearly state that you would be offered free shipping on your next order if it fell below our 140.00 minimum to get shipping for free. If you wanted, we could send you the animal again completely free of charge. Just let us know and we will arrange it.

Take care.

blazend · 07/16/2015, 07:56 AM

bat21 not trying to be mean but that is not an awful experience. I did a little test and ordered 300$ worth of livestock from 5 sites and i am ready to write reviews on all 5 purchases.

Honestly bluezoo is the only one who even cared when a mistake was made. They replaced my 2 fish i also got a free fish 1 time which was a little rough cause i didnt need another angel but i cant complain about a free fish.

Other sites other then bluezoo either didnt give me anything back or basically gave me a full refund to get me to go away. So i would be happy with how they handled it. It looks like you are getting another fish or free shipping. That seems like a deal to me.

dtt · 08/01/2015, 06:52 PM

bat21, I totally agree with you. They are horrible. Terrible CS, and fish that can't even stay alive in a box for 18 hours. They BS there way thru problems. Others may have had great experiences with them but not me and I will never use them again for anything.

BlueZooAquatics · 08/03/2015, 03:49 PM

We are sorry you had a bad experience. We really do try hard to make sure that every single customer is treated well and comes away with a good experience. We have found however, that some people are very difficult to please but that never stops us from trying our best. If there is anything at al we can do for you, please let us know. We are always available via email, customerservice@bluezooaquatics.com or by phone 888-479-2583.

Take care and good luck with your aquarium.

07/02/2015, 01:15 PM	#1
bat21 Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Queens, NY Posts: 701	My AWFUL experience with Blue Zoo - Ordered a 1.5" Fiji Exquisite Wrasse because I want a juvenile to grow into my tank. - Received a 4.5" fish with an injured mouth. - Since I only had a 5 gallon QT expecting a 1.5" fish, I was forced to buy a 20gallon tank so the fish could have room to swim, a larger powerhead, a cover for the tank, and antibiotics for the injury. All together, about $150 of extra money to try to save this fish. - The fish didn't make it unfortunately. - After several emails and a phone call, and being ignored for almost 2 full weeks, I finally get a response that says they will refund the fish but not the shipping, even though they sent me the wrong fish and cost me an extra sum of money directly because of this. - This is the obnoxious response from the owner, explaining how they purposely sent me something I didn't order (and did not bother to simply call and ask me if that was ok) and still refuse to refund the shipping charge, with zero regard for the incredible inconvenience this caused me: We do not refund shipping expenses under any circumstance. This is clearly stated in our policies which are agreed upon at time of purchase. We will however give you free shipping if you like on your next order if that order is less than 140.00. Just mention this email in the customer notes. As for the perceived mistake, from our, and I do mean my, perspective, there was no mistake made. You requested a very specific coloration of this fish and you are probably aware that at the size you had purchased, this coloration would not have been present. You would have ended up with a juvenile or best case scenario a female with no signs of what the male coloration would be since all females of this species are identical no matter what geographical location they are collected. Since you had a very specific color request which we take seriously, the pullers picked for you one that met your guidelines. The order had to run by my desk for approval because the animal was larger than what was paid for. I approved it without any up charge requirement because you are a new customer and we thought you would be happy with the animal being the color you requested. This transaction has been closed and there is nothing more than can be done with it. Take care and have a blessed day. Mark Martin Owner/Founder Blue Zoo Aquatics Thanks a lot Mark. You really did me a huge favor. I hope you do great things with my $40.

07/02/2015, 03:53 PM	#2
BlueZooAquatics RC Sponsor Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Carson, Calif. Posts: 545	Thank you for sharing. We really do appreciate any and all feedback which gives us a chance to improve our systems. It sounds like you are unhappy about not receiving a shipping refund for the order. The truth is we simply cannot refund shipping which is handled as a completely separate cost center from the normal COGS. Mr. Martin did very clearly state that you would be offered free shipping on your next order if it fell below our 140.00 minimum to get shipping for free. If you wanted, we could send you the animal again completely free of charge. Just let us know and we will arrange it. Take care.

07/16/2015, 07:56 AM	#3
blazend Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2015 Posts: 82	bat21 not trying to be mean but that is not an awful experience. I did a little test and ordered 300$ worth of livestock from 5 sites and i am ready to write reviews on all 5 purchases. Honestly bluezoo is the only one who even cared when a mistake was made. They replaced my 2 fish i also got a free fish 1 time which was a little rough cause i didnt need another angel but i cant complain about a free fish. Other sites other then bluezoo either didnt give me anything back or basically gave me a full refund to get me to go away. So i would be happy with how they handled it. It looks like you are getting another fish or free shipping. That seems like a deal to me.

08/01/2015, 06:52 PM	#4
dtt Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2012 Posts: 452	bat21, I totally agree with you. They are horrible. Terrible CS, and fish that can't even stay alive in a box for 18 hours. They BS there way thru problems. Others may have had great experiences with them but not me and I will never use them again for anything.

08/03/2015, 03:49 PM	#5
BlueZooAquatics RC Sponsor Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Carson, Calif. Posts: 545	We are sorry you had a bad experience. We really do try hard to make sure that every single customer is treated well and comes away with a good experience. We have found however, that some people are very difficult to please but that never stops us from trying our best. If there is anything at al we can do for you, please let us know. We are always available via email, customerservice@bluezooaquatics.com or by phone 888-479-2583. Take care and good luck with your aquarium.