Netflix DVD Rentals

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1.5 out of 5, based on 2 ratings and
7 reviews & complaints.
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100 Winchester Circle
Los Gatos, CA 95032
408-540-3700 (ph)
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7 Movies in Queue and NONE sent
StarEmpty StarEmpty StarEmpty StarEmpty StarBy -
Rating: 1/51

LOS GATOS, CALIFORNIA -- I had a queue of 8 movies that could be shipped. One was an accidental reship of a movie we already saw. None of the others were sent. Neither the CS Rep nor her Manager could tell me when all of the following were in my queue: Therese Raquin, Doctor in the House, Hell Is a City, Martin Scorsese: Pt.1&2, The Patriot, Tiger Bay, Wanted for Murder. Not one of them shipped on 2/21 even though when my returned DVDs were received three of these were listed as next in my Queue.

They also could not tell me how many copies Netflix has of each of the above movies or how many of those were rented. They could not explain why, when I placed these movies in my queue that, with one exception, there was NO indication of a wait to get the movies, neither "short wait" or "long wait". When I put as many as 7 movies in my queue and, at the time they are added, there is no indication there will be any wait then I expect to get some of those movies when I return what I have. If not, I do not expect to pay. The manager suggested a vacation hold. Of course, once I removed the hold I would be charged with no guarantee that ANY of the movies would show up.

In effect, I would be paying for nothing. I asked that my billing be suspended until these movies could be sent. This suggestion was refused. I asked that I be credited for the prior month. This also was refused unless I canceled. So I did, even though I would have been willing to retain Netflix streaming. Let's compare this to an ordinary video rental store. You pay only when you actually receive movies. Even a Gym, at which you purchase a membership, though it will charge you even if you don't use their facilities, cannot charge you for any period of time the place is closed for repairs and cannot be used.

Netflix is unique in this respect. You can be charged even when they do not honor the good faith aspect of their contract by sending you a movie when you have many in your queue. I know that Netflix would prefer not to be in the business of sending out DVDs my mail at all but would rather concentrate on streaming. To me, my most recent experience shows that they will go to any lengths to assure this happens including failing to honor their contract. Netflix should not treat its DVD rental customers as I was treated. It is such a serious breach of ethics that I am inclined to publicize this as widely as possible.

If I ever use Netflix again it will only be if I can get satisfactory service from BOTH the DVD rental and streaming portion of the company. To me, satisfactory service is simply defined as follows: If movies in your queue, when placed there, did not show an associated wait time, and you have two to three times as many movies in the queue as required for the next shipment, but receive none; then you will not be charged for the interval of time you wait until those movies can be shipped.

The concept is very simple: You must not charge for a service you do not provide and which the customer had every right to expect. As a business practice it should be unnecessary for me to point out exactly how unethical and possibly illegal this is.

Unlimited DVD Rentals Limited By Purposeful Processing Delays
StarStarEmpty StarEmpty StarEmpty StarBy -
Rating: 2/51


I called Customer Service and the person I spoke to didn't even know where to find the Terms and Conditions. I ended up speaking with a supervisor who wouldn't admit that they throttle customers. His only admission was that they are limiting the frequency of newer releases that are mailed out to a given customer. They need to remove any reference to "UNLIMITED" on their DVD Plans. What angers me the most is that they aren't honest about it. Either you have limits or you don't. They obviously have limits, so just be honest about it!

The Reason For Long Waits On DVD Rentals From Netflix!
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After being a Netflix customer for over 4 years, I was miffed at why I was not getting first run DVD's that were on my queue for weeks and weeks. I was getting excuses such as, "long wait" or "very long wait". It was very interesting that my neighbor who is also a Netflix customer, WAS receiving first run DVD's WITHOUT a "long wait".

Lo and behold we figured it out. Netflix does not want you to know that if you are a ONE DVD AT A TIME customer, you are not going to get first run DVD's as fast as customers who are spending more money with Netflix per month. My neighbor is on the 3 at a time plan and he very rarely has to wait for a new release whereas I at 1 at a time have to suffer! Very unfair and very unprofessional!

Netflix or Net flukes ?
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HENDERSON, NEVADA -- Netflix or Net Flukes? Until this week I was a very happy Netflix member. At my suggestion, relatives and friends have also signed up over the past few years. I now suggest switching to Blockbuster. Here's why: Netflix ignores your selected DVDs and mails DVDs you never requested. After this happened to me, it also happened to my mother. At that point, both my mother and I started doing printouts of our Queue lists. When it happened to me a 2nd time, I was very unhappy because it was the 2nd DVD in a TV series that I really wanted to receive and watch on a weekend when TV had nothing but re-runs.

As soon as I received the email showing the DVD being mailed, I went to Netflix.com and tried to find a way to contact Netflix immediately to stop that shipment and have the one I wanted shipped the same day. To my surprise, there is NO WAY to alert Netflix to this situation from their website. It also took me several minutes to even find a phone number. In case you need it: **.

At 1 PM on a Friday (5 hours before deadlines at most post offices and mailboxes), I spoke with **. Explained my situation and was basically told that it's impossible for Netflix to send a DVD that I did not put in my Queue (list of requested DVDs). In other words, Netflix claims to have the only 100% flawless computer system on Earth and I was being called an idiot. I asked to speak with a supervisor. I repeated everything. ** told me the best they could do was sent me the correct DVD 3 days later, meaning I'd receive it on Tuesday instead of Saturday.

I asked why NOBODY at Netflix could put a postage stamp on a DVD and get it to a mailbox within the next 5 hours to satisfy this one-time request from a repeat customer. ** response was the same BS I heard from ** "our system doesn't make mistakes." At that point I reminded ** about the headlines Netflix made in the past year when their entire system went down. Bottom Line: Switch to Blockbuster because if they ever send you the wrong DVD or you simply want another title, you drive to the nearest retail store and exchange it.

One other question I forgot to ask **. Aside from insisting that I had selected a summer camp movie for kids, he said that title was #6 on my Queue list. If that were true, I'd like to know why Netflix didn't send ANY of the #1 through #5 titles that were available NOW instead of jumping to #6.

In case you're not familiar with it, Netflix's Queue is a web page that lists DVDs you selected. You can rearrange the list in order you want to receive them. The Availability column tells you if a DVD is available "NOW" which is supposed to mean that if the #1 on your list says as such, it will be the next DVD mailed to you. If it says things like "Long wait" don't expect to get it as the next DVD on your list. As I now know, that list is worthless and you'll be sent whatever DVD their computer chooses for you, even if it's not on your list.

Imagine if other businesses were run the same way. Would you dine at a restaurant that brought you the wrong food and then refused to even try to bring what you ordered and had already paid for? P.S. Quick Google search delivered several websites with others who say they received the wrong DVDs. Are they suggesting that Netflix's perfect computers made a mistake? How dare they!

Where Are My Movies?
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OMAHA, NEBRASKA -- I signed up for Netflix 12 days ago, put 15 movies in my queue, but still haven't received any DVDs. After 8 days, I called customer service twice. The first time I waited on hold for 10 minutes, told a representative my story, was put back on hold for 5 minutes, told another representative the story, was put on hold again and after a few minutes the call was disconnected. The second time I called I finally spoke with a supervisor, who told me that it sometimes takes a few days to set up a new account. According to her, my DVDs were shipping that day.

Now it's been 12 days and when I go to Netflix.com it still says my movies are "shipping today." I'm on a free trial, so at least I'm not paying for nothing, but it's still annoying that it takes almost 2 weeks to set up a new account and get movies sent out. There is a Netflix shipping center in the city I live in so I don't see what the hold up is! I plan on canceling the subscription when the free trial is up. This service sucks.

Quality of service has eroded
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NEBRASKA -- I was very satisfied with the service that Netflix has provided me until the past month or so. My "short waits" have become "I'll see you in hell first." They arbitrarily pick movies from my queue. Last week, my 18th movie was sent to me. The week prior was even worse. It used to take two days for my movies to reach them and then two days to get them back. Now it sometimes takes four days or until I report it lost before it gets checked in.


Slow Return
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MAINE -- Their handling of returns is very slow. I think they are choking the traffic or throttling it so the renters don't get the number of movies they pay for. Often it takes over 6 days for a movie to be registered as returned and then if you report them as lost too many times they treat you like a thief and suspend your account. Their customer service is almost impossible to get through to. They do have a great selection and television is such a wasteland--too bad they are so arrogant.

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