ComplaintsforAsheville Comics

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Initial Complaint
07/28/2023
Complaint Type:
Product Issues
Status:
Unresolved
The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
On September 1, 2021, I ordered four "CGC pre-graded" from Hotshot Comics, aka Asheville Comics, aka ***********************. The total purchase price was $254.96. I was supposed to receive these comics within ***** weeks. It has now been nearly two years, and still no refund or comics. I have contacted ****************** intermittently for nearly two years, and he always offers the same excuse - CGC still has your comics and I am waiting on them. It is my understanding (as shown on the CGCStatementOnHotshot.png) that CGC has terminated the account run by ************************I believe that he is committing interstate wire fraud, and he is definitely defrauding his customers. I have attached several documents, including my initial receipt of purchase, a dispute I filed with Discover to try and get my money back, a statement from a Representative of ************************** (CGC), and what appears to be a legal filing submitted to the *********************** and District Attorney.Please let me know if there is any more information that you need or that I might be able to provide. This man is a ***** and a con-artist, and he should be arrested for defrauding hundreds of customers. The amount of complaints you can find online about this man and his company is staggering. A legal remedy is needed.
Business response
07/28/2023
****************** has previously been informed that his items are in fact still with the company he mentioned and will be delivered to him once we receive them. He is also aware of why they are still there and this is merely a half hearted, disingenuous attempt to smear us in spite of the truth.
Customer response
08/01/2023
I am rejecting this response because **** is in deep financial arrears to the **** and the *** is withholding the customer's ********************** until **** pays at least a portion of the overdrawn account balance. A cursory inspection of the internet will reveal a deeply-flawed relationship between **** and his customer's. The customers are the hostage in a negotiation.
My proposed response is to maintain contact with the *** and the **************** to get my comics or money. I have kept the *** and Discover abreast of my efforts. I expect that **** will attempt to interfere in these communications, to my detriment. That is the nature of ****'s deeply flawed and fraudulent relationships with his clients. I believe that the *** or **************** will make me whole, and I will not accept being made whole twice. I am an honest person, just trying to order some comic books.

I expect that **** will make bold statements regarding his financial position with the **** assert that "they're mailing me the comics now," and will post insinuations against me and his other customers regarding our motives and intent. He'll attempt to get the *** to mail the comic books belonging to his customers to him, and will then use those comics in a second hostage-type situation to try and force his customers to pay shipping costs twice. If the customer refuses to pay shipping costs twice, he will sell the customers comic to someone else - whichever increases his financial purse the most. This is the **** that is given to his customers, and his is the type of business that the Better Business Bureau was built to protect against by warning potential customers. Thank you to the BBB for doing your part. I will continue to do my part, to warn other customers, and I will continue to do my part to be made whole by the *** or ****************, but not both. My expectations from **** include further fraudulent behavior and continued lies and interference to my detriment.
Initial Complaint
07/03/2023
Complaint Type:
Product Issues
Status:
Answered
The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
On August 7 2022 I placed an order #**** for a pre-order CGC graded comic book with a wait time of ***** weeks. I paid in full for the item ******+ tax and shipping. As of July 3 ******************************************************* a refund of my money.On August 12 2022 I placed another order#**** for a pre-order CGC graded comic book with a wait time of ***** weeks. I paid in full for the item 44.99+tax and shipping. As of July 3 ******************************************************* a refund of my money.
Business response
07/10/2023
Customer will be notified just as soon as his items are available to ship, until then no further information will be available. ****************** is quite aware of how we operate. Thank you.
Initial Complaint
06/19/2023
Complaint Type:
Service or Repair Issues
Status:
Answered
The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
Purchased comics from this store affiliated on-line website HotShotComics.com on 8/24/2022 for a total of $114.98 via AMEX. Order was promised in 24-28weeks which was March-April 2023. As of 6/14/2023, books have not been shipped and my multiple emails have gone unanswered. The owner of Asheville Comics denies affiliation with on-line website HotShotComics.com but on their Asheville Comics website, a direct link is provided to his on-line store, HotShotComics.com. This business has cheated money from hundreds of customers and failed to deliver goods paid for violating the Fair Credit Billing Act. I have filed a credit card fraud complaint against the proprietor of HotShotComics.com and his affiliated store, Asheville Comics for violation of the Fair Credit Billing Act.
Business response
06/20/2023
Buyer will be notified upon return and shipment processing of items, until then no further information will be available, as per several emails to buyer.
Customer response
06/23/2023

I am rejecting this response because:
This has been the business owners ongoing excuse three months past any delayed shipment date. The owner has not responded to multiple emails requesting the status of paid order. There are no backups or processing backups per CGC as business owner has stated. The order has gone for months past the expected delivery date of March 2023. I have provided evidence regarding this transaction in my original complaint regarding the fraudulent business practices of this business and its owner. He continues to deny culpability and fails to provide said goods that have been paid for in good faith. I want a refund.
Initial Complaint
05/03/2023
Complaint Type:
Delivery Issues
Status:
Answered
The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
Placed an order for two CGC 9.8 graded books on July 21st 2021. Order #****. Was told after 6 months the books weren't back from grading. Shortly after **** stopped replying to emails and if you call his shop you are hung up on. I would like my $107.98 back, or the product I ordered delivered.
Business response
05/03/2023
Customer will be notified when their order ships, until then we will have no further information. Had customer taken the time he took to write this complaint, and instead contacted us, he would have had this explained to him. Writing internet complaints does not speed up the order process, nor does joining the small army of customers with pitchforks who have driven each other into a frenzy.
Customer response
05/04/2023

I am rejecting this response because: Business owner has been contacted multiple times over the last 20 months in regards to this order. Business owner has NOT replied to numerous emails. I can provide each of those emails if requested as proof of my attempts to get this issue resolved. If you have the product in question, please deliver it, otherwise please provide a refund in the total amount.

Business response
05/04/2023
We have literally ZERO emails from a ***********************, so if he's contacted us, it's under a different name. Also if he's contacted us, then all of this has already been explained to him, so either way, he won't hear from us until the order is ready to ship, as the company responsible for grading the comics does not provide updates.
Initial Complaint
03/13/2023
Complaint Type:
Product Issues
Status:
Resolved
The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
Hotshot Comics advertised and sold me multiple 9.8 CGC comics under the agreement that I prepay . I paid Hotshot comics the money that they required and I did not receive any of the comics I ordered . Hotshot comics will not answer any communication and I have waited over 14 months . Let me add that they did respond in the beginning by stating that the comics are still getting graded ..This is and was not true .. In the end they did not reply at all First I would like to warn any future buyers ( who have worked very hard for their money as I have ) from being deceived and hoodwinked by Hotshot Comics.com.Second I do not have the authority however how can a business such as Hotshot comics.com ( owner also has a store front ..different name ) continually operate !!! when they are blatantly stealing !! How can the *********************** legally allow this ?Finally I would really like the owner to regroup and become successful by fulfilling their agreements howevr at the same time warn any future buyers to be cautious.
Business response
03/13/2023
***** is already aware that he will be notified as soon as his items are ready to ship, as he is a return customer. Attempting to contact us via ********************, rather than simply contacting our customer support email, is completely unnecessary and unhelpful. Until the items return from CGC grading, this is the only information that we will have available.
Customer response
03/13/2023

Better Business Bureau:

I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to my complaint, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.

Thank you.
Initial Complaint
12/07/2022
Complaint Type:
Service or Repair Issues
Status:
Answered
The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
This is a retailer of comics. I have been ordering comics from them since June 6, 2021.I still have orders from then that have only been partially filled and many that have not been filled at all.I had an issue with 2 comic book slabs in May and I contacted the company to see about a refund as not only did they come in scratched by the time I received them they were selling them for half of what I paid for them. The manager *********************** kept going back and forth with me and started accusing me of intentionally damaging these slabs and refused to anything more then reslab them. I have spent several thousand dollars with him and haven't received half of my merchandise. Some time has elapsed since I last contacted Hotshots however I have recently emailed them regarding the status of my pending orders and am being ignored as it appears they do not want to deal with me. I have send several emails. I know with comics when they are sent to CGC they do take a little while to return and at one time it was taking months but now they have improved and things are only taking weeks to be graded and returned. I have spent a lot of money with this company and was a faithful customer until I was treated like a criminal. I have screenshots of all my pending orders which have yet to be fulfilled. They gave me the excuse that they only ship complete orders however some orders are more than a year old and I find it hard to believe they are not available.
Business response
12/07/2022
*****, who is familiar with wait times from dealing with us previously, will be notified when their next items are being prepared to ship. Until then we will not have any further information, even if they send multiple emails. We've replied to buyer on many, many occasions in regards to their concerns, contacting BBB or sending extra emails won't affect the outcome of the replies, the process is not in our hands while the items are being processed. Thank you.
Initial Complaint
10/17/2022
Complaint Type:
Delivery Issues
Status:
Answered
The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
Good Afternoon, I placed two orders with Hotshot comics. Order #**** 2/8/2022 ($174.98) and order #**** ($124.98) on 3/28/2022. As of today, 10/16/2022 I have not received anything from them. I sent them emails back in July asking for a status update and they said they could not provide me with one. I sent them an email on 10/10/2022 asking for them to cancel my order and give me a refund since I have not received either order yet and they have not replied to my email. The items were for preorder comic books and per their website they would be available in ***** weeks. In the last email they sent me in July they said CGC ***************************** the company grading the comic books had a back log. I checked CGC's turnaround time on their website and it is 20 days. They lied when they said they have a backlog. I also preordered comics from two other sites this year and received them in about 4-6 weeks. No one besides Hotshot comics is claiming CGC has a backlog. If I would have preordered these books from any other site I would have received them by now. It has now been over twice the time, they said 14 weeks and it has not been over 32 weeks, and they cannot give me an update of when my comic books will arrive and they won't reply to my emails now that I am asking for a refund. Let me know if you require any additional information.Thank you and have a great day.~************************
Business response
10/17/2022
***** has been informed on more than one occasion that his order is still in processing and he will be notified as soon as the item returns from the vendor and is being prepared to ship. Processing times are out of our control, as per our disclaimer on all preorder items on our site
(Guaranteed grade of 9.8, returns from CGC approximately 28-32 weeks after publication date. (unless publication date has passed, delivery will be 28-32 weeks after purchase date). All return times are estimates, grading times can be as long as 52+ weeks. We make no guarantees for return times. Items ship as soon as they return from CGC.)
The vendor has a strict no refund policy, also out of our control.
Customer response
12/16/2022

I am rejecting this response because:

I already filed a complaint and got no resolution. Previous claim is ********. I ordered items from them back in March. I still have not received any update of where my items are or when they will be delivered. In the above claim all he wrote was the items will be sent when they are available. That is absolutely unacceptable. Its now been over 9 months and I still have no idea when Im going to receive my items. If they cant tell me when my items are going to arrive they need to cancel my order and refund my money. If you look at your website it is full of these types of complaints against this business. They take your money and never ship your items. Please help me get a resolution. The store telling me they will send the item after they arrive 9 months after I placed my order is not acceptable. How is what they are doing not fraud?

Business response
12/16/2022
Customer will be notified when item has shipped, we will have no further information until then. Thank you!
Initial Complaint
10/10/2022
Complaint Type:
Product Issues
Status:
Answered
The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
In January of this year I paid for a comic. Its been 9months and they still havent given it to me. I requested my merchandise or a refund a week ago. No response I want my merchandise but at this point if he cant produce it I want a full refund the ad clearly shows ***** weeks and they have greatly exceeded that.
Business response
10/10/2022
**************** received a reply just four days ago. As we do not control the grading process, turning his attention to BBB to speed up the process, is futile at best. ******************** order, as with anyone else's will ship when it returns from grading. No amount of complaining will expedite this. The message to **************** follows.
"Good afternoon, we'll certainly notify you just as soon as your comic returns from CGC and is being prepared to ship. Until that time we won't have any sort of update that we can provide. In the meantime, if you'd like you can check out our Instagram page, where we post box opening videos for all return shipments. It can be a good way for customers to have a little advance notice that their items have returned. Thank you for your patience, have a great day!

instagram.com/hotshotcomicsdotcom"
Customer response
10/14/2022

Complaint: 18191985

I am rejecting this response because: Because it clearly states on the image 14-16weeks its beyond me how thats an attempt to speed up the process when they already implied thats what they were doing. Lets take another look at the invoice. Ive circled it just for them.

Sincerely,

***********************
Business response
10/17/2022
Nothing more to add. *************** has already received his response, rejecting it doesn't change the process.
Initial Complaint
06/27/2022
Complaint Type:
Product Issues
Status:
Answered
The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
Hi, I have 24 outstanding orders from July of 2021 to March of 2022. All items have between an 8 week to 18 week turnaround time to be shipped to me. I have written several times over the course of the last few months and even requested a refund for at least the orders from last year. I keep getting told to wait and not to worry and things are either expected soon or delayed. I know for a fact it is against the law to not provide customer with full refund if order is not fulfilled by time advertised upon purchase. I have been more than patient but I feel its time to get my money back. It has been almost a year and I dont want to lose all this money. Its over $5000 worth of orders and I feel sick about it. Please help any way possible. Respectfully.
Business response
06/27/2022
Customer ordered a large number of presale items, items which require many months of processing times, sometimes approaching a year. In spite of buyer knowing this, and having had it explained to him on several occasions, all of a sudden he's decided that he is in dire financial straits, and now believes that we should be able to take care of his personal financial issues by refunding his money, though it has also been explained to him that said funds were already used to pay for the services to the items that he committed to many months ago, but now wants to reneg on. We have a no refund policy, this has also been explained to the buyer, however because buyer is irresponsible with money he believes that his financial burden should be transferred to us. We disagree. Buyer's items will be shipped to him as they arrive, which has always been the case. Buyer is absolutely not welcome to return in the future, having taken this action to attempt to embarrass us publicly.
Customer response
06/27/2022

Complaint: 17485622

I am rejecting this response because:
This has nothing to do with embarrassing the business. I just think its reasonable to ask for and get a refund for orders that have gone months past the advertised time when purchased, thats it. It shouldnt matter if or why a customer needs the money, it should only matter that the order hasnt been fulfilled on time. Of course I know this process takes time but there was no indication that I would have to wait 6,7,8 months or even a year in some cases. Not one of these orders has a turnaround time over 18 weeks, so I feel any outstanding order that has gone over 4 months should be refunded if not able to fulfill. I have been extremely patient and never had hard feelings, I just want what I ordered or a refund, its been a long time with nothing to show for it.

Sincerely,

*************************
Initial Complaint
05/20/2022
Complaint Type:
Service or Repair Issues
Status:
Unanswered
The business failed to respond to the dispute.
Bought presale graded comics over a year ago. Haven't received them and the owner is refusing to answer emails and phone calls. In total I bought 15. I got half the rest never were shipped to me. Most of the preorders even state 6-8week wait time it's been 12 months in some cases. I have tons of emails showing that he knows I'm still owed more. Emails that show he refuses to be transparent. And between his site and **** couple hundred dollars of preorders that haven't been fulfilled. So either refund me or send me the items. It's been way out of the time I was expecting to wait. No more excuses. The facts out weigh whatever personal feelings *********************** has towards me.

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