i found the glasses i want on a website (iwantthosespecs.com) for about £45 cheaper than in the optician and tried to order them a couple of days ago.
when i was filling in the online order form, it didn't ask me at any point for payment details which was kind of weird, and i can't find any info on the website about payment methods etc. i tried calling the number on the site today but no-one answered, so i e-mailed, and got a reply asking me if i "had a number i could contact them on".
i e-mailed back to cancel my order and just got this reply:
"I am really sorry you want to cancel your order. The frames have been packaged and are ready for dispatch. We have been experiencing a few payment problems caused by a change over to a new payment processing system. Rest assured all your details are safe. I would be delighted to process this order for you and can offer you a further 5% discount to make up for the inconvenince caused.
Please let me know if you would like to proceed. If you do I can arrange for payment to be taken manually over the phone or provide you with a discount link to process the order with the discount." -----
i feel kind of suspicious about them suggesting to take my debit card details over the phone - should i be suspicious or am i being paranoid?
Can you use a regular credit card instead of a debit card for payment? I'm sure your bank provides security either way, but it would be a lot less stressful to deal with a drained bank account, rather than illegal purchases on a credit card. I would not hesitate to take the risk using a CC because I have never had a problem with reembursement if something bad happened (and believe me it happens at least once a year with some online company or another).
Can you use a regular credit card instead of a debit card for payment? I'm sure your bank provides security either way, but it would be a lot less stressful to deal with a drained bank account, rather than illegal purchases on a credit card. I would not hesitate to take the risk using a CC because I have never had a problem with reembursement if something bad happened (and believe me it happens at least once a year with some online company or another).
Can you use a regular credit card instead of a debit card for payment? I'm sure your bank provides security either way, but it would be a lot less stressful to deal with a drained bank account, rather than illegal purchases on a credit card. I would not hesitate to take the risk using a CC because I have never had a problem with reembursement if something bad happened (and believe me it happens at least once a year with some online company or another).
I agree with Drew, use the CC. Security on the debit card network and the credit card network are completely different, so the financial institution is not required to handle them the same. The credit card network is much better protected from a liability standpoint, because the credit card network is protected by the $50 liability law and stronger standards on holds on the account, timelines, etc.
This is why you should ALWAYS run your debit card as a credit card purchase when given the choice, because if the card is processed via the credit card network it is protected by those laws.
In this case, they may just be trying to get your number and not actually processing the transaction, which would mean you would only have regular dc protection/legal provisions/etc. I wouldn't risk it, not because I think it sounds odd, but just because it seems like a website/business that doesn't have it's act together and as a result if you have issues with the received product, etc., it could be problematic.