[olpc-help] First Day Phone Orders lost?

[Steve Holton]

Kate Davis wrote:
> OMG, were they charged??


It's a curious situation. The answer is 'no' but....

If we are treating G1G1 orders as "purchases" of laptop computers, then you wouldn't expect the credit card to be charged until the product has shipped.

So the lack of credit card charge for a backordered XO is unsurprising.

However, if we treat a G1G1 order as a pledge to a non-profit, 501(c)(3) corporation, and the 'get one' XO as a premium, (and I think this is the correct model) then a different set of rules take effect.

First, that pledge is actionable by OLPC immediately, meaning OLPC could have charged my credit card immediately, or they could have waited until the XO shipped.  Their choice. So my credit card not having been charged could indicate that the order was lost (OLPC==naughty) or it  could indicate that OLPC has, respectfully, chosen to wait until the XO shipped before charging the credit card (OLPC==nice).

Second, as I understand it, the pledge is actionable outside of any consumer protection laws which might allow me to demand a refund. Otherwise, I'd just place another order and if the second set shows up unexpectedly, I'd return it. But since the pledge is actionable, I'd be on the hook for both pledges. After all, if I choose to return an unwanted XO, I'd also be choosing to return the XO which was donated to a child in a third-world deployment. and even I'm not grinch enough to take an XO away from them.

And confusing the situation even further, I've received phone calls and emails from the support crew asking to re-verify my shipping address, leading me to believe there is at least some record of my order somewhere. But when I called the Donor Services toll-free number this morning (hold times were not outrageously long--good job guys) I was told they could not find any record of the order.  They're still investigating.

I just wanted to see if this was a case where a lot of orders were lost, meaning a lot of donors might find out too late that their order never went through.  A lot of donors, and twice as many kids.


 
_______________________________________________
community-support mailing list
community-support at lists.laptop.org
http://lists.laptop.org/listinfo/community-support[/quote]

------------------------
Steve Holton      http://wiki.laptop.org/go/Support
Got an XO? Get on the map: http://tinyurl.com/37hmmm