Duty Free Depot’s earns a 2.2-star rating from 58 reviews, showing that the majority of customers are somewhat dissatisfied with their purchases.
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counterfeit cigarettes
DutyFreeDepot.com sells Counterfeit China-made cigarettes!
This company advertises as a "duty free shop" offering authentic international cigarette brands at bottom dollar prices. DON'T BE FOOLED! The cigarettes you will receive will be illegal counterfeits smuggled out of China. These fake cigarettes are illegal and extremely dangerous to your health. Scientists who have analyzed Chinese cigarette knockoffs have found elevated levels of toxic heavy metals like arsenic, cadmium and lead, as well as human feces, saw dust, mold, insect eggs and rat droppings. These crooks operate out of Israel and are therefore beyond the reach of any international law enforcement agency.
I received 2 cartons of Marlbo Reds from these unscrupulous crooks that were sold as "made in Switzerland" and "made in Philippines" but whose appearance was identical to several photos of counterfeit cigarettes posted on the websites of Chinese cigarette counterfeiters like Liwong.com. Not only that, but the labeling on both the carton and individual cigarette packs showed OBVIOUS pixelation, which demonstrates that were, in fact, printed using a scanned computer image. It goes without saying that the official manufacturers do NOT do this!
I later realized after doing some research that ALL of the products they sell are indeed COUNTERFEIT. The quality of the reproduced cigarettes varies according to brand, but NONE of them are authentic! See for yourselves! Check out Liwong.com and compare them to the photos on their sites. Don't make the fatal mistake of believing these Israeli gangsters when they tell you that they only stock authentic products. It is an unequivocal LIE!
I have been defrauded to the tune of nearly $2000 dollars by this company! And the entire time they have exposed me to the toxic cocktail of chemicals and compounds present in their illegal Chinese cigarettes manufactured in underground complexes, with absolutely no concern or compunction for the health and welfare of those who end up unwittingly inhaling these lead and feces-laced Chinese toxic waste dumps masquerading as factory fresh European cigarettes.
And I have been devastated by the discovery!
If you buy anything from this company you are simply promoting poison cigarettes and international gangsterism.
This company advertises as a "duty free shop" offering authentic international cigarette brands at bottom dollar prices. DON'T BE FOOLED! The cigarettes you will receive will be illegal counterfeits smuggled out of China. These fake cigarettes are illegal and extremely dangerous to your health. Scientists who have analyzed Chinese cigarette knockoffs have found elevated levels of toxic heavy metals like arsenic, cadmium and lead, as well as human feces, saw dust, mold, insect eggs and rat droppings. These crooks operate out of Israel and are therefore beyond the reach of any international law enforcement agency.
I received 2 cartons of Marlbo Reds from these unscrupulous crooks that were sold as "made in Switzerland" and "made in Philippines" but whose appearance was identical to several photos of counterfeit cigarettes posted on the websites of Chinese cigarette counterfeiters like Liwong.com. Not only that, but the labeling on both the carton and individual cigarette packs showed OBVIOUS pixelation, which demonstrates that were, in fact, printed using a scanned computer image. It goes without saying that the official manufacturers do NOT do this!
I later realized after doing some research that ALL of the products they sell are indeed COUNTERFEIT. The quality of the reproduced cigarettes varies according to brand, but NONE of them are authentic! See for yourselves! Check out Liwong.com and compare them to the photos on their sites. Don't make the fatal mistake of believing these Israeli gangsters when they tell you that they only stock authentic products. It is an unequivocal LIE!
DutyFreeDepot.com sells Counterfeit China-made cigarettes!
I have been defrauded to the tune of nearly $2000 dollars by this company! And the entire time they have exposed me to the toxic cocktail of chemicals and compounds present in their illegal Chinese cigarettes manufactured in underground complexes, with absolutely no concern or compunction for the health and welfare of those who end up unwittingly inhaling these lead and feces-laced Chinese toxic waste dumps masquerading as factory fresh European cigarettes.
And I have been devastated by the discovery!
If you buy anything from this company you are simply promoting poison cigarettes and international gangsterism.
The complaint has been investigated and resolved to the customer’s satisfaction.
refund
I am so-done-w/this on line crap! I too- ordered 1 carton of newport cigarettes & never received anything. In fact, it didn't even go (that) simple--when I 1st called I spoke to a man who seemed very professional; I explain to him that even though this was my first order-I knew a regular buyer that orders from them regularly. He then asks me what would I like to purchase? I told him a carton of (newport cig.)--he went on to say well this wk the price on them is more than usual--but if u call bk next wk it'll be bk to orginal price. So, I waited til the following wk- never thinkin I had anything to worry about. Now- that the wk is here-- (Im thinkin I can order on the phone) until a woman asks for my password!? Immediately this should'a set-off-- bells in my head; (honestly it did; but not enough to stop me.) Figuring again that my friend is a regular customer--I give them the benefit of the doubt...until I placed my order on-line & punched in my good 'ole card no#s---that's when it all went down-- they snatched my $$$. When I called about the day of the delivery the man had the ordasity to say: "he didn't receive my funds!" There's no argument that I knew my $$ went through because when I was placing my order my landline rung-- saying "we received ur order & ur purchase.
After giving them a piece of my mind- the man apologized for the inconvience & he told me he'll take care of it--the next thing I know the phone stops ringing!NEVER AGAIN!
The complaint has been investigated and resolved to the customer’s satisfaction.
I agree with everyone here, I has the misfortune of placing an order with them, never received the product and after multiple phone calls to the 800 number which nobody answers, and multiple emails, I involved my credit card company and they were able
to get me a reund. DO NOT BUY ANYTHING FROM THESE CROOKS
scam
A few days ago i decided to order some cigarettes from Duty Free Depot.I went on their website to make the order, but the link to the list of choice and price was not available for some reason.So, I decided to give them a call so they can help me with my choice.Everything went smoothly.I was even promised that I will get 20% discount of the final price which was somewhere around $145 (full price was $190).I gave them my cr.card number to finish the transaction and that was it.So, on the next day I was waiting for an e-mail confirmation for my order.I logged in into my account to see the progress and there was a message waiting for me saying that a transaction is pending to be completed - my current order.Apparently something had gone wrong with the numbers I gave them.Then I took a closer look to the details about my future payment and there was no discount.They just didn't give me one.That really set me off.Without a second thought i canceled the whole thing off.And on the next day i immediately was contacted by phone from someone from the sales department saying that the transaction didn't go trough.I told them that I canceled the whole thing, but they went furious that they didn't get my money so they locked up my account with a message (Dear Mr.
You are also welcome to contact our billing department at +[protected] to resolve this issue. To cover the charge by using a void check, please address [protected]@dutyfreedepot.com and attach a copy of your Driver's license to the message).and now I can not do anything like shopping or even look into my previous orders until i "resolve that issue".I think as a rightful customer I have the right to do whatever I want with my order, even cancellation.Nice customer appreciation.I think we should send the Feds to lock them up forever and shut down the whole operation.
duty free depot has a lot of complaints. So it is a fraud!
Thanks everybody for your posts. It helps.
"DO NOT ORDER FROM" Duty Free Depot Is a freakin scam! phony order numbers that the USPS has no idea of. Takes the money with return no contact info on the web site, Man this dude needs some FEDERAL time where the fellas can get at him!
I ordered from these assbites over a month ago. My order was canceled by the guy who took the order twice and now Im on a third order number. I see no hope in getting anything from them as well one of the phone numbers I used is now disconnected. I HAVE NO HOPE IN GETTING MY ORDER!
I also disagree. I ordered six cartons of Dunhill cigarettes from Duty Free Depot in October of 2011 and again in December and they arrived within 12 days, all packed and shipped in one box (I selected the express shipping option, a $30 additional charge). I received order confirmation e-mails right after placing my order and also a telephone confirmation both times. You should be aware that this is an overseas operation and orders are processed in Israel. Also, American brand cigarettes you're used to in the US are slightly different. I would suggest opting for the express shipping option, as I think this reduces the cigarettes being seized by customs. Remember, you're evading taxes by ordering cigs offshore, so there's always a risk of seizure by customs! I've had no problems with Duty Free Depot and will continue to order.
ok i have ordered with them 3x so far and when i was missing some cartons they were prompt to re-send them to me. this place is not a scam and they are a pleasure to deal with. u guys who are complaining are giving a phony telephone number. probably cuz u are another place that sells smokes and are jealous that this company duty free depot is reliable and honest.
I have ordered 400 Embassy No1 from these shysters and guess what they have been seized. Despite me paying extra tax on their website to comply with duty free laws in UK.
I have now received a very suspect looking letter from the UK border agency. YEAH RIGHT!
CON MERCHANTS DO NOT BUY ANYTHING FROM THEM.
I paid $182-00 including extra duty tax for 400 Cigs these were not cheap and you still ripped me off.
The order no is 138534 for any company fraudsters who like to reply to this.
counterfeit cigarettes
If you think your getting a good deal on cigarettes, think again. They ship from ISRAEL. If you never got your package or waited over a month to get it, it's because of Customs. They are also sending IMITATION brand cigarettes, not made in the USA or for the US market. When you receive your cigarettes (if they ever do come), you will quickly realize they...
Read full review of Duty Free Depot and 17 commentsnogood no refund after 4 mths more
i sent payment for hand rolling bacci it hasnt been seized they have not posted it and iv email and email 30 times in one day still no refund they have stopped replying how can we stop website like this and others like it from taking peoples good money --- On Tue, 9/3/10, Jane A (Dutyfree) wrote:
From: Jane A (Dutyfree)
Subject: Order #115796
To: "chanda2004 brundle"
Date: Tuesday, 9 March, 2010, 11:58
and now they have closed down emails and blocking me more information on the subject, please read our FAQ’s: http://www.dutyfreedepot.com/Support.aspx#13
I need the customs' notices in order to make any kind of solution happen faster- either that or we need to wait until the items return to our warehouse.
Product Quantity Barcod Shipping date Status
Drum Halfzware Blue Tobacco 5 x 50gr. With Paper 2 RY900151098IL 2/8/2010 4:56:21 PM Post
Drum Halfzware Blue Tobacco 5 x 50gr. With Paper 2 RY900152328IL 2/10/2010 3:36:08 PM Post
Do not buy from dutyfreedepot.com, a duty free store located in Israel. They gave my number to telemarketers, ever since purchasing from them I have been called relentlessly by offshore companies selling prescription meds.
how do you know they gave away your information
no refund
I placed an order in December 2009 for 6 cartons of cigarettes, which I was advised would be sent in seperate cartons. I received the first one, no problem within about 2 weeks. Then the problems started... I then received 5 customs seizure notices over the next couple of weeks regarding the remaining 5 cartons. I emailed copies of all these to Duty Free Depot and they said they would look into it. I was also advised that until the goods are received back to their warehouse, they could not issue a refund and that this could take anything from 2 - 6 months. I have continually been chasing them by email, to be told that they have referred it the appropriate department. It is now 16th June and I still have not received any refund, which is approximately £200. I am now going to be writing to the complaints people!
DUTYFREEDEPOT
I VE BOUGHT 6 DUNHILL CARTONS NEVER RECEIVED, THEY MUST PROCEED TO REFUND BUT THEY DO NOTHING. I THINK TO DEPOSIT AN COMPLAINT
I have ordered 400 Embassy No1 from these shysters and guess what they have been seized. Despite me paying extra tax on their website to comply with duty free laws in UK.
I have now received a very suspect looking letter from the UK border agency. YEAH RIGHT!
CON MERCHANTS DO NOT BUY ANYTHING FROM THEM.
I paid $182-00 including extra duty tax for 400 Cigs these were not cheap and you still ripped me off.
The order no is 138534 for any company fraudsters who like to reply to this.
no goods - fraud
Website said that these were duty free to ireland - no no no
Cigarettes were confiscated by customs.
No refund and indifferent customer service.
Do not deal with dutyfree.com
Well when the sender advertised the products as coming from the EU and not Israel - in fact Israel was not mentioned at all on the website.
Thank you for the "whatever political party" broadcast - I will keep you in mind the next time I vote - NOT
I think you work for Dutyfree.com - Don't bother telling us you don't because I know you do - you do - you do - you do
May I ask why you were running into a snug - were you hiding away from the many disgruntled customers - Ha Ha
after being ignored by duty free depot I got a letter saying my parcel had been seized this is shocking they take your money like a bunch of fraudsters and ignore your complaints, I want a full refund they took payment straight away, con men so angry
NObody needs to know any restrictions.
When you buy and pay by card you enter into an international contract. It is up to the SELLER to fulfil his obligations of the contract and supply the goods purchased.
IF YOU DO NOT GET THE GOODS GO TO YOUR CARD COMPANY AND DEMAND A REFUND. THEY ARE OBLIGED TO REFUND YOU.
Thereafter, change your card as this lot thereafter tried to take more money out of my card!
Yeah OK,
I could have crafted a better letter from the government than they (or you) did.
It is all a load of ###!
They never sent the Cigs, the letter they sent does not even have the correct government phone number on.
DO NOT BUY ANYTHING FROM THESE CHANCERS!
I have ordered 400 Embassy No1 from these shysters and guess what they have been seized. Despite me paying extra tax on their website to comply with duty free laws in UK.
I have now received a very suspect looking letter from the UK border agency. YEAH RIGHT!
CON MERCHANTS DO NOT BUY ANYTHING FROM THEM.
I paid $182-00 including extra duty tax for 400 Cigs these were not cheap and you still ripped me off.
The order no is 138534 for any company fraudsters who like to reply to this.
If the cigarettes were confiscated by customs, I do not see any fault of the sender. You should be aware of the laws of your country. Even more those laws were passed by people you have elected, so go complain to them. I've been doing business with Dutyfreedepot for over 2 years, and yes I have run into snugs, but all were local. I cannot blame people in Israel for local government inefficiency and stupidity.
Mate, get on to your card company and simply explain you never got what you ordered. THEY WILL 'CHARGE BACK' what you lost!
It is illegal to take money, offer partial refunds via Paypal and not supply the goods advertised! YOU WILL GET A FULL REFUND!
not
This Wisconsin resident posts favorable comments here because I ordered AFTER reading compaints on this message board and taking a chance on Duty Free Depot anyway. And they came through. $28 for a carton of Silk Cut Purples...feels like Christmas.
The complaint has been investigated and resolved to the customer’s satisfaction.
I have ordered 400 Embassy No1 from these shysters and guess what they have been seized. Despite me paying extra tax on their website to comply with duty free laws in UK.
I have now received a very suspect looking letter from the UK border agency. YEAH RIGHT!
CON MERCHANTS DO NOT BUY ANYTHING FROM THEM.
I paid $182-00 including extra duty tax for 400 Cigs these were not cheap and you still ripped me off.
The order no is 138534 for any company fraudsters who like to reply to this.
no goods received and no refund
DO NOT order from this company. If your goods are stopped by customs, THEY WILL NOT REFUND YOU unless the goods are returned to them. In most instances customs destroy all goods seized.
They take no gamble, and will not refund you.
Get on to your card company and get a charge back.
Most online duty free suppliers will ensure you get your product unlike this bunch who will just scam you!
Also have a think. There are those posting they have had no problems. Why the hell would someone hunt the internet for a complaint site IF THEY WERE SATISFIED? Easy, because they are probably the very scammers relieving you of your hard earned cash!
there are numerous online suppliers, use another, this lot are useless and will happily take your money for NOTHING in return!
The complaint has been investigated and resolved to the customer’s satisfaction.
Thanks for your review. I am awaiting a shipment of two cartons from duty free depot, and I know that they seem nice and I want to believe them, but I am already getting red flags regarding shipments, etc. You had mentioned other retailers who are reputable. My whole soul is my this question: ;)
WHO ARE THESE RETAILERS?! :) They all look the same to me. You seem like an intelligent fellow, could you recommend a decent online tobacco retailer?
Awaiting a response with real interest,
Marie Shanahan
Massachusetts
I have ordered 400 Embassy No1 from these shysters and guess what they have been seized. Despite me paying extra tax on their website to comply with duty free laws in UK.
I have now received a very suspect looking letter from the UK border agency. YEAH RIGHT!
CON MERCHANTS DO NOT BUY ANYTHING FROM THEM.
I paid $182-00 including extra duty tax for 400 Cigs these were not cheap and you still ripped me off.
The order no is 138534 for any company fraudsters who like to reply to this.
cigs — not a complaint
I read this forum before ordering and placed my order with a healthy degree of scepticism. Today, 15 days later, a carton of Silk Cut Purple Cigarettes was delivered to my mailbox as promised. I can't dispute that perhaps others had unfortunate results and I would stronglt encourage DutyFreeDepot to take very seriously any customer displeasure, but for me, I feel none of that. I am very grateful for the way this company came through for me.
Dear W.hacked off...
Nothing more than a Wisconsin manufacturing guy, never mind your own bad experience. A bit piqued at the insistent effort to impugn the integrity of a complete stranger, but whatever... Photo (hopefully) attached of my recently delivered carton of Silk Cuts in front of my Wisconsin license plate. I suspect the odds of someone having both Silk Cut Purples and a car with a Wisco plate are somewhere in the 800 million to one range ever since they stopped exporting the product to the States back in the mid-90s.
Idiotic and stupid...perhaps to a jaded half-wit I sound such. A handful of comments stating product was delivered (in this very forum, no less, probably without the use of a cowardly nom de plume), the lack of product availability in the states, the relatively low price, seemed a chance worth taking. I assume you ordered without researching them? Jeebus... At least he who is accused of "idiotic and stupid" behavior wasn't dimbulb enough to order without doing some investigative legwork.
And, hey! I got my smokes!
Total Crap my ###. I searched out and checked the complaints board BEFORE ordering, decided to take a chance anyway, and came out well ahead for it. In fact, I noted as much in my original post, so its not like the information wasn't there before this response was posted.
Trying to analyze someone's motivations or affiliations through the clouded lenses of your own irritation does not lead to accurate conclusions in most cases. Case in point is the drivel contained in your ill-informed post.
If the volume of complaints on this site are any indication, there will never be a BBC programme about this. We've got a fine lot of tea-baggers here in the US you might well sign up with. Try FOX news, they'll pick up and promote any cockamamie cause on limited and bad information.
The complaint has been investigated and resolved to the customer’s satisfaction.
I have sent in my first order and will see how they go if people wish to order more then you can bring in to there country by customs law in there country then that's there problem in the end for doing it I the first place.
But saying that I think it would be best if this company would have a list on there order page telling people what there legally allowed to order for each country.
Whether the comments posted here praising dutyfreedepot are fakes is certainly something which is open to debate. This is not, however, a quality that applies in any measure whatsoever to the question of the provenance of the cigarettes dutyfreedepot is shipping, which are most certainly reproductions from China.
How do I know this? Please see my complaint @ for details.
POSITIVE REVIEW!
I ordered cigarettes from Duty Free Depot against my better judgement. I read the complaint forum, I heard stories about customs officers' interceptions and, to make matters worse, once I purchased the cigs, my bank temporarily froze my account due to the suspicious debit from Israel. This was profoundly annoying, Chase fixed it though.
But I feel it's my duty here to let you all know that I received my carton of cigs in less than two weeks with no problem. I'm pleasantly surprised by the whole affair. I don't shill for duty free, btw, and I'm sure that there are circumstances out of their control when they wouldn't arrive... Cigs cost $120/carton in NYC, these cost $32. If this was a gamble, it paid off, and if they never arrived, I could have tried two more times and still saved some money if they did.
Anyway, there's nothing other than good faith to prove that the positive comments left here are not fakes from duty free depot. You can friend me on facebook or something.
Good luck!
The site seemed genuine and i ordered cigarettes. I got an e-mail saying my card number was incorrect and could i re-order.
Silly me did that and got charged twice!
The cigarettes got stopped at customs and Duty Free shop aren't replying to my mails. So i'm out of pocket on cigarettes and money!
I won't be using them again or recommending them to anyone.
In the UK you simply need to go to your card company.
Offers of partial refunds via Paypal in 6 months time is unacceptable and almost a conman trick!
I got a full refund from my card company but to top that I have had to change my credit card as they tried to defraud that also!
So full refund and new card was required!
Bollocks OP,
I have ordered 400 Embassy No1 from these shysters and guess what they have been seized. Despite me paying extra tax on their website to comply with duty free laws in UK.
I have now received a very suspect looking letter from the UK border agency. YEAH RIGHT!
CON MERCHANTS DO NOT BUY ANYTHING FROM THEM.
I paid $182-00 including extra duty tax for 400 Cigs these were not cheap and you still ripped me off.
The order no is 138534 for any company fraudsters who like to reply to this.
Wow I would put you in the half wit category for firstly researching it, reading the feedback and still ordering, then being stupid enough to return here and leave comment in a COMPLAINTS forum. Now that is a half wit.
But funnily enough I personally still have great problems believing ANYBODY would go to such lengths when they are satisfied with a purchase, again, a sheer half wit thing to do, but there again it takes all sorts.
Amazing that anybody who is a genuine customer would even return let alone post in a complaints forum. So obvious it is the company themselves posting!
LOL so you check them out on a complaints board, full of complaints, where many others are not even listed on here but then decide to order anyway.
LMAO do you realise how idiotic and stupid you sound. You are obviously connected to the company!
Check out the emails you get back when you do not get your order:
*Customs Returned Orders:
All returned order from customs will be charged the costs of shipping and handling. ($8.00 per item of cigarettes, $12 per an item for other products). A credit will be issued to your login account once your parcel reaches our warehouse (this may take up to 180 days depending on your location.)
Billing Department
www.dutyfreedepot.com
----------------------------------------
LOL so not only do they not deliver they then try to charge for delivery again! Then say you will get a credit WHEN they get them back, which is never because they are destroyed!
Idiots, it is nothing short of internet fraud. The onus is upon the company to deliver at no extra cost! So time to contact the card company and cops.
Funny how when someone makes a complaint another puts this on a COMPLAINTS SITE.
If you had good service why in gods name would you hunt the internet for a complaints site. Not unless you are actually part of the company that is!
Total crap, there are countless complaints of fraud relating to this company and I would strongly urge EVERYONE to report them to their card company AND to the local office of fair trading etc and have this company blacklisted.
If enough of us report it to the BBC they will almost certainly do a national programme on this lot!
paid them, and got nothing not even a refund!
I placed an order for 1 carton of cigerettes with duty free depot over two months ago and still have recieved nothing from them. Before placing the order I E-mailed them asking how long will it take to recieve the item etc. which I got replys for (from "jane") almost imediately givng me answers to all my questions and also giving me advice on how to place the order, making it seem like it's all lagit. Weeks went by and still I got nothing, so I E-mailed "jane" telling her/him this and was advised to wait 21 working days, so I did. After waiting the amount of time I was advised by duty free depot and still recieved nothing I asked for a refund as I paid for nothing and only after I asked for a refund was I told by "jane" that customs may have seized the item so therefore I need to wait longer. Before placing the order, customs was never mentioned, had I been given the facts by them I wouldn't have placed the order. Duty free depot will not give me a refund and are now ignoring my E-mails. They are nothing but a scam, and this "saar" person, more like greedy animal, is talking rubbish. DO NOT ORDER FROM THEM! Any positive comments posted are done by them. DO NOT BE FOOLED BY IT! I assure you, 100% guaranteed you will NEVER recieve your order which you pay for.
The complaint has been investigated and resolved to the customer’s satisfaction.
I was going to order from this website but luck has it my battery ran out on my laptop. so i thought i would order the next day. but at 1.00am, yes 1.00am i got a phone call urging me to make payment. i was informed by sanja if i gave her my credit card details she would put order through for me. i put the phone down but since then i get 15/20 calls a day and at least 2/3 emails. I. will not be ordering from them and certainly not giving my card details. After reading the comments left important glad my battery died.
I placed an order with dutyfreedepot before reading any of these complaints. I received all 10 cartons as promised in two separate orders within the 21 day period. No, I am not from their company. I do feel they might be having difficulties and I guess I was one of the lucky ones. I have had follow up phone calls and a call that was enlightening me about a sale they were running on my brand of cigs. I have not experienced any problems as of yet. Sorry for all those who have .
Unfortunately I placed a second order for 4 more cartons and I am hoping that they will come, after reading all the negative comments.
I have ordered 400 Embassy No1 from these shysters and guess what they have been seized. Despite me paying extra tax on their website to comply with duty free laws in UK.
I have now received a very suspect looking letter from the UK border agency. YEAH RIGHT!
CON MERCHANTS DO NOT BUY ANYTHING FROM THEM.
I paid $182-00 including extra duty tax for 400 Cigs these were not cheap and you still ripped me off.
The order no is 138534 for any company fraudsters who like to reply to this.
my orders
I too am a victim of this so called company!
They're supposed to sell cheap cigarettes.
Actually, I don't believe they have a cigarette in the place and just sit there banking our money!
Try as you might, you get nothing but lies, lies, and more lies about your order being sent to you.
In short - They are a load of thieves!
DO NOT HAVE ANYTHING TO DO WITH THESE THIEVES.
SURELY SOMEONE CAN DO SOMETHING ABOUT THEM?
GRAHAM F CUTLER
VERY POOR UK RESIDENT.
The complaint has been investigated and resolved to the customer’s satisfaction.
not received order, no response
I placed my order in the middle of October last year for 3 items. I received 1 item after about a month and then nothing up until now. I sent an email on Dec 5th regarding
the other parts of my order and they didn't respond until Dec 25th! They offered no explanation or reason for my order being missing and just said "your order has been shipped", the same message as was sent for the original order. It's been more than 30 "business days" since I received that message and I still haven't received the remaining parts of my order.
I have a strong suspicion that the company uses an old tactic. They deliver everything perfectly and treat the customer well in the beginning, when the orders are small (My first order was only 1 item I think), and then when they've gained the customer's trust and he orders multiple items with a higher price tag the company just fails to provide the product and doesn't respond to emails.
Another suspicious point, the price for my product changed both times I purchased it. I just checked a second ago and it has changed again, but lower this time. It's possible the system remembers you, assumes you think the price hasn't changed, and then charges a higher price than you just payed a month ago without you noticing.
Something else that's interesting, while it might be true that the packages have to be split for customs reasons, it also allows the company to collect the payment before you realize anything is wrong. So even if you do call your credit card company to report fraud/abuse/not receiving full order, the money has already been payed out and can't be withheld/retrieved from the company.
The website, email responses and the gentleman on this board all offer phone numbers to call (all of which are different) in case of a problem. Yet, I've attempted to call these numbers more than 10 different times and at differing times of the day and not once has anyone ever answered the phone! Many times an answering machine will pick up and the voice will be in a British accent but the number I called today had a message in Hebrew or Arabic!
I really do think this company is a scam but they try to trick you into trusting them and spending more before they decide to rip you off.
I hope I can get a response from this site because I sure haven't got one by emailing [protected]@dutyfreedepot.com. Saar Levin, if you are reading this message please look up my order, 303184 from 10/17/09, and find my email address and then email me personally explaining what has happened to my order and when I will receive it. If this doesn't occur, I will start posting complaints on every website I can find to hurt your company's reputation. After that, additional, more unfriendly steps, will be taken as a response to being ripped off.
Thank you
Scott J.
The complaint has been investigated and resolved to the customer’s satisfaction.
I order from them all the time, Sometimes my order gets sent back to the company, and I call them and tell them that i did`nt receive the order they ask me for my order number and the quanity and price, and they tell me that they will resend it and they always do So keep all the information I just gave you and perhaps that will solve the problems Thanks Tammy
I have ordered 400 Embassy No1 from these shysters and guess what they have been seized. Despite me paying extra tax on their website to comply with duty free laws in UK.
I have now received a very suspect looking letter from the UK border agency. YEAH RIGHT!
CON MERCHANTS DO NOT BUY ANYTHING FROM THEM.
I paid $182-00 including extra duty tax for 400 Cigs these were not cheap and you still ripped me off.
The order no is 138534 for any company fraudsters who like to reply to this.
Replied
no products no refund
I ordered 2 Carton of Camel filter on 1oth march 2009 (Order number: 68644 ). While orering the site mentioned that they will send 2 diffeent pack in post as each packet in post can only have 200 cigrattes and blah blah. Later on 26th March 2009 i received a letter from Royal mail with a Customs charge of £ 79.72, which alone was more than the cost of the cigrattes i have ordered.
I tried contacting DutyFree Depot and after innumerous tries was able to contact them and find that if i reject the parcel they will refund my money once the packet is received by them.
Now its 29th April and over a month since it happend and i have have still no refund. I tried calling them but it goes to voice mail and moreover i cant leave voice mail becuase he voicemail box is full. Sent a mail to billing and it bounced back. Now i am having s3erois concerns that the company is a scam and i have been ripped off my money.
In case i do not receive satisfactory response from your end i will be reporting this to the office of fair trade and also open a dispute with my credit card company who insure me against any fraud sales over internet.
I warn you guys of this company and stay away from them. Do not use your debit card as you are not insured for debit card purchases.
The complaint has been investigated and resolved to the customer's satisfaction.
Merchandise was sent. Tracking no. RY900023476IL.
Saar Levin
Program Manager
I have ordered 400 Embassy No1 from these shysters and guess what they have been seized. Despite me paying extra tax on their website to comply with duty free laws in UK.
I have now received a very suspect looking letter from the UK border agency. YEAH RIGHT!
CON MERCHANTS DO NOT BUY ANYTHING FROM THEM.
I paid $182-00 including extra duty tax for 400 Cigs these were not cheap and you still ripped me off.
The order no is 138534 for any company fraudsters who like to reply to this.
Replied
cigarrette order never arrived?
I placed an order more than 6 weeks ago and have not received NOTHING! ABSOULUTLY.. NOTHING...
I sent an e-mail, no response and called their 24/7 support line but only a message asking for name and number to call back, so i've been worried that
the site is a SCAM.
wondering what i'm going to do, should i take legal action?
Please help give me an advice.
The complaint has been investigated and resolved to the customer's satisfaction.
Please send an e-mail directly to saar@dutyfreedepot.com with your order number.
I, on behalf of DutyFreeDepot, will do all within my powers to assist and accomodate you on all issues. I do hope that after this matter is sorted, you will return and change your posting.
Thank you.
Saar Levin
Program Manager
Replied
2 months and still no product..?
I placed an order 2 months ago and... Yep.. Nothing! Absoulutly.. Nothing... Im so mad, I ordered 2 cartons of ciggarettes for 100.00 and they even had the nerve to charge my account for the order but I have not got anything.. For the last month the staus of my order according to duty free depot "it is prepared to be sent." and they say that after processing the order will be shipped 48-72 hrs..? I dont know what to say... They are fake! And scamming people please dont fall for the website.
The complaint has been investigated and resolved to the customer's satisfaction.
Not only can I guarantee that you won't lose your money when purchasing Duty Free items at our online store, I can commit that you will receive the best price offers for genuine and authentic Duty Free products. Please contact me at saar@dutyfreedepot.com and I will do all within my powers to assist you.
Thank you.
Saar Levin
Program Manager
The first order you are referring to was never charged. This is due to incorrect bank information (Invalid account) that you have provided us with. We have tried to contact you on several ocassions and since we failed to do so, the following order that you made was placed on hold until communication could be established.
Unfortunately, you have chosen to communicate with us via this site.
Since we were now able to charge your account for the second order, it is under "Packaging" status and ready to be delivered.
I trust that once you receive your goods, you will delete this comment.
Saar Levin
Program Manager
Saar@dutyfreedepot.com
I ordered my product over 2 months ago and it's still not here. Quoted delivery time was 28 days. The tracking number they provided doesn't exist. I've tried contacting them many times through email and their online portal - no answers - ever. Only spam calls from their sales people trying to sell me more, but they never give me an answer about my missing product and they refuse to pay me back my $100.
Saar Levin, Where are you to be contacted if the mail box is always full?.
The order number for the aboved is 157141 (martita)
My son, a minor place an unautorize order. When I found out 5 hours later, I try contacting duty free, and comes to be that thier mail box was full. I email them 4 times. Was email back with them stating that the bank trasaction was already process and that what they needed was a copy of my ID to ship cig. Without the ID (note my son is only 15) they would not ship cig. but would in the mean time keep my money. What now? I am at a lost with this SCAM. Stay away. There has to be someplace where all this can be reported.
I put in an order and still have not heard anything... Order number 154303... I just want my order
Just claim it back on your card as you are legally protected by the card company ;)
I have ordered 400 Embassy No1 from these shysters and guess what they have been seized. Despite me paying extra tax on their website to comply with duty free laws in UK.
I have now received a very suspect looking letter from the UK border agency. YEAH RIGHT!
CON MERCHANTS DO NOT BUY ANYTHING FROM THEM.
I paid $182-00 including extra duty tax for 400 Cigs these were not cheap and you still ripped me off.
The order no is 138534 for any company fraudsters who like to reply to this.
So why hunt the internet for a complaints site to post something that is clearly not a complaint. Simple, because you are or work for the company!
hi everyone
I have used duty free depot a few times now and have had absolutely no trouble at all. The service is great, items arrive in a within the 10 days and i am very happy with it. Sorry to hear of those who are not!
Sue, England
I have been emailing duty free depot or the past few weeks and have only ha a reply to the first one referring me to faq.
I live in England and wanted reassurance that I will not be out of pocket if I make an order and nothing arrives. I have not had that reasssurance even though there is a tick box if you pay extra that you will be covered for customs seizing it/lost in post etc.
I'm not sure why I am no longer being replied to, maybe it's because no such reassurance can be offered.
I did wonder if it was too good to be true. Can someone from dutyfreedepot offer me the guarantee that I will not lose money if I make an order?
online fraud
I placed an order for 6 cartons of cigarettes 2-26-07 with sales person Bruce, 6 weeks later I had not received the order and called Bruce and he assured me that the order would be sent out again. A month later he stated they were out of the brand I order but I could substitute, so again he said they would be sent out, another month went by and Bruce now said they could send the original ordered item, guess what nothing. the first week in June I left a message stating I wanted to place and order and received a call from another salesman and he assured me that the order would go out. It is is now July 15, 2007 and of course nothing.
Customer service never answer an email, and I have sent 25-30 of them. They are never reachable by phone, just a recording that states they are open Sunday-Thursday 12:00Am-8:00AM EST, but if you do call during those times, no one still answers and you are told not to leave a message.
Stay away from this site you will only loose your money and never see an order or refund.
The complaint has been investigated and resolved to the customer’s satisfaction.
I can’t file a grievance !
7/6/23 duty free depot withdrew over $1300.00 out of my account without my authorization or knowledge! They said they made a mistake but refused to refund my money. It’s has taken over a month to get a partial refund… They are scammers, liars , and thieves!
After sending my last post, they still will not let it be! I had to respond.
Dear Tina,
Why are you and dutyfree still trying to get me to order from your site when you have apparently "blacklisted" me and there is still an ongoing issue/complaint regarding your scam/untruths regarding my complaint of your site not being honest with the consumer?
This is just beyond my compression.
Thank you in advance for your timely response.
Nancy Porter
Cc: marketing@dutyfreedepot.com (apparently Michael)
Saar@dutyfreedepot.com (apparently Saar)
Once again, Michael or Saar apparently will not address and ignore my inquiry in writing as they obviously have something to hide and I will continue to investigate with the utmost pleasure. ;-) They have had ample time to offer an apology which they chose not to do. I am not expecting one, however, if they do I will update my comment.
Dear Tina,
Why are you and dutyfree still trying to get me to order from your site when you have apparently "blacklisted" me and there is still an ongoing issue regarding your scam/answers that have not been addressed regarding your practices?
This is just beyond my compression!
Thank you in advance for your timely response.
Nancy
Cc: marketing@dutyfreedepot.com (Michael)
saar@dutyfreedepot.com (Saar)
Update: Have not heard a word from so called "Michael" or "Saar" regarding my email to them? What a surprise! No one should believe these people even exist. I did hear from Dutyfree whining about the money "they lost" by me disputing the obvious false charges they tried to get from me (which I proved) were just wrong so they are just trying to cover their butts and keep me from speaking out . I even offered to pay them for the partial order they sent me which I could have screwed them out of although that is not my nature of being an honest person!
Always save any and all correspondence with them as if there is ever any problem as they will downright lie to no end to get money they "think" they are entitled to? It is a shame that you have to pay in advance for your purchase that you may or may not receive that is where they get you every single time. If you go through Kliknpay as I did, and have all your correspondence and make sure you always save your order status from dutyfree, they can never get away with this scam. I am pretty sure, kliknpay will no longer will be an option for them as Klicnpay are the only ones that called them on their false charges as I had the proof of when they tried to lie.
Now with that said, I have moved on to my many other resources through media "investigative reporting" that will bring this scam down for for what it is!
P.S. If I were to go on their site, they will be more that happy to offer me a purchase with a voided check and my account #? Are you kidding me? That will be the day. They do not like to be challanged by any means so this is the way they can screw you royally only if you let them do it and are dilligent in constantly saving everything.
Will keep you all updated as to how this all unveils in the long run! This is actually fun for me to expose them so no other consumer will be taken advantage of and how this site will be exposed for what it is. There are other sites that will not scam you out of your hard earned money with deals and will work with you.
More to come in the future! :-)
Nancy P
After arguing for 3+ months and being a long time consumer. I finally won the battle! This is how Dutyfree decided to handle the situation regarding my complaint. I have forwarded my feelings to Michael and am sure Saar reads these complaints on a daily basis, although I will still forward my feelings to him also. Trust me, this is just the beginning as they should have just offered an apology or at least answered the telephone/emails for months now, yet they chose to ignore my plea to work with me. Order on your own judgement of how they treat their consumers who do not get what they paid for in advance? Good luck if you think they are reputable! If you are being harrassed day and night and all of a sudden they completely ignore you that is just the start of their scam. Don't say I didn't warn you. ;-) If I do hear from them again I will update my complaint.
Sincerely,
Nancy
Cc: Saar@dutyfreedepot.com
Dear Nancy,
Since you have disputed our charge, and we have no funds for your order which you have received part of, we have no choice but to block your account and put you on the black list. You will not be able to order from our site or any affiliated site. We tell all customers that if there is a problem on missing items, that we will reship them, or issue a refund. Your dispute is not acceptable and will not be tolerated.
From,
Customer Support
Dear Customer Service:
I also have a complaint - I placed an order for 10 cartons of Marlboro Lights back in August/September of 2010 with a person being trained - it turned out he double billed me & I still haven't received my credit - I have asked that instead of putting the money back into my account they just send me the 10 cartons of Marboro Lights - I have heard nothing except that it is being taken care of well it is now a new year & NOTHING
Sincerely,
Barbara A.Codella
My telephone Numbers are as follow for a response
[protected]
[protected]
Dear William,
I can certainly understand your frustration.
But, despite what you think and write about us, I can confirm to you that Dutyfreedepot is not a ripoff.
We are bound by customs international laws and cannot deviate from that path otherwise we wouldn't
be able to operate!
Dutyfreedepot did not operate in full last year for technical reasons that had to do with Customs relocation.
I believe that during this time, a few customers did not receive their goods
and were ignored for the simple reason that even basic operations were placed on hold.
I urge you to contact me in person. We provide the most accomodating services and guarantee delivery
to your doorstep as soon as possible.
Saar@dutyfreedepot.com
sales@dutyfreedepot.com
Orders@dutyfreedepot.com
You are welcome to call us toll free as well: [protected]
My apologies if you were mistreated during our extensive move.
Thank you!
Saar Levin
fraud and scam
Dear Mortimer, I can certainly understand your frustration. But, despite what you think and write about us, I can confirm to you that Dutyfreedepot is not a ripoff. We are bound by customs international laws and cannot deviate from that path otherwise we wouldn't be able to operate! Dutyfreedepot did not operate in full last year for technical reason...
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Dear SlimJim...
That only goes to show that you have no idea of what you are talking about.
The cigarettes are not MADE in CHINA but rather sold from their International Airport Duty Free Shop...
The cigarettes' country of origin differs according to brand but never eastern European countries.
FYI, had we sold cigarettes from those regions, our license would be disbarred.
Consider yourself educated.
Anthony Saar
Program Manager
saar@dutyfreedepot.com
Hi,
Please see the thread I started here on this topic:
http://www.cigreviews.com/forums/questions-comments-suggestions/1233-dutyfreedepot-com-sells-counterfeit-china-made-cigarettes.html
I am not sure what to believe now cause to me the cigarettes taste better then our own and I don't have a cough like I did with our cigarettes how do you explain that ? Who tested them for you and where can I have them tested ?