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Data Boss: A Collector of False Guarantees?

Customer who says he bought the collectors' software says the company failed to honor its guarantee.

Ad Alert

Data Boss: A Collector of False Guarantees?

As we so amusingly learned in the 1995 comedy Tommy Boy, a guarantee is only as good as the product or salesperson that stands behind it.

“Guy puts a fancy guarantee on a box ’cause he wants you to feel all warm and toasty inside,” Tommy, played by the late Chris Farley, says in one of his many desperate attempts to make a sale. “…they know all they sold you was a guaranteed piece of (junk).”

databoss guarantee

Data Boss, a database software for collectors of coins, stamps and the ilk, advertises on its website a 30-day, money-back guarantee. If you aren’t satisfied with the product, which sells for $16.99, you are entitled to a refund.

Or maybe not.

A TINA.org reader told us he purchased Data Boss because of the guarantee but when his computer warned him that the disc carried a virus and he sought a refund less than 30 days after the transaction, the company refused.

“I complained to PayPal (which transmits payments for Data Boss) and the response was that the company refuses to offer a return,” the reader said.

We tried to get some answers but received no response from the only line of communication listed on the website: [email protected].

Additionally, there is no information on the website that spells out the specifics of the guarantee besides it’s “30 day money back.”

We’re left wondering: Does the 30 days start when the software is ordered, shipped, or received? Is there a usage limit after which the product cannot be returned? What if the disc is damaged during transit? Or, worse yet, harms a customer’s computer?

Guarantees are a dime a dozen in advertising. That’s why it’s ever more important that consumers search out the details of such a promise before they buy. And if those details can’t be found, think twice before buying because the only thing that really may be guaranteed is that you’ll be out money.

Click here for more of our coverage on guarantees.


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