BSG Auction Warning

[Jen]

They will look great in your new home

That's what I keep telling myself.

 

[Jen]

It never ends - now that all auction winners have my email address I get all kinds of updates. I guess my assumption was right that Collectible Shipping Services is Propworx. Here is the latest:

I have discovered and I am going to tell you all some disturbing info regarding Collectible Shipping Service. The service that tried to screw us and then backed off claiming it was a mistake. I'm about to prove to everyone that it not only was not a mistake, but your about to find out who really is responsible for this disgusting attempt to rip off BSG fans.



I was curious in learning more about Collectible Shipping Service. Mainly because I've never heard of them and especially because they don't have a website. I mean, seriously, any business now-a-days has a website. Also whenever I searched them in google, I only received 4 results. All of which had something to do only with this Battlestar Auction. No results about any other auctions they been a part of, and like I mentioned earlier they have no website.



Now before I tell everyone the big secret that you all are apparently not supposed to know, I'd like to first summarize a few facts that will prove in the end we have been in deed taken advantage of.



Everyone recall this message, from Alec Peters, the head of PropWorx;



-



January 29, 2009



"If you won items in the Live Auction last week, those items (assuming they are paid for) will start shipping next week. Collectible Shipping Service is in charge of this and they are working out of our warehouse to ship everything to you in a timely manner. Understand there were some 400+ winning bidders, with 800 lots of props, costumes and some very large set pieces, so please be patient. Not everything is shipping out next week! PropWorx is handling the creation of the Certificates of Authenticity and placing the holograms on each item, then the item is passed off to CSS for shipping. Please note that CSS is a business and therefore charges for their services. While they charge exact shipping and crating (where applicable), they also charge a handling fee for each item, though they have agreed to discount their fees on large orders. None the less, they are much cheaper than many of the auction house shipping services we checked out. You can contact Barbara Lindley at CSS by email at [email protected]. But rest assured, your items will be packed well and arrive safely!"



-



Again, the above bulletin was from Alec Peters who is the head of PropWorx and the host of the BSG auction. Read it a few times if you need to, soak it in because what your about to find out next will make you probably as angry as I was when I found out.



Guess who is the head of Collectible Shipping Service.

You guessed it, Alec Peters. Alec Peters is the head of CSS, the shipping service, which he told us he is using, as if they are a reliable reputable and legitimate 3rd party business, which PropWorx is going through to ship out the auction items.



How did I find this out? I looked up collectibleshipping.com on WHOIS to see who registered this domain. Since I couldn't find anything about them through other search methods. Not only is Alec Peters the sole registrant of this domain, he created it just days before the auction began.



So... Ms. Barbara Lindley, I guess this defeats your excuse that you made a mistake on the original price gauge you gave us. Your excuse was of one that made us believe that you accidentally forgot you had an agreement with PropWorx on this particular auction. YOU ARE PROPWORX!!!!!



As for you Alec Peters, this kind of defeats your persona of coming across as "looking out for the fans" by finding them a low cost shipping service. You're only looking out for yourself.



So to sum up, Collectible Shipping Service is basically Alec Peter's way of taking advantage of the hard working BSG fans. I believe the legal term for this is FRAUD!!! I'm not sure if Universal & Ron Moore aware of this but someone needs to inform them.



I'm officially boycotting the next BSG auction, which is in coming up this spring, unless Universal switches to another auction house.



Now you can go back and reread your emails from Barbara Lindley and know that in fact;



Barbara Lindley = Alec Peters

Collectible Shipping Service = PropWorx



P.S - If you want to see the proof for yourself, copy and paste this link below



https://domains.whois.com/domain.php?action=whois



Type collectibleshipping.com in the domain name search field and it will give you the info.


Should I cancel or just keep my item? What would you all do??

 

[Mooncat]

It never ends - now that all auction winners have my email address I get all kinds of updates. I guess my assumption was right that Collectible Shipping Services is Propworx. Here is the latest:

I have discovered and I am going to tell you all some disturbing info regarding Collectible Shipping Service. The service that tried to screw us and then backed off claiming it was a mistake. I'm about to prove to everyone that it not only was not a mistake, but your about to find out who really is responsible for this disgusting attempt to rip off BSG fans.



I was curious in learning more about Collectible Shipping Service. Mainly because I've never heard of them and especially because they don't have a website. I mean, seriously, any business now-a-days has a website. Also whenever I searched them in google, I only received 4 results. All of which had something to do only with this Battlestar Auction. No results about any other auctions they been a part of, and like I mentioned earlier they have no website.



Now before I tell everyone the big secret that you all are apparently not supposed to know, I'd like to first summarize a few facts that will prove in the end we have been in deed taken advantage of.



Everyone recall this message, from Alec Peters, the head of PropWorx;



-



January 29, 2009



"If you won items in the Live Auction last week, those items (assuming they are paid for) will start shipping next week. Collectible Shipping Service is in charge of this and they are working out of our warehouse to ship everything to you in a timely manner. Understand there were some 400+ winning bidders, with 800 lots of props, costumes and some very large set pieces, so please be patient. Not everything is shipping out next week! PropWorx is handling the creation of the Certificates of Authenticity and placing the holograms on each item, then the item is passed off to CSS for shipping. Please note that CSS is a business and therefore charges for their services. While they charge exact shipping and crating (where applicable), they also charge a handling fee for each item, though they have agreed to discount their fees on large orders. None the less, they are much cheaper than many of the auction house shipping services we checked out. You can contact Barbara Lindley at CSS by email at [email protected]. But rest assured, your items will be packed well and arrive safely!"



-



Again, the above bulletin was from Alec Peters who is the head of PropWorx and the host of the BSG auction. Read it a few times if you need to, soak it in because what your about to find out next will make you probably as angry as I was when I found out.



Guess who is the head of Collectible Shipping Service.

You guessed it, Alec Peters. Alec Peters is the head of CSS, the shipping service, which he told us he is using, as if they are a reliable reputable and legitimate 3rd party business, which PropWorx is going through to ship out the auction items.



How did I find this out? I looked up collectibleshipping.com on WHOIS to see who registered this domain. Since I couldn't find anything about them through other search methods. Not only is Alec Peters the sole registrant of this domain, he created it just days before the auction began.



So... Ms. Barbara Lindley, I guess this defeats your excuse that you made a mistake on the original price gauge you gave us. Your excuse was of one that made us believe that you accidentally forgot you had an agreement with PropWorx on this particular auction. YOU ARE PROPWORX!!!!!



As for you Alec Peters, this kind of defeats your persona of coming across as "looking out for the fans" by finding them a low cost shipping service. You're only looking out for yourself.



So to sum up, Collectible Shipping Service is basically Alec Peter's way of taking advantage of the hard working BSG fans. I believe the legal term for this is FRAUD!!! I'm not sure if Universal & Ron Moore aware of this but someone needs to inform them.



I'm officially boycotting the next BSG auction, which is in coming up this spring, unless Universal switches to another auction house.



Now you can go back and reread your emails from Barbara Lindley and know that in fact;



Barbara Lindley = Alec Peters

Collectible Shipping Service = PropWorx



P.S - If you want to see the proof for yourself, copy and paste this link below



https://domains.whois.com/domain.php?action=whois



Type collectibleshipping.com in the domain name search field and it will give you the info.


Should I cancel or just keep my item? What would you all do??

Considered bidding on a piece of BSG and signed up for an account on Auction Network, a few days later I was contacted by my Credit card company telling me that my security had been comprimised an that fraudulent actions had gone on my card.

I took that as a sign from the gods not to bid, that and the fact I was skint at the time (but thats not stopped me in the past)

Id loved to have had a nice piece of actual BSG memorbelia (as Im guessing would have a few others)

But having read your story above and the sly and underhanded way this guy has tried to con people and the obvious lapse in email securities,

Im kinda glad now I didnt bid

JUST SCUM

 

[Jen]

Well I have requested a full refund. We will see what happens.

 

[Darth Waller]

What the hell? Did Universal just hand all these props over to some fly-by-night operation or what?

 

[Jen]

What the hell? Did Universal just hand all these props over to some fly-by-night operation or what?

I think the CEO of Propworx knows someone at Universal and convinced them to let them do the auction. Well the definitely screwed this one up.

 

[gamabunta]

This auction turned sour very quickly. Turnaround time on emails was 2 weeks and it was only after the CCing incident that our emails were answered (via a mass response from Alec.)

I advise everyone to report your card as stolen and file a chargeback if you want a refund. This "set" fee wasn't disclosed until after we paid for the items and after all the noise we made they changed the "set" fee. I was really looking forward to the props but if I don't hear back by tomorrow night I'm calling him directly to cancel.

Also, email Ben Popken and Meghann Marco at Consumerist. That's probably the best way to warn everyone about future dealings with this company.

 

[Jen]

This auction turned sour very quickly. Turnaround time on emails was 2 weeks and it was only after the CCing incident that our emails were answered (via a mass response from Alec.)

I advise everyone to report your card as stolen and file a chargeback if you want a refund. This "set" fee wasn't disclosed until after we paid for the items and after all the noise we made they changed the "set" fee. I was really looking forward to the props but if I don't hear back by tomorrow night I'm calling him directly to cancel.

Also, email Ben Popken and Meghann Marco at Consumerist. That's probably the best way to warn everyone about future dealings with this company.

Good advice. I know a couple people that I have been emailing directly that did get full refunds. Hopefully it will not be a problem. I think there may only be a couple of us on this board that participated in the live auction....but it's good for everyone to know to watch out for propworx and the remaining BSG auctions they have in the works.
When and if I hear back from Alec, I'll post it here.

 

[gamabunta]

Good advice. I know a couple people that I have been emailing directly that did get full refunds. Hopefully it will not be a problem. I think there may only be a couple of us on this board that participated in the live auction....but it's good for everyone to know to watch out for propworx and the remaining BSG auctions they have in the works.
When and if I hear back from Alec, I'll post it here.

They emailed Alec and got refunds? I might just do that.

 

[Jen]

They emailed Alec and got refunds? I might just do that.

They did and Alec replied that their invoices would be refunded. I am assuming it should not be a problem for them as they have stated they will be doing more BSG auctions and they can just re-list them.

Just got another email from another auction winner saying they are glad that the companies are one and the same because this will make it easier for them to solve any problems that may pop up. I guess he doesn't think it's wrong that Alec directly lied to everyone about this. Well, I wish everyone the best and if anyone decides to keep their pieces, I hope it all goes well. I for one am done. I don't do business with people who are dishonest. If he had just been upfront in the beginning and charged an initial, reasonable handling fee, none of this would be happening.

 

[creecher]

Hang him out to dry Jen.

 

[gamabunta]

If he had just been upfront in the beginning and charged an initial, reasonable handling fee, none of this would be happening.

My point exactly. The CCing added insult to injury but the fact that they waited half a month to disclose a "set" fee is ridiculous.

Has Alec directly confirmed CSS and PropWorx are one in the same, or is "Jane Doe" the only source?

I saw the WHOIS, but why park a page if you aren't going to set up something that remotely resembles a business?

 

[BSG Fan]

The registration for collectibleshipping.com has now been taken private!

Doesn't sound very honest and forthcoming to me. Meanwhile on battlestarprops.com, Alec Peters states that three different companies are working to get the items out. This is a total lie.

Too much sneaky stuff going on here. That live auction and the ongoing eBay auctions are generating hundreds of thousands of dollars for somebody. It's a lot of hard-earned money for them not to be forthright. What a black eye for Universal too.

Good luck to everyone. I hope you get either your stuff or your money back.

 

[El Roranous]

I suggest most of you guys get your money back. These people don't sound honest or ethical to me and it's not worth the hassle.

 

[gamabunta]

Screengrabs of the registration info:

https://img88.imageshack.us/my.php?image=picture2mi8.png

https://img523.imageshack.us/my.php?image=picture3qw4.png

 

[galactiboy]

That is some shady stuff... especially considering how much money was made off these props. Now because of their underhanded ways they stand to loose a lot of customers. Guess there is karma.

 

[katee_thrace]

They did and Alec replied that their invoices would be refunded. I am assuming it should not be a problem for them as they have stated they will be doing more BSG auctions and they can just re-list them.

I will believe IT when the credits actually appear on their statements.

Just got another email from another auction winner saying they are glad that the companies are one and the same because this will make it easier for them to solve any problems that may pop up. ... .

Hmmm, might be interesting to compare the headers of that email with that of Alec Peter's emails, Barbara's emails, and that of any other "defender" of what a "great job" propworx is doing.

 

[creecher]

Has anyone confirmed, with Universal, that this mob is the genuine liquidator of these props? If I were youse I'd be getting my money back the fastest way I knew how. With a chargeback from my credit provider.

 

[gamabunta]

Alec confirmed that he owns both companies:

"Barbara Lindley runs CSS and I run PropWorx. We created CSS and put Barbara in charge so we would have control over the handling of the shipping, but let Barbara run things and make a small profit if things ran well.

Alec "

https://forums.battlestarprops.com/index.php?showtopic=254&view=findpost&p=2076

 

[Darklord Dave]

Has anyone confirmed, with Universal, that this mob is the genuine liquidator of these props? If I were youse I'd be getting my money back the fastest way I knew how. With a chargeback from my credit provider.

I was there - they are official - there do seem to be some dishonesty in claiming the shipping company was separate, but let's not start throwing around completely baseless accusations. Witch hunts start far too easily on forums.