Complaints

The complaint text that is displayed might not represent all complaints filed with BBB. Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:12/16/2023

  Type:Product Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  Sept 16 2023
  Order #*****-OS
  
  I purchased a product from this company, expecting quality and effectiveness. Unfortunately, the product proved to be defective and failed to germinate despite following all instructions. My experience with customer service has been extremely disappointing; they were unhelpful and belligerent, showing little concern for my issue. Followed all instructions, ****** ****** seed product did not germinate. Waited many weeks. Despite multiple attempts to get replacment or refund. CS instead bullied me and tried to argue I was the one to blame making up lies and that I did not want to take there call. I was very clear I cannot with my work schedule and preferred email. Rather than try to find a solution to the problem I was facing as a customer they forced me to fill out pages of questions trying to find a reason why I was to blame for there defective product. Completely dishonest I followed all instructions. Upon closer inspection of other reviews on ****, I noticed more customers sharing similar negative experiences and the company trying to conceal this. I even wrote an honest 1star review on their website about the product and it was never published. Only 5 star on their site. . It's apparent there's a significant issue with the product, yet the company continues to mislead consumers. They refuse refunds, leaving customers dissatisfied. This has been my worst experience with a small e-commerce business, and I caution potential buyers to reconsider before purchasing. I simply want a refund for a product that is defective.

  

  Business Response

  Date: 12/18/2023

  This response is for BBB complaint ********, regarding Rocky
  Mountain BioAg Order# *****-OS which was placed on September 14, 2023, and
  delivered with fast two-day shipping on September 16, 2023, for two each one-pound
  bags o* *** ******** *********** seeds.
  

  First, we would like to let all parties involved with this
  claim know that this is not how we like to resolve issues within our business.
  After 15 years of operations, we have successfully built a reputation for
  providing outstanding customer service by taking very good care of our
  ever-growing customer base. You can clearly see hundreds of reviews on ****** and our website proving these claims. Our customers are very satisfied with our
  company and how we treat them. We build very strong relationships and friendships
  with our customers, helping them to solve problems that they encounter and teaching
  them the best methods for usage of our products. We pride ourselves on live
  customer service that can be reached via telephone with little to no wait times
  to speak with customer service agents during normal business hours.
  

  This claim has arisen out of the fact that the customer
  planted the *** ******** *********** seeds and they did not establish properly,
  which has frustrated the customer and made them very upset. It is clear on our
  website in two locations, one in the return and exchange policy and the other on
  the product listing pages that there are no refunds, exchanges or returns on
  seed purchases. There are too many variables when planting and establishing
  seeds that our company cannot be held liable for. We can only provide a great
  product with third party verified germination reports to our customers. We are
  sorry that the seeds did not germinate. This is an isolated incident as we sell
  and ship thousands of pounds of these exact seeds every year into all 50 states
  and customers rave about their results. The seed producer which we purchase our
  seed from is a well-known producer of seed with an outstanding reputation. The
  first email contact we had with this customer was on October 22, 2023, and we
  responded to the customer the following day October 23, 2023, with questions to
  start evaluating why the desired results were not achieved. Our customer
  service was quick to respond and ready to solve the customers issue, which we
  fully intend to do. The customer did not contact our support team before
  planting for directions on planting, which we would have been happy to provide
  for the best results. Our customer support team did try to speak with the
  customer via telephone numerous times so we could give our exceptional customer
  support and figure out what may have happened and why the desired results were
  not achieved. We even asked the customers’ work schedule to see if we could
  speak with them when not at work to help them diagnose the issue, they wanted
  everything in writing via email, so we continued with email communication.
  After multiple email communications, we pinpointed the
  potential issues on why the seeds did not germinate. First, the customer used 4.5”-5”
  of ******* soil topper a soil building amendment to richen the soil which is
  twice the amount recommended on the bag. *********** uses very little nutrition
  to naturally thrive. No soil samples were taken to see if there were abundances
  or deficiencies before planting. We asked if the customer could take photos of
  the seeds that did not germinate in the soil as they should have only been
  planted 1/8” deep they never would send photos of the ungerminated seeds. Also,
  we asked for a detailed water schedule during establishment and that was never
  provided either. All the above are potential reasons why the seed did not
  germinate. The LOT# was also checked and verified that there were no
  germination issues on the product that they received. 
  

  A refund or replacement was never asked for, the customer
  threatened our company that they were going to contact their credit card
  company and give us a chargeback on the purchase and leave poor reviews which
  would hurt our small company. This threating tactic is meant to hurt and
  intimidate smaller companies. We are happy to explain the issues that arose
  from this transaction and stand behind our company’s policy of no refunds,
  exchanges or returns on seed sales. We have third party germination reports on all
  the seeds we sell so we can confidently stand behind a quality product and are
  confident of the germination rates.
  We never once said that the customer was lying, we were
  simply asking the questions needed to solve the problem of non-germination.
  There is no dishonesty involved in our interactions with this customer just the
  fact that the customer is irritated that they will not be receiving a refund or
  replacement for their product as this is our company policy which is clearly
  stated in numerous places.
  

  There is no concealment of the fact that we have two reviews
  that customers left which could not get their seeds germinated. This is a total
  of 2.5 pounds of seed compared to the thousands of pounds which we have sold. I
  would look at all the positive experiences customers have with our company and
  see that these instances are very isolated and obvious attacks on our company.
  Regarding the review not being published on our website, this decision was made
  since it is an obvious attack against our company which is 100% false and can
  be proven via email communication and third-party germination data of the seed the
  customer received. If the seed has been proven to not meet the proper standards,
  the review would be published, and a refund or replacement would have been
  issued immediately. Since it is felt that there is a significant issue with the
  seed, the next step will be to get *** ******** North America involved in the
  customer’s claims against their seed and the statements the customer has made
  against their company.
  

  Again, we are sorry the customer has had a bad experience
  with our company. We have company policies that we must adhere to for all
  customers and one of those is no refunds, exchanges or returns on seed sales.
  In conclusion, our number one goal is 100% customer
  satisfaction, and we do our best to take care of all our customers and provide
  outstanding customer service. We have built a great reputation on the service
  and dedication that we provide to customers. We do appreciate every customer, but
  we do have to follow company policies.