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:09/14/2023

  Type:Service or Repair 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.

  I purchased mini clover from Outside Pride (5 lbs for $99), planted it and cared for it exactly as the directions said to and got nothing out of it. It was an Amazon purchase and amazon told me I needed to contact this seller about the issue. I contacted Outside Pride and they said it was my fault and that they cannot control the growing conditions and things. That is a lame way to go about things and take people's money. Terrible customer service and horrible guarantee since it's not guaranteeing anything. I want my money back!

  Business Response

  Date: 09/15/2023

  I honestly don't even know how to respond to complaints like this.  MIniclover is our most popular product having literally hundreds of orders a day for it!  Clover is probably the easiest if not the easiest of any seed to germinate.  I just planted 7 plots of miniclover this past spring and every plot sprouted in 3 to 4 days.  Miniclover has a 95% germination rate proven by independent labs.  Yes, not just one lab, but more than one.  It it tested, shipped from overseas, and then we retest it after it is coated.

  Customers often have refuse to follow directions and think they know how to plant.  We have had customers tell us they used, "weed and feed" to start their clover thinking they were fertilizing it when in fact they were killing it!  We have had customer plant the seed 1" deep because that is how they plant corn when it shouldn't be buried like that at all.  We have had customers water it one time and never water it again and wonder why it didn't sprout.  We have heard it all, but the fact is the seed has a 95% germination rate.  In fact, this is the only BBB complaint on Miniclover I can remember in the past 10 years with tens of thousands of orders.

  Miniclover averages over 4 stars on Amazon with nearly 75% giving it 4 or 5 stars!  For a seed, that is as good as you will ever seed on Amazon.  The exact same seed goes to everyone and 75% are stating it is fantastic.  Only about 10% complain and that has nothing to do with germination.  They feel it gets too tall for their needs or they didn't realize they had to mow it once or to keep it tidy.  Again, the germination is 95%.

   

   

   

• Initial Complaint

  Date:09/13/2023

  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.

  I sent this email to outsidepride.com on May 16, 2023 and received no response from them Hello. Last fall I purchased these seeds totaling $30.39.Name under ********************************* or ********************************* (maiden name).******************************************************** 30 yellow wave petunia seeds 20 watermelon coleus 20 lime coleus 20 osteopermum seeds (daisys)The 2 packages of wave petunias I just opened and were a JOKE! there were about 9 seeds in the first package (bundled in the styrofoam insert) and the 2nd package were completely disintegrated.Same scenario with the coleus seeds.The daisy seeds were fine. (but none sprouted--adding current time)I would like a refund for the petunia seeds and the coleus seeds. I am highly frustrated because now I have to secure more seeds when I just got my beds cleaned and ready for new plantings. None of the seeds that I DID plant came up--the entire $30 was a waste of time and money.

  Business Response

  Date: 09/15/2023

  I am sorry this customer does not know what seeds look like or can get them to germinate.  All packets of seed are counted by very expensive machines and they certainly are not disintegrated.  When a customer buys 3 different types of seeds of packets that we sell thousands of it is kind of hard to believe all 3 seeds had problems and she can't get them to sprout. We will have over 1 million orders this year so clearly we do not short customers seed counts, ship seeds that are disintegrated, and sell seeds that won't germinate.  We can not control how customers plant or control what they have done with the seeds.
  

  Customer Answer

  Date: 09/15/2023

   
  Complaint: 20595609
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

  Saying the seeds were not disintegrated does not make it so. Clearly you do not value your customers.

  I successfully grow many types of flowers, plants, vegetables and raspberries every year, I am not a rookie

  I am aware of what seeds look like and what disintegrated--non seeds look like. 

  Of the seeds I was able to plant, not 1 germinated. The coleus plants I did end up buying after your seeds failed are not only thriving but multiplying so there is nothing wrong with my soil. 
  
  Sincerely,
  
  *********************************

  Business Response

  Date: 09/30/2023

  There is nothing else to communicate.  Customer is comparing apples and oranges regarding issues and other plants that have nothing to do with seeds.

   

  Customer Answer

  Date: 09/30/2023

   
  Complaint: 20595609
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

  Outside Pride sent me $30 worth of seeds for rainbow coleus and wave petunias. The seeds were disintegrated and powder when they arrived. The seeds that were not powder that were planted in my soil did not germinate at all. They sold me a product that did not perform. Clearly they do not stand behind their products. I will be letting others know by way of social media and gardening groups what their response is to my complaints--a complete lack and blaming me instead of any attempt to reconcile the problem.

  
  Sincerely,
  
  *********************************

  Business Response

  Date: 10/13/2023

  For clarification purposes, their will be no refund.  As already stated, our seeds have an 85% germination rated veryified by independently labs.  We did not start a business in a garage and turn it in to 30 million dollar company by selling bad seed.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 10/13/2023

   
  Complaint: 20595609
  
  No worries, I posted this thread on many gardening groups and one one thread about 20 people responded about their bad seeds from outside pride and others saying thanks for the heads up, 
  
  Sincerely,
  
  *********************************

• Initial Complaint

  Date:05/02/2023

  Type:Delivery Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore 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.

  On April 20, 2023, I placed an online order with outsidepride.com . The price of the order included $3.50 for shipping. I received notice from my local post office on April 26th that a letter from outsidepride.com had arrived at the post office, and there was postage due on the letter in the amount of $7.05. I informed outsidepride.com via their "contact us" tab that I had paid the extra postage and that I expected to be reimbursed for that amount. They have not replied, and repeated attempts have not been successful. Their website states that their phone line is for orders only, not customer support. I expect to be fully reimbursed ($7.05) for what is an error of their own making.

  Business Response

  Date: 05/02/2023

  We apologize for not responding as don't know why that would happen except we are a little overwhelmed right now.  We process between ***** - ***** orders a day so things fall through cracks.  With that said, we did not make a mistake as there was no postage due on that order . Whoever that postal clerk was does not know their own regulations.  That is why it went through our post office fine, our ********, ** post office fine until it reached you.  There is no such thing as $7 plus postage due on a first class mail envelope.  We ship thousands and thousands of them every single day.  The postage on the envelop was exactly what it was supposed to be, but that is not  your problem.

  I went ahead and refunded the entire order.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 05/09/2023

   
  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.
  
  Sincerely,
  
  *******************

• Initial Complaint

  Date:03/15/2023

  Type:Service or Repair 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.

  I ordered 2 packets of Monkey Grass seed from Outside pride on Feb 18, 2023. The seeds were delivered to my residence on Feb 27, 2023. I followed directions on packet for indoor starting of seeds and planted the seeds on Feb 28, 2023 in a greenhouse seedling starter box along with multiple other seeds purchased from other companies.All other seedlings have germinated and are doing well. Every single seed from Outside Pride have white, spidery looking mold growing from within the soil where the seed is planted even in the greenhouse box where other seeds have been planted alongside these. If it was due to unfavorable conditions or over watering, all the soil pockets would have had mold growing on them. It is ONLY the seeds from Outside Pride sprouting mold. The grass have not germinated yet - but it can take 30 days and I am not complaining about that. I am complaining about mold growing and I am unsure if the seeds are even going to germinate since the mold is growing all over the soil pockets from within. I have emailed customer support and received a very condescending response from Candy saying I must not have read my seed planting instructions. I did! I am also an experienced gardener who have planted and started monkey grass many times before. I have however never had seed sprouting mold after planting. I requested a refund and received no answer whatsoever. I called the number on their website only to be told to email customer support. I explained that I already did and after responding to the first condescending email received no response. The person said oh well ************ has deplorable customer service. I am requesting a refund and I will absolutely never order from them again.

  Business Response

  Date: 03/15/2023

  I am sorry for this customer's experience, but seed does not cause mold and frankly in 23 years I have never even heard of such a thing.  I really don't understand why people ignore our warranty which is posted on our web site:  Outsidepride Seed Source, LLC warrants that seed sold is of high quality, that seeds are as described on the container within recognized tolerances in the trade, that seeds have been described as required under State and Federal Seed Laws, and that seeds have been tested by a Registered Seed Technologist. This is the sole warranty; we make no other, express or implied. We cannot guarantee establishment of seed due to various factors over which we have no control. Many seeds are very tiny and a hard rainfall, planting too deep, soil pH, not keeping the seed moist, cold temperatures, and other environmental factors may hinder success. This is why we do not guarantee the germination of seed.

  We do not guarantee anything except for the fact the seed is exactly what it is and it will germinate within tolerances at any seed lab in the U.S. There is no other warranty, thus no basis for a refund.  I always love when customer tell us how horrible we are when this business was started in a garage and now does over 25 million annually in sales.  Do you think that was accomplished by bad customer service and bad seed?  Of course not.

   

   

  Customer Answer

  Date: 03/15/2023

   
  Complaint: 19598204
  
  I am rejecting this response because:
  
  As I told the business (assuming this is the same rude representative responding to this email) I am not concerned about germination times. I UNDERSTAND and can READ. I am concerned about the weird white mold growing ONLY where these seeds have been planted. It shouldnt matter if theyve seen this in 23 years of business or not! It is something that IS happening to one of their valued customers - someone who spent money on their product and should be treated with decent respect. Instead they act like a child and speak to their customers in a demeaning way and get defensive when a customer complains about a real issue even attached pictures as proof of the issue. I am a business owner myself and I definitely dont have time to waste in asking for help in this matter and falsely making things up. I sure dont treat my customers this way when they have a complaint. This business obviously dont care one bit about their customers, just cares about the money clearing their account. They should not count on repeat customers. We certainly wont be return customers and we will make sure to tell others about our experience. 

  
  Sincerely,
  
  **********************

• Initial Complaint

  Date:08/25/2022

  Type:Delivery 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.

  I ordered Dutch clover seeds and when package arrived it was TOTALLY EMPTY! I tried contacting them but of course there was no phone number for their NO customer service! Also tried emailing them several times which it kept coming back no such email. No surprise there.

  Business Response

  Date: 08/25/2022

  1) We have no idea who this customer is since there is no order number and there is not even a full name attached to this complaint

  2) Web site is clear: If you would like to place an order by phone, we have a 24 hour 7 day a week toll free order line. Order line can not answer questions or provide customer service!  

  3) No idea who he was emailing since the email is published on our web site and we answer hundreds of emails every single day.  They do NOT bounce back.  That is simply absurd.

  4) We obviously do NOT ship empty packages.  The weight was clearly printed on the label as 11 lbs.  If someone opened his package and stole the contents that is certainly not our problem.  We shipped 10 lbs and 10 lbs was delivered.