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:10/28/2022

  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 purchased apricot parrot tulip bulbs. Some of the bulbs were dried out and not usable. I contacted company as they have a guarantee. I have gone round and round with customer service to have the 30 bulbs replaced. Instead of taking care of this they sent a gift card and said I would have to reorder. I would either have to pay for shipping or place an order of $75.00 for free shipping. I want a credit to credit card or they ship the 30 bulbs at their expense. The behavior of this company is unacceptable. From all the complaints I have read Holland Bulbs is a scam and needs to be held responsible!

  Business Response

  Date: 10/31/2022

  Thank you so much for reaching out to us regarding your recent order.  I do apologize a portion of the tulips arrived in poor condition.  I do see you did reach out to us on 10/13/22 letting us know the tulips arrived in poor condition.  We did reply asking for images to be sent to our email which is required per our Grow Guarantee found on our website and also on the back of your packing slip.  Unfortunately we did receive a reply that you weren't able to provide images because you had thrown them away.  If we were a brick and mortar store, the items would need to be returned to us to receive a refund or replacement. Since we are online only, we don't ask to have them returned but do need the images.  Since they were thrown away without providing us the images, the Grow Guarantee should be void at that point but we did offer to issue you a store credit for those items to be used at a future date. Since you did not pay for shipping on the original order, we were not able to provide any compensation for shipping since you did not pay for any shipping.  Again, we do hope you understand that without the images or the items returned to us, we can't issue a replacement or refund as indicated in the Guarantee.  We did extend a solution to you rather than voiding the guarantee and provided a store credit for what you paid for the item.   

  Thank you.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:10/07/2022

  Type:Service or Repair 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.

  Complaint is in reference to my Spring 2022 order # ******. Of the 61 bulbs ordered only 3 were the variety as advertised. Everything else has turned out to be a cheap substitution. I am starting to believe this is a scam of sorts, because you don't know you were shipped the WRONG item until it blooms, which is months later and most buyers will not pursue the issue. Sure, I received gladiolus and callas, but not the varieties I ordered. They have all turned out to be run-of-the-mill, inexpensive varieties. I spoke with them and emailed photos on 7-1-22 for the Albomaculata calla, which they did replace - but the 2nd bulbs have turned out to be the exact same WRONG variety I got in the first place.I emailed them with photos on 9-7-22 to advise that ALL the gladiolus bulbs were the wrong variety. On 9-8-22 they requested more photos and on 9-9-22 I sent them and requested a refund. On 9-16-22 I sent the email again with the photos and a request for a refund of $48.37. This is the amount for all the bulbs and applicable tax paid that were wrong. Both of my last 2 messages have been ignored and gone unanswered. This is a deceitful way to do business and it appears to be a pattern with this company,

  Business Response

  Date: 10/10/2022

  Thank you so much for reaching out to us.  I am terribly sorry to hear a large portion of your order bloomed the wrong variety.  We have forwarded the images to the supplier that packages those for us to ensure this mistake is corrected in the future.  We have gone ahead and issued a refund for the 3 gladiolus and the Albomaculata Calla Lily.  The shipping fee has also been adjusted.  The total refund for those 4 items came to $47.85.  That amount has been refunded to the original form of payment used when the order was placed.  Please allow 1-2 business days for that to post back to the account.

  Thank you again and we do apologize for your items blooming wrong.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 10/11/2022

  [A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's response.  If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]
  
  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. 
  
  Regards,
  
  *****************
  

• Initial Complaint

  Date:10/04/2022

  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 purchased $200 worth of bulbs last year. When I received them, I planted them according to their specifications. Nothing came up. Not a single one. I thought it was where I lived and they would come up and flower in the spring. I called around the end of April and was told to wait and call back if they didn't grow. I did call back and was told I didn't order any bulbs from them, only peonies, and that they would replace them. I found my invoice and called back in October, regarding the bulbs. I was told that there was nothing they could do for me, because it was after the three month growing season. Every place has a different growing season. My order number is ******. Lillies and such are fall planted bulbs

  Business Response

  Date: 10/06/2022

  Hello,

  Thank you so much for reaching out to us.  After reviewing your order, I do see it was placed on 6/26/21 and was shipped on 6/30/21.  All of the items on your order were Spring/Summer planted items and were part of our Clearance Sale.  We do have listed on our website that these items are part of our Spring program and your order number in your confirmation email was HBF-******-HBFSPRING indicating these were all Spring items.  Although they were part of our Clearance sale, they still had plenty of time to be planted and start to sprout in Summer 2021 when they were delivered.  We did receive communication from you regarding a package 2 packages that were received in poor condition which we did send replacements to you on 7/9/21.  We were also notified at that time that 3 packages were missing at which time we did issue you a refund of $22.42 which was approved on 7/9/21.  Per our Grow Guarantee on our website and also on the back of your packing slip, we cover all of our items for one growing season.  For Spring/Summer planted items, we cover them until October of that same calendar year.  You would have needed to notify us by October 2021 for our Grow Guarantee to be valid.  We do not guarantee for an entire calendar year, just the first growing season.  Had you reached out before the Grow Guarantee expired last year, we would have been more than happy to find a solution.  Below you will find the portion of our Grow Guarantee from our website and also your packing slip that states the requirements of our growing season:

   

  100% Grow Guarantee
  Here at Holland Bulb Farms, we pride ourselves on our strong commitment to premium products and excellent customer service. Therefore, it is our goal to treat all of our valued customers with the utmost respect and consideration while providing them with accurate quality control on all of the products we ship.
  All customer comments regarding our products should be directed to our *************************** either by way of telephone ***************) or email (*******************************) within the first growing season*. If you are concerned with the condition of the bulbs, roots, or plant starts upon delivery, the *************************** must be contacted within 5 business days of the received shipping date according to *** records in order for us to accurately and efficiently handle the situation. We do not guarantee storing our bulbs for any period of time outside of the planting season in which you receive them. For this reason, we cannot be held liable for any products stored or not planted upon arrival.

  *The first growing season for spring and summer planted items is March through October the first year they are planted. After October, spring and summer planted items are no longer covered under our guarantee. The first growing season for fall and winter planted items is September through June the first year they are planted. After June, fall and winter planted items are no longer covered under our guarantee.

  Since we do have our Grow Guarantee available to view at all times on our website and also sent again in all of our packing slips, we are unable to extend our Guarantee since it did expire over a year ago. I do apologize we are not able to find you a solution at this time. 

  Thank you!

• Initial Complaint

  Date:09/01/2022

  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.

  Holland Bulb Farms: On a previous BBB complaint in a purchase amount of $12.72 they refunded me only $4.73. Holland Bulb Farms subsequently sent out a email showing the additional amount of the refund $7.99 was credited to my Discover account. After receiving my Discover account statement and contacting Discover I was informed by Discover that no such additional amount was ever posted to Discover by Holland Bulb Farms. So a false statement was sent out by Holland Bulb Farms in regard to the refund. That refund never occurred. My previous complaint against Holland Bulb Farms was not properly settled and the full refund from Holland Bulb Farms was never received. I request additional investigation in this matter of deception.

  Business Response

  Date: 09/02/2022

  Thank you for reaching out to us.  I do apologize the credits we've issued to you haven't shown yet on your credit card account.  Below are the transaction ID's for each transaction on your statement.  The first is the initial payment when the order was placed and the last 2 show the 2 credits that were applied to the account on 8/11/22 and 8/15/22.

   

  [Charge] Discover: xxxx-**** AVS: YY : Address (Street) and 5 digit ZIP match. Trans. ID: ************ 7/1/2022 8:17:02 AM
  Approved: 7/1/2022 8:17:08 AM $12.72

  
  [Credit] Discover: xxxx-**** AVS: : Trans. ID: ************ 8/11/2022 1:02:03 PM
  Approved: 8/11/2022 1:02:05 PM -$4.73

  
  [Credit] Discover: xxxx-**** AVS: : Declined: Credit error Trans. ID: ************ 8/11/2022 4:48:47 PM
  Approved: 8/15/2022 8:03:05 AM -$8.70

   

  As you can see a full refund was processed to the Discover card.  I would recommend contacting your credit card company with the Transaction ID's for more information since it does show that the 2 credits were both approved.

  Thank you and please let us know if you need any further information.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 09/02/2022

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
  
  [Please type your response here.]
  
  Regards,
  
  **********************;  I contacted Discover once again today, 09/02/2022 and once again they told me that no credit amount of $8.70 was posted by Holland Bulb Farms. Not only on the stated date 8/15 but also on any other date. Only a credit of $4.73 was posted on 8/11. The statement that Holland Bulb Farms sent, that a refund occured on 08/15/2022 in the amount of $8.70 is incorrect. This is in accordance with Discover Card representatives that I talked to numerous time in regards to this matter. This case has not been properly resolved to date. This information that the credit was not received can be verified by Holland Bulb Farms by contacting Discover Card in regard to this matter.

  Business Response

  Date: 09/06/2022

  Thank you so much for getting back to us.  Unfortunately what we are showing on our end are the 2 credit transactions listed below:

  [Credit] Discover: xxxx-**** AVS: : Trans. ID: ************ 8/11/2022 1:02:03 PM
  Approved: 8/11/2022 1:02:05 PM -$4.73

  
  [Credit] Discover: xxxx-**** AVS: : Declined: Credit error Trans. ID: ************ 8/11/2022 4:48:47 PM
  Approved: 8/15/2022 8:03:05 AM -$8.70

  I do see the credit information from 8/15/22 was declined.  The credit for the remaining balance owed to you of $7.99 was rerun today on 9/6/22. Below is the credit transaction ID:

  [Credit] Discover: xxxx-**** AVS: : Trans. ID: *************/6/2022 5:45:30 PM
  Approved: 9/6/2022 5:45:32 PM-$7.99

  The total credits now of $4.73 and $7.99 total the entire amount paid on the order of $12.72.  The entire order should now be refunded to you and 2 Transaction ID's have been provided above.

  Thank you and please let us know if you need any further information.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 09/07/2022

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
  
  [Please type your response here.]
  
  Regards,
  
  *************************;  I find this whole exchange with Holland Bulb Farms to be deceptive. It was afterl I issued a complaint with BBB and Discover that was this matter resolved. In fact it was Discover that initiated the proper credit, not Holland Bulb Farms. Discover Card is to be commended for resolving this issue. Holland Bulb Farms not only sends out incorrect product but they have a problem refunding the customer properly in prudent manner.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:08/25/2022

  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.

  8/21/22 BBB:On 6/11/22, I ordered bulbs from HBF; stargazer lilies, black-eye *****, and calla lilies totaling $49.57. I planted all bulbs near the end of June, several days after receipt. After emerging, I immediately knew that the fragrant stargazers were in fact nonfragrant day lilies. When the first day **** bloomed, I immediately called HBF but was asked to wait until all lilies bloomed, then send photos. (During the call I was not offered replacements for the incorrect order, although I asked if stargazers were still available and the answer was yes.) Suspicious, I the non-emerging back-eye susans expecting to find spent bulbs but, instead found a cluster of worms and, as of this writing, the calla lilies have only sprouted leaves, but no flowers. After sending a picture of all bloomed lilies, I asked for a refund and the response was, . . . we can only process a replacement or issue you a credit. . .. I understood we can only process a replacement to mean they would process replacements for their botched order. When I accepted the replacement, the response changed to . . . items are currently out of stock for the season. We can send a replacement next spring . . .. As of 8/21, Stargazers were still for sale on HBFs website (SKU #*****). HBFs 100% guarantee grow is worthless and the entirety of my order unusable. Bulbs have a short life span and will not bloom after theyve expired. This fact is not lost on HBF who should spend more time cleaning up their business rather than attempting to placate dissatisfied complainants who purchased in good faith. Although offered a credit for next spring, I believe its highly improbable that HBF will replace my botched order with fresh, new healthy bulbs. Considering the numerous similar complaints, my trust level is nonexistent. Im on a fixed income and my goal was to start a garden but, cannot afford to replace the money lost to HBFs unethical practices. I request a refund.Attachments 1-6

  Business Response

  Date: 08/26/2022

  Thank you so much for reaching out to us.  I do apologize you are not satisfied with your recent purchase from us.  After reviewing your account and your previous communication, we did reach out to us on August 8th informing us one of the items bloomed wrong and another failed to grow for the season.  We did respond to you offering you a solution for those 2 items per our Grow Guarantee.  Per our Grow Guarantee on the back of your packing slip and also on our website, we offer either replacements or merchandise credit.  If an item is currently unavailable and replacements is the remedy, they are shipped the following season when they are back in stock again.  You did reply to us on 8/11/22 again and let us know the items either failed or grew wrong in which we did offer you the options once again.  We did receive a reply that you would like the replacements sent to you.  We are at the end of our Spring/Summer season and most items are out of stock so a replacement order for Spring of 2023 was issued to you since that is the option you chose.  Although we do have Stargazer Lilies available in the Fall, you had placed and received your order as a Spring shipment so we do  need to ship the replacements to you the same season as the original order.  We would be more than happy to delete the Stargazer lilies from the Spring replacement order and issue you a store credit you could then use toward placing a Fall order if you choose.  We did offer the options as laid out in our Grow Guarantee and would be happy to change which option you would prefer if you want.  

  Thank you again and please let us know if you would rather choose the credit and place a Fall order with that credit.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:08/16/2022

  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.

  This company sells flower bulbs and tubers. I have placed over $400 with Holland Bulb Farms and ***********. over 60% of the products they sent have failed to grow, and out of the ones that have grown, most of them are not the variety that was purchased. This company defrauds consumers by promising exciting flowers, with zero intent to deliver what was purchased. I have contacted their customer service lines on multiple occasions. They are always happy to provide a merchandise credit. After my last order proved to be 100% wrong ,I demanded a full refund. The company has refused to provide a refund despite having been provided with ample photographic evidence and documentation.

  Business Response

  Date: 08/17/2022

  Hello,

  Thank you so much for reaching out to us.  I do apologize you have not been satisfied with your orders from both Holland Bulb  Farms and ***********.  We do not intentionally send the wrong items to our customers.  We do request images so we can forward them to the supplier that packages and labels all of the items for us each season.  With the images, our supplier can correct any mistakes that occurred for future orders.  We do apologize for the inconvenience this may have caused and just know we are working diligently with our suppliers to ensure this is corrected.  After reviewing both accounts, I do see there were some items that did grow incorrectly for you or failed to grow.  We do offer a 100% Grow Guarantee on all of our items for the first growing season which states we can either send replacements or issue a merchandise credit.  On your Holland Bulb Farms accounts, I do see you placed a nice sized order on 2/4/22 and received it in the Spring during planting time.  You did reach out and provide some images for items that bloomed wrong.  We did issue you a refund totaling $134.38 for those items on 8/2/22.  The remaining items that you did reach out to us about from that order failed to grow.  Since there are many factors that are required for the success of the bulb that are out of our control, such as temperatures, lighting, humidity, water, etc., we were not able to offer a refund for those items.  However, we did issue a future replacement for one of the items to ship next Spring when it is back in stock again.  The remaining items, you chose a store credit.  We issued 2 separate credits in the amounts of $32.91 and $50.41 which you have already redeemed on an order placed on 6/3/22.  Per our Grow Guarantee, we are not able to issue a refund for items that fail to grow as mentioned in previous emails and communication with you.  Since the credits have already been redeemed, we are not able to refund this amount either.  Per your *********** account, I did notice similar issues with some items failing to grow from an order placed in 8/21.  You did reach out regarding a portion of that order in which we did issue you another store credit per your request which you have since redeemed on 6/23/22.  Again, we do not issue refunds for items that failed to grow and since you have already redeemed the credit, we would not be able to offer a refund for those items at this time.  You did also reach out regarding a *********** order you had  placed on 2/4/22.  You did reach out to us regarding some items from this order that failed to grow or grew wrong.  One of our representatives did email you back on 7/26/22 asking for clarification of which items failed to grow and if you could send images of the items that grew wrong.  Unfortunately we have not received any further clarification from you regarding this request.  We would be happy to find a solution for you if you are able to clarify which specifically failed to grow and send the images of what grew wrong.  I do see in previous communication with you, we have sent the links to our Grow Guarantee in emails for both of our sites and also have mentioned the guarantees can also be found on the back of all of you packing slips.  If you do need more clarification regarding what qualifies for a replacement, store credit or refund, we would be happy to send you more information.  Again, all items that we received images of regarding growing the wrong varieties, we did issue refunds for.  The items that failed to grow, you did choose replacements for one and store credits for the others which have already been redeemed.  We are still waiting for more information from you regarding the *********** order you reached out about regarding some failure to grow as well as some items that grew wrong.  Once we receive that clarification, we would be more than happy to find a solution per our Grow Guarantee.

  Thank you!

  Customer Answer

  Date: 08/17/2022

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
  
  [I provided pictures of every single specimen that failed or was the wrong product. I offered to provide more and am still willing to. Please let me know what photos or additional info you need to see to validate my claims. I have irrefutable evidence (both in my own experience, and in hundreds of online reviews) that you consistently ship the wrong products. This isn't a supplier error or a one time failure. You know this is happening, you are ok with it and you are profiting from it. With regards to the product that failed to grow, please note that I planted all tubers in two beds under identical conditions, following your instructions and best practices. I meticulously organized, tracked and labeled everything. The only bulbs that failed were from Holland Bulb and ***********, so you can't try to say that other factors such as heat, light, humidity, etc. are at fault. The rate of failure of your products is evidence of your poor quality. The only rational conclusion is that your business is a total scam. I will not accept a merchandise credit. After a year of planting and hundreds of dollars spent on your deceptive practices, the only acceptable resolution is a complete refund of Holland Bulb orders ******, ******, ******, and *********** orders ****** and ******. I am not even asking for a refund of all orders, just the ones placed this spring that were 100% failed or dishonest.]
  
  Regards,
  
  *************************

  Business Response

  Date: 08/18/2022

  Thank you for getting back to us.  After reviewing all of your previous emails regarding items that failed to grow from your Spring 2022 orders, all items mentioned and images sent of have been taken care of.  As mentioned in my previous message, we did issue a refund for items that arrived in poor condition and issued you a store credit for items that failed to grow upon your request. Since those credits have already been redeemed on future orders, we cannot refund you for those items.  As mentioned in previous communication, we only offer store credit or replacements for items that fail to grow.  We send live plant material that require specific care and needs after they are delivered that are out of our control.  Since those requirements are dependent on the consumer and environmental factors such as lighting, soil conditions, temperature and humidity, we do not offer refunds if items fail to grow as laid out in our Grow Guarantee.  Our Grow Guarantee is available for you to view at any time before and after the purchase of an item and is also on the back of your packing slip to review when the items arrive.  Again, we do our very best to delivery our items in good, viable condition.  If you do receive items in poor condition, we do require images to be sent within 5 business days of them arriving so we can rectify any quality issues right away.  If items do arrive in good, viable condition and are planted, the success of that item is dependent on outside sources out of out control as mentioned before.  This is why we do not offer refunds.  I do have the Grow Guarantee attached for you to review once again clearly stating if items fail, we offer replacements or store credit.  We only issue refunds for items returned to our facility within 10 days of them being delivered.  

  If you do have more images or items that failed to grow now previously brought to our attention, we would be happy to review those as well.  Please email us the specific order number, items and images and we can certainly offer a solution for those as well.  Again, we would offer a replacement or merchandise credit for those as well.  Our Grow Guarantee does not provide refunds as mentioned previously.  

  Thank you again and we look forward to hearing from you.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 08/19/2022

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
  
  [Please find attached a file with photos of every product in orders 758482, 836091, 758466 and ******. Every single product either failed to grow, or was the wrong product. You can keep citing "conditions outside of your control", but I can say with scientific certainty that your products are garbage an your business practices are deceitful. I am fully aware of your "grow guarantee"; you use this to hide your dishonest practices. This allows you to keep shipping whatever product you have on hand and deny customers from ever getting the products they thought they were ordering. I am not interested in a merchandise credit, as I know you will just send the wrong products again. Your business is a blatant fraud and scam. Based on the hundreds of online reviews showing customers having the same experience, I won't be surprised to see your business shut down by the *** or subject to a class action lawsuit. The only way your company can demonstrate any legitimacy at this point is to provide a refund as requested.]
  
  Regards,
  
  *************************

  Business Response

  Date: 08/23/2022

  Thank you for reaching out to us again.  Thank you for providing more images to us.  I have been issued you more of a refund but there is still some confusion that needs to be cleared up.  For order #******, you were issued a merchandise credit in the amount of $32.91 which has already been redeemed on a future order so we cannot issue a refund for that portion, you already received compensation for item #*****, *****, ***** through the credit.  Also, you reached out to us on 6/6/22 regarding item #***** stating it arrived in poor condition.  Unfortunately since you received this order in late March, we are no longer able to cover that item as stated in a previous email to you.  If any item arrived in poor condition, we do need to be notified within 5 business days of it arriving.  Since we ship out live plant material, we are not liable for items  past that time if they are stored.  Since it was over 2 months after when you did reach out, we cannot refund you for this item.  You were also issued a replacement order for item #***** to be shipped next Spring.  I have cancelled that replacement order and issued a refund on that order for a total of $178.60.  Again, the rest cannot be refunded since compensation was already given as a store credit and that credit has since been redeemed.  

  Order #****** was paid for with a merchandise/store credit that was issued on a previous order so we are unable to issue a refund.  The only option we have for this order is to issue you another store credit in the same amount since that is the form of payment used on this order.

  We do not have order #****** or #****** in our system for you.  Please double check which orders you are referring to and we would be  happy to find a solution.  

  Again, all refunds we are able to give at this point have been processed.  We are not able to refund if credits have been given in place of a refund and have already been redeemed.  We also cannot refund an order if a store credit was used a payment.

  Thank you.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 08/25/2022

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
  
  [Thank you. Orders #****** or #****** are with ***********. The photos and item #s are all included in the photos sent last week. These should be refunded as well since the same issue occurred. Either the tubers did not grow, or they grew and were a red topmix ****** that I did not order. I assume you would rather address these directly and not have a separate complaint opened.]
  
  Regards,
  
  *************************

  Business Response

  Date: 08/25/2022

  Thank you for reaching out to us with the correct order numbers.  These orders have also been refunded.  It is highly unlikely that this many items failed to grow from multiple orders.  For future reference, if items do fail to grow, we offer a merchandise credit or replacements for those items per our Grow Guarantee.  We do not offer refunds because the success of the items depends on following planting instructions as well as multiple environmental factors out of our control.  If items do arrive in good condition and are viable, we will do not issue refunds for failure since there was some other outside factor that affected the bulbs success.  We do hope you keep this in mind for any future orders and understand our policies are in place to still offer our customers a solution if any of our products fail despite outside factors that affect their success.  Our policies are online available at any time before an item is purchased so you can make the best decisions regarding your purchases.  A copy of the Guarantee is also printed on the back of all of our packing slips for further review once the items arrive.

  Thank you.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 08/26/2022

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
  
  [Thank you for processing that final refund. I accept this as satisfactory and will demand no further compensation for Holland Bulb Group's dishonesty. Since you went out of your way to include some backhanded barbs and hide your company's failures behind your dubious policies and customer service scripts, I will end with a couple statements of my own for the public record. I cannot agree more that it seems absurd that an order over $400 of products failed to grow across multiple orders. It is not just unlikely, it is suspicious! Hundreds of reviews on ***************** and Better Business Bureau from customers who have had the same experience seem to suggest that the suspicion lies with your company (I have noticed that negative reviews on your web pages are filtered out). That is why I am stuck with the impression that your production has completely broken down and people are just tossing random tubers into pre-labeled bags and hoping for the best, or that you just routinely ship the cheapest product you can find and count on customers not to complain. You have provided me with the requested refund, so I will extend you the benefit of the doubt and hope that you are not running a full-fledged scam. I hope you will invest in a consultant who can improve your quality control and update your customer service policies to allow for a legitimate product guarantee. If it is too expensive to do what it takes to ensure your customers get the products they are ordering, do the ethical thing close up shop. You have no business making profits while demoralizing honest gardeners.]
  
  Regards,
  
  *************************

• Initial Complaint

  Date:08/13/2022

  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.

  On July 1st 2022 was charged for the ordered purchase of 3 ***** Orienpet **** bulbs from Holland Bulb Farms. Received wrong bulb product. After sending photos for review of wrong bulb product to be verified, Holland Bulb Farms refunded me only the price of the product, $4.73. They did not refund me taxes and shipping, $7.99. Seeing that Holland Bulb Farms sent and shipped the wrong bulb product {photo verified}I should have received a full refund $12.72. It has been a frustrating planting experience this season receiving wrong product in the planting time frame. Request full and proper refund, additional $7.99.

  Business Response

  Date: 08/15/2022

  Hello,

  Thank you so much for reaching out to us.  I do apologize again the item on your order didn't grow as the correct variety.  We will certainly forward your images to our supplier to correct any issues with packaging for future.  I am showing there were 2 separate refunds issued to your Discover card on 8/11/22.  Once was for the item on the order and the other was to cover the shipping and tax.  Below are the transaction ID's for your reference.  It can take a few business days for refunds to reflect back to your account.  The second one may not have posted yet.  If you have any further questions regarding the refund, please contact your bank with the transactions ID's below.  

  [Credit] Discover: xxxx-**** AVS: : Trans. ID: ************ 8/11/2022 1:02:03 PM
  Approved: 8/11/2022 1:02:05 PM -$4.73

  
  [Credit] Discover: xxxx-**** AVS: : Declined: Credit error Trans. ID: ************ 8/11/2022 4:48:47 PM
  Approved: 8/15/2022 8:03:05 AM -$8.70

  Thank you again and please let us know if you have any further questions.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:08/08/2022

  Type:Product 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.

  Had wrong merchandise delivered. Bulbs need wintering to bloom, so time wasted until I discovered error. Occurred twice over two years' time. Contacted company. Refund provided for what I regard as partial restitution. Mailed letter to company owner, ***********************, with inquiry. No reply. Two months later, called the 800 number to ask if anyone could tell me -- simply -- if my letter was received. "No, no way to know." (!)

  Business Response

  Date: 08/09/2022

  Hello,

  Thank you so much for reaching out to us regarding your previous orders.  Unfortunately I'm not able to tell for sure if the owner did receive your letter.  Since you did provide another copy as an attachment, I can certainly forward it to him.  I do apologize again that a portion of your previous orders were not the correct varieties.  I do see that you did provide the images which we are forwarding the grower that packages these for us to hopefully have this continued issue resolved.  After looking at the previous orders, I do see that on your first order placed in 2020, you did reach out that the Parrot ***** on your order bloomed wrong at which time we provided a store credit for the amount you paid for this item which totaled $16.82.  That credit was then applied to the order placed in 2021.  It appears the 2 tulips you purchased with the credit also failed to bloom correctly.  On the most recent order, you paid $13.94 for the Parrot tulips and $10.94 for the ********* Green ***** for a total of $24.88 which is the amount that was refunded to you via a mailed check on 4/25/22.  Since we issued a Merchandise Credit for the first order and it was redeemed on your second order, a refund for the first order is not necessary at this point.  The refund from the second order reflects the amount on the Merchandise Credit that was redeemed.  At this point, the total refund of $24.88 does cover the items that failed to bloom correctly.  Again, I do apologize the items grew wrong and we are working diligently with our grower to ensure this does not continue to happen in the future.

  Thank you.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 08/11/2022

  [A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's response.  If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]
  
  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. I found a printout with the initial order and it included additional items that I had included in my total: my error.

  However, I have a further question for ****************: I did not cash the check, awaiting ******************** reply. Its value has expired. Could you please issue another one for $24.88?

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

  
  

  Business Response

  Date: 08/12/2022

  Thank you so much for getting back to us.  For us to void the check that was already issued, it would cost us more than what the check is written for.  We would be more than happy to issue you a new check in the amount of $24.88 but we do need you to send us the original one back so we can destroy it without having to pay the cancellation fee.  You can send it back to:

  Holland Bulb Farms

  Attn: Accounts Payable

  8480 *************

  ********* ** 53224

  Once we receive the check back we can submit a new one right away and send it to you.

  Thanks again!

  Customer Answer

  Date: 08/22/2022

  [A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's response.  If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]
  
  Holland Bulb Reps: 

  The expiration date on the check, 4/25/22, has passed the 90-day period. I will mail it to you as soon as I can get to the U.S. ************ Many thanks for your help.

  
  *******************************

  
  

• Initial Complaint

  Date:07/19/2022

  Type:Sales and Advertising 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.

  Purchases tiger **** roots and caladium bulbs which did not grow. Reached out to company for response 3 times and heard nothing. Looking for refund. Bad customer service

  Business Response

  Date: 07/25/2022

  Hello,

  Thank you so much for reaching out to us regarding your recent order.  I'm so sorry to hear some of the items didn't perform well for you this Spring.  After reviewing our accounts, we did receive one email from you on 7/4/22 but the body of the email was a copy of the tracking information we sent to you on 6/2/22 letting you know the order had shipped.  There wasn't any information regarding items that filed to grow.  Here is the email for your reference:

  **********************
  
  Subject: * :
  [Failure To Grow]
  
  Your Order # (if available): : ****************************** * :
  Dear ***************************,
  
  Thank you for your order from Holland Bulb Farms! We wanted to let you know that your order #HBF-856819-HBFSpring was shipped via ***** on 6/2/2022. You can track your package at any time using the link below.
  
  Shipped To:
  ***************************
  ************************************************************************************* USH
  
  Upload Image (not required): :
  N/A
  
  Unfortunately that is the only communication we have received from you regarding any of your previous orders.  The order you indicated also does have Caladium but does not include a Tiger Lily.  Unfortunately I do not see a Tiger **** on any of your previous orders.  We would be happy to find a solution for you regarding the Caladium.  Per our 100% Grow Guarantee, we can either offer replacements next Spring or a merchandise credit in the amount you paid for the item along with a free shipping coupon.  Per our Grow Guarantee, we do not offer refunds unless items are returned to us within 10 business days.  There are so many environmental factors that can play into whether or not an item is successful that has nothing to do with the viability and health of the bulb which is why we offer replacements or credits.  Please let us know how you would like to proceed and we would be happy to  take care of this for you.

  We look forward to hearing from you.