Beware Ripofff Artists!

[Cadet Jack]

Hello Cruisers,

 

DW and myself just returned from a 7 day cruise aboard the Carnival Miracle. Weather in Belize was terrible, so DW decided to shop in the terminal mall. It was obvious that a lot of the products were knockoffs and the buyer should beware. However, one of the most blatant bits of skullduggery happened in a shop called "Hey Mon, Shut up and Buy Something".... Charming name. DW was getting cold and wanted a light jacket to wear back to the ship, so I was prepared to dicker over the price for the jacket. (I had watched a fellow bargain them down to $10 just a few minutes before!) They wanted $30 for it. I told them what size I wanted and he searched for that size but couldn't find it. So, He grabbed a jacket off the rack and said that he would be right back after he checked the warehouse.... Why did he need to take one with him?

 

After a few minutes, he came back with a jacket that had the size that I wanted on the label. Trouble is, the label did not match the ones on the rack. I said that I wanted to try it on, knowing the difference between my size and my DW. He quickly held up the jacket and said that it wasn't necessary. I grabbed the jacket and slipped it on and as I suspected, it was at least two sizes off what I asked for. I threw it back at him and walked out. Just as I left the cubicle, a woman came in with two t-shirts that she had bought a few minutes before I had arrived. She had the t-shirts in her hand with labels that had been hot glued over the original labels. They just smiled and pointed to the sign that stated "No returns, No exchanges". I'm glad I went with my gut feelings and checked before buying.

 

At this point, I believe that I would be skeptical about anything purchased in Belize. I know that the country is poor and could use the influx of tourist dollars, but scamming the tourists is not the way to bring people back.

 

Jack

[ute_fan]

It isn't limited to Belize. My DH had a similar thing happen in Cancun. He saw a T-shirt in the flea market right at the pier where the NCL Sea tendered to, but they didn't have his size. The vendor tried to convince him that it would fit, but he said no and walked out. Soon the vendor came chasing him down, stating "I found one in your size". All he had done was taken a pen and changed the "L" to "XL".

 

As anywhere else, "Buyer Beware".

[popcorngal]

Magee, I am CadetJack's DW, and I too was witness to this incident. My husband was merely relating the incident that happened to us at one particular vendor. Since I don't believe you were there at the time, I don't feel it appropriate for you to take potshots at his statement of what happened. Yes, I am sure there are legitimate business people doing business there. But the place is flooded with fake Louis', fake Gucci and the list goes on and on. Yes, we recognized them as fakes. No one was trying to do the old bait and switch with them. But that was definitely the case with the t-shirt guy. Also, you were not there to see the cheesy grin on his face when he pointed to the "no refund and no exchange" sign. He knew he was scamming people which makes it even worse.

 

That is one of the great things about Cruise Critic. We are free to post our good and bad experiences, and to warn our fellow members where we see a need. Maybe once you've been around here for a while, you won't see the need to jump down someone's throat for relating a personal experience that greatly troubled him!

[Dr. Hooper]

Cadet Jack,

 

Thank you for providing the information on the scam. I don't think you owe anyone an apology!

[Cadet Jack]

Magee,

What she said!:)

 

While I did not intend to berate the general population of Belize, I can and do hold accountable a government that allows such activity to go on without consequence. While I was prudent enough to check out things before buying them, there were those who were caught by the unscrupulous actions of the vendors. There was no gesture of good faith by myself or anyone else.... We were purchasing a product, for which we expected to receive appropriate value for the agreed conditions, which includes supplying the proper size.

 

Perhaps Belize should apply for reinstatement as a British colony and operate under British law.

 

I apologize to no one for simply stating my observations and the conclusions reached from what I saw and heard.

 

Jack

[evildiva]

I have heard from some locals in Belize not to purchase anything at the pier, that the prices are too high and that they try to scam you. Outside of the pier terminal is a local "market" that we have purchased items at and never had a problem. They can be a bit pushy but they are not too bad and the merchandise is half of the price of the pier shops. They are nothing like when you are shopping in Mexico...sorry you had a bad experience.

[Cadet Jack]

Marvin,

 

Thank you for your interest in this problem. Yes, I did respond emotionally and I am so glad that you were influenced enough to set the record straight. Indeed, please let me know of the outcome to your investigation.

 

Thanks,

 

Jack

[salty dingo]

You know, buying anything at a tourist pier is bound to be risky. Anyone who shops there should know what they are getting into. This is not the US and we should not expect that merchants operate like we want them to.

 

Simply vote with your feet and with your dollars and go away from the tourist areas to shop. Or don't shop at all!