Purchasing Tips for Hurricane Victims
Posted by Rich Mortlock on Sun, Sep 07, 2008 @ 07:12 PM
Credit Card Problems Developing for Hurricane Victims
Our East coast and Gulf states have been battered by severe weather and more is on the way. No doubt, you or someone you know will have lost their home and/or personal possessions to these terrible storms.
AHD Electronics is offering several tips for victims of Hurricane damaged areas in the United States. We are saddened by your losses and want to help you get your life back to normal as soon as possible.
Our experience with disasters
We know disasters firsthand! The management team at AHD Electronics have over 30 years Police-Firefighter-Rescue experience and understand the devastation caused by natural and manmade disasters. Personal effects, pictures, cars, boats, clothing, electronics and more are all destroyed or lost in an instant. If this has happened to you, when you are ready, we would like to help get you back on your feet.
We would suggest shopping locally if possible for the replacement of your lost items. This will help keep stores and businesses open if they did not suffer much damage during the storms. Shopping locally will stimulate local community economy.
However, if you find that local prices have risen tremendously due to demand or store shelves are empty of inventory we encourage you to find bargains on the internet away from storm areas that will have what you need.
Making purchases through most websites
If you were displaced as a result of the storms and have had to take up temporary residence with an address that is different from the one that appears on your credit card statement, you "Most likely will have difficulty getting any transaction or sale to go through on-line".
The problem is that almost all website security software for credit card transactions will not allow a purchase shipped to an address different from that on your billing statement. (This prevents unauthorized sales due to lost or stolen credit cards being used to make purchases and then having them shipped to a different address without the true card holders knowledge). Or at least until the statement shows up.
What you can do
- Report your lost or stolen cards immediately
- Call your credit card company with a temporary address change. You will need to verify your identity
- Explain your situation to the on-line retailer. Don't be surprised if they request more information from you to protect against fraud. Remember, this protects YOUR Credit Card from being charged. The merchant still gets paid! Most legitimate on line retailers have a fax # for you to send a copy of your Driver's License, to help with security.
- Save your receipts in case your insurer needs proof of purchase
- Communicate with the retailer. You may be able to work out a time payment plan to spread the cost over time for purchases
- Consider opening a temporary Post Office Box (This will help ease confusion and lost mail/packages if your home or mailboxes are compromised). Let your on-line retailer know about the PO Box. Most package delivery services will not deliver to Post Office Boxes and you will need to use USPO services for delivery.
How AHD Electronics can help
If you need to replace consumer electronic items that were destroyed, please look over our website to see if there is something we supply that will fill your needs. We have discounted our entire store inventory and hope that we can be of service to you in your time of need. Phone service in affected areas of the country may not be reliable. If you need to contact us, we encourage you to email Rich Mortlock at: sales@ahdcompany.com