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LivingSocial review: thank you for your awful service 135

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Author of the review
4:23 am EDT
Featured review
This review was chosen algorithmically as the most valued customer feedback.

Hello Lauren x7009

Thank you for your awful service...
your so called "customer care" title should be removed immediately...AND as far as you being the only person to escalate my issue to in all of Living Social? Hmmm, Ive already written to the CEO of company.

After reading the reviews from other customers posted all over so many sites from all around the world about LS services it is more than crystal clear that I am one of thousands that has a complaint about your
lack of customer care and the LS site in general. The reviews speak for themselves - they are all Negative!

You were absolutely no help, did not resolve the issue and provided NO customer care - the advertisment for ISO Beauty Hair Dryers was 100% misleading.
The Deal Ad showed the ISO Beauty site where there were several dryers to choose from - after finding one, I purchased the voucher - nowhere on the deal ad did it mention there were limitations?
Upon receiving the voucher - the site to choose the product from changed! the hair dryer I originally bought the voucher for was not included! Whoever wrote this ad for you, should be investigated! It doesnt make any sense. There were no limitations to the hair dryer products on the Deal Ad ! And why would you post the ISO main site where there is a broader selection of dryers?

This is totally misleading! AND BAD Business!

I will post this message all over the place on the net and report you to the better business bureau - all your other Living Social EX customers are already there; ISO Beauty Co. is hearing about
about this case too
The fact that you could not even offer up one solution to keep me as a customer is disgusting and you called youself the manager with no other persons to speak with.
Nevermind the Deal ad anymore - Im stuck with it - but more importantly, you have absolutely no experience in customer care or how to keep customers returning!
Apparently you missed training day on "How NOT to loose the Customer"
Too bad for Living Social ! No wonder all the complaints

135 comments
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Korcene
, US
Aug 27, 2012 7:03 am EDT

I purchased a $21 San Diego Zoo Safari voucher and utilized their "Me + 3" deal by inviting my boyfriend, his brother and his mother to purchase tickets. They each received an email, and my boyfriend purchased one ticket per email link. The next day, my boyfriend received an email saying that because he used the same credit card for all purchases, the deal was not valid and we would not receive a free ticket.
Nowhere did it say that you couldn't use the same credit card, but for $21, it wasn't a big deal.
My boyfriend's card gets charged for 3 tickets, then two days later, one charge is returned. I contact Living Social, and they say that I only referred two people to the deal. I offered to give email proof and credit card statement proof. They ignored my arguments and changed their argument stating the 4th ticket didn't go through because the same credit card was used. If that were the case, then how did 2 tickets go through under the same card? And didn't you just say I never referred a 3rd person.

I asked to receive my rightful 4th ticket, paid or unpaid, but Living Social said that the deal was closed and they couldn't do so. Then, not even an hour later, I receive an email that states "Back by popular demand! San Diego Zoo Safari Tour!"

Living Social's customer support is run by hypocritical liars. They are willing to lose 4 clients and hundreds of future dollars over a $21 voucher. GROUPON is a much better service. Stay away from Living Social at all costs!

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Makine
, US
Nov 26, 2011 1:16 pm EST

I bought a voucher which was a nitemare for a day course of hair and make up the company said the course would be in one location and that they would provide equipment/goody bags includin mac make up and the company said they would email to confirm everything at least a week before I heard nothing until 3 days before and the told me a different location and that I needed to take my own equipment I emailed the company to complain and heard nothing back so contacted livingsocial direct they said they would give me a £5 voucher for there site! So I lost alot of money! I will never use them again as the obviously don't vet there merchants very well and the customer care and after care is terrible! Groupon did the same deal and my friend had the same issues as me and groupon were fab about it and gave them a full refund! I will NEVER use living social again!

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Pomandere
, US
Oct 09, 2012 11:18 am EDT

I have never written a review on any site until now. This company is a complete scam. We bought a voucher for a Limo for $450 No where on the site does it say call immediately and set up your date because if when you call and have trouble with a merchant they deal with you will not be able to get a refund. I had the merchant try to charge me to fees when I called one for the service pickup which was an extra $89 and one for gratuity which was $199. I was told by the merchant when arguing the $89 charge because I was within the 25 mile pickup radius that was printed on the voucher that I could just get a refund. So I decided to call Living social after they said that because I was so upset about all these charges I was trying to be charged that were not printed anywhere in the fine print of Living Socials Voucher. So I get a customer service rep that just apologized but basically said there was nothing they could do since the time past. He did offer to give me $450 back in Daily Bucks which I absolutely am not taking because I already did not want to buy another deal where I may run in to the same trouble I was experiencing with false advertising on what I was purchasing and no mention of additional fees. There should be a law against hidden fees that are not mentioned and it should be labeled as fraud to the consumer, especially when the company will not refund the money to the customer. I was then basically threatened when I refused to have $450, money which I do not have to be sitting in an account not at my disposable for things I need, I asked for a supervisor and was told that if I spoke to a supervisor the deal of the daily bucks credit to my account may be taken away. When I said I was gonna have my friend contact her credit card company and dispute the charge, the guy says to be well if she does that she will be charged with fraud because it is a valid charge. Excuse me, I bought a product that has no mention of additional charges I am going to be charged when I use a voucher, who is commiting the fraud?!

After I spoke to the supervisor, I was sent an email saying here is the refund policy. We will not refund your money or dailybucks. So guess it wasn't an idle threat from the customer service threat but actual fact. I was told to work it out with the merchant who had already agreed because of me contacting their manager that the $89 fee would be waived. But Living Social did nothing about getting the $199 gratuity charge so I had to contact them again. Per that phone call I was told it would not be waived and that the merchant does not get paid by Living Social until the voucher is redeemed. So my money isn't even with the merchant as I was originally told by the customer service rep and supervisor that the merchant had already been paid by them.

I absolutely cannot believe a company can do what Living Social is doing and getting away with it. I am contacting the BBB, my State Attorney Generals office and I have also found a class action suit with Groupon who is a competitor of Living Social and am gonna contact the attorneys representing clients on that case. At least in Groupons return policy they say refunds are case by case after the 7 days but not only on businesses that go out of business like Living Social does! The worst part about it is how ridiculous that they think this kind of customer service is going to gain customers. I will review on every site I can to tell people do not do this. You can find deals online through companies own websites and you are way better off dealing directly with the merchant then going through this 3rd party that just wants to Scam you and take your money!

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LAActor
Los Angeles, US
Apr 05, 2012 12:44 pm EDT

I bought a voucher for Actors Seminar Series from LivingSocial on March 14, 2012. The seminar was dated for April 4th from 1pm-5pm. They only do the seminars on Wednesdays and I usually have another on-going class that I take on Wednesdays, but picked this date because we are on a break so this was the only date I could attend. I showed up to the correct address at the correct time and no one was at the theatre. I found one guy in an office upstairs and he said they had no events scheduled on their calendar for that day. I called LS and after doing research, the guy told me that they had a similar complaint in the month of March for one of their seminars as well. They reached out to the vendor with no response. I looked online and the vendor only has a tiny website with a facebook link and a phone number and the facebook page is rarely used. I called the number and left messages but have not received a call back. There is no other mention of this vendor at all online. I was told it by LS it would take 3 days to research and try to make contact with the vendor, but that I probably would not get my money back and would have to take a credit for the amount to buy another voucher later. I told them I didn't want it and was told by another woman that if the vendor is able to reschedule the date and I cannot attend that I would only be eligible for the credit because they did reschedule. I picked a day specifically that I would be able to go and the vendor did not deliver on the class. So even if they reschedule, why should I be expected to go to the rescheduled date or lose my money? Especially since you said that this vendor has already had a the exact same complaint just last month. Why would I want to reschedule if they already have a habit of not showing up and conducting the seminars? The vendor did not deliver on it's promise so I should get my money back. I'm still waiting to hear back, but if in the end, I do not get a refund of my money I will report this to the BBB. After this, I just want my money back and I don't want to deal with the vendor ever again.

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Pliotte
, US
Jan 14, 2013 10:06 am EST

What a scam. I purchased a $69 price (a $280 value) for a basic photography workshop from Fotoscool in Calgary, AB. I was ready to book a session and all dates were booked in 2012 so I had to wait until 2013...AND...the instructor, Brad, said the regular price is always $69. If I didn't want to wait until 2013, I had to go through LivingSocial to get a refund. Listen...if a company was doing well at what they do...delivering a superior customer experience...they would not need LivingSocial. They would be acquiring new customers just by word of mouth. If businesses need LivingSocial to get new customers, they are under-delivering their services. Do NOT waste your money. Ask your friends/colleagues for a better referral.

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Opress
, US
Jun 29, 2012 5:43 am EDT

After purchasing my Living Social deal I read reviews online and MANY complained that after buying a deal they found fraudulent charges on their bank statement, and wouldn't you know a week after buying my deal I found a $50 charge on my statement from a gaming website. It seems this is a major problem at Living Social and because there have been SO many complaints and it just happened to me, I wonder if Living Social is taking any action to protect their customers. How do you expect to have any return customers?

Not only that but I had 3 friends buy my deal and because one was a couple that bought 2 deals on the same credit card Living Social DID NOT WANT TO GIVE ME MY DEAL FREE. After many emails back and forth they finally did agree.

I will NOT be buying any future "deals" from Living Social.

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Tyoper
, US
Jan 17, 2013 12:54 pm EST

These guys sell vouchers without any apparent vetting of the service or product provider. Have spent a month trying to contact the supposed provider of the cleaning service that I have purchased and heard nothing back. Contacted Living Social and they will not refund my money! No service and no refund - isn't this illegal!

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Tlubek
, US
Aug 03, 2016 5:24 am EDT

Same sad experience as many people. Business was unable/unwilling to perform the service I purchased, when I requested a refund from livingsocial, I continually received a robo response via email. When I called customer service, a very polite professional young lady continually gave me a 'robo' response that I did not qualify for a refund under their policies. When I asked to speak to her supervisor she continually, 'politely and professionally, " kept ignoring my request. When I continually asking why she was ignoring my request to speak to her supervisor. She 'politely and professionally" hung up on me. (note the sarcasm.)since they are unwilling to accommodate my request for refund, I will be disputing the charges to my credit card. I urge anyone who has has issues with Livingsocial to do the same. Believe me, they do not what to get too many disputed charges or they will lose their standing with their merchant bank. And then maybe they will treat their customers as they should be treated.

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Deiman
, US
Aug 03, 2016 5:24 am EDT

I signed up for the "$2000" LASIK special. There were no exclusions listed on the Livingsocial ad or voucher. Once at the consultation (after paying the $2000 to Livingsocial, $46 for the parking and spending hours at the office), I was told that my bladeless lasik procedure would cost $1000 more. Shame on LivingSocial for improper advertising!

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Rotgare
, US
Aug 03, 2016 5:24 am EDT

Living Social customer service was an F-. What a bunch of a**holes. I booked a housecleaning services with them that (thank god) was so overbooked the put my appointment 4 months out--I then had time to read the reviews and all the reviews of the service that had used LS vouchers were AWFUL! I tried to get a REFUND from LS but they would not have it! I tried to explain this was a service that allowed people to come into my home, not a restaurant or clothing shop. They were the rudest people I have spoken with in ages.

I had to settle for a $55 credit with LS and now all the good LS deals go through amazon and I am left with CRAP to choose from including deals that are 50 miles away from New Orleans, really they can't get deals in NOLA anymore because the merchants know they suck too...I will never use Living Social again after I use this credit which at this rate could be years.

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cheryldec
Asheville, US
Aug 03, 2016 5:24 am EDT

I am a merchant who has run two Living Social Escapes. They are a nightmare to deal with. They have grown so fast that they are in a state of chaos behind the scenes. Every time I call Merchant Support Services with the same issue, I get a different answer depending on who I talk to. They are inconsistent in their rules and processes, particularly regarding giving refunds to customers who have already booked a stay. My contact person doesn't take my calls, so I have to leave messages with her. I am trying to me polite through countless hours of trying to get to the bottom of one simple question: What do I need to do to let LS know that a customer has made a reservation with me? It's that simple, except that I get conflicting answers.

The bottom line is that I am protecting my business and trying not to lose money. If you are a merchant and you are thinking about launching a Living Social Escape deal, I would advise you to be very careful about proceeding with them. Their Merchant Center employees are not well trained and you will get a total runaround from them. I am frustrated with Living Social and exhausted from the countless hours I have spent trying to get a straight answer from someone that doesn't get contradicted by five other people.

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Srazike
, US
Aug 01, 2016 7:55 am EDT

I cancelled my order cause I found a lot of bad reviews about the manufacturer. And then I waited 3 days to send my first email ask where my refund was. The customer service said I needed to wait 3-5 days. Ok, so I waited.
After 8 days of the cancellation I sent the second email (no response), and then the third email, finally got the response on the 15th day.
"You were never charged for this deal. You will not see a credit in you account because when you cancelled it the whole purchase was just voided."
I don't understand why their customer service treat people like they are blind and cannot see the bank statement.
Now, I just called my chase bank to dispute the transaction and will never buy from them again.

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Claire scholes
Manchester, GB
Aug 01, 2016 7:44 am EDT

I bought a voucher for 10 pole lessons but unfortunately broke my are so was unable to do the classes and had Noone I could pass the voucher onto. I rang and spoke to a man about this who informed me that like it says on the voucher it did not expire until the 4/10/12 I then waited and now have been told when I can excersise with my arm again so called to book but was informed by sparkle that it us next week it expires. I then rang living social to ask what was going on and spoke to a lady called debbie who was very rude from the start by putting me on hold for a while whilst I was still talking to her and when she came back onto the phone was interrupting me and being rude! I was ringing to boom the pole sessions from may as this is when I can so the voucher expiring on 10/4/12 is no good for me. As the man I spoke to in the beginning told me it was this date and did not explain it was an American date I've been unable to use or give this voucher and is no good soni would appreciate a refund or living social credit to use in the future. Me and my family use you a lot for vouchers and are actually ready to sign our contract to advertise through you so would appreciate it if someone could get back to me soon. Thanks

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Dremko
, US
Aug 01, 2016 7:44 am EDT

Livingsocial.com is not bad. I like using the restaurant vouchers more than anything else. I'm always sure to check other sites, like yelp, to be sure the restaurant is not struggling and ensure they actually serve good food.
My biggest problem with living social is that they accept contracts from fly-by-night companies, like housekeep services. These individuals set up websites to look legit, but they are just individuals looking to get business.
Another complaint I have is that some business provide lower / reduced service when they discover you're using a ls voucher. It's like their main goal is to raise money fast, but not grow their business.
My advice is to research the business before purchasing the voucher. My rule of thumb is don't buy if you don't see any reviews for the company on the web.

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Sheba
, US
Aug 01, 2016 7:44 am EDT

Bought a voucher for 4 for a meal, couldn't get in as they were fully booked until the end of the promotion. I rang living social for a refund to be told that they don't give refunds and i should have read the small print that states 'subject to availability' . In other words they sell you a voucher which you cannot use if the restaurant is too busy, you pay for it and its hard lines if you cannot use it! FURIOUS! NEVER HAVE THIS PROBLEM WITH GROUPON!

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Srimtusse
, US
Aug 01, 2016 7:44 am EDT

My friends have had some good fortune with this site but unfortunately my experience has not been the same. It would appear that the companies that offer the vouchers become overwhelmed with the response and instead of setting a reasonable limit on the amount of vouchers they offer, they over-promise and ultimately under-deliver. Of course, at that point, it is no longer Living Social's problem as they have their money--they don't care if you have to wait 6 months to redeem your offer or not. in short, dealing with the customer service at Living Social is a painstaking process at best. I will not be using them again and will be telling my roommates, friends and family to be aware.

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Mickaroony
Worthing, GB
Aug 01, 2016 7:44 am EDT

Living Social charged us for a meal deal, so did the restaurant. A simple enquiry to Living Social was immediately stonewalled and quoted their terms and conditions, which in hindsight, are fully biased towards protecting them not their customers. I will never use them again. I suggest that before you buy a deal, understand tha if anything goes wrong outside of the vendor going out of business before you use your deal, you will get absolutely no customer support, no sympathy, and no intent to solve a problem. Quit simply, they are a rubbish company. Don't deal with them.

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Jigade
, US
Aug 01, 2016 7:44 am EDT

Useless... shower of $#*!s... tried ringing all day no reply then conveniently when time runs out to fix my problem they answer the phone and tell me time has run out, all because of the zip code box was filled out incorrectly... never again will i have dealings with them... ignorant people on the phone as well... telling me it's not their fault... they never replied to any of my emails regarding my problem.. which could have easily been fixed days ago if they had...

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Sicibe
, US
Aug 01, 2016 7:44 am EDT

My wife and I have been using living social for some time with good results. Now I will never use them again and caution anyone thinking of buying a getaway. We purchased a getaway and have been trying to use it and the resort is all but unresponsive. I have gotten so fed up at this point I just wanted my money back, and living socials attitude was to bad we wont help. DO Not Use them unless you like throwing money away, so far we have tot he tune of $531.00, I have also filed a complaint with the better business bureau.

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Bolien
, US
Aug 01, 2016 7:44 am EDT

LIVINGSOCIAL is a scam! They allowed a tele-sales company with a terrible reputation trade under a different name – I guarantee you, they would’ve sold a whole lotn less if people had known the name of the company before it pooped up on their bank statement! Plus, the image on the advertisement was completely different to what was offered – instead of getting luxurious memory foam pillows, I got mini-pillows, about half the normal size, that I can’t get pillow cases for, and look ridiculous!

In addition, the livingsocial customer service representative was terrible – he was reading of a spiel he had obviously shared with many oethers who had the same complaint, and could not have cared less. It’s so disgusting that sites like this promotye themselves as being consumer-friendly, when obviously, they are actually making bucks off of fine print and those who don’t stand up for consumer rights.

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Kouppe
, US
Aug 01, 2016 7:44 am EDT

This company is a scam, I would never touch them again I bought a deal nearly four months ago and cancelled the next morning as they said I could cancel within 5 days I waited for the refund for several weeks and when no refund appeared I spent months trying to get some sense out of them they strung me along for weeks and weeks then finally said they did not receive the cancellation which was an absolute lie as I sent it on their website they still refused to refund it I then went to the merchant at least he was decent enough and said when he received the money he would refund it to me but they never forwarded the money to them this constitutes theft this is the type of greedy grubby little company they are.

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Klimene
, US
Aug 01, 2016 7:44 am EDT

Living social are rude, incompetent and refuse to accept their responsibilities with those who buy from them. They honestly should be boycotted as its almost like selective 'scamming’, well maybe not quite that bad but I would not put it past them after all the things I have read, heard and now experienced concerning these kind of companies. This is the first time (last!) I ever used them as I'd seen and read about the vast number of dissatisfied customers from website like this (but friends had done so a few times with overall success, if a little bit hassle but nothing too bad) and they first send what they state is wrong code, so then another is sent, and quelle surprise, this one doesn't work either! So we call them and sit a queue for almost 15 minutes to be out through to not a very helpful person, i wouldn't call them a 'customer care rep' to be honest! Their response - oh no it doesn't work does it, after she tried it, and that we should call the merchant, which we had already done who advised us to call livingsocial. She was a little stumped from there and her response was that she will email their "overseas team" and "launch an investigation". how odd, i bought a voucher on a Uk website from home in Glasgow to access a merchant in Glasgow. But obviously an overseas team is so much better placed to deal with the problem. I clearly and calmly explained we needed code asap as its required for weekend (that we had arranged for people to come from a distance to take part therefore that fact she could not give us an length of time that this could take was totally unacceptable. It was only when we said, fine we shall just cancel the order, that she became a little more responsive - she emailed an hour later suggesting living social had failed to advise the merchant with the order and its code, but that this should be rectified by 2pm tomorrow - we will have to wait and see, and even then as the merchant requires 48 hours notice (working days) then it still may not work out in time for us. Utter idiots. Never again!

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Acione
, US
Aug 01, 2016 7:44 am EDT

I have used groupons for some time and someone told me living social was as good. NOT SO!
I gave them a try and bought a hypnosis session from living social only to learn for the first time at the appointment time that it was for a group session. No where on the living social site was this stated. Nor did the vendor inform me when I made the appointment.Furthermore, living social would not refund my purchase because too much time had lapsed.

Here's what happened - I bought the session and immediately tried to contact the vendor for the session. The vendor said that since I was interested in weight loss (a stated option) they would need to call me back to let me know when I could schedule it. I waited and waited then called them a few weeks later. The first available time was 3 weeks later. I went to the appointment and learned it was a group session. The time lapse was controlled by the vendor and funny how the appointment was scheduled so late!
I contacted living social - they said that the vendor's website indicated that they had group sessions so somehow I should have known that the one on living social was a group one even though it was not indicated - stupid me!

I use Grouponstry things out that I would normally never tried. and it has lead to repeat business when I like what I tried. I have also referred my friends to the vendors. When I had a similar issue like this with Groupon vendor - they made good! Living Social did NOT...The product they sold me was not properly advertised; stay away from living social.

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Druume
, US
Aug 01, 2016 7:43 am EDT

I purchased a voucher from LivingSocial. The deal wasn't honored and the LivingSocial team uses every argument imaginable, whether it makes sense or not, to not face their responsibility as vendor of the voucher to refund the money. Basically they make you wait on hold every time their argument is rebutted, until you get so tired of the process you just hang up. I've never been treated this bad as a customer. Save yourself a lot of frustration and money and stay away from them. You may be lucky and have a good deal, and you may be unlucky like I was and apparently most of the other reviewers and spend money on something that doesn't materialize.

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Immey
, US
Jul 26, 2016 6:53 am EDT

THIS SITE IS A JOKE! DON'T BUY ANYTHING!

I bought something from this site and wanted a refund after it was clear the deal they had sold me was undeliverable from the salon because of the numbers they had sold. Four 13 minute phone calls later where I was waiting for an answer the whole time but got cut off EVERY TIME - 6 emails to their 'help line' later and I get an email ONE MONTH LATER saying they couldnt help as the refund date was past! Joke its not about the refund date it is the fact they have sold me something that can't be delivered!

THEY ARE CR@P DONT GO ON THIS WEBSITE!

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rex57
, US
Oct 15, 2011 1:19 pm EDT

Living Social advertised that if you buy their deal and then invite three friends who buy the deal, then you get it for free. Living Social deliberately programmed their email so it would not send all three in time. There was no way for all 3 to get the deal. Living Social still got the email addresses. I tested it twice with the same result. False advertising by Living Social. They take advantage of loose FTC oversight on the internet. Don't fall for their scam.

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Asidos
, US
Dec 10, 2011 1:54 pm EST

I purchased vouchers several times and received the service with one exception where voucher expired. I purchased vouchers from Advanced International Cleaning prior to Thanksgiving. They did not have equipment to clean our tile, ruined it. Double charged. THERE IS NO RECOURSE VIA LIVING SOCIAL. THEY HAVE NO SKIN IN THEIR SALES. I called number on invoice and the company has NO IDEA who came to our house, different phone number and obviously stolen order sheets. Now to the BBB. BUYER BEWARE.

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Maguste
, US
Feb 01, 2012 5:03 pm EST

Living Social is a nightmare to deal with. I bought a spa package at the Hilton Hotel in Mayfair London in September 2011. I bought it for my parent's Christmas present. I tried to book for specific dates and they were always booked up. In December they said they were completely booked up and couldn't see their diary for May 2012 onwards until 1st of February when again I had to spend hours on the phone. I did call the Hilton Hotel the morning of the 1st of February and no one answered the phone. I called Living Social to complain (again) and they said it was my fault for booking the deal through a third party (themselves) and they would not be able to give me a refund. I have wasted hours and hours trying to book the treatment I have paid for without any result and would not recommend this to ANYONE.

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Boloke
, US
Feb 14, 2012 6:33 pm EST

I too wish I had visited a site like this before I signed up for a Living Social event. My husband and I signed up for the Mustard Adventure in the Napa Valley on February 4th. We were very disappointed in the entire 2.5 hours. The winery and staff and the Living Social staff were not professional. The “gourmet” lunch consisted of a turkey or vegetarian French roll sandwich, a tablespoon of fruit and biscotti. The tour (wait, I think they forgot the tour), and the mustard making were a huge disappointment. It was obvious they overbooked both the AM and the PM times. We attended the PM "adventure" and had to wait while the early group finished making the mustard because "they way overbooked the early session and there were more people than they expected." When it finally was time to sign in the list didn’t contain most names and we had to wait for them to find an updated sign in sheet. When it came down to time with the 2010 Chef of the Year, we all crowded around some small tables while the Chef of the Year spoke for a few short moments and then people received 4 recipe cards (not a recipe book) and made their way to one of the 5 tables where 5 people dressed as chefs watched as we measured and mixed a few tablespoons of ingredients and put into jars. The "adventure" lasted maybe 7 minutes. During the short time we spent in the wine shop we kept hearing “oh, we’re out of this or that wine.” Our efforts to get someone’s attention to answer a few questions were not successful so we walked out without purchasing any wine. We have unsubscribed from Living Social and will find it very hard to recommend this site to anyone in the future, especially after reading many previous reviews.

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Skuldpare
, US
Jun 26, 2012 5:42 am EDT

I did a 5k Mud run in Acton, CA. The Livingsocial staff was fabulous. But I have a problem. Livingsocial lied to us. They put that the value of the mud run was $120 and sold it to us for $60. It's easy to prove that the most expensive and the very best 5k mud runs cost around $60. No mud run costs $120. This was my first so I didn't know that. I talked to other people at the event that do mud runs all the time and they said that this mud run should have cost no more the $30 because it was at the very bottom of what a mud run should be. We all had fun and I’m glad I did it, but Livingsocial shouldn't be over charging for their adventures and lying about savings that don't exist. Plus it turned out the 5k mud run today was only 2.5 miles, not the full 3.1 miles it should be to be a 5k. And there was no mud; there was only a little dirty water at times. The picture they used to sell this showed people covered in mud; which is what usually happens at a real mud run. The event today was not what they advertised; there was no savings, and they actually charged more than they should have for this event. At this point, I'm not sure if I'll ever do another adventure with them since they lied and misrepresented so much about this one.

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Nursoke
, US
Aug 10, 2012 7:32 am EDT

Bought a voucher for a carpet cleaning service and it turns out the service does not exist. the phone number they gave me was to a private citizen's cell phone. A guy that never heard of the service.

I called Livingsocial.com, waited on hold for an hour, to try and get a refund and they refused, stating it was "policy". Their policy is to defraud customers and then shrug their shoulders when they are caught? I hope their CEO gets sent to prison!

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Scolken
, US
Mar 21, 2012 6:36 am EDT

I have been a merchant for Livingsocial. which means i put a deal out on their website. this has got to be the biggest mistake of my life. My business has nearly gone bust thanks to them. I get fake phone calls from their customer service team (the ring my phone and hang up for no reason at all) my offer was valid for 6 month and the expiry date has been and gone i am still redeeming clients for another 4 month after expiry date apparently this is not acceptable to them and i need to refund everyone! total joke they are. i would stay well clear from them. Plus the money i walked away with gave me an average wage of £3.00 per hour! so far it has took up 200 hours of my time and they expect me to repay that! i hate them with a very big passion they have made my life a misery.

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Wier
, US
Apr 09, 2012 4:04 am EDT

I'm reviewing Living Social's Escapes, their version of vacation packages, because after months of monitoring Living Social escapes and groupon vacations I can safely say you'll NEVER get a deal with either site when it comes to vacations.

Simple homework will show you that any hotel or resort you plug into Orbitz or any big travel site will return better rates than these "deal" sites offer, sometimes $100-$200 more.

Do your homework people, these deal sites are scamming you when it comes to vacations, usually it's by the fine print where it shows additional "taxes"(that orbitz and other sites take into account).

I have yet to see a "deal" that's cheaper than any other competitor's price or even cheaper than booking directly through the site.

Living Social really needs to step up their fact checking department to make sure that their user base is really getting the best deal.

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Lomka
, US
Jul 26, 2012 3:17 am EDT

Firstly BEWARE of the american date format on the App. This shows as 5/8/2012 which you would presume is 5th August 2012 however it isn't! It's in Amercian format which actually means 8th May 2012 ! Therefore you may think you have plenty of time left and you haven't. I've bought a few deals from living social now. Which I find is generally good value if you actually get to do it. However if for any reason you want to complain or ask for your money back (after the 7 days cool off period) then you've got no chance. The customer service from the "contact us" feedback form is rubbish. They advise they will get back to you "soon" but its generally at least 10 days. Then is just the standard "no refund, contact the merchant to resolve". My friend bought two vouchers for "luxury pedi/mani plus champagne" for £25 each. We booked it and the merchant cancelled 2 days before. After contacting living for a refund (as this place was an hour's drive away and had originally been booked for a 40th weekend treat) they refused and advised us to contact the merchant. The merchant was horrendous at getting back to us, no response for 3/4 weeks and no reply to messages left on number provided. Eventually after months and weeks of trying we were booked in again..only to be then told that it was cancelled again 10 days before. We have since been told by the merchant that Living social were a nightmare to deal with and sold to many vouchers and were asked to refund clients as the merchant could not complete all the vouchers sold. The vouchers is now out of date so we have lost out £50 thru no fault of our own. Extremely bad customer service ..unlike both Groupon and KGB who get back to you within 24 hours and usually refund immediately or contact the merchant for you for a full explanation.

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Mirjue
, US
Aug 23, 2012 5:50 am EDT

DO NOT give them your business! Had a terrible experience with living social, and I've realized that purchasing a coupon through them proved to be a complete waste of time. I purchased a photography coupon from Katie Bohannon photography, and could not make contact with the business owner to redeem my deal. After TWO months of calling and leaving messages with no response, I contacted living social to request a refund. They would not refund my money, and took 8 days to respond to me (after inquiring again). When I called, I was on hold for 21 minutes before someone answered! The customer service was HORRIBLE, and I had to demand to get a refund and refused to back down. They eventually agreed, and I should be getting my money back soon. They said "this is a one-time thing, we're never going to do this for you again" which won't be an issue as I will NEVER purchase anything from them again! I unsubscribed and hope everyone else will too. What a waste!

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empoweredconsumer
Adelaide, AU
Nov 08, 2011 3:08 am EST

The deal they advertised was misleading, showing a product in the image considerably larger than it actually was. When I called customer service, they guy was clearly well-versed in what to say: obviously quite a few had complained about the same thing. I was told too bad...
The company who the deal was from, was also trading under a different name, to hide from the consumer the actual business, a dodgy tele-sales company that received really bad press in the 90s.

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Korkenote
, US
Apr 23, 2012 8:02 pm EDT

Spent over one month trying to get a refund on a deal where the company NEVER responded to appointment requests (we called 8 times over 3 weeks). Living Social tried to deny us a refund---but THE DEAL WASN'T REDEEMABLE! Going back and forth with them I finally had to get our local Living Social merchant rep involved (He was awesome and knows a thing or two about customer service---which living social should take note of!). Anyway, because I got the local rep involved, they issued a "refund" of living social credits I can use on other deals but now I'm so sick of this stupid company I can't imagine using them so I may as well have not received a refund in the first place.

I should probably mention that I bought this deal as a GIFT to my husband for his birthday. How embarrassing that it turned out so badly.

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Balkete
, US
May 30, 2012 9:26 pm EDT

I wrote an email to detail my complaint. They responded with a pre-fabbed outline of their refund policy.

I wrote saying that they did not answer my question. I got no response (which is completely outrageous and unethical).

I called in and explained my position and they still refused to do anything.

Complaint:
Not all the terms and conditions were written on the original ad. I did not realize this until after the 5 day refund period, when I actually looked at the voucher and it mentioned, pretty blatantly that there should be a tip given and that it should be given on the "prediscounted price"

While I don't mind tipping in my day to day life, I find this distasteful and the fact that they did not disclose this on the original ad (deal) means that the "cost" that they advertised was not the true cost.

The way the handled it after the fact is even more ridiculous and shady; the customer service agent was actually adversarial with me. Unbelievable. Never use a shady service like Living Social.

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Alibrone
, US
Dec 15, 2011 5:31 pm EST

Purchased a $99.00 Two-hour Holiday light tour limo ride. Was unable to reach PREMIER ENTERTAINMENT (Limo Company) for over 5 weeks to even attempt to schedule the event! Their voice mail remained FULL and no one would respond to my e-mails! Eventually, after many, many attempts, I reached Dave Rivaudo, owner of limo co. After numerous dates hped for, we fianlly were able to schedule a 5:30 pm Thurs. evening light tour. Family all came together, son came back from out of town work early, the limo co. called less than 2 hrs. before scheduled pick-up time, saying limo was in shop, we must reschedule. Dave recommended the following Saturday evening (5:30pm), we agreed, family gathered awaiting the arrival of car, anticipating quality experience..NO SHOW! After a few failed attempts to reach Dave Rivaudo, owner of limo co., finally was able, said he had us down for a DIFFERENT day! He asked if we could, once again, reschedule! Well, the definition of insanity, is doing the same thing, expecting different results! I was NOT going to get the hopes up of all involved again, build another evening around a "shady" limo company. Dave assured me that even tho I must go through LivingSocial for refund there would be no problems! GUESS AGAIN! Spoke with a very rude customer "service" rep, Sarah W. at LS, who told me she would be unable to refund since it was more than five days after voucher purchase! HELLO! Part of the problem from "get~go" was that it took more than 5 WEEKS for me to reach limo co to schedule the above mentioned event! Sarah showed ZERO empathy or validation of my frustration. I had to "fight" for a refund, threatening to contact our local consumer advocacy person with local news station. Sarah finally relented and agreed to refund! By this time, I was not only frustrated, disappointed, now exhausted and have lost all faith in LS and do not plan on purchasing through them again! Buyer beware!

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PendragonV
Radcliffe, GB
May 30, 2012 7:43 pm EDT
Verified customer This comment was posted by a verified customer. Learn more

Ordered Voucher from Living Social on 22 May 2012 at 21.00 hours at a cost of £33 for the Wilmslow Tavern, Cheshire. Voucher details received via email at 7.00 hours on 23 May. I cancelled it at 09.48 hours on 23 May. Despite sending 10 emails, I only received a reply on 25 May with a case number [protected] and despite further email requests, they have ignored these and I am still awaiting a refund. I have had problems with this company before and will not be using them again. Please can you help.

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