does this sound like fraud to you??? Or suspicious (long -can skip to **)?

If it's too long don't insult me, you can skip to the asterisk part, but don't lecture me if you didn't read it all!!!! -- I tried to order something online during a sale. I would have got £100 worth of free stuff. They cancelled it. Citing "security concerns" This is despite me passing multiple checks ( I will write them out) I phoned up and was told to re-order but I will need to pay full price this time. No discount, the sale is over. I SAY that is highly fishy. It was a clothing site. I signed up like last year, gave an email, and had an account with the site. I orderd last year, all okay. They sent me an email as telling me this one was cancelled due to a problem with security. When I asked what, I was told it was about my phone number. I told them I do not have one, I do not own a phone or have one registered to me (true). So they could not check my phone number even if they wanted to. On the site it asked for one and I put in something like 1111222 just to get past the form as I ALWAYS DO. As you know, we shouldn't give out our # willy nilly anyway, as they datamine it. They have no right to my phone number anyway..... Moving on.. so.. Here are the checks etc in place.... I added stuff to my basket, got to the payment page, signed into my online account with an email and password got to the final payment page entered my Visa card details, #, expiry date etc. Security # on back. MY BANK and the site have a FRAUD PREVENTION security check set up, last year I signed up to that too. I had to enter a password that I made earlier with Visa, which meant that it is nigh impossible for anyone to use my card, as they would also need to know this password. I passed it, success! Congrats, email reciept sent. We are processing your order.... It gets charged when it ships, but before it shipped, I got the email saying it was cancelled, around the time the sale ended. So please not I had not been charged and it was not a failure of no funds in my account etc. It was their internal system that refused it. So, despite the phone number 'problem' ************** I was getting the goods sent to MY NAME, the name that's on the card. To MY HOUSE, the address that's registered to the card. Sent to the name and address that is on my account with the website. So, on what planet would a fraudster have my card, my password, know I was signed up to X website, order a bunch of things, send it to the person who's name is on the card, send it to their address.. by registered mail... to be signed for... leaving a record. ..what were they going to do, hide in a bush and attack the delivery man when it arrived at MY house to surprise ME with gifts for myself?? ************* Am I right in thinking they are trying to rip me off? And if so, is there anything I can do to make them answer for it? Or at least call them out on their behaviour? I think Verified By Visa would be very interested to know that apparently said webshop do not think that their verification is quite strict enough, and one must apparently have a certain phone number to make an order. I was told also that, "this phone number has been used for orders in the same area in the past, so it was flagged as a potential risk" I said, WOULDN'T IT HAVE BEEN *MY* LAST ORDER? and the guy on the phone just said "i don't know" but it was flagged. "You may have slipped through the cracks the last time but it was noticed this time and your order was legitimately cancelled, there's nothing we can do. We take the security of our customers BLAH BLAH patronizing BS from a sheet" PLEASE don't get me wrong, I am asking because of these websites treating customers like *****. Can anything be done to at least get some SENSE out of them??? --------------------------------------…
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The only way we or you can be sure if they are trying to get out of the discount is to place the order again with the same security answers that you gave first time and see if the order goes through. If it does, then I would guess that they are screwing you and if I were you, would phone to complain and demand the discount and if they refuse, cancel the order and refuse to use them again. If it still doesn't go through, then there is a problem and I would call the company and find out exactly what it is. As for the telephone number, the only way they can confirm the address is via the telephone number and not the address on your bank account as they are not able to get that. Stupid huh? Yes but due to Data protection act on your bank account the banks can't confirm addresses. Good luck. KD PS Why the thumbs down? This is the only option you have to find out why they declined your order - Oh I know, nobody seems to have the single track mind you have, on this question or this question you asked the other day.
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