Helmetcity.com

I know people have differing experiences with different businesses, so I'm not going to go all hell and brimstone on this place. I'll just lay out what happened to me.

I order a Shoei (size small) from Helmetcity.com. When it shows up, it's a medium. The box is labeled medium, and the stickers all over the helmet read medium. When I try the helmet on, there's a lot of room. So I call the company up, and they tell me that the package was shipped directly from Shoei and that Shoei had replaced the helmet pads with pads to fit a size small head. I tell them that there's a lot of excess room in the helmet, and that with past Shoeis I've worn, the smalls never had that much room. So they get a Shoei representative on the phone that tells me that the pads were replaced inside the helmet to fit a size small head even though all the stickers/labels, etc. say medium.

I'm not thoroughly convinced, so I stop by a local cycle shop that has Shoeis. Funny enough, when I try on a few of their size smalls, they all fit. And they all fit much tighter than the one Helmetciy.com sent me. I even try on a size medium to make sure I'm not mistaken. And the size medium fits just like the helmet I received from Helmetcity.

So I call Helmetcity, and tell them that I think they might be mistaken about the sizing of the helmet they sent me, and that I'd like to return it for a refund. The guy on the phone seems apologetic and offers to waive any restocking fees. So I think everything is cool, and I send the helmet back. Brand new and unworn.

But I never got a full refund. Turns out they did charge me a restocking fee, and they took it out of my refund. $75 for restocking.

I'm not sure if they forgot to waive the fee, or if it was some kind of trick on their part to keep me happy. I wasn't mean on the phone or anything, but it did seem like I had to do a lot of convincing to let them know they sent me the wrong helmet. I didn't realize that this would such a pain in the ass.

Take it for what it's worth. Some of you may have had good experiences with this place, but I like to judge a business on how they handle problems and not on how they handle things that go smoothly.