All the way From Hong Kong for NOTHING!!

Well, The crazyness continues. Because I steadfastly REFUSE to pay $20-$30 for a .01 cent replacement wrist peg on eBay it has become a QUEST to get Hot Toys to replace the defective snapped wrist peg in my brand new TDK Batman. FINALLY after at least ten letters to customer service, I recieved a response from Hot Toys which I'll include here.


Dear Dennis,

Hi! Please note that your replacement has been shipped by a registered airmail.

Should you have further question or problem of receiving the parcel, please feel free to contact us.

Thanks with regards,
G Tse / Hot Toys

So, "Problem solved" right? I recieved the registered letter today, all the way from HONG KONG! And it was FREAKING EMPTY!!!!! I couldn't BELIEVE IT!!!
They mailed me one wrist peg in a STANDARD letter envelope. That little piece was NEVER going to make it through all the mail sorting machines from Hong Kong to here with out ripping open! So now I've got an envelope covered in stamps and important looking seals with large gashes ripped into it and NOTHING inside! This is soooooo ludicrous that it's bordering on humorous. How can you send a little part like that using expensive registered mail all the way from HONG KONG and not take the small extra precaution of putting the part in a bulkier envelope? A LETTER envelope? SERIOUSLY???? Holy Crap. So now after waiting for weeks for the part I end up with an empty envelope. Now I have to start writing letters ALL OVER again. This has become a real test of will. I will not give up. It's not even about the peg anymore. Now it's just a matter of principal.

Ouch, that's brutal.
Hope things work out the second time around.

Isn't it the post office who are now at fault? It's not registered for nothing. You would have had to sign for it. Do you know why and what you are signing for?

All too late now, and you will probably have to start the process all over again, but as it's the principal, you may as well let the Post Office have their responsibility in the matter tested.

The U.S. Post Office accepts NO responsibility for items that are mailed in letter type envelopes that SHOULDN'T be. (In FACT, they really HATE it when people DO that because it screws the machines all up and causes damage and a sorting stoppage while they try to get the machine unstuck.) Yes, I knew what I was signing for. I was signing for an envelope that said "Hot Toys" on the front. It wasn't 'till I got inside and opened it that I realized that it was empty. But as I said, the Post Office would not take ANY responsibility for it anyway. I know this because I had a girlfriend once try to mail me some jewelry in a letter envelope and the same thing happened (we were both 15 at the time and too young to know any better) When I complained about the missing jewelry, the Post Office told me "Tough s***. You should have used a proper envelope."

The pred wrist pegs where said to be to big right?

Yeah (sigh), They're WAY too big.

Good luck dude! Like you said it is a matter of principle. I have found the customer service at Hot Toys to be lacking of late. I sent them close to ten mails to fix my original costume Batman that wasn't glued well.......think they were deliberately avoiding me. Because when I sent them an email regarding something else they replied within 2 days. Also didn't have a problem getting a Wolf Predator body replaced.

Have you tried to dye a truetype wrist peg? Softer plastics like that of the wrist peg will usually take dye if you do it on a stove top. It might not dye completely the first time, but maybe after a few dye baths it might be good enough. Also maybe very carefully burning the plastic. Like running it in and out of a small flame will blacken the plastic.

Will the wrist pegs from the SSC armor body work? If theyre not identicle, they might be close enough to work with.

Wow...even one of those orange evenlopes would have held up better. Even so, that envelope looks like it was run over 25 times with a garbage truck...

Sorry man. Hope it all works out.

That sucks!!! Good luck man, I won a Sideshow head on Ebay once that mailed in a regular envelope! The fact that I even received it was insane! Good luck man, be persistent, you'll get the piece from them eventually.

I think that's what pisses me off the MOST. My broken Batman (Original Costume) was around $175, I have already paid for my TDK "New Costume" Batman (another $175), AND I have pre-ordered ALL THREE of the upcoming Iron Man releases (MK I, II, & III) at around $150 a piece. Altogether that's $800 of my hard earned dollars that I've given them (at a time when money is TIGHT no less) and I can't get ANY help or attention from them on a lousy little 1 cent part that SHOULDN'T have snapped the very FIRST time I tried to put a new hand on. So now I've got a $175 dollar figure that I'm embarassed to display since he looks like Captain Hook, and a company that is getting a lot of my money that obviously couldn't give a S*** less about me as a customer. How could they mail it in a flimsy paper envelope? And it took TEN letters just to get THAT! I LOVE their product. The detail is amazing, but it doesn't mean anything when I can't display pieces because I'm afraid they'll break and then Hot Toys will screw me like they're doing now. I told them that if they didn't replace the part I would cancel ALL of my upcoming orders, but I don't think they give a crap. They know that if I don't buy them then someone else will.

I know it's a matter of principle now, at least it would be with me, but you can always try the EBay route? I agree with you 100%, money is tight these days, you are the customer, they should be concerned that you are threatening to cancel $800 orders over a part that costs them .01 cent. Is there any way that you can take it higher? Have you looked online to see if you can find the name of the President of Hot Toys? Give it a shot, it's a lot of leg work, but it's worth it to make a stink every now and then.

Spidey7 said:

The U.S. Post Office accepts NO responsibility for items that are mailed in letter type envelopes that SHOULDN'T be. (In FACT, they really HATE it when people DO that because it screws the machines all up and causes damage and a sorting stoppage while they try to get the machine unstuck.) Yes, I knew what I was signing for. I was signing for an envelope that said "Hot Toys" on the front. It wasn't 'till I got inside and opened it that I realized that it was empty. But as I said, the Post Office would not take ANY responsibility for it anyway. I know this because I had a girlfriend once try to mail me some jewelry in a letter envelope and the same thing happened (we were both 15 at the time and too young to know any better) When I complained about the missing jewelry, the Post Office told me "Tough s***. You should have used a proper envelope."

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Well you seem to be too annoyed to read between my lines. That's fair enough for on this board, but it makes me wonder how you worded those ten letters you sent Hot Toys to finally get them to send the part.

It is also apparent you do not know what you are signing for, because "I was signing for an envelope that said "Hot Toys" on the front." is not the correct answer. Basing this experience on a past experience is just false assumption. Yes I am making an assumption that the letter your girlfriend sent you, with the jewelry inside, wasn't registered. Go to the post office and find out what it means for a letter to be registered and ask what it means for you to be signing for it. No good being mad at what I'm saying and replying with misinformed diatribe.

Lastly, you make no mention of who you bought this figure from. Definitely not Hot Toys. I think one of the reasons Hot Toys doesn't sell direct to the public, other than through their own store, is to avoid the language barrier problems. They aren't going to hire translators for every language that their items are sold to. Maybe this is part of the reason you are angry about how long it took and how many letters you had to write them. They just didn't understand what you were saying. Everyone doesn't understand English, and shouting louder doesn't make a difference.

Back to who you bought the item from. Your first port of call should have been the place where you bought your figure from. They too may have a language barrier problem, maybe not, but they are the ones to go to first. They in turn will contact Hot Toys for the required part. They are distributing Hot Toys items and that is part of their roll. The bad news there is that they may possibly charge you for the shipping/mailing costs. They may even ask for the entire figure to be returned for replacement, though I think they ought to be happy with pictures of the broken part to forward on to Hot Toys. That is the chain of command that should have been followed.

Spidey7 said:

I think that's what pisses me off the MOST. My broken Batman (Original Costume) was around $175, I have already paid for my TDK "New Costume" Batman (another $175), AND I have pre-ordered ALL THREE of the upcoming Iron Man releases (MK I, II, & III) at around $150 a piece. Altogether that's $800 of my hard earned dollars that I've given them (at a time when money is TIGHT no less) and I can't get ANY help or attention from them on a lousy little 1 cent part that SHOULDN'T have snapped the very FIRST time I tried to put a new hand on. So now I've got a $175 dollar figure that I'm embarassed to display since he looks like Captain Hook, and a company that is getting a lot of my money that obviously couldn't give a S*** less about me as a customer. How could they mail it in a flimsy paper envelope? And it took TEN letters just to get THAT! I LOVE their product. The detail is amazing, but it doesn't mean anything when I can't display pieces because I'm afraid they'll break and then Hot Toys will screw me like they're doing now. I told them that if they didn't replace the part I would cancel ALL of my upcoming orders, but I don't think they give a crap. They know that if I don't buy them then someone else will.

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I've been through this dismal experience myself, so don't think I don't have a sympathetic ear. I took action. I hate it when people say "If you don't like it, don't buy it". Derrrr. If I didn't like it I wouldn't buy it. It makes them sound like half wits. I don't need to hear that drivel, so I decided not to buy anymore Hot Toys. Except I relented and bought an Edward Scissorhands. Even though the likeness is crap and their reasons why their likenesses can be utter crap on some figures should mean their prices should be much lower, they suck. Hot Toys sucks. I've said it before and I'll say it again, but don't worry people I wont rub your noses in it at every opportunity. Just this time cause I haven't said it in a while. Hot they're NOT.

creecher said:

Well you seem to be too annoyed to read between my lines. That's fair enough for on this board, but it makes me wonder how you worded those ten letters you sent Hot Toys to finally get them to send the part.

It is also apparent you do not know what you are signing for, because "I was signing for an envelope that said "Hot Toys" on the front." is not the correct answer. Basing this experience on a past experience is just false assumption. Yes I am making an assumption that the letter your girlfriend sent you, with the jewelry inside, wasn't registered. Go to the post office and find out what it means for a letter to be registered and ask what it means for you to be signing for it. No good being mad at what I'm saying and replying with misinformed diatribe.

They aren't going to hire translators for every language that their items are sold to. Maybe this is part of the reason you are angry about how long it took and how many letters you had to write them. They just didn't understand what you were saying. Everyone doesn't understand English, and shouting louder doesn't make a difference.

Back to who you bought the item from. Your first port of call should have been the place where you bought your figure from. That is the chain of command that should have been followed.

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There is no "diatribe" my friend. I'm as mellow as a cool spring breeze. While I appreciate what you are saying with regards to THIS incident, if you read this whole thread (or look on any of the other boards) this is but one of many stories of customers that are having a difficult time with Hot Toys and their customer service. Considering that (like it or not) english is the world wide "language of business" these days, I would be willing to bet solid money that there are plenty of english fluent people that work at Hot Toys. Furthermore, if you (as a company) are going to publish a product website in ENGLISH, along with all of your customer service contact information in ENGLISH, then at least SOME of your employees should speak ENGLISH.

You are an odd cat. You freely admit that you do not like Hot Toys, and yet you look for every reason to point out that this situation is not their fault. So far you have suggested that it's MY fault for signing for a letter without knowing that it was empty AND for being (in your estimation) too "annoyed" to be able to send them a polite and business like e-mail. It's the POST OFFICE's fault for having sorting machines that don't accomodate letter envelopes with small parts in them. It's the distributors fault for selling the item in the first place. It's all of our faults for having the unreasonable expectation that Hot Toys customer service should respond promptly to letters from customers or that they have employees that can communicate with other cultures (since they are a WORLD WIDE company). On one hand you paint yourself as an apologist for Hot Toys and then you turn around and say that they suck in your opinion.

As far as my "diatribe" toward you, you may not be aware of this, but you come off as a little "prickly" in your posts. You also tend to speak down to others as though you were coming from a place of "enlightenment" that the rest of us are just not privy to. Then you come down from the Mount to share with us where we went wrong, and how we were just not able to see the fact that it is our OWN shortcomings, not Hot Toys that have lead to this unfortunate situation. FYI, as many customers as are dealing with this lack of customer service issue, it might tend to rub some the wrong way.

Poor customer service, I've had no reply about my three snapped pegs, very poor.

I agree, diatribe may have been too strong a word. That's not the point or something to get hung up about. As I don't have complete and full information I do assume much. What else can I do?

To argue for the sake of arguing, when you buy from a Chinese company, maybe you should know Chinese. What I mean is, this line of tack is irrelevant. Should I highlight some words for you? IRRELEVANT. Does that come over a little prickly?

I may not like Hot Toys, but it doesn't mean I'm unreasonable. I'm not going to let the mounting bad experiences I've had with them dictate the way I feel about everything and allow it to make me totally bitter. Funny, when I go to their website I don't see a "Customer Service' section. That's something you get on a Sideshow site isn't it?

I'm not saying this is not their fault. I was just saying there are extenuating circumstances that you readily seem to overlook, or haven't included, or chose not to include in your post. So many scenarios, am I to know all of them from my enlightened stand point? If you assume that I suggested you were at fault for receiving an empty article, that is your right and misassumption. I can't help the way you think, only point out some things you may not have been aware of. A judgement I make with the information you provide. If it makes you feel better, I apologise, for my thought, that you could possibly be annoyed. I don't know where that came from. Your comments after that are purely unreasonable and amount to you having a verbal tantrum.

You could have handled this without making it known to anyone, but you chose to tell the good collector folk your troubled experience. It's just that I take responsibility for my own problems. Problems I have experienced and have come to a conclusion. Things I have learned that have enlightened me, and I thought may enlighten you or others. I don't make all my problems known, only ones that I have inexperience with and could use some help. And yes I am an odd cat. From some peoples reactions to me I think I have a different point of view to offer. That can be confronting, helpful, or thought provoking, depending. At this stage I would prefer it if you just said I stink, like everyone else.

Here is the link for you. https://www.hottoys.com.hk/contact.php This gives you all of the customer service info in english. It's strange that you consider the "english vs chinese" language issue to be "irrelevant" since YOU are the one that brought it up, not me. I don't know where you get the "verbal tantrum" thing from, but it fits in with your "diatribe" comment. As far as "taking responsibility", I have. I have taken it by contacting the company repeatedly and attempting to get them to honor their product. I chose to "make my problems known" because this seems to be a problem for MANY people who have purchased expensive items from them. There is strength in numbers, and if enough of us complain about having paid our hard earned money for products which break if we look at them cross-eyed, then maybe Hot Toys will start sending out a few replacement parts. Judgeing from the amount of others that are also having this "wrist peg" issue, it sounds like a design flaw or shoddy manufacturing at the minimum. I am not ONE disaffected customer who is trying to make a great deal of noise. I am one of MANY who are dealing with this issue. I don't really understand how the fact that you have chosen to handle similar issues in the past without saying anything to anyone is applicable to our current situation.

In the end, the fact that you seem to be actively trying to believe that I am directing "diatribes" and "verbal tantrums" at you speaks to some sort of deeper issue. This suspicion of mine is backed by your request that I "Think that you stink, like everyone else does". It hints at some sort of persecution complex or personal need to believe that you are a brave outsider weathering the slings and arrows of the common troglodytes that hound you.

None of this is really here nor there, except that it is slowly and inexorably drawing this thread off of course. Instead of being about Hot Toys and their customer service it is becoming more about you and your belief system. Although I find it all interesting, perhaps we should start a separate thread about it and in THIS thread, get back to the issue of Hot Toys and their customer service.

You don't have to try so hard to be unlikable. We won't bite you. Hell, I LIKE you Private Joker. You can even come over and bang my sister! Why don't you just join our merry little band of Hot Toys gripers? I'll even nickname you "Stinky" if it makes you happy.

Sorry to hear that, man. What I would do would be to buy a set off of Ebay so that I could display it for the time being. Then keep mailing Hot Toys until they send you another set and then sell that on Ebay to get my money back, and possibly a profit.
Here is a set:
https://cgi.ebay.com/1-6-HOT-TOYS-BATMAN-THE-DARK-KNIGHT-Ver-HAND-BALL-JION_W0QQitemZ200273971375QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_0?hash=item200273971375&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=72%3A570|66%3A2|65%3A12|39%3A1|240%3A1318

That's brutal... I'd be lying if I said I didn't laugh as soon as I saw the photo of the envelope, which I saw before reading past Hot Toys email!

You'd have to admit humour is lacing this fiasco!

Spidey7 said:

I'll even nickname you "Stinky" if it makes you happy.

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You are new here, so you don't know my history, you're too late, I'm already known as stinky, but Stinky is fine. Thank you.

I would join your brotherhood of Hot Toys gripers, but I've been overwhelmed by Hot Toys fanboys, who choose to overlook what they may deem as minor flaws, and I prefer not to chide them further.