September 2, 2015

ACE cancelled my account, withheld my orders in their offices,refuse to pay me my earnings just because I insulted their service.

What happened?
I have been going through all kinds of issues with them from charging me for “insurance” to orders being cancelled without reaching out to the customers but I have kept quiet. It’s meant to be a premium service but you keep quiet thinking they would change sooner rather than later.
On Friday morning (28th August,2015), I sent out an order from Yaba to be delivered at Ojota. This should have been taken to their center in Ikeja and later dispatched to the customer on Friday or on Monday but till date, I don't have a clue where my item is and no word from their staff as to what happened to my item.
This order was not been delivered and no one has given me an answer as to where my item is. I complained about this bitterly on Tueday and told them to get their acts together in a very harsh tone. I had had enough of their sloppiness and was sick and tired – a premium service that is making mistakes that a 2month old company would.

What does an average ACE customer go through?
- You pay before they even receive your first order (N17,500)
- They will make you sign contractual agreements before taking any item from you(protection for them not you)
- Plus, you have to enter every order you get into their dashbord before they can deliver it (which creates a huge database for them for unsolicited emails to your customers)
Rather than solve my problem, the CEO instructed them to cancel my account immediately because I used insulting words at them.
Here are his words -
Ercin: "We have 0 tolerance for unethical and unprofessional insulting attitude. We are providing a service. If a merchant is unhappy, they are free to use another provider."

Really? Cancel my account because I didn't use niceties after you messed up for the 6th time in 3weeks?
My customers won't get their items this week due to this rash decision from them plus my earnings and items are still being withheld by this company. Every effort made to get back the item has proved abortive. The items sent out of Lagos also, I have no clue as to what happened to them. I am completely frozen out by this “super successful company” because I dared to insult them for their consistent errors.

To be honest, they have some positives or one that stands out-
- PH and Abuja delivery is well handled. I still haven’t found a provider who handles items to these locations as fast as ACE. For Lagos, there are many companies who would offer you a similar service at about the same rates but not Port Harcourt and Abuja.

But what they are terrible at?
- You have to pay before you can start using their service

- Every order to be delivered has to be entered into their database.
- They take the customers information that you gave out in confidence to them and use it to promote other businesses behind your back.
- They charge you for returns and cancellations (well, this is written in black and white. What becomes a challenge is when their riders cancel items without reaching out to your customers. This happened 3X during last month)
- They charge you for collecting cash from your customers and for sending that cash to your bank account (1.35% and N100 for every transfer)
- You have to micromanage them especially when you have cancellation (I think this is the case with some other top players also).
- They don't honor agreements. I signed an agreement and that agreement states when it can be terminated and what their role is in this partnership. Witholding my money, keeping my order (Ojota) in God knows where without any explanation as to what happened is not one of them.

What I want?
1. I want my account balance (money paid in for their delivery service)
2. I want my earnings deposited into my account.
3. I want my order returned and a comprehensive reason why it wasn't delivered.
4. I want an apology for making my business go through all of this. I get it, maybe point 4 might not be taken seriously as I am not Chicken Republic or Leadway Assurance (two of their major clients) but I paid for a service and you gave me a promise. We all make mistakes but when a "big boy" makes some mistakes continuously - you need to ask him what his problem really is.
5. I want a proper cancellation based on what we both agreed to in the agreement I signed.
6. I want damages paid for the losses I suffered.

Thanks,
Dejimi