Does your LFS have a return policy?

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo
N

Newt

Fire Eel
MFK Member
Jul 18, 2005
1,105
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Michigan's UP
Normally I get all of my fish on-line, from Aquabid or LiveAquaria.

My LFS will order whatever I want, but all of their fish seem to come in sick, almost dead, or dead. The last draw was pre-paying for an order of 10 blue rams and only getting ONE come in alive, and that one died after two days. They gave me store credit. That was about 6 months ago.

Anyways, I'm still searching for that "perfect" tiger oscar to put in my new 90 gallon tank (I know I said before that it was going to be a 75, but what the heck, a 90 fits on the same stand.) I don't want to have to order such a common fish and pay the shipping, so I made the 30 minute drive to my LFS.

I found an oscar I liked. It had ick, but the store girl assured me it would be cured if I bought it and she would call me so I could pick it up afterwards. Knowing the poor fish I had gotten from this store in the past, and witnessing dead and sick fish in EVERY SINGLE TANK, I asked what the store's latest "fish death" policy was.

They will give store credit if a fish dies in 24 hours! They need a water sample and they want the dead fish back, which is reasonable. But come on, 24 hours! I didn't buy any fish that day! In fact, it looks like I will have to buy an oscar from on-line because there is NO WAY I'd ever buy a fish from that place and my only other option with-in a 2 hour drive is Wal-Mart.

Even LiveAquaria has a 2 WEEK guarantee!

What's your LFS policy on replacing or refunding for fish that die?
 
There aren't any LFS here either and the ones that are within a decent driving distance (within 2 hours) don't have much of a selection and they have no guarantees. I wish there was a decent place close to me!
 
You know, back when I first started with fish, like 20 years ago, there were 3 fish stores with-in an hour's drive of me.

I was eight and I loved going into town with my parents because we would stop at all of them. Buy the time I was 11 I was trading in fish I'd bred (mostly convicts and angels) at the closest one.

The stores were great! Clean, great fish, and people that knew what they were doing.

Thank god for the internet, because in the past 10 years all but one (the afore mentioned) has closed. When the compititon went away, a once good store went to ****!
 
There are some LFS around me that offer refunds, there are some that dont, but if you argue enough and the reasons are good enough they will eventually refund your money.
 
A nice one about 35 miles from me does cash in first three days and trade or credit for first 2 weeks.
 
there is one lfs that ive dealt with that will give you store credit based on the results of an in store water test. funny thing was, the fish i purchased didnt make it through the drive home. manager said the most they could give me was 75% store credit of the total purchase price. i dont do business with them anymore. a healthy fish normally shouldnt die on a 15 minute trip.
 
newtothis where in michigan do u live? theres a great lfs around me
 
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