This is NOT an anti-WalMart(tm) rant. I shop at their stores ALL the time, but this Christmas I decided to order about $1000 of items through their website.

That said, I will NEVER shop through WalMart.com(tm), and if you value your right to choose another vendor should this one let you down, neither should you.

WalMart.com(tm) has a nasty bug that they don't want you to know about, and they CAN fix it, but they won't. IMHO, they just don't want you to go and buy what you wanted somewhere else.

If you order from WalMart(tm) online, they will accept your order, pre-authorize your card (effectively taking your money), and THEN check to see if the item is in stock.

If it is not, they WILL NOT issue your credit card or debit card a credit. Instead, they will wait for the pre-authorization to expire, which in most cases is 30 days.

WalMart(tm) COULD tell their gateway to expire the pre-auth (I know, because my online services do this all the time), but they won't.

If you call, they'll say it takes 2-3 business days to process, but the truth is they will do nothing.

If you want to keep your money, I urge you to not buy from WalMart.com(tm). Go into the store and purchase if they have it in stock, but don't give your credit card to their website.

Amazon(tm), on the other hand, expires the pre-auth if they can't fill the order. I suggest you buy through them or one of the myriad other online retailers that care about their customers.

Peace.

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