Fenix Power - Took money and but never delivered

[jlv]

People who have $2,499 Orders "On Hold" at Fenix Power should ...

... be working to get their money back ASAP, while there is anything left to get back.

 

[RonSwanson]

They are deep in debt it appears so no money to give back. People have requested refunds months ago with zero reply from Fenix.

 

[cwerdna]

^^^
Maybe so. There's been at least 1 comment posted today by a "customer". Still nobody has gotten a successful install, it seems.

Let's just hope they are able to eventually refund most of the $ to those who request it. You'd think that they would be able to refund $ to those who are most vocal on that FB customer forum first but if they can't, perhaps they really are in dire straits. And, you'd think they'd be able to finally complete installs for the vocal folks there first...

 

[dsh]

I contacted my credit card company to file claims on the initial $135 deposit that I made back in 2019 and also the $2,499 in July 2020. My Credit card company credited both amounts back to my account.
I also emailed the Fraud Division at the North Carolina Attorney Generals Office, Josh Stein at [email protected]

People who have $2,499 Orders "On Hold" at Fenix Power should ...

... be working to get their money back ASAP, while there is anything left to get back.

 

[cwerdna]

^^^
Wow, I didn't realize you were out both your relatively small deposit and a pre-payment on a used pack.

Looks like a bunch of others have posted comments on https://www.facebook.com/groups/FenixPowerCoForum/ in the last 24 hours of still waiting and no installations.

Will be interesting to see how this further progresses/unravels.

 

[SageBrush]

I contacted my credit card company to file claims on the initial $135 deposit that I made back in 2019 and also the $2,499 in July 2020. My Credit card company credited both amounts back to my account.

My limited experience with credit card disputes is that the money is refunded immediately, but the credit card company reserves the right to take the money back after they investigate the matter.

For large $ amounts (that is a ymmv), the credit card company will not take it on the chin if possible, meaning they will try to get the money from the vendor but if that fails the customer pays unless the credit card had some sort of consumer protection clause that is applicable. One such clause would be payment for goods that were not supplied. That often extends out to 90 days from purchase, but it varies.

---
As an aside, I presume one reason Fenix is stringing customers along is to move beyond the above credit card clause.

 

[cwerdna]

My guess is that the installers haven't been paid, and the customers will have to fork over that money.

All this drama for a handful of refurb batteries. It is going to reach fever pitch when the refurbs die ... unless the Bysingers can get a pyramid scheme up and running in time.

At this point, I figured they're leaving https://fenix.systems/ and https://fenix.systems/blog up and running in order to keep a pyramid scheme going: hoping to collect enough incoming $ from people who don't know better/don't know what's going on in order to refund those who are asking...

I don't think they went into this intending to be a scam but I agree w/earlier comments that it seems to be the functional equivalent of one now.

 

[SageBrush]

I don't think they went into this intending to be a scam

I'm too lazy to find my post when Fenix introduced itself but I remember the mountain of BS. Line after line of techno-babble Bysinger himself did not understand, there to *wow* the naive into thinking that Fenix was a sophisticated technology company. Some saw it as flamboyant marketing; I saw it as a giant red flag that Fenix was little to no substance. Nothing changed my mind as the stream of consciousness that was Fenix looking for a rational business crossed my screen. When Fenix finally settled on refurbs I tried to warn people that the business case was suspect because refurbs have a poor history in *EVs and the logistics where the LEAF is concerned are expensive. So I am not surprised that Fenix has now apparently devolved into a bait and delay operation fueled by FB posts that usually mean nothing.

----
I also did not know that people had pre-paid $2,500 to Fenix. That is just sad.
If it was me, I would have made damned sure that I disputed the charge with my credit card before my rights lapsed if the money had not been returned or the battery installed. I still think the refurbs are going to be crap and worth no where near what is being charged, but customers are staring at getting *nothing,* or perhaps one refurb and a promise of more that I am extremely skeptical will ever happen.

I wonder if the Bysingers are aware of the limits when mail fraud turns into a federal felony and the FBI gets involved.

 

[cwerdna]

Maybe it is related to the exchange about blockchain (!), escrow accounts and bankruptcy like at https://mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=27&t=26597&start=100?

 

[SageBrush]

Maybe it is related to the exchange about blockchain (!), escrow accounts and bankruptcy like at https://mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=27&t=26597&start=100?

yep

 

[dsh]

My Credit Card Company FIA Card Services, sent me a letter stating that Fenix Power responded to the dispute, but no additional information is needed at this time, and is considering the matter resolved. The main thing is, I disputed the charge within 60 days as required if there were are any problems with the purchase...as there clearly was...Fenix Power never supplied and installed my CPO 24kWh battery I paid for. I feel bad for others who were strung along, that may have used PayPal or some other form of payment which doesn't offer $0 Liability Guarantee like Bank of America.

I purchased a NEW 24KwH from Peoria Nissan in Arizona and my LEAF range problems have all been Resolved. Once again enjoying Emissions Free Driving with a NEW POTUS whose administration is Zero Emissions Friendly!

I contacted my credit card company to file claims on the initial $135 deposit that I made back in 2019 and also the $2,499 in July 2020. My Credit card company credited both amounts back to my account.

My limited experience with credit card disputes is that the money is refunded immediately, but the credit card company reserves the right to take the money back after they investigate the matter.

For large $ amounts (that is a ymmv), the credit card company will not take it on the chin if possible, meaning they will try to get the money from the vendor but if that fails the customer pays unless the credit card had some sort of consumer protection clause that is applicable. One such clause would be payment for goods that were not supplied. That often extends out to 90 days from purchase, but it varies.

---
As an aside, I presume one reason Fenix is stringing customers along is to move beyond the above credit card clause.

 

[SageBrush]

The main thing is, I disputed the charge within 60 days as required if there were are any problems with the purchase...as there clearly was...

Way to stay on top of things. Well done.

Did FIA require you to first try to resolve the dispute with the vendor ?

 

[DaveinOlyWA]

The main thing is, I disputed the charge within 60 days as required if there were are any problems with the purchase...as there clearly was...

Way to stay on top of things. Well done.

Did FIA require you to first try to resolve the dispute with the vendor ?

Standard investigation question. Many vendors are more than willing to refund charges when asked. FYI; COVID has revealed HUGE cracks in the online ordering system. A half dozen times, I ordered food for pickup thru an app only to find the business in question was closed due to reduced hours in response to the pandemic. I assumed my payment which was done when ordering would be automatically refunded and it wasn't. Some apps have a feedback option to request payment while others do not. On the latter, I just went to the credit card company stating I did not receive my services due to business being closed. They refunded, no questions asked.

 

[dsh]

In reality credit card companies would like you to contact the vendor first if you have a problem with a purchase, but in this situation there is no reliable contact information for Fenix Power. No one answers their emails and you can't get in touch with them via phone.

My hunch is that John Bysinger, Sarah Love Bysinger and Bill Bysinger are NOT living in the United States, and just set up a PO box at a UPS Store as a front, in North Carolina. I haven't seen any new live photos or videos of them recently. You would think people would have tracked them down already and confronted them to get their money back. Its a shame a Family of Scam Artists can take advantage of LEAF electric car owners, who have always had battery replacement issues(Nissans fault for not supporting Early Adopters), for their own personal gain.

The main thing is, I disputed the charge within 60 days as required if there were are any problems with the purchase...as there clearly was...

Way to stay on top of things. Well done.

Did FIA require you to first try to resolve the dispute with the vendor ?

 

[dsh]

There's no hiding it now...Fenix Power

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JHYq6mzGO-o

 

[jlv]

There's no hiding it now...Fenix Power

He paid the $150 deposit in June 2019 and hasn't gotten a refund. Mostly, there is nothing else in the video other than he says Fenix is a scan.

 

[RonSwanson]

Nov 16th and Fenix has gone silent again (of course). Anyone holding out hope at this point is burying their head in the sand. At this point I wouldn't want them touching my car if they somehow managed to find a battery.

 

[cwerdna]

^^^
Indeed. Some folks posted/replied after you and it still seems like they've gone silent and nobody's gotten a battery install from them. Crazy.

 

[jlv]

they've gone silent and nobody's gotten a battery install from them. Crazy.

They are obviously hard at work on their revolutionary modular battery architecture, and the block-chain back-end to track the service subscriptions. :lol:

 

[SageBrush]

they've gone silent and nobody's gotten a battery install from them. Crazy.

They are obviously hard at work on their revolutionary modular battery architecture, and the block-chain back-end to track the service subscriptions. :lol:

The block chain BS was so that buyers do not ask for escrow on their deposits.

Seems to have worked