Threats of Legal action against the forum

[arturobandini]

It's a shame some online retailers are afraid of healthy criticism which will inevitably improve the service they offer to homebrewers if heeded. It is also a shame that they feel they can intimidate non-profit Internet forums with unsubstantiated claims to pursue legal action. Perhaps it's best someone advise certain online retailers of their actual right to pursue legal action under grounds of Defamation in response to Consumer expressed opinion....ie...None.

I'll be adhering to the forum rule and not mentioning any sensitive online retailers who have the misconceived idea that they can control people's opinion of them by suppression of free comment. Baseless draconian fantasy on their part.

 

[dandan]

Is this the same online retailer(s) that threatened other homebrew forums?

If it is who I think........they should be more worried about the level of service provided (which is naff) and be even more worried about the picture they are painting of themselves by threatening forums (where most of there potential customers reside)

 

[Fents]

good to see retailers shoot themselves in the foot worldwide.

 

[jamesb]

Should refer them to to the reply in Arkell v. Pressdram

 

[prodigal2]

OK so the 2 main homebrewing forums have been basically gagged= members of these forums voting with there feet and spending their hard earned elsewhere.

Small market hobby, its not like double glazing.

Bad form... if you offer poor service, improve your service and live by your reputation... don't try and stifle opinion.

 

[arturobandini]

I can well imagine Easybrew would still be trading today if their swindling and bumbling had not been aired on public forums. Imagine not being told they were completely incompetent and getting your money back for items never received was like getting blood from a stone. They'd be rolling in cash and orders and the homebrewing faithful would be sat at home forever waiting for Woodfordes.

Legal Disclaimer - (I am not suggesting the company in question is associated with Easybrew in any way or behaves in a similar manner)

 

[damfoose]

Well we the brewers are plesent brewers spend our hard earned where we find the best deals and good service, Things like bad service and overcharging should IMHO not be gaged by the unscrupulus shops that are around especially with threats of legal action which is tantermount to bullying and it shows a lack of morality. As has been posted by another Shop they will happily take good and bad comments as it lets them see where they are going wrong and where they are getting things right.

Mind you looking at the 4 sponsers at the top of the forum I recon were just missing one other place and that should be all you really need for everything.

 

[Frisp]

Been away. Have I missed something?

 

[dennisking]

surly if you are telling the truth its not slander

 

[Vossy1]

art pretty much summed it up in the first post :thumb:
A problem with non profit making forums is that if challenged with legal action, you have to pay to represent yourself.
If you win your case the chances are you'll be able to get your costs back, but up to that point, you have to fund yourself, and therein lies a problem with non profit forums!
A fair few forum cases are on the internet for all to see, most deal with defamation. In the majority of cases the forums win, but the publicised cases tend to be well funded forums who have the funds to pursue their causes.

On the flip side it is possible that one retailer may, unscrupulously, try to ‘rubbish’ another retailers ‘reputation’, using the forum as a medium to get that message across. I would like to think that loyal users of the aggrieved retailers service, would soon address that situation, and I give credit to forum members being able to make up their own minds, based on the reviews they read.
I also don’t think that any reputable U.K retailers would stoop to such low practices.
I think that Greg from BrewUK (one of our forum sponsors) has summed it up with

The customer is the most important part of our business and ensuring you are 100% pleased with both product and service received by us is paramount