Columbus, OH – Better Business Bureau (BBB) is informing consumers and businesses about the marketplace conduct and complaint history of Restaurant.com, a company that sells gift certificates to restaurants in many cities nationwide.
In the past three years, a total of 253 complaints have been filed against the business by both individuals and businesses, with 57 complaints from the past 12 months alone.A review of those complaints and allegations indicates a pattern in Restaurant.com’s marketplace conduct. Six complaints remain unresolved by the company.
Restaurant.com claims on it’s website to represent more than 20,000 different restaurants across the United States. While the number and pattern of complaints are mostly outside of the Chicago region, the business is headquartered in Arlington Heights, Illinois, at 1500 W.Shure Dr. Ste. 200. Because of their location, all complaints filed against Restaurant.com are processed by Better Business Bureau serving Chicago and Northern Illinois.
Complaints against Restaurant.com include:
-
Individuals were unable to redeem gift certificates sold by Restaurant.com at the indicated restaurant locations
-
Many stated they were sold certificates for restaurants that were no longer in business by the date of attempted redemption
-
Restaurants learned of unauthorized Restaurant.com listings and certificates when diners attempted to redeem the certificates; causing, in some cases, the restaurant to either forfeit the value on the certificates or find an alternate agreement with the individuals.
Currently, the company’s BBB Profile has a “No Rating” designation due to BBB’s ongoing review of the business.
In response to the BBB’s initial letter, sent October 5, 2015, informing Restaurant.com of its concerns, on October 14, 2015 the business provided BBB with steps they planned to take to improve their business practices. A second review on April 15, 2016, found the type and number of complaints had not diminished or changed in nature. On April 18, 2016, Restaurant.com was notified by U.S. Mail and email letter that BBB considered it a failure to alleviate the pattern of complaints present. Restaurant.com did not respond to that notification.
BBB suggests that prior to purchasing any certificates from Restaurant.com, consumers should contact the specific chain or restaurant and verify that they are a participating business, will accept Restaurant.com coupons or certificates and will also accept its terms and conditions.
About BBB
Since 1912, Better Business Bureau has been helping people find businesses, brands and charities they can trust. In 2015, people turned to BBB more than 172 million times for BBB Business Reviews on more than 5.3 million businesses and Charity Reports on 11,000 charities, all available for free at bbb.org. BBB serving Central Ohio was founded in 1921, and serving 21 counties in Ohio, is one of 113 local, independent BBBs in the United States, Canada and Mexico.