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Update: zip.ca will still email you after you unsubscribe
I unsubscribed in 2004. Three years later, I still get emails from them. Every time I complain, and they promise to take me off of mailing lists. And every time, they email me again with their latest and greatest effort. They also assert their right to retain my information for as long as they want and to do whatever they want.
Update: zip.ca will violate your privacy
You heard me - Zip.ca has privacy practices that violate both their own privacy policy and federal privacy legislation. In particular, after you cancel your membership they will keep your credit card and personal information indefinitely, "...incase you will be renewing again (as many members do)". They are currently under investigation by the Office of the Federal Privacy Commissioner.
After I cancelled my Zip.ca membership because it offered little value for money (see below), I wanted to ensure they would be properly disposing of my personal information and credit card number. However, responses to my inquiries were met with brief replies that didn't answer my questions - when I received a reply at all. I had to ask my questions 2-3 times to get any sort of response, and at the end of our correspondence only about 20% of my questions had any sort of answer. In general, the whole experience of trying to find out what they did with my information was very unpleasant.
Eventually, it came out that "We keep all of your information incase you will be renewing again". I wrote back saying:
"So you keep a user's information until they explicitly request that it be deleted? I can't find this statement in your privacy policy. In fact, when the policy talks about use, it gives a clear impression that my information is used only "to process your rental requests and to ship requested DVDs to you" - which is no longer necessary after I cancel my account, so there should be no reason to keep it around.
This also seems to contravene your privacy policy where you say "We retain your contact account and shipping information for the periods required by applicable laws or limitation periods." I doubt that the applicable law requires you to keep the information indefinitely."
Also, for how long do you keep backups?
The response was: "Mike; Several daily backups are done."
At this point, I asked several direct questions:
Please clarify - do you keep a user's information until they explicitly request that it be deleted? How does this fit in with the statements in your privacy policy? I am very concerned that I may have been misled by reading your privacy policy.
Who is the person at Zip.ca responsible for handling privacy issues within the organization?
Is there an industry association, ombudsman or complaint office for Zip.ca?
A week went by - no response. I followed up and was told that my question had been forwarded to the legal department. Three weeks later - a total of almost a month - I was told:
It doesnt seem like they are getting back to me. If this is still a concern for you, I am sure there is information on the internet in this regard.
Maybe the Internet Knows
“they sent me to the 'internet' to find more information. ever get the feeling that you are being dismissed as 'unimportant'?”
They sent me to the 'Internet' to find more information. Ever get the feeling that you are being dismissed as 'unimportant'? I contacted the privacy commissioners office and after explaining the story, they asked me to file a formal complaint with their office. I have done so, and I am waiting to hear back. To me, the case is cut and dry - Zip.ca doesn't care about my privacy, and doesn't even care that I care about my privacy.
“zip.ca doesn't care about my privacy, and doesn't even care that i care about my privacy.”
All told, the situation was poorly handled by Zip.ca. My concernts were good ones. Who knows who they will sell my personal information to. My credit card details are accessible from the Internet via my username and password - but I don't trust their security (especially if their security is as poor as their privacy). What about when they go brankrupt and sell the company to someone?
If you value your personal information - and your credit card information - don't subscribe.
Reviews - Zip.ca
Some of you may have heard of Zip.ca, an online service that ships DVDs to your house. I gave the service a try through their free two-week trial, and I'm here to tell you all about it.
I'll be talking about their $24.95 / month service, as that is the service I tried. The situation is thus: you browse their listings, select the movies you want to see, and they mail them to you 4 at a time. You watch a movie, mail it back, and then they send you the next movie. You can keep the movie as long as you want, they pay the shipping both ways, and they do not limit the number of DVDs you can rent a month, as long as you only have 4 out at a time.
The site was easy to use, offered some excellent features, and offered a 'ZipList' that was intuitive. You aren't allowed to specify the order in which you want the movies to be sent, which is a bit silly if you ask me, but no one did. They recommend that you maintain a list of 20 movies to watch, and they'll pick the 4 to send you. You are allowed to specify 2 movies as 'ASAP'. “it took one movie 11 days to get here from the day i signed up for the account.”
Sounds great at first glance. Well, it's really not. I live in Halifax Metro, Nova Scotia. During my 2-week trial period, 4 movies made it to my house. It is currently the 15 day mark, and they still have not made it back to Zip in that time. It took one movie 11 days to get here from the day I signed up for the account.
I don't know about everyone else, but when I have a movie I want to see, I don't want to wait 11 days.
At that rate, I could get about 90 movies / year. Taxes included, I would pay about $350 / year, or $3.82 / movie. Assuming that I am a smart shopper, that is more expensive than a local store like Blockbuster or Rogers. And remember, sometimes I'd be waiting 11 days to get my movie. “for those of us in the maritimes, zip.ca is expensive, inconvenient, and really rather pointless. ”
I can't speak for people in other areas. But for those of us in the Maritimes, Zip.ca is expensive, inconvenient, and really rather pointless.
If Zip.ca hopes to compete and gain any sort of business, they'll need to do a lot better. I hope for their sake that their service is more useful in Ontario.
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Todd says:
[Aug 11th @ 02:03am]
Hey Mike,
I use a similar service called DVDHype based out of Montreal. I live in Saskatoon so it takes some time for the DVD's to reach me. However DVDHype allows more DVD's out for people that are in different regions of the country than Montreal. For example, I get 5 DVD's out when people in Montreal get only 3. The biggest savings for me though is that I never have to pay late fees. Personally I've found these services good for never having to worry about watching a show as quick as I can. Your mileage may vary as always. :-) Ciao.
mike says:
[Aug 19th @ 01:04am]
Thanks Todd - I've always wanted to be able to recommend an alternative to Zip.ca, but I've never felt comfortable doing that without trying them out for myself.
David Oberst says:
[Aug 24th @ 01:58am]
As far as delivery time, sounds like you got hit by a bad Canada Post hair day - it should have been much faster. I average just under 4 business days on shipments to and from Yellowknife.
You might want to check the forums at onlinedvdrentalguide.ca - I'm pretty sure there are a couple Halifax posters there.
David Oberst
http://dvdinfo.oberst.ca
mike says:
[Aug 25th @ 01:36am]
That's what I thought at first, too - but it took just as long for them to get to me as it did for them to get back - about 7 days, one way. Maybe Canada Post was having a bad month?
Zip did tell me that they were aware of the problem and they were working to improve delivery times... perhaps they did in time for you to benefit? :)
Cath says:
[Aug 31st @ 05:15pm]
I had a similar problem with Zip.ca I used their 2 week trial and then cancelled. I returned all the movies. At the time of my cancellation, I got an email stating that they had not received 2 of my movies and if they did not receive them within 7 days, my account would be billed. I replied stating that one had been just returned and the other had been sent back the previous week. I heard nothing further so I assumed they received the movies. Almost 5 months later, they sent me an email saying that since I ignored their numerous requests (there were none), they were billing me for a lost DVD. Actually, by the tone of the email, they were accusing me of stealing it. Sure enough, they had billed my credit card. My requests to their customer service were all but ignored. When they did respond, they would pick and choose which points to respond to. Beware if they are holding on to your information, they can bill you at anytime like they did to me. I won't be using an online rentals ever again. BTW, I was happy with their service when I used it. So to those who think they provide good service, wait until they charge your credit card account without your permission and see what you think then.
mike says:
[Sep 10th @ 09:46pm]
Cath:
What a story! It does seem that as long as you rely on the 'automated' processes of sending and receiving movies, Zip.ca seems to do all right. It's when you actually have to solve a problem that you realize how shoddy their customer service is.
I've heard from half a dozen other Zip.ca users who say roughly the same thing you do. I'm planning to aggregate and compile their comments (with permission) so others can benefit from your experiences.
Shawn says:
[Sep 14th @ 02:30pm]
It only takes 2 days for me to get a movie from them,unless they send it on a Thursday or Friday then I won't get till Monday. So I get atleast 16 movies a month, that's only $1.60 each. Only drawback is that you can't pick which movie they send, I keep my list small (4-8 movies)and it forces them to send me the ones I want. I guess the closer to them you live the more movies you'll get for your money. I like it so far...
mike says:
[Sep 14th @ 02:38pm]
Shawn:
Just wait until you have to deal with their customer service! That's when the wheels come off the wagon.
In the meantime, I'm glad you are enjoying their service, and I hope for your sake that it is never necessary for you to deal with their customer service.
Jay says:
[Nov 27th @ 12:55am]
Hey Mike,
I can't stand ZIP.ca it's honestly the worst customer service I have ever dealt with. There is no contact number to call them, and they people they have replying to messages are complete MORONS. If I knew where in Ottawa they were located I would go there personally and talk to some in charge. I would love to see someone sue the hell out of them for something. I have had nothing but problems with them. First off, I was charged $24.00 for the free trial, no big deal, mistakes could happen. They charged me July 31, I finally recevied my refund in Oct. after fighting with there "online" customer service morons. Now they are accusing me of stealing movies. I have a damm burner. I have no reason to steal movies from them, infact when I get them in the mail, there are usually back in the mail box 2-3 hrs. later.
These guys are making me crazy. I HATE ZIP.CA
Yuri says:
[Dec 13th @ 05:30pm]
In general my experience with Zip.ca was positive. Their delivery was fast: I usually got films in 2-3 days (I live in Québec City). Besides, at Zip.ca I was able to rent some quality European films that wasn't available elsewhere. However, I found their customer service somewhat impersonal (like a machine). And now I am also concerned about that issue of the personal data storage.
chrissy says:
[Jan 3rd @ 01:48am]
Came across this review when checking out zip.ca on the good ole google. After reading this and a few others, i will be avoiding zip.ca. Thanks for saving me problems in advance ;)
John says:
[Jan 7th @ 09:28am]
I tried zip.ca for a month. I was able to rent 12 movies, but zip.ca claims 1 was not returned. (Maybe Canada post lost it?) I got charged $50. Sorry, but I can afford to have that happen every month. Bye, bye, zip.ca.
Kevan H. says:
[Feb 23rd @ 03:39am]
Nice report Mike (bad experiences suck). Looks like many ppl would love to get ahold of those dog-fkers. No support other than 'submit your problem here'... hah! Why wouldn't a legit company pay some school kids to answer phone with a book in front of them? It is SOOO too bad that nowadays you rarely even get what a company 'simply' offers. Thanks for taking the brunt of this one Mike (and others). I'm not going near Zip.ca until there reviews perk-up and their privacy policy is updated. With Netflix doing so well... it would only take one REPUTABLE business to do as they promise (DVD rentals by mail in Canada). COME ON!
J says:
[Mar 20th @ 09:24pm]
I wish I read these comments before I signed up!!!
My problem started even before I joined their service. They are having a tech problem, and I get two conflicting messages on line. One is that my registration process is not finished, so type in my credit card info (although it shows part of my credit card info on the same screen), so I type in everything again, then it says I've paid already, so I can't pay more.
Yet, I can't make a list of movies I like to order because my "regirstration process is not complete!!"
(There's one more horror story, but it's too long.)
Now I am really worried and sent a request to cancel (or just leave the process incomplete), but if they will charge me nonetheless, it'll be a long uphill battle.
URGH!!
Shannon says:
[Mar 31st @ 05:48pm]
I've been a zip.ca member for around four months now. I also live in Halifax, and I can't believe that it took eleven days for you. The most it usually takes for me is four. So far, so good for me. Cross your fingers I don't run into problems.
John says:
[Apr 30th @ 01:56am]
Send complaints about Zip.ca to:
Rick ... rick@asci.ca
Heather ...heather@zip.ca
They care.
Luke says:
[Jun 6th @ 01:51pm]
I have noticed a few people comment that after viewing this website, they are going to steer clear of Zip.ca.
I plan on doing just that, and thanks to the info here on this web page, I'll make sure anyone I EVER talk to about Zip.ca or movie rentals period, will learn about Zip's poor customer service.
The best that can come from this is Zip's eventual realization they must change in order to stay in business, or they go out of business.
I hope they don't "sell" everyone's personal info in a last ditch revenue attempt like so many dot.coms did before.
Thanks mikesmit.com
Kevin says:
[Aug 11th @ 05:35pm]
This story may seem old but like all you curious people, i decided to try the "free" two week trial. Naturally it was hard to disagree since zip.ca made it "clear" that the whole process of shipping and charging would be simple. First 6 dvd's were shipped out, arrival time was past the 7 day point, more than half of your 2 week trial..bye bye... Once more, if you return the dvd's (lucky if you even get it), it takes ANOTHER 7 days, thus going over your free trial. And BOOM you get charged, funny thing is, they have your card number so there's nothing you can do to stop it. And who the fcuk watches 6 dvd's in one single day? Oh and zip.ca's toll free line, along with their "lifeline" instant message is GARBAGE> BOy you'd better have hours to waste because you will not get hold of anyone anytime soon. Last blog, when they send you the dvd's there is no proof of purchase so therefore if they dont'even send your dvd's they can charge you for "losing" the dvd's in the first place, and once more, nothing you can do since it's mastercard. Gosh darn zip.ca bsastards.
Judy says:
[Aug 11th @ 05:41pm]
My god how can i even start? The free trial is absolute bull S*hit, the stupid company charges your creditcard without your notice! Highly contradicting their oh so beautiful "privacy" policy. If i were you , i would cancel your subsciption right away! The dvd's i orderned took about *f*ucking 20 days to arrive, 20 g*od damn days. Who the fcuk runs this p*iss ass company anyway?
Dean says:
[Sep 1st @ 12:38pm]
Thanks for the reviews, I will definately stay away, was just considering it but glad I decided to look into it more before signing up.
Michael says:
[Sep 15th @ 12:09pm]
Zip.ca does violate your privacy, I cancelled my account before and reopened it 4 months later, all the information were there, I did not have to enter my credit card again and that's scary.
Their customer service is non existing (I was neve able to contact anybody) , I have not received a dvd they sent, and the issue is not resolved yet (a whole month gone and counting). Meanwhile I am limited to renting 1 less dvd, as the dvd I have not received stays forever in the "not returned" list.
The longest ship time experienced was 8 days, but very rare.
Beware again!
Paul says:
[Oct 21st @ 04:59pm]
A couple of interesting points for you.
1. I'm from Alberta and the shipping address that my DVD's go to is in Calgary. So they've got redistribution centers in other places then just Ottawa. (Shipping times have been on average 3-4 days)
2. You DO have recourse if someone charges your credit card against your wishes. You can put a "stop payment" on any entry on your bill as long as you haven't paid it yet.
You may want to read up on your credit card's agreement, but that's how they usually work. So if Zip.ca really is charging you for things "you haven't agreed to" (be careful with the agreement you click on) then the credit card companies can come down on them.
Thought you might like to know.
braun says:
[Jan 4th @ 05:53pm]
Hello,
What a terrible experience. I signed up for a free trial which if you cancel within the two weeks allotted time, your credit card doesn't get charged...or so i thought. The same day I enrolled for the trial, Visa reported that Zip.ca charged me $24.99!! I cancelled and they promised to credit me the so called mistake. I sent back the dvd's in the pre-paid envelopes and guess what, only 3 out of 4 got to their warehouse. Now, I am being charged another $25.99! for a dvd that I never even watched. The service is flawed, I would much rather walk to Blockbuster and pay a lot less.
My advice watch your credit card statements, watch your blood pressure cause when you deal with Zip.ca, both are going to sky rocket!
Sincerely,
A Dissatisfied Client.
braun says:
[Jan 4th @ 05:53pm]
Hello,
What a terrible experience. I signed up for a free trial which if you cancel within the two weeks allotted time, your credit card doesn't get charged...or so i thought. The same day I enrolled for the trial, Visa reported that Zip.ca charged me $24.99!! I cancelled and they promised to credit me the so called mistake. I sent back the dvd's in the pre-paid envelopes and guess what, only 3 out of 4 got to their warehouse. Now, I am being charged another $25.99! for a dvd that I never even watched. The service is flawed, I would much rather walk to Blockbuster and pay a lot less.
My advice watch your credit card statements, watch your blood pressure cause when you deal with Zip.ca, both are going to sky rocket!
Sincerely,
A Dissatisfied Client.
thomas says:
[Jan 5th @ 12:28am]
I was generally satisfied for first year. But, the longer I'm a member, the worse the service.
2 probs.
1. I took month-long vacation over the summer and wanted to put membership on hold. I called and was told I would have to cancel by email. Seemed stupid solution, but I did. Big mistake. Same day I get email telling me I have 5 days to return 2 movies that had been sent. I reply pointing out they hadn't arrived yet (1 was sent previous day). No reply. Instead, after 5 days, there's email telling me that they're going to bill me for the 2 movies. I call and get typical flunkie response - so sad, nothing we can do, but if i return the movies when i get back from vacation, i'll get refund. After more calls and numerous emails, refund finally comes. Of course, I got billed both for month I cancelled and for following month when i start new membership.
Anyways, I remain a grudging member since selection is pretty limited in my small town. But, other problem is huge. New distribution center in Calgary is supposed to speed up delivery. Well, maybe if you're in Alta - I'm near Ottawa and it used to take 3-5 days to get dvds in the mail, but now I have to return them to Calgary - it takes a month to return and get new dvd - sometimes it takes 3 weeks just one way. As bad as Canada Post is, I suspect delay is because of probs in Calgary distribution center. This Dec, I got only 2 dvds!!! Complaints get same ho hum response. If this keeps up, I'll be ex-member soon.
thomas
oinky says:
[Feb 18th @ 11:50am]
lying, cheating, money grabbing, thieving company like zip.ca should be sued their pants off!
i was promised an unlimited rentals when i signed up a year ago. and now, they changed their mind to make a few more bucks. im fine with making money, but lying to the customers to get it, that is outrageous.
and they had the nerve to lie to ppl that most customers with 4 dvd plan rented only 8 movies a month! that is bold faced lie. plus, i was never a participant in their so called "survey".
they also said if u rent more than 11 movies, it'd be cheaper to "upgrade" to more expensive plan. cheaper? they're not only liars, but also mathematically challenged.
avoid zip at all cost!!!!
Mike L says:
[Apr 5th @ 01:27am]
Wow. After reading this, I will stay away from Zip.ca.
Bernie says:
[May 25th @ 03:11pm]
I would not recommend Zip.ca. My impression is that they are actually run by a handful of incompetent persons with a very little resources (including access to a sufficient number of DVDs).
For starters, I don't understand why they wouldn’t follow a proven successful business model (i.e., NetFlix). Instead they provide no way of organizing the order of one’s “ZipList”, handling charges are added if you go over a certain monthly limit. They provide no clear idea of the availability of a particular DVD (only a vague graphic) so you have no real idea of what you are going to receive at any given time.
My personal experience was that they shipped my very first DVDs to the wrong address. I reported and corrected the address myself but since then it has been a nightmare: the Post Office returned the DVDs to them. They claim they re-shipped the original DVDs (I did not ask them to do this). I never received them. I reported this to them and received various responses. Depending on who I was dealing with my account was de-activated and then re-activated (with apologies) several times. In the meantime, I started receiving my allotted DVDs from my remaining queue (not the original DVDs which they claim they re-sent). I firmly believe they have re-shipped the DVDs to the wrong address again.
Finally, despite the fact that I have continually been in contact with them regarding this matter, they deactivated my account again. At that point I insisted they cancel my account and provide a refund. They said they would only provide a partial refund for 1 of 3 months because my account was 2 months old. This regardless of the fact that my account was repeatedly deactivated and I had only received about 8 DVDs in a two week period.
sam says:
[Jun 22nd @ 10:39am]
after reading all these classics about zip.ca, i must also fill in my responsibility in telling other potential zip.ca renters.
DO NOT SUBSCRIBE to this piece of crap rental service.!
i was also one of many transfers of vhqonline. to zip.ca.
actually i tried to subscribe 1st to zip.ca, and it WOULDNT take my credit card,no matter how many times i read, re-read instructions and did it over n over .
And i was actually THAT STUPID enough to spend a few wks on emails, cause they didnt even have a freaking phone # back then, nor did they bother calling my phone.
anyway bottom line, this is their service.
- unlimited dvd= now limit to 11 dvds/mo+ $2.50/dvd extra
[IF u lucky enuff to get 11 sent per month]
-waiting times now=1wk 4days avg for 4dvds, i actually only get 8 dvds/mo. [i even mailed out 4dvds same day i received it, i tried this a few times]
-customer emails reponse= took longer than 2wks in past, now= been 3wks, still waiting.
-their zipfill and asap option= never work for me NOT AT ALL.
-* IMPORTANT*, theres a few ppl on internet investigating issues of customer privacy information.
they will still keep your personal and credit card information INDEFINITELY, contrary to their privacy policy.
They are being investigated by the federal business department and others alike.
overall comment:
i think they bought out all the competitions in canada, so we all forced to subscribe to them, and their moto is.. these suckers have no place to go, we can get greedy, and who cares about customer service with them....
vhqonline, was a very decent company, i am dissapointed with the owner selling out for big bucks, he COULD of gotten his big $$$ later on from more smart consumers, guess he wanted it now instead of 5-10yrs later.
Patrick says:
[Jan 11th @ 01:50pm]
I signed myself and my sister up for this service for Christmas, with a great deal of enthusiasm. I should have read up on them first. I get my DVD's within a day or two (live in Toronto), that's fine. However the big thing they don't mention is that you can't decide which dvd you get next. You get a random one from your list, and judging by the ones they've sent me so far they've been sending me the least popular titles. Netflix sends you the next three on your list, every time. I cannot wait for Netflix to move into the Canadian market and bring first-class service. Zip.ca won't know what hit them.
Harry says:
[Jan 17th @ 02:57pm]
Hey Mike,
Looks like Rogers is using zip.ca for their own online dvd service. Think the same applies to that? ;)
mike says:
[Jan 17th @ 03:04pm]
Well, rogers is made of fail as well, so combining two shitty companies into one service sounds like a recipe for disaster.
www.mikesmit.com/show_post.php?id=1140628960
Teresa says:
[Jan 24th @ 01:34pm]
Good for you Mike! taking your complaint all the way and not being discouraged by Zip.ca's very impersonal unbusiness like service! Good to know about their privacy policy being BS
I am a member but I will be cancelling soon if things don't change!
Former Netflix user says:
[Feb 17th @ 12:02pm]
Here is an email I have sent ZIP.ca upon terminating my account:
Hi,
Having used Netflix for over a year in the US (and being a complete addict of the service) I hoped that zip.ca would be even 50% the service that netflix was. I expected a slower delivery due to Canada Post. And perhaps delays in getting popular movies.
However, Zip.ca has fallen far short of even these modest expectations and, in my opinion, has missed an outstanding business opportunity to do in Canada what Netflix has done in the US. What has Zip.ca failed to do, which leads me, a former netflix addict back to the depressing aisles of Blockbuster? I list these things in the hope that ZIP will take note and make the simple changes needed to expand to its full potential:
1. web interface: this is by far the easiest problem to fix, and it is a HUGE problem. I urge you to try netflix's interface for rating films, receiving recommendations based on ratings, linking with other users to learn about movies, etc. Netflix is brilliant not only because it delivers films to your home, but almost equally because it provides a way of discovering new films. Ask any former user about this and I assure you they will agree that it is THIS that makes the service so addictive: always finding new gems. This is truly impossible on ZIP. There is no decent way to find things that you don't already know about, aside from the rather limited top 10 and top 100 lists. Not adequate and so painfully easy to fix with a small investment.
2. availability of films. Come on: invest in your FUTURE!!! By purchasing more films and getting everybody their top item at least within a month, you would not be losing users but instead gaining many, many more. I personally recruited many users to netflix when I used it, but have told people not to use ZIP. Here's why: I have received almost none of my top items since signing up for ZIP many months ago. It is impossible to get new releases. I have gotten NOTHING even remotely recent from your service. The films I do get from ZIP can be rented very inexpensively for 7 day periods from video stores. The purpose of ZIP is completely defeated, because I have to go to the video store to rent new movies, and because older movies can be gotten at what works out to be a far better rate.
This sounds cynical, but I now wonder if ZIP even owns copies of new releases, and if you do WHO on earth is the lucky devil to get the copy? Here's a challenge to your company: post the number of copies of each film you own on your site, and next to each the number of requests for each. I just cannot understand how it makes good business sense to not fill the demand of your customers. For goodness sake, raise your prices if this is what it takes! I would pay more for the service if it worked.
3. customer service. About 4 weeks ago, I noticed that I had sent back a movie and had not received a replacement for a whole 2 weeks. However, I had sent the movie in question with another film, and clicked both as returned the same day. I reported this delay to ZIP and the response was to (1) leave the missing film in my list indefinitely, thereby limiting my access down to 2 films, and (2) sending a very threatening sounding email noting that ZIP takes issues of film theft very seriously. Now, I never mentioned that I thought the film was stolen in my complaint. I suspected, instead, that it had been lost in the mail. As it turns out, the film popped back into existence about 2 days after my complaint. Either ZIP had lost it internally or Canada Post had taken nearly 3 weeks to deliver one of two films sent the same day. Who knows? Two questions: (1) why would you ever send an email assuming that someone had stolen the movie (in language that does not exclude the possibility that it was the consumer, in fact, who had) when many other things can lead to missing films, and (2) why, given the very small expense of a single lost film - the first ever reported lost by this customer - would you not free up my third spot during your "investigation"? Your email and suspending of my ZIP slot made me feel like I was being investigated, all for a single DVD??? That is insane business practice. I strongly recommend you reconsider this policy for future customers.
I will now cancel my zip subscription, sadly, and return to blockbuster and similar evils, until Netflix eventually moves to the Canadian market, at which time I will quickly subscribe to their service.
Cecil says:
[Feb 28th @ 05:40pm]
I was all excited and eager to join, but after reading everyone's comments, I think I stay far, far away. Thank you Mike for this informative site!
viktor_simon says:
[Mar 31st @ 06:40pm]
very good!
olndl says:
[Apr 21st @ 05:36am]
Hello, you have a nice site, good LUCK!
bruce says:
[May 13th @ 01:48pm]
Hello, nice site. Good luck
angelina says:
[May 18th @ 06:12am]
hello. very nice. good luck
Anne says:
[Jul 1st @ 04:37pm]
Zip sucks. Lousy customer service. Lousy technology. I have waited over a year for some of the films they "say" are in their inventory, and they keep sending me stuff that I've ranked in the bottom 20 of my wishlist.
iqjtek itnzepmh says:
[Jul 3rd @ 01:10am]
mcestbpo pncheil fmjxd lprvocgi hlukgy yixo wacef
Angelina says:
[Jul 23rd @ 06:43am]
Hello, nice site, visit and my :)
Anonymous Coward says:
[Oct 9th @ 03:03am]
There's an old movie that I'd like to see and can't seem to find anywhere, so I was considering giving zip.ca a try. I won't be after reading this site. You may not get any satisfaction from their lousy customer service, but you've cost them at least one customer today.
Obsidian says:
[Oct 23rd @ 08:16am]
well I love zip. I have 883 movies zip listed, and I want to see them all. I pay only 50 bucks a month and I watch about one movie a day. That's 30 movies a month for 50 bucks; far cheaper than BallBuster video.
I find zip's selection to make it all worthwhile. I've rented old SF, Fantasy, romance, action and comedy. I've zipped documentaries on WW2, the Gulph War, the Ocean and marine life, etc etc.
And I've never had any real problems with them. It's been pretty fair and very rewarding. I suspect the people with no problems with them don't bother to write in to this place, but I've personally found Zip.ca to be wonderful.
PS you can find almost any movie known to mankind there. It's cool.
Mike says:
[Oct 25th @ 05:38am]
I was foolish enough to cancel their service and reveal that the reason was that I was moving. Guess what - the last 3 DVDs I rented (which I mailed about a week before my billing term was about to expire) 'were not returned' and I was charged more than $85 for them. All other DVDs I rented for them over several months were received within a day or two (I live in Toronto), only the last 3 somehow disappeared. The email that informed me I was being charged stated that I have received 'numerous' emails that the DVDs were missing. I received 1 email - when I was already in Europe, to which I could not reply, because the email address they email you from does not allow you to email them back. So be careful if you are already using their service and decide to cancel.
Sam says:
[Oct 26th @ 04:33pm]
I was a customer of zip for about 18 month,loved it because of the great movie selection they have,but not any more.They dont like people that rent to many movies in one month.
They also charged me for a movie i never recived it a cually happed few times so they canceled my a count.
in order for me to renew it they want me to take full responsibility for every lost movie.That is total crap.
Rob says:
[Oct 27th @ 05:56pm]
Thanks for your comments about Zip.ca. I was going to join and try them out, but since most of the comments about Zip are bad, I decided that Zip is a bad company. I especially don't like the fact that they keep your info forever. Mind you, I just would cancel my credit card and get a new one, then Zip can't charge the one on file since its been reported "missing" :)
Devin says:
[Nov 16th @ 10:00pm]
Wow... I had been wondering about netflix after a freind in the states recomended the service as being a lot better than dealing with the rental stores.
But after what I've read here and at other places on the net I wouldn't touch zip.ca with a twelve foot pole.
D says:
[Nov 28th @ 03:12pm]
After reading the posts here I'm going to avoid Zip.ca and continue to suffer with the limited selection at Rogers/Blockbuster.
Sherri says:
[Dec 10th @ 02:08pm]
That was close! I almost joined zip.ca but all the bad reviews and all these comments have scared me away. I wonder how long it will take netflix to come to Canada... if ever.
Yousaf M. Shaikh says:
[Dec 21st @ 09:31am]
This is what happens when you play by the rules. You get ripped off. Whether you want to admit it or not, the truth is the system is designed with the scammer...errrr...sorry, the reputable business organization's best interest and/or rights in mind (not yours). It's for this reason that P2P will forever reign supreme!
kiwi says:
[Jan 3rd @ 12:17pm]
I was considering zip.ca, but this page talked me out of it. Thanks mate.
Unfortunately, the internet is full of fraudsters and scam artists. To help reduce risk with online outfits,
1. Start by reading their privacy policy. If it is underwhelming in any way, run!
2. Try reaching a real live human being for customer support. If you can't reach one easily, even pre-sale, run!
3. If they fail to list their full business street address and telephone and fax numbers prominently on their web site, run!
David says:
[Jan 11th @ 01:13am]
I'd think of joining if they had $2.25 a movie (same sort of price-line of their present $26 for 12 movies (if you're lucky) but puts the motivation on the right side of the equation) and the option of taking it to a postal outlet for a return receipt. I also think they should check the disk's integrity on send and receive to get rid of worn disks and deal with careless renters - something no one else should be paying for.
Jillian says:
[Jan 22nd @ 04:03pm]
I unfortunately learned the hard way that zip.ca sucks.
After being subscribed to their service for over a year, I decided I was not really taking advantage of it and decided to cancel my account.
Therefore, on the 7th of December, I popped the last of my movies into the mailbox, checked them back in via zip's quick ship service and cancelled my account. Immediately, I received an e-mail telling me I had a week to return the movies. I thought nothing of this because I'd already put them in the mailbox. On December the 11th, I get another e-mail reminding me to return the movies by December 20th. As I have already done so and because it's around Christmas and the mail is slow, I think nothing of this. Over a month goes by. I hear nothing from them and so, like a logical person, I assume that they have been returned.
So, you can imagine my surprise when, on January 8th, over a month later I get an e-mail saying that, after numerous contact e-mails (of which there were NONE), they have basically decided that I have stolen their movies, so they will charge me $120 and I can keep them.
I called customer service and I could not believe how completely useless they were. The rep actually said to me that I should have reported them stolen on the 11th and because I didn't, this was no longer an open issue and they were no longer required to deal with me.
As a person making just over minimum wage, this financially hurts me and I am completely shocked and disgusted by these people.
Utter garbage. Stay away if you know what's good for you.
Colin says:
[Jan 25th @ 03:23pm]
Thnx Mike
I have enough headaches
You just saved me a migraine...
Matt says:
[Jan 29th @ 09:33pm]
Mike,
Many thanks for your great website, warning people of the dangers involved of becoming a customer of this company.
I was interested at first, but knowing how BAD and unreliable Canada Post is, I thought I would look for reviews about Zip first.
My am I glad I did!!!!
Thanks again...
Matt
mica says:
[Feb 5th @ 01:45pm]
Here is a phone number that will get you a real person at zip.ca- ask to speak to a supervisor....
it's not toll free but at least I got some answers.
1-613-221-1222
Floyd says:
[Feb 26th @ 01:16pm]
The customer service
number for Zip.ca is
613-225-2000, ext. 258.
It connects to Kerry-Ann,
supposedly a the customer
service manager.
Darrell says:
[Mar 1st @ 11:41am]
Overall I have had good service with Zip.ca. Perhaps people such as yourselves made that possible. Sometimes companies will change when they see people are leaving them and their business is starting to dwindle. I received a very scratched-up disc from them not long ago. I couldn't play it in any machine in my house, so I returned it and marked it as a problem. Zip sent me an email stating they would send me a replacement ASAP. A week later, they sent me an email stating the replacement was still not available, and as a result they were adding one free movie above and beyond my threshold. A second week later, still not available so they added another movie and told me that they would not ding me for the movie that was scratched at all. So basically I got 3 movies out of it. I was quite impressed. The last few movies have been OK. They changed their system though. I'm on the $11 per month plan where I get two movies per month. After the second one I would not receive any more. Now they will continue to send movies as soon as you send the movie back. I can only have one out at a time, but so far I've received 3 movies in February instead of just 2. That's a nice added extra! I do find since they started this new "take as many per month as you return" plan that the shipping has slowed down. What used to take 2 to 3 days to get to my house, now takes 7 to 10 days. I live in Ottawa. I'm not sure why it takes that long to ship me a new movie now, as it wasn't taking that long before. It could be deliberate to reduce the number of movies you can receive during the month. I'm sure something is going on there, but still getting 3 per month for $11 is a very excellent deal. I've always had them respond to me immediately after sending them an email, and I found that they have always satisfied my needs. Perhaps they have changed since 2004.
Kate says:
[Mar 1st @ 12:57pm]
Or perhaps your compliments about the company have nothing to do about the major complaints with the company here. These "improvements" may simply be a matter of the postal service getting their act together.
Kurtis says:
[Mar 11th @ 09:14am]
I signed up with Zip.ca because I was entering one of those Canadian online contests (I forget which one). Originally I signed up for their 2 week trial period and expected that once the trial ran out that I wouldn't get charged. That's not the case. I just looked at my bank account on my VISA and I've seen that from Oct 31, 2007 to March 3, 2008 they have been charging me from 24.80 - 24.20 per month for a service that I'm not even using.
So, I went to their website to cancel my account, tried all my passwords and then I went to the "I forgot my password" link. I got the message: "That e-mail address is not registered with this account, if you would like a free trial, please click here..."
Needless to say, I'm pissed. I have the records as well as their 866 number, and I plan on raising hell.
Kurtis says:
[Mar 11th @ 10:15am]
Well I just got off the phone with them. Due to apparently me misspelling the e-mail address, I will be reimbursed for the five months that they charged me. The lady was very helpful in that matter and I requested that "the 14 business days it takes to reimburse my credit card" should be emailed to my correct account. She asked if I wanted to continue the account but wisely said: "It sounds like you don't want to continue it so I will cancel the account for you as we speak."
Mike ( Not Smit ) ;-) says:
[Mar 12th @ 12:50pm]
Hi There! For an account of pathetic customer service from DVDHype.com please check out my page:
Http://mikgad.googlepages.com/
Mike ( Not Smit ) ;-) says:
[Mar 12th @ 12:57pm]
My approach to getting off zip.ca mailing list was simple. Log in, change every bit of information, you have access to, hit save and your done. They haven't sent me email in 6 months now. All they have left is a first and last name and nowhere to send anything.
Gerard says:
[Apr 2nd @ 03:04pm]
Waiting for netflix .
Bill West says:
[Apr 15th @ 07:56pm]
I subscribed for a couple months to zip,specifically to rent blu-ray and hd movies.Even if new releases were marked 1,2 etc. I never once received a new release.I sent back the last dvd a week ago,(I live 100km from the depot)and they say they haven't received it yet.If you have problems with Zip they have shrewdly aligned with that champion of lameness Canada Post,so good luck with that...PS Ever notice when you go to the post office the first thing they ask is if you want insurance? It's like going to MacDonald's and being asked if you want supplementary health insurance against food poisoning.
Denis says:
[May 13th @ 11:55am]
After reading your website and seeing all the complaints people have with Zip.ca.. I have decided not to subscribe to their service, or even try the free trial.
Thanks for the heads up!
Michelle says:
[Jul 28th @ 04:43am]
Thank god I found this site, but when prey tell, is Netflix going to come to Canada?
I'm going to call them & I suggest you all do the same.
With enough people calling, they will move their asses over here.
Thanks : )
Michelle
Grindstone says:
[Aug 13th @ 06:57pm]
Been using this service for over a year. Very few issues. Customer service has been reasonable. I would recommend it.
Michelle says:
[Aug 13th @ 07:31pm]
Based on people's comments, I contacted Cinemail.ca, & twice now they haven't e-mailed me back via the form on their site, so I will be putting them on my blog.
Now I have no choices left since they seemed the best : (
Michelle
Dan says:
[Sep 23rd @ 02:29pm]
Zip.ca ripped me off many years ago. I rented dvds from them and I returned them but they claimed I didn't. They charged me their full price for these dvds although the retail value was even less. I even ordered a police investigation but it was fruitless. I wish I could sue this company but I can't prove they are dishonest. They didn't even have a phone number to call. Stay away from zip.ca!!
Lynn says:
[Nov 14th @ 02:38pm]
have been using zip for several months and love the service. The customer service has been excellent on the two occasions there have been problems with a disc. Will continue to recommend them!
Andrew says:
[Jan 8th @ 09:27pm]
I've been getting really irritated at them recently for there lack of quality control. In the past 4 months, I've received 2 dvds that were literally broken in half (one was being held together by a sticker and the other came in 2 pieces), and countless others that look like someone took them outside and played street hockey with them. I realize that they get a lot of dvd's coming in every day, but they really should have a complaint investigation team to see who keeps sending back these crap dvds and possibly think about expelling them for the sake of their good customers who look after their discs. Don't tell me that having a disc cracked is part of regular wear and tear and i sincerely doubt that its Canada Post's fault.
2. Disc selection: I have over 800 titles in my list and have recently noticed that it's pretty rare for them to make a selection that is below the 200's in my list. Yes I have some new titles in that part, but most of the others are at least a year old (Gone Baby Gone, No Reservations, etc) or are oldies but goodies and common titles. Seriously, are you going to tell me that all of your copies of Schindlers List or The Firm or Who Framed Roger Rabbit are gone? And don't tell me that every member of zip.ca is dying to see The Adventures of Baron Munchausen or the works of Jean-Luc Godard!! There's a reason i put all the others in the back... I want to see these ones first! Yeesh
I really don't see why they can't have more copies of these films: thanks to technologies such as Rentflix, most rental stores engage in revenue sharing with distributors, that give them a % of the rental price of that film and only charge for the production of the disc (only a few dollars normally). From this, I don't see why they cant order a ton of the new movies and scrap them later when the popularity fades?
Emma says:
[Feb 22nd @ 05:08am]
So I was wondering if Netflix was available in Canada yet and saw that only Zip.ca was. Good thing I typed in zip.ca review in google. You have saved me many frustrations. I will not even give them a try. I hope Netflix makes the move to Canada soon so zip.ca can be history.
roger bulbulian says:
[Feb 27th @ 04:03pm]
typical cry babies. If you feel so strongly about them keeping ur CC info, you should not have given it in the first place.
and i have been with them for 9 months and no issues.
some canadians are just born to complain.
and by the way i dont work for these guys. just grow up ye all
Dave says:
[Mar 13th @ 07:59pm]
Started out okay but now it is the worst service around. Have a list of 20 items and have not had a dvd sent in a week.
Michael says:
[Sep 15th @ 04:47pm]
I've been with Zip.ca for some time, and have loved the service, no problems at all. If anyone is considering Zip.ca, I would highly recommend giving them a try. They're the largest in Canada, and you can cancel any time.
Malini says:
[Nov 7th @ 03:04pm]
Well, I have been a member for a few months now (4?) and it has been absolutely super! The DVDs keep turning up in my mailbox at the rate of about 4 or 5 a week and I watch and return them; the few times something has come up (one arrived cracked, once I wanted to change my plan and once I reported one as missing and then found it in my dvd player (oops)), I have easily got someone through the online chat and the issue was resolved quickly and easily. And the selection (72,000 titles I believe) can't be beat, can it? Very happy with zip.ca, a big fan. I do live in Ontario and most of the mailing of my DVDs seems to be to and from Ottawa, so perhaps I am lucky in that (location) respect.
peau says:
[Dec 18th @ 01:15am]
i live in vancouver and i find the delivery to be incredibly fast. the discs are usually here the day after they send them. i often watch and return movies before the date that they are supposed to arrive at my house. As for the privacy issue that sounds a little wacky but as soon as your visa expires they're up poop creek. the emails definetly suck though
Jenne says:
[Feb 8th @ 06:40pm]
I just signed up for zip.ca and so far it's been pretty good. I had 24 Blu-ray listings on my Ziplist and received numbers 1, 7, and 23.
I'm trying out a 1 month free trial deal so hopefully their service stays good and consistent. Fingers crossed!
Don says:
[Mar 12th @ 04:21pm]
Suggestion: DVDLink.ca
used zip for 2 years until i found out about another great site DVDLink.ca
This site is mix of zip(for movies) and gameaccess(for games). DVDLink.ca is only site in Canada to offer movies and games for one price. Great selection, price and customer service
so far there hasn't been a single incident where I’ve received movies from the bottom of my list. Everything is coming from top 5. Give these guys a try before turning back to local video stores.
didamondr says:
[May 18th @ 04:38pm]
I've used zip for a few years (I live rural - it's an hour to get a dvd from a video store) and I've never had a problem with them.
I've always been credited quickly if a dvd didn't play etc.
I haven't seen this privacy issue come up before with them. Facebook I have real concerns about.
Anyway, that's my zip experience, it's been a great service for me because I like a lot of foreign films from directors like Fellini and Bergman etc. Hard to find at Blockbusters.
Tom says:
[Jun 2nd @ 01:00pm]
Wow...thanks Mike and unhappy commenters! Definitely staying from what sounds like an incredibly organized scam.
Lori says:
[Jun 14th @ 12:32pm]
I'm not sure how old these messages are, but today is June 14, 2010.
I recommend STAYING AWAY from Zip.ca kiosks
In April, I noticed my neighbourhood grocery store had a Zip.ca kiosk. I thought I'd try it out. I know many people who use the "red box" in the states without any problems.
The machine was simple enough to use and I returned the movie the next day (within 24 hours) to avoid any late fee charges. I was instructed by the girl working at Metro as to how to put the movie in the machine.
Near the end of May I was charge $28.25 TWO TIMES ($56.55. I called. Spoke to a nice fella. Said he'll check into it but informed me that the movie I rented was NOT returned and that the charges were 39 days of late fees. I never heard from him again.
June 4th I called again. Spoke to a female. She seemed nice enough but I replayed my displeasure about the situation not being resolved. She blamed it on the fact that the manager was "on vacation". She said she'll look into it. She called me back that day and told me that a 'tech' will check the machine today and he'll get back to her- and she'll get back to me, But she'll be out of the office for the rest of the day, so I should call 'someone else' if I have any questions. But in the meantime, it was suggested that I look around my home and car for the movie "as MOST people end up finding it themselves". (which would be great except I was helped at the grocery store by the lady working there when putting the movie back in). I didnt hear back from her.
Here it June 14. I called today and spoke to the same guy as the first time. He was useless. And... passed me off to the manager. But when he transfered me, there was no answer. Apparently the MANAGER was out of the office again. He took my information AGAIN, and told me that the manager SHOULD call me back today.
In my opinion, they are just a scam company looking to rip off people. This run-around is ridiculous. All for a movie that should have costed me $1.15.
David says:
[Jul 8th @ 01:35pm]
You know, reporting them to the BBB and then actually following up with the BBB might actually help. They have a link right on Zip.ca's website and it shows only 8 people have registered a complaint and only 4 in the past year.
Thanks for the info Mike, I sure won't be testing them out!
patrick ahern says:
[Sep 7th @ 08:03pm]
I live in metro Halifax, Nova Scotia, obviously not a 'big' city. I have found Zip delivery times to be at least 5 days; deliveries estimated for Friday never arrive until Monday/Tuesday of the following week.
Selection? I remember seeing advertising claiming 72,000 titles; now they are claiming 26,000? This might explain availability problems: I must compose my ziplist based on availabiliy rather than choice.
Quality control? At one point I had to return 3 disks in less than 2 weeks due to unplayability; a 'complimentary disk' doesn't cut it. How and how often do they inspect disks?
Shipping? They claim 'long term members' have disks shipped when a disk is reported as returned on my zip list. How long a term? this has not been the case for me, despite the fact I usually return a disk within 2 days after receipt.
The big draw for Zip to me is postal delivery, since I am partially handicapped and need a crutch to me. However, I have not yet checked other online rental agencies. I will do so now; you can't beat competition in retail.
MIRYAM says:
[Sep 8th @ 07:54pm]
Hello! I lost the envelope in which I have to send the movie back and I have been trying to communicate with zip.ca to ask for the address, but I haven't succeeded. Please, can anybody tell me the address I have to send the movies to?
Thank you so much
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