Gphelmets.com... Anyone?

[BrianC]

I am hoping there is at least 1 person on here who has ordered from this place and actually received their helmet... I saw their page after a Facebook friend liked it and it looked legit. The website is quite nice actually... I read the reviews on the site and it seemed good so I ordered my new Arai Corsair V, along with a visor and an Eject thingy. Total was just under a grand, and my card was charged right away. It was Valentines day (Friday) so I didn't expect much in the way of a tracking number or anything until yesterday , which I feel is reasonable considering Monday was Presidents' Day and all. Long story short, I tried looking for info in my account page on their site but all it says is " processing"... So I call and get a dude who says yeah it already shipped, it will be there by the end of the week... Then he said he'd send me via email the tracking number. He never sent it so I got antsy and started poking around the web. Sure enough there are a number of reviewers claiming the place is a scam and the owner, Victor Barreira, has been scamming with other sites, but for every negative claim there is 3 positive reviews... I'm really nervous now... Just called again but got a machine. So, anyone actually done business with this place?

[csmutty]

Worst case scenario file with the credit card company to have them stop payment. I had to do it for the repair shop that botched the hpop job on my van in Gerogia.

[GearHd6]

I've never heard of the place. But I'd do as csmutty said if you're getting nervous.

Maybe try contacting Arai directly and see if they even recognize the place?

[Pigman]

A G for a Helmet Dude U nuts......there are so many deals out there GEEEZ and or dealers that will cut you a Deal.

[BrianC]

Their price was the same as all the other online stores... I also got an Iridium blue visor and an Eject... .
Just to update... Still no response to my call or email requesting a tracking number... I'm almost 100% sure I got ripped off. I would love for just 1 real person to say they got a helmet delivered and prove me wrong! This fucking sucks! At this time I would definitely advise people to stay away from gphelmets.com and the sister site speedwayhelmets.com which is selling Bell helmets.

A G for a Helmet Dude U nuts......there are so many deals out there GEEEZ and or dealers that will cut you a Deal.

[Chippertheripper]

Keep your pants on for a couple more days. You could at least call and warn your cc company that there might be a problem, but don't go trying to get your $ back in case it HAS shipped, and they're just too lazy (or busy) to get a tracking number to you.
I do agree that this situation is inexcusable. In 2014 you should have shipping confirmation in a jiffy.

[BrianC]

I wouldn't be so worried if there weren't multiple claims about this guy stealing people's money... Too bad I fell for the phony reviews on the site. I will update here though if I actually get a tracking # or the helmet.

[Pittenger5]

So out of curiosity, if their price was no better than anywhere else, why not shop at a reputable shop that everyone has heard of?

[BrianC]

Mostly for convenience sake because I could get the visor and eject along with the helmet... But I did ask myself that same question before pulling the trigger. Check the site, it really looks legit. I guess I just figured that if they specifically deal with Arai helmets, they'd be more likely than say motorcyclesuperstore.com to have the items in stock? Also, there are a couple racers I know personally who liked their page on Facebook so I kinda felt like they must've had a good experience.

So out of curiosity, if their price was no better than anywhere else, why not shop at a reputable shop that everyone has heard of?

[OneCheekRider]

Good luck. In the future, shops like Sportbiketrack gear price match. Regardless of who has the deal, I just call up STG and get it from them for the same price plus the piece of mind.

[Pigman]

or use RidersDiscount they are unreal for fast shipping and Price....

[CBR929RE]

or get sponsorship and get it directly from the company/distributor and get a better discount

[BrianC]

So I'll have to update this thread tomorrow evening... If the place is a total scam, it's an elaborate and well run one. After calling 4 times today, leaving messages, and emailing 2 requests for shipping info, I never got a response. I finally got a person on the line and it was a different guy than last time. He tells me he can see I should get the helmet tomorrow. I ask if it's ups and if he can send me a link or tracking number and he got weird, but said another guy could get that to me, and he recited my email and said the other guy will send it to me tomorrow. Sounds shady as hell, and I'll be very surprised if there's a package here tomorrow. I'll update this thread with a conclusion tomorrow evening.

[CBR929RE]

should have asked him to tell you the tracking number right over the phone

[Jim]

sorry about the bad luck dude.
like everyone else has said, let me know if you cancel and need a more reputable company

[BrianC]

Should've just went with STG... They've always been good to me but I was a fool and I'm blaming the stupid Eject rule! If it wasn't for that one piece of shit I wouldn't have went this route. Best case is they just suck at doing what they say they'll do and have the worst customer service ever... Worst case I'm out $976 because I used a pre-paid debit card with no protection for disputes with merchants...

[JohnnyV]

Worst case I'm out $976 because I used a pre-paid debit card with no protection for disputes with merchants...

Dude how many more "this may not be the greatest idea" indicators can you add to this thread? An unheard of, sketchy site AND using a prepaid debit card?

[BrianC]

The site wasn't "unheard of"... They have 11,000 likers on Facebook, including racers I know. The card was pre-paid because I don't deal with banks or have an account. It's the only way for me to order online. Guess it's my fault for the scumbags who theive right?

[GearHd6]

You've got to always protect yourself, you can't trust anyone anymore.

I'm sure you'll get the helmet, it just may take a while. It sounds like they're pretty disorganized over there to me. I'd still contact Arai, they'll want to know what their dealers are up to I'm sure.

I have seen where other people have received helmets from them so they're not a total scam.

[BrianC]

Here's the latest... Victor (owner) called me. He apologized, and told me guys at Daytona ordered all the ejects and makes up some bullshit story about 2 different shipments, both scheduled for delivery tomorrow. He even has tracking numbers... I write them down, try tracking them with no luck. One is ups, the other fedex... I call fedex who tells me there is no package coming to my address. I call Victor back. He gives me another bullshit story about drop-shipping the helmet from NY, it will only take until tomorrow blah blah... I say to him, dude, wtf is going on? If I don't get the stuff by the end of the day I want a refund. He agrees. So each time I have communication with the place, they stall and say it's on it's way but can provide no proof whatsoever. Even if the helmet arrives tomorrow, I will never order another thing from gp helmets. Absolute dickheads to deal with. I only created this thread so people will have a detailed description of what happens if they choose to use gphelmets.com.

[-Dutch-]

I feel your pain but try to remember that there are two sides to every story.

I used to do the purchasing and process sales for a DME rentals company. We sold some specialty items that were being drop-shipped from the manufacturer and were supposed to be delivered to the customer in a week. A week later I still didn't have tracking info and the customer was up my ass. Weeks went by and still nothing, the manufacturer kept telling us that it would just be a few more days. It turned into a three month ordeal; the last time I tried to reach out I discovered the company had gone out of business. That was a fun one to explain to the customer.

I've also seen shipments picked up by the wrong carrier and gone missing for a week, etc...

The dealer gets kicked around when something goes wrong. Sometimes it's their fault, sometimes not.

[BrianC]

I can only hope it's something like what you mention, but I am having trouble believing that 2 separate packages being delivered by 2 separate companies supposedly by tomorrow, don't even have valid tracking numbers... .

I feel your pain but try to remember that there are two sides to every story.

I used to do the purchasing and process sales for a DME rentals company. We sold some specialty items that were being drop-shipped from the manufacturer and were supposed to be delivered to the customer in a week. A week later I still didn't have tracking info and the customer was up my ass. Weeks went by and still nothing, the manufacturer kept telling us that it would just be a few more days. It turned into a three month ordeal; the last time I tried to reach out I discovered the company had gone out of business. That was a fun one to explain to the customer.

I've also seen shipments picked up by the wrong carrier and gone missing for a week, etc...

The dealer gets kicked around when something goes wrong. Sometimes it's their fault, sometimes not.

[SRTie4k]

I feel your pain but try to remember that there are two sides to every story.

I used to do the purchasing and process sales for a DME rentals company. We sold some specialty items that were being drop-shipped from the manufacturer and were supposed to be delivered to the customer in a week. A week later I still didn't have tracking info and the customer was up my ass. Weeks went by and still nothing, the manufacturer kept telling us that it would just be a few more days. It turned into a three month ordeal; the last time I tried to reach out I discovered the company had gone out of business. That was a fun one to explain to the customer.

I've also seen shipments picked up by the wrong carrier and gone missing for a week, etc...

The dealer gets kicked around when something goes wrong. Sometimes it's their fault, sometimes not.

I don't want to turn this thread into a discussion on business ethics, but if you're a reseller who drop ships everything, you should make that 100% clear on the inventory status of each item so the customer knows it's not coming from your own warehouse. It may not be the fault of the dealer, but by obfuscating that fact, it only makes them more untrustworthy.

[-Dutch-]

Without question. I don't mean to get sidetracked, I just don't want you to lose sleep just yet.

[Tunertype]

A reputable company would disclose if the item is in stock or had a lead time/is drop shipped. A scummy company will sell you something they don't actually have in stock and not tell you. Doesn't matter if it's the manufacturers fault it's still scummy to represent non stock items as stock.

Always use paypal or a credit(not debit) card online. 100% protection. You get your money back and the seller gets screwed every time.