Charitable Auction With No Donation Verification
Charitybuzz refused to provide documentation verifying that the charitable portion of a winning auction bid was actually donated to the advertised nonprofit. This type of receipt is typically required under IRS rules to substantiate charitable contributions, yet Charitybuzz would not provide it and made no effort to facilitate communication with either their donor-advised fund administrator or the nonprofit involved.Customer service email responses felt AI written and heavily reliant on rules and FAQs rather than addressing the customer’s issue. They were quick to say no to a refund request and then stopped responding to follow-up conversations (including answers to their questions).
Max
Unethical and deceptive
DO NOT use Charity Buzz! This company and the people that work there are deceptive and unethical. I bought VIP Field-Level Suite & On-Field Access to a recent football game for my husband as a birthday gift and to cheer him up with his cancer diagnosis. We arrived two hours early but there were no seats available to view the FIELD. Only four seats were provided for 10 people crammed in the corner so we had to sit in the back where our view was obscured by the low ceiling and numerous distractions on the field. They should have listed these tickets as "obstructed view". We also didn't get the On-Field Access!! I was given a contact name (John Hines) and phone number for day of event but he never responded! Since we got HALF of what I paid for, I contacted Charity Buzz the next and they offered to refund the Buyer's Premium only (a charge they don't tell about until you purchase). Worse, is that John Hines said we never contacted him the day of the event. I sent the screenshot to show them he was lying and got no response. I should have received HALF of my money back since I received HALF of my auction item. Buyer beware!
Lisa B.
awful
awful! they don’t tell you anything when bidding and you end up paying a huge bitters premium on top of what you’re already gave. I would never use these guys again if I were a nonprofit organization.
Dan Fried
The merchandise was not as represented
The merchandise was not as represented. I bought a piece of art that was represented as original lithograph signed by the artist and I received a poster.The can’t be trusted
kathy mcgaughey
Horrible CS
The worst customer service I've ever dealt with. I asked for them not to ship my item until I returned from holiday. It was a struggle to get comprehension, but I finally did. And of course, you know the high value item is now set to be delivered while I'm away.Their "post sales services representative" needs to be fired immediately. She is incapable of completing even the simplest of tasks and her response times are awful. I will never be able to support or buy from Charity Buzz again.
Shane
CHARITYBUZZ STOLE 10 PIECES OF ART
I am a vendor. I sold artwork through Charitybuzz. The relationship was terminated because Charitybuzz expected me to be responsible for shipping losses while Charitybuzz (contrary to a prior agreement) would not insure the pieces when delivered. Instead of taking responsibility for the losses on insured pieces, they wanted me to take the loss. When the relationship was terminated, Charitbuzz DID NOT PAY FOR THE LAST INVOICE, THEREFORE TRYING TO STEAL THE 10 PIECES OF ART THAT I SENT TO THEIR CUSTOMERS/
Christian
MISREPRESENTATION
I won an item for a villa. After winning the bid, I had to follow up several times for key information, including the actual address. Once given the address, I searched the place online, finding that CharityBuzz misrepresented what it looked like and carefully selected a few photos to entice a bidder better. If this is the way they do business, I want no part of it, and I will be taking them to court.
Ari
Auto-Bid Trap & Zero Accountability
I placed a manual bid on Charitybuzz, only to find the platform had escalated it automatically, without my confirmation, under something they label “Auto Bid.” My $2,350 bid was accepted even though a higher $2,500 bid already existed, and then the system jumped me to $2,750 with a $2,800 cap I never set or saw. It took just 13 seconds. No confirmation screen, no warning, just a silent auto-escalation.When I contacted them, I received a cold, unsigned response that ignored every concern and threatened account restriction if I didn’t pay. No one took ownership. No attempt was made to investigate the system flaw I documented with screenshots and recordings.This is supposed to be a platform for charity, but what I experienced felt more like a trap designed to exploit goodwill. If I hadn’t reviewed the bidding timeline carefully, I would’ve unknowingly paid more than I intended. How many others have?Until Charitybuzz fixes its auto-bid system and takes transparency seriously, I can’t recommend it to anyone.
Mitsu Premjibhai Chavda
Products not what they say they are
Review Title: Misleading Advertisement – Poor Quality Necklace and Bracelet I purchased this necklace and bracelet from Charitybuzz because the product description made it seem like a high-quality piece. It was advertised as “ Diamonds” not lab diamonds and They advertise the items over $50,000,” A tennis necklace at $35,000A “diamond” necklace at $24,000but after taking to a few Jewelers, came to find out it was not that expensive. That the diamonds were Clearly lab. it is not what they they claimed. The pictures also made it look much more elegant and well-made, but in person, it feels cheap and flimsy. For the price, I expected something much better. Spoke to a person via email Scott Lomando, who kept telling they can’t do anything about it. They inflate their products to get high price. They also have bots to try and push the price up on you. Horrible what they are doing and supposedly for charity. This company should be investigated. This was very disappointing, and I feel like the company misrepresented the product. I would not recommend buying unless they are more honest about the materials and quality.
Anderson Buritica
Auctioned off Taylor Swift's love story…
Auctioned off Taylor Swift's love story music sheet. I won took 1 month never received item, after many emails they admitted they never had the item in their possession and that is a new "charity" and they never sent them the item. I asked why you were auctioning off items you didn't have in your possession. This was a $2000 item, and Christmas was ruined Do yourself a favor. Don't bid on this stuff! It's bait and switch company.
Timothy Mennig
I have won 2 auctions, BEWARE the VIG
I have won 2 auctions. The Charitybuzz employees are as helpful as possible, but I think their hands are tied on some big issues. We call it the "vig" in my house but the 20% upcharge is outrageous. My fault for not reading the fine print the first time. Be very careful about buying vacations. I won a vacation and was being put off from getting a mutually agreed upon date for 2 YEARS!!! Nothing in the 'dry' season was available because they give all of these away to the Hyatt Points people. I told them I didn't spend $10k to be forced to take a vacation when I didn't want to go. I do not doubt that the trip will be wonderful. I am now extremely leary about buying from them. I agree with many other comments that CB is a rip-off and that buyers are now getting savvy with their unscrupulous practices. I want to support charity, but when that means that I'm paying more (in some cases a lot more) than I would if I just booked the trip directly, it's not worth it. Unless I can 'win' something for a good deal + 20% vig, I won't do it.
Alyson Korman
Nonexistent Customer Service
I have bid on numerous things in the past with good results...the team then was solid and the customer service speedy and reliable. Not sure what happened since, wanted to bid on something recently...had a legitimate question which I emailed to customer service several times...no response whatsoever...that was back on 10/22...it's now 11/2 and still no word. What a shame! How can you trust a site that doesn't even answer a serious question.
Stephen M.
The fees are outrageous!!
The fees are outrageous!!! A shame, a disgrace to the charity itself. If they knew how much money you profited off of their charity, I cannot imagine how this is allowed to continue. Absolutely absurd & greedy!! I would not recommend charity buzz for anything ever!!!
Theresa Cook
These people need to be shut down
These people need to be shut down. I "won" four tickets to Real Time with Bill Maher at a price of more than $1300. I was se of swag containing a couple of tumblers, a Tshirt, a hat, and an envelope containing a notice telling me I should complete my trip by a certain time, March of the following year, and I had an email stating something similar along with the address of the contact person responsible for getting the tickets on the dates I was to request. NO RESPONSE TO ANYTHING WAS RECEIVED. EMAILS WENT UNANSWERED LIKE I NEVER EXISTED. DO NOT BID ON ANYTHING THESE THIEVES PRETEND TO OFFER! "Charity" probably means a photo op and a token donation while >90% of the grifting goes to "salaries".
John Osborne
Athletes should not use Charity Buzz to…
Athletes should not use Charity Buzz to sell their items for charity. Charity Buzz charges crazy high shipping prices to ship items won. Bidders are starting to figure this out and won’t bid on items, therefore not much money is being raised for charity. I bought a baseball bat for charity with a winning bid of $150. I was the only bidder. Charity Buzz charged a $30 hammer fee and then a $90 fee to ship the item. So, $150 for the item and then $120 in fees. Charity Buzz is a rip off, bidders are figuring this out and not much money is being raised for charity. I let the athlete know this, who donated his items to Charity Buzz.
Tim Arsenault
Terrible Experience
I would have to say this was not a good experience. My fault for not doing all the due diligence. But I don't think Charity Buzz was as upfront as they could have been. When I reviewed the item up for bid, the listing had both a minimum bid and estimate,that after I won the bid, I found out exceeded the FMV. In the case of the estimate it was $2k higher. In addition fees and taxes added 25% to the final cost. I think Charity Buzz needs to be WAY more transparent with customers when placing a bid. Lesson learned by me. I will never use this site again
Bill
It was quick and easy
It was quick and easy
Hugo Alarcon
Great communication and speedy delivery.
Great communication and speedy delivery.
Jack Mann
I had a difficult time logging in
I had a difficult time logging in. It kept kicking me out.
BTull
Wonderful selection
This auction site has a selection that I really like and paintings I've been looking for. It's very smooth system and easy to operate website. I have yet to get my picture but it's only been a few days. I can't wait to get it on the wall. "Mark Braver" I love his texture and colors. I'll keep my eye open for more.
trever east
