DENVER — Contact Denver7 is getting results for a Denver woman who was caught in a Walmart vs. FedEx shipping battle. What should have been a simple — and free — return ended up with her being sent to collections for a $2,200 shipping bill she never owed.
Shopping online has never been easier, but returning what you bought can be a different story.
Take Sophia Carpiniello's experience after she decided to return a $150 bedframe she ordered on Walmart.com and decided would not fit in her new apartment.
"I requested a return from Walmart, it was very seamless. They sent me a return shipping label," Carpiniello said. "When the FedEx driver came to the house and saw the shipping label, he said, 'This is the wrong kind of shipping label. It happens all the time with Walmart returns. So don't worry, we'll make you a new one when we get to the warehouse.'"
At first, Carpiniello wasn't worried, but a few weeks later FedEx sent the first invoice for shipping on what Walmart said was a free return.
"It was $2,248.32. I would have just kept the bed if I had any idea it was that much. I thought it was supposed to be free. My stomach dropped, honestly," she said. "So I called Walmart right away. And they reassured me that it was not my responsibility to pay that."
However, that was in August of last year, and the invoices kept coming for months.
Carpiniello sent email after email and even coordinated multiple calls between Walmart and FedEx. But the companies repeatedly told her it would be resolved.
Then FedEx sent her to collections.
"And that definitely made me feel very powerless. Because I wasn't really getting anywhere with either side," she said.
Contact Denver7 reached out to Walmart and FedEx, and while neither wanted to comment, in an email, a FedEx spokesman confirmed Carpiniello's return shipping charge has been resolved. She also received confirmation that the collections case has been dropped.
In a message to Sophia, a Walmart representative stated: "Further actions are taking place to ensure that this does not happen in the future."
"They need to take the responsibility off the customer. I'm just one person. And I felt very responsible the whole time for mediating between the two companies," she said. "I really couldn't be more thankful that Contact Denver7 was able to help me out with us. It felt like a huge weight off my shoulders."
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