Speed or Order: Choose How You Want Blockbuster to Throttle You

Blockbuster has added a new feature that allows you to apply new settings to your queue. On the My Account page, under Manage Account Settings, you can designate Shipping Preferences for your queue. You may choose either Speed or Order. If you select Speed, Blockbuster should ship DVDs to you according to which titles in your queue will ship the fastest with less regard to their rank in your queue. If you select Order, Blockbuster should ship DVDs to you according to their rank in your queue with less regard to speed. Furthermore, if you select Order, you will need to select how many extra days you are prepared to wait for the highest ranking titles in your queue. You may choose to wait one to five extra days.

Choose from these queue options carefully, because Blockbuster can use these preferences to their advantage. If you select Speed, you will be inviting Blockbuster to send DVDs that might be low in your queue but abundant in Blockbuster's inventory. If you select Order, you will be inviting Blockbuster to slow down your shipments with no guarantee you will actually receive your most desired titles. Either way, Blockbuster could use these settings to your disadvantage. Either you could get less desirable titles more quickly or more desirable titles more slowly.

At this point, it is unclear how these settings will affect which distribution center will be shipping your DVDs. When Blockbuster ships from distant shipping centers, days may be added to transit times. In recent months, Blockbuster has displayed a strong tendency to slow down the flow of DVDs to some subscribers by shipping from more distant centers. Blockbuster has not yet specified whether or how transit times will be factored based on a subscriber's Speed/Order queue shipping preference.

Here is the safe way to play this new Speed/Order queue feature. Set your preference to Speed, and do not have any titles in your queue that you would not be happy to receive. Keep your most desired titles at the top of your queue, and hope for the best. Blockbuster is still probably going to throttle you, but if you have your preference set for Speed and you have plenty of desired titles in your queue, Blockbuster will not have any legitimate excuses. Yes, Blockbuster will still probably throttle you, but they will have a hard time convincingly pinning the blame for the delays on you.

Requesting Your Blockbuster Refund for Missed Shipping Days

With Blockbuster failing to ship DVDs in a timely manner and the nature of Blockbuster’s subscription-based billing system, the issue of refunds is becoming important. If you have one or more empty slots in your Blockbuster Online queue and Blockbuster fails to ship a DVD to you within 24 hours (Monday-Friday), you deserve a refund for the lapse in your subscription benefits.

Blockbuster has gotten quite slow about shipping lately. It is possible that Blockbuster will allow you to have empty slots in your queue for days before shipping a DVD to you. When Blockbuster Online fails to ship a DVD to you, complain to Blockbuster and make a note of the incident.

After a few weeks, you may have records of several missed shipping days. Keep in mind that--as a subscriber--you still paid for these shipping days even though Blockbuster did not provide subscription services to you on these days. Given that Blockbuster charged you while providing no benefit, it is only right that Blockbuster should issue a refund to you for missed shipping days.

Here is an example. In any given month, there are around 22 shipping days. If Blockbuster Online failed to ship to you on 8 of those 22 days, Blockbuster failed to honor your subscription for 36% of the shipping days in the month. If you paid Blockbuster $35 (plus tax) for that month, it is only fair that Blockbuster compensate you for the days of unfulfilled service by providing a 36% refund of $12.60 (plus tax).

Make your refund request to Blockbuster in writing. If Blockbuster rejects your request, you will need documentation. With proper documentation, you can pursue a refund through the Better Business Bureau or your credit card company.

It is not right for a company to collect fees for a service it cannot or will not provide. Do not let Blockbuster take your money without giving you something in return. If they cannot or will not provide the services for which you are paying, they need to return at least part the money you paid.