Taking a foreign company to a small claims court

Sarah1987

Hello,

I'm wondering if anyone can give me some advice. I'm currently in a dispute with Steam (Owned by a company called Valve, based in the USA but trading worldwide), which is a platform to purchase PC games and software online.

I was recently making a purchase on Steam from another user for £1.52 which when I clicked to purchase it I was told there was an error processing the transaction, and so I went and did it again. A little bit later I noticed that the purchase had gone through twice. I contacted Steam support to advise them of the error and request that they return or remove the purchase from my account and refund the money however they keep telling me that all market transactions (Purchases from other users) are final and they cant do anything about it. I've explained to them numerous times about the error I received which is the reason it had been purchased twice however they refuse to do anything about it, despite the fact I've probably spent over £1000 on their site over the years.

I know the amount of money is really insignificant but it's more the principle of it, so I'd like to take them to a small claims court. The address they provided me for their legal department is based in the USA, so am I able to serve the small claims courts documents to a foreign address? If not then does anyone have any suggestions with how to proceed?

Thanks,
Sarah

SeduLOUs

Even if it were possible (I don't actually know if it is, I suspect not), are you really going to take the Corporate giant that is Steam to a small claims court for the sum of £1.52? It would cost significantly more than that to post a letter to them.

lincroft1710

Are you serious??

This is one time when you should just forget "principles" and get on with your life. £1.52 is just not worth bothering with, even with a UK company, never mind one from the USA. You'll spend far more time and money than this is worth

Sarah1987

SeduLOUs wrote: »

Even if it were possible (I don't actually know if it is, I suspect not), are you really going to take the Corporate giant that is Steam to a small claims court for the sum of £1.52? It would cost significantly more than that to post a letter to them.

Like I explained in my post, it's the principle of it rather than the amount of money involved. Their system had an error which caused me to make the purchase twice and I shouldn't be penalised for it.

bazzyb

I'm not familiar with how Steam works - are the 'market transactions' similar to transactions on, for example, eBay? Are you able to contact the seller and request that they refund you rather than appealing directly to Steam?

Failing that, I would have thought it makes more sense to use their suggested dispute resolution service rather than considering court action for £1.52:

For EU Customers:

In the event of a dispute relating to the interpretation, the performance or the validity of the Subscriber Agreement, an amicable solution will be sought before any legal action. You can file your complaint at http://help.steampowered.com. In case of failure, you may, within one year of the failed request, file an online complaint on the European Commission’s Online Dispute Resolution website: https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/odr/main/index.cfm?event=main.home.chooseLanguage, or on the European Consumer Center’s website: http://www.europe-consommateurs.eu/index.php?id=2514.

Sarah1987

lincroft1710 wrote: »

Are you serious??

This is one time when you should just forget "principles" and get on with your life. £1.52 is just not worth bothering with, even with a UK company, never mind one from the USA. You'll spend far more time and money than this is worth

Maybe it's not something you'd pursue, but I'd like to. I came here to ask for advice about how to proceed, not to just be told to forget about it because its not worth the time and money.

SeduLOUs

Sarah1987 wrote: »

Like I explained in my post, it's the principle of it rather than the amount of money involved. Their system had an error which caused me to make the purchase twice and I shouldn't be penalised for it.

Jeez. Wouldn't like to get on the wrong side of you.

Sarah1987

bazzyb wrote: »

I'm not familiar with how Steam works - are the 'market transactions' similar to transactions on, for example, eBay? Are you able to contact the seller and request that they refund you rather than appealing directly to Steam?

Failing that, I would have thought it makes more sense to use their suggested dispute resolution service rather than considering court action for £1.52:

I've contacted their support and explained the situation on 6 occasions now and keep receiving the same response; that market transactions are final and they cant (wont) do anything about it.

Sarah1987

SeduLOUs wrote: »

Jeez. Wouldn't like to get on the wrong side of you.

Well as long as you don't plan to steal my money then I'm sure you wont

bazzyb

Sarah1987 wrote: »

I've contacted their support and explained the situation on 6 occasions now and keep receiving the same response; that market transactions are final and they cant (wont) do anything about it.

You mentioned that in your first post, hence why I suggested some other options for you...

lincroft1710

Sarah1987 wrote: »

Maybe it's not something you'd pursue, but I'd like to. I came here to ask for advice about how to proceed, not to just be told to forget about it because its not worth the time and money.

Do you honestly believe a USA company would bother responding to a court hearing for £1.52??? You first have to send a Letter Before Action, and that'll cost you an absolute minimum of £1.47, which you can't reclaim.

If they don't reply it costs £25 to use MoneyClaimOnline. Yes you can claim this back, but even if judgement is in your favour, how on earth are you going to enforce payment???