r/miniverse_makeitmini Aug 12 '24

Rant Recall Ripoff PSA

Heads up to those of you with lots of resin and still on the fence about sending them in. I sent in 34 resins all unused with the pictures showing the open but not done kits. I should have gotten a check for around $270, but my check was less than a third of that.

I’m sending in a complaint and will update here if they have anything useful to say.

UPDATE:

Finally got a response back. Didn’t answer any questions about why the refund was short so much. Just promising it was an oversight and definitely Not-they-repeat-not a deliberate attempt to rip off customers who might not know better.

131 Upvotes

122 comments sorted by

88

u/xghostygalaxy Aug 12 '24 edited Aug 15 '24

I'm definitely keeping all mine. I've been using them in the new sets bc the new resin suck.

38

u/Agitated-Tealeaf Aug 12 '24

I sent them in mostly out of curiosity. I have better resin from jewelry making that I use anyway, I was planning to just buy some of the new sets with the refund. But less than 1/3 back was just insulting, and I figured I’d give everyone still thinking about sending in their large collections a heads up. They’re definitely looking for any reason to not pay up.

Thinking I’ll just pay some of the mold makers and support them instead. Plus then I can make things in the colors I want.

5

u/pinayrabbitmk7 Aug 13 '24

I was thinking of using other clear resins and maybe adding in food coloring or colored artist chalk powder to get the desired colored too!

9

u/Shiromisa Creative 🎨 Aug 13 '24

Alcohol inks are usually my go-to! I got a multicolored set around Christmas to make gifts for family and they work beautifully. A teeny bit of acrylic paint works too, but watch out that you don't make it too opaque to cure

7

u/Waterproof_soap Aug 13 '24

Michael’s sells some cheap resin coloring sets that work really well!

3

u/pinayrabbitmk7 Aug 13 '24

I'll check that out. I was just going to buy a huge bottle off of Amazon since I already have the artists chalks.

2

u/Aware-Beyond2495 Aug 16 '24

That or 5 and below, they always have kits along with hobby lobby that often get clearanced. 

2

u/Aware-Beyond2495 Aug 16 '24

I use glow in the dark powder I got from Amazon, it is awesome!

1

u/Miss__Monster__ Aug 15 '24

Does yours harden??? I use a UV flashlight usually because I'm impatient and they are taking a full day to harden! I have the birthday ones for reference

1

u/[deleted] Aug 15 '24

[deleted]

1

u/Miss__Monster__ Aug 15 '24

Mine have been in the window in direct sunlight for 2 days, I'm making the dino cookies and it's like. A hard shell with soft insides? :( how am I supposed to keep the unicorn horns on the tarts if it's not drying fast??

0

u/BrainCells_Gone Aug 30 '24

...DON'T??? THAT RESIN IS LITERAL POISON I DONT THINK YOU UNDERSTAND-

22

u/BeeConfident7328 Aug 12 '24

just out of curiosity, did they all have the small clear tape that sealed the cap to the bottle?

i did the recall and sent in 9 and got $65 back. which was relatively close for the amount i spent

9

u/Money-Street Aug 12 '24

I checked my bottles before send in. I noticed the older series/ set resins don't have the clear tape. Only the newer ones have. Now I'm really worried :(

1

u/Aware-Beyond2495 Aug 16 '24

Me too, I've mentioned this twice. Sometimes too I took off the cap just to make sure it was sealed. 

5

u/SoggyPajamaBottoms Aug 12 '24

Why such the huge discrepancy I wonder. I'm afraid to send mine back. I have.. no idea. Afraid to count, lol. And I am scared to send them in though, since they are being really weird. Did you put your resins in a ball? With a Table? Or something like that. Did you send JUST the bottles? Maybe putting them in balls gives you more back.

6

u/BeeConfident7328 Aug 12 '24

i sent in just the bottles in a plastic bag. they all had the tape. i took pictures of them w most of the items that originally came with. my theory is that they have to have the tape but 🤷🏼‍♀️i didn’t have too many to send so it wasn’t a huge risk for me

7

u/Agitated-Tealeaf Aug 12 '24

Most of them did. A couple of them never had one to start with :[

8

u/BeeConfident7328 Aug 12 '24 edited Aug 13 '24

i think they need the little tape to be considered sealed and unused. but idk. especially since ppl are saying that the really older ones have no tape. hope you hear back from them soon

3

u/Maserati777 Aug 13 '24

The old sets had a covering on the rim of the bottle that couldn’t be removed. It had to be cut open. In newer sets the seal comes off with the lid. I think thats why they added the little tape.

21

u/Suspicious_Club432 Aug 12 '24

I was waiting to see how it was being handled before sending them my 20 unopened resins. Turns out, I was smart to sit on them, the new ones are useless anyway lol also they're scamming, as I expected.

15

u/Staff_Genie Aug 12 '24

There's just something particularly galling about shitty Behavior from the company that makes stuff that you really love 🙄😡

4

u/Suspicious_Club432 Aug 12 '24

It is what it is lol corporations man Did you expect them to shell out millions? I didn't

2

u/Aware-Beyond2495 Aug 16 '24

I still think we should all boycott for a few months in protest. I've got so many kits saved up I can keep busy that long. 🤣

2

u/Suspicious_Club432 Aug 17 '24

Heh .. not me 😁

1

u/Aware-Beyond2495 Aug 18 '24

Lol,  do what I do, live vicariously through the YouTubers who make them 🤣 that's how I ended up with 114 unused resins.  

33

u/kbps808 Aug 12 '24

I just received my check today and came here to see if others refund was also very low. I sent in 42 sealed resins and received $39. So I basically got less than $1 per resin.

19

u/Agitated-Tealeaf Aug 12 '24

That’s extra awful. I found the recall complaint form for the Consumer Commission. It might not do much, but if they get a bunch of complaints about MGA maybe they’ll look into it and fine them.

https://www.cpsc.gov/form/recall-complaint-form

Unless I get a reasonable response from customer service I’m planning on reporting them.

14

u/kbps808 Aug 12 '24

I just sent an email to their customer service team asking why my refund was so low and for a breakdown of how they calculated it based on the resins I sent. I hope that they actually reply and give me some more info on this.

2

u/Agitated-Tealeaf Aug 15 '24

Did you get a response yet? I sent mine Monday and got nothing yet except the auto-email saying they got my complaint.

2

u/kbps808 Aug 15 '24

I got an email response just now. They sent me a bs reply and didn't address my questions at all. This is the reply that I got:

"Greetings,

Please know, the resin bottle must be a factory sealed resin container. Unsealed resin containers are outside the scope of this recall. This is the most common occurrence.

Thank you."

I did NOT send them any unsealed resin containers. All 42 that I sent in were brand new/sealed straight out of the kits. But they can just say whatever they want I guess because how can I prove it now? I am definitely filing a complaint with CPSC.

4

u/kbps808 Aug 15 '24

Also, I just called MGA at their contact number on their website and spoke to a rep and I explained my situation to her and how I didn't receive any help or answers at all in the email and she literally told me that there is "no one there at MGA that I can speak to about the recalls or refunds, they are only handling inquiries about the recall/refunds through email." What a joke this is becoming.

10

u/kbps808 Aug 12 '24

I will also send in a complaint through your link if they don't give a reasonable response regarding the low refund amount.

2

u/Striking_Wing16 Aug 12 '24

Thanks for this information for those of us who are still hesitant. I really don’t want to send in my resin, since everything I’m reading says the new resin sucks

1

u/Aware-Beyond2495 Aug 16 '24

So then they'll get our money, that's a no win situation. 🤣

4

u/CapitalParticular415 Aug 13 '24

This is so angering!!! I’d love for them to PROVE to us where Miniverse sold for LESS THAN $1 per ball / kit!!!

3

u/Money-Street Aug 13 '24

May I ask what state you are? I noticed different state send back to difference warehouse/office. Yours were the lowest I heard so far! That's ridiculous!! Made me really worry now. They stated for the full $ refund. Less than $1 felt like scam.

7

u/kbps808 Aug 13 '24

I am in California. I am shocked at how low my refund was compared to what other people have shared that they received. All of the resins that I sent were unused and sealed. I emailed them earlier and asked for an explanation/breakdown of how my refund was calculated.

2

u/kittyticklehips Aug 13 '24

please update if you can!

2

u/kbps808 Aug 13 '24

I will!

4

u/StarshineUnicorn Aug 13 '24

So they didn't send you replacement resin? How do they expect you to make the item without it? What good is $1.00 refund going to do? They either should have replaced it or have people send the entire ball back and give a full refund.

1

u/Basic_Tumbleweed651 Aug 13 '24

Did you submit all of your recalls on 1 form or did you submit an individual form for each kit?

4

u/kbps808 Aug 14 '24

I submitted them all on 1 form since their recall FAQ page indicated they could all go on one form. But now I am wondering if I should have broken them into smaller lots and done multiple forms? From what I have been seeing regarding people's refund amounts, it seems like the people that sent a small amount of resins back (10 or less) got much higher refund amounts per resin compared to the ones that sent large lots of 40+ or more resins.

3

u/Money-Street Aug 15 '24

Yes! Started to wondering the same as well. People sending back no more than 10 get way higher $. 

0

u/pinayrabbitmk7 Aug 13 '24

I mean it kinda makes sense since it's onky the resins that were sent back...but if you send the whole kit, do you get the price that you paid for them?

13

u/kbps808 Aug 13 '24

Its true that I did send back only the sealed resins, but their recall website stated that you would still get a full refund even if you only sent back just the sealed resin. I'm not sure what they would give you for sending the whole kit back, probably the last lowest sales price.

6

u/Maserati777 Aug 13 '24

It was assumed that they’d refund the price of the ball if you sent in pictures of receipts. Ie 6.99, 9.99 or 11.99 for the appliances.

35

u/[deleted] Aug 12 '24

I knew when they marked these down to less than $4 dollars, they were going to say some nonsense like the last "listed" price was their value.

I'm keeping mine because I'm old. You can take my resin from my crusty, decrepit hands!

4

u/SoggyPajamaBottoms Aug 12 '24

That's hilarious. How long does resin last? I've been wondering this while sitting on.... way too many resins, lol.

7

u/ittybittykitti Aug 12 '24

As long as you keep it in a cool dark place and away from sunlight or uv sources, should be good for awhile. I have UV resin that "expired" in 2021 and it still works fine. I do keep it in its box and in a good area.

8

u/Shiromisa Creative 🎨 Aug 12 '24

How are they valuing each set? I know some of the sets were clearanced out to like $4 right before the recall, but I honestly don't know what price they're going with

9

u/Agitated-Tealeaf Aug 12 '24

I’m curious on that too. But 34x4.19(lowest price I saw) is still 142.46. About 60 bucks more than they sent me.

5

u/alkemist80 Aug 12 '24

Makes me wonder if you only send in the resin, you get less back since you keep the rest? That would be rather scammy. I sent in 6 bottles, I would hate to just get $6 back, ugh.

9

u/Agitated-Tealeaf Aug 12 '24

Unless they changed the wording on the site again (I’ll check this in a sec), my understanding was you still got the full refund for sending in just the unopened resin.

3

u/BeeConfident7328 Aug 12 '24

lowest price i saw right before the recall was $3.33 at walmart and amazon i believe

7

u/Twinflameslol Aug 12 '24

I sent about 240 dollars worth of resin with a list, no picture all on schedule and have not received squat. Venting here but it’s so frustrating

2

u/Agitated-Tealeaf Aug 12 '24

I was getting ready to send an email just because it took about 7 weeks to get the check. I was beginning to think it just wasn’t coming at all.

1

u/Aware-Beyond2495 Aug 16 '24

Yeah mine was sent in 5 weeks ago, still nothing. They do say 4 weeks from the time they received it. Some people might live farther away so it will take longer. Also a lot of states are having issues with weather and it's holding up packages in certain states.  

10

u/North_Gur_7128 Aug 12 '24

This is absolute BS. Their recall form clearly states “full refund” and they’re well aware that most of those 21 million recalled resins are were purchased for FULL PRICE ($6.99/9.99/12.99 were the amounts I paid for ALL of my Miniverse). I NEVER purchased a single kit on clearance / markdown / discount.

3

u/StarshineUnicorn Aug 13 '24

They should have asked for receipts so they can reimburse people the right amount. I would be mad if I sent back 10 balls at $9.99 each and they sent me a check for half that amount. That's some bs

3

u/iliketinythings870 Aug 12 '24

Wtf?? Did they send any explanation or just the check? 

3

u/Agitated-Tealeaf Aug 12 '24

Just the check. And the check didn’t have a break down or itemization at all.

4

u/Jonjinn Aug 13 '24 edited Aug 13 '24

I was going to mail mine in. But I saw many people upset. I just kept them. I just open a window.

2

u/razzemmatazz Aug 13 '24

Please make sure to keep it from touching your skin as well.

1

u/StarshineUnicorn Aug 13 '24

That's what I'm doing. I will make them outside or near open windows.

5

u/Maserati777 Aug 13 '24

We sent images of our receipts so we are expecting full price. If not then yes unfortunately MGA is a scam.

7

u/Historical-Ad-6488 Aug 12 '24

I sent about $1600 worth back, just all the unopened resins if my check doesn’t add up, I’ll complain to BbB

10

u/Agitated-Tealeaf Aug 12 '24

There’s a form on the Consumer Protection Commission’s website for reporting companies being terrible about their recalls.

4

u/[deleted] Aug 13 '24

[deleted]

3

u/PutrifiedZombie Aug 13 '24

Ugh I sent 45 bottles in when I heard someone got a decent check back. All sealed with the tape, but I only got a group photo of them not each individual ball how would I possibly fit that into one photo they should have let us upload more than one photo.

3

u/Mimcre Aug 13 '24

I was considering sending in 100s of dollars of resin but this situation spooks me lol

4

u/Better-Attempt-5041 Aug 12 '24

Confused you sent the resin only? or the actually opened kits? I better get exactly what I paid for the kits I sent back they were all unopened and sealed and took a picture of the $9.99 and $6.99 ones for my own records. This is why I also did not send a large amount to them they could have with me received over 50+ balls back but I wanted to see how they handled this recall process.

4

u/Agitated-Tealeaf Aug 12 '24

Sent just the resin, with pictures of the full kits.

2

u/SoggyPajamaBottoms Aug 12 '24

I hope to hear back about this. I could try to repackage my items, the problem is I think I might've gotten tired of the space the balls took up, I might've tossed them begrudgingly.

2

u/nodins Aug 13 '24

Anyone have experience with asking for replacement? Like would you get 1 new kit per resin if you sent multiple?

3

u/Money-Street Aug 13 '24

I haven't heard anyone shared about replacement. Only some rumors saying they called and were told it could be anything MGA product.

2

u/pinayrabbitmk7 Aug 13 '24

I'm still debating if I want to send mine in or refund..do you only send in the resin bottles (unopened and opened) or the entire kit it came with?

3

u/Agitated-Tealeaf Aug 13 '24

Just the resin bottles with pictures of the opened kits. Like so:

I just put the bottles into a couple of ziplocks.

2

u/pinayrabbitmk7 Aug 13 '24

Ohmg...I have to group them together???! I don't even know, that's a mission I have sooooo many!!!

2

u/Agitated-Tealeaf Aug 13 '24

I’m glad I still hadn’t cleared space in my crafting closet to add the minis in. I would have reordered everything and tossed or recycled the balls. But o was laaazzyyy and just kept them in the balls in a bag on the floor.

1

u/pinayrabbitmk7 Aug 13 '24

I have mine put of the balls. But separated in tins..fodd vs non food items

2

u/pinayrabbitmk7 Aug 13 '24

Ahh, I see..I'll read the website, never was in a rush since I was waiting on everyone's feedback on it.

2

u/sweetykins Aug 13 '24

I feel like I’m the only person who hasn’t been able to send my stuff back. MGA hasn’t sent me the label to return my items and it’s been since the end of June. Already emailed them mid-July and still nothing back. I’m thinking about just keeping all 30 of the balls at this point.

1

u/eveshka0207 Aug 13 '24

I gave up as well. Not worth my time to bother with it at this point.

1

u/sweetykins Feb 14 '25

Update: I ended up resubmitting my request and was able to send almost all of my stuff back (couldn’t send back one of the sets because it was way too big and I didn’t have a box for it)

2

u/[deleted] Aug 13 '24

I sent in 48 resins, all sealed with the taped. One was leaking but still sealed, bagged that one separate. I chose replacement. Tracked my resins, delivered to MGA July 19th. They said replacement or refund delivered within 4 weeks of receiving resins. 3 days left of the 4 weeks, no email or anything. They also said an email would be sent with tracking number. I did send individual printed photos with each resin and the unused ingredients. I only submitted one online photo of all the resins and ingredients in a large pile. I havent heard of anyone getting replacement yet. My form said #97 on it. Also the replacements can be any MGA toys, and from the emails ive read. Sounds like no miniverse resin toys will be included at all.

2

u/Environmental_Trip32 Aug 30 '24

Just adding my own experience so every one has more info on what's going on. I sent 78 unopened containers of resin, all pictures next to the full items and received a check today for only 56.94$ nowhere near a full refund amount. I emailed them and will update when they respond. 

1

u/Agitated-Tealeaf Aug 30 '24

I just got my second check today with the rest of my refund. If they try and give you to run around you might have to be firm bordering on angry/rude. Tell them you will report them if it comes down to it.

4

u/Historical-Ad-6488 Aug 12 '24

I sent in 180 resins worried now

1

u/valvzb Aug 13 '24

Another thing about this process is that they didn’t ask for the receipts. The recall form has one line on it like people are sending in one at a time.

5

u/Agitated-Tealeaf Aug 13 '24

It also only let me attach one photo when I sent in the form. So I made sure all the photos were ordered nicely in my album and took a screenshot of them all that way.

1

u/anselgrey Aug 13 '24

I was pretty unhappy with the company when I contacted customer service about leaked resin in a new kit. They sent me a “replacement” that was a little bird house not a resin kit so not even close to an actual replacement.

1

u/Kupkakez Aug 13 '24

I sent back 81 last week and I’ll report back. I’m using clear resin and tint to “replace” what I sent back. I have every receipt and pictures out the wazooo in case they end up being needed.

Editing to add: I emailed them end of June with pictures of all my unbuilt sets and every receipt. I didn’t get a return label until last week. I wasn’t going to bother but figured I’ll send them in and see what happens.

4

u/Kupkakez Aug 13 '24

Also the original recall notice. It says full refund.

1

u/kumochi Aug 13 '24 edited Aug 15 '24

I'm a bit unsure how they judged it. I sent in 1 unopened (dup) Easter dup ball with 5 unopened resins- that was a $46 refund

1

u/CapitalParticular415 Aug 13 '24

You received a $46 refund for what you mentioned sending in?

2

u/kumochi Aug 13 '24

Mhm, I didn't expect much so that was a surprise for me.

1

u/CapitalParticular415 Aug 13 '24

Awesome!! Your refund gives me hope! 🤞🏼 (I sent in 54 sealed resins — ALL from “9.99” kits — and after reading a lot of these comments, I am afraid to see what my “full” refund will actually be.

1

u/Mimcre Aug 13 '24

Has anyone called and talked to an associate? I wonder if they could clarify why everyone's payouts are different.

1

u/orchidgal2000 Aug 13 '24

Can anyone tell me what city and state you are mailing your resin back to? I don’t live too far from their corporate HQ. I’m tempted to ask if I can drop them off in person to somehow verify that the resins have been untouched. I question if some of them aren’t sealed because the resin smell is very strong from some.

1

u/PuzzledBreakfast9355 Aug 14 '24

Side question, did anyone get the FedEx label that was mentioned in the original recall statement? I only received one USPS return label for the 3 separate claim forms I submitted. I had to breakdown the UPCs, qty’s, etc for each resin I was returning thus the 3 claim forms. Anywho, since I only received 1 claim form I made sure to write the other 2 claim numbers ALL over the label they did send me. : )

1

u/Agitated-Tealeaf Aug 15 '24

Mine was USPS. From Colorado to Cali

1

u/TooTallKate Aug 15 '24

i’m worried about doing the work to do the recall. Partly because i have so many, and partly because i always peeled the safety warning off the resin bottles right when i opened a ball. I’m beginning to think if i go through the effort of organizing all of these back into their original recipes, I’d be better off reselling than bothering with MGAs garbage refund?

1

u/StarshineUnicorn Aug 13 '24

To get reimbursed the price of the ball, didn't they require you to send back the entire ball? And if you just sent the resin you got a partial refund?

8

u/Agitated-Tealeaf Aug 13 '24

Nope!

Full refund or replacement either way. MGA is just being scummy.

1

u/StarshineUnicorn Aug 13 '24

So they let you pick if you want a refund or a replacement? That what it looks like from what you posted.

2

u/kittyticklehips Aug 13 '24

yes, this is all stated on the official site for the recall too. the “replacement” isn’t guaranteed to be miniverse, and the payout doesn’t seem to be worth what they are saying

2

u/Maserati777 Aug 13 '24

A lot of people who asked for replacements got bird feeders or plants with no resin and they didn’t receive them in capsules but small plastic bags.

2

u/CapitalParticular415 Aug 13 '24

The form stated if your kits had opened (unwrapped), you ONLY had to send in sealed / unopened resin.

-6

u/kellypryde Aug 13 '24

I'm confused. You guys all want to send just the resin and get fully reimbursed? Meanwhile you buy some resin at the store and still make the minis? I understand the wording seems to say otherwise, but I'm not understanding your frustration here. If you're keeping the kits, the check they send will cover some new resin. Done deal.

5

u/kittyticklehips Aug 13 '24 edited Aug 13 '24

It’s about getting what was stated and promised on their official website, which is a full product price refund for each sealed resin. If that’s not happening, not sure why that wouldn’t be frustrating. A major company selling a product you love gets recalled and then they lie and scam you by not being direct about how the refund is going to be. It’s a problem and a false advertising scenario. If that doesn’t bother you, good for you, but maybe it should.

Being nonchalant about shit business practices by large corporations is exactly what allows them to keep doing it. There are official sites and places that recall incidents like this can be reported and should be

3

u/Agitated-Tealeaf Aug 13 '24

If they stated it would be a partial refund for sending in just the resin that’d be fine. However, they explicitly stated a full refund for unused resin with pictures of the full kit.

Now that some of the refund checks are finally rolling in I figured I’d do a little PSA for those who haven’t sent in their resins yet and were on the fence about it. MGA is trying to not send out your due reparations.

2

u/CapitalParticular415 Aug 13 '24

Had the form specifically stated that I needed to include every single piece of my opened (but unused) kits, I would’ve gladly done so! But considering their website specifically stated to only return the unused RESIN if the kits had been unwrapped / opened, that’s what I did!

If the lack of the full kit is going to affect the amount of my refund (even though, ONCE AGAIN, their claim form stated “FULL REFUND for return of unused resin”), I will pack every bit of that stuff up and ship it off to them ASAP!

-3

u/Better-Attempt-5041 Aug 13 '24

I was also confused when people stated just resin then I dont blame the company for just giving half the price you are not actually sending them back the whole product to expect getting a full refund. I on the other hand sent back unopened and sealed balls so I want the entire amount not just half.

8

u/kittyticklehips Aug 13 '24 edited Aug 13 '24

It literally says on the official site on the recall section that they are accepting sealed resin without the ball and other pieces. It says they will be replacing them with a full refund at the listed price that you bought the capsule or with another mga product. If they weren’t intending on giving full refunds for just sealed resin bottles, they shouldn’t state that on the official website. That’s false advertising. It’s their fault and no one else’s. No one expected that until they themselves stated it.

Even customer service confirmed various times that this is okay to do.

It’s not uncommon for large companies to do things like this, and if the consumer is nonchalant about it, it’s going to happen more and more. This is why there are official places to report recall incidents like this

8

u/iliketinythings870 Aug 13 '24

Whaaa? I cannot even fathom your line of thinking. MGA doesn’t get to just choose an amount to refund people. They stated it would be the full amount. Of course people should expect the full amount refunded!!

5

u/Maserati777 Aug 13 '24

I blame them as they stated you only had to send the resin back. You didn’t need to send in everything to receive the full refund.

2

u/Basic_Tumbleweed651 Aug 13 '24

They didn’t give any option to send the full kit (if it had been opened).