David Buchroeder thought he was buying two electric bikes, not donating to a crowdfunding project.

David Buchroeder thought he was buying two electric bikes, not donating to a crowdfunding project.
Photo Credit: CBC

Man feels misled by ebike crowdfunding campaign

Canadian David Buchroeder felt he was misled by a highly successful crowdfunding campaign and was only able to get a refund after complaining to the public broadcaster’s program called Go Public.

Crowdfunding has become a multi-billion dollar industry. It involves people raising money over the internet for projects that would otherwise have difficulty getting funding.

Site was not clear, says consumer

When Buchroeder clicked a “buy now” tab on the goSondors.com website, he thought he was buying two electric bikes. What he was actually doing, was donating $2,000 to a fundraising campaign. He says that was not clear.

“It’s frustrating when you hear a story like this,” says Ramona Pringle and technology expert and assistant professor at Ryerson University in Toronto.

Listen‘Many people don’t read the fine print’

“It really speaks to the growing pains of what is a new economic model, what is a new platform. But what it speaks to especially to me is the essential need for clear communication so that all parties in these transactions understand what these sites are set up to do,” she adds.

Many people don’t read the fine print on websites and may be confused by a structure whereby perks are awarded to people who contribute, and there may be a tier which offers nicer products to people who contribute more money.

When Buchroeder realized he was making a contribution and not a purchase he asked for his money back. At first he was refused but, with the help of Go Public, he did get a refund.

A need for more regulation

Technology experts note that although the crowdfunding industry is worth billions, there is little or no regulation.

“What if you as a creator…take too long to deliver the product that you say you’re building,” asks Pringle. “What happens if people want refunds…What happens if the quality isn’t’ up to par? What happens if something gets lost in the mail or if you just fail to ever deliver? The answer to this is changing fast.”

The reason is that angry backers are starting to take creators to court, says Pringle. “I think that there does need to be more regulation as this becomes more and more of an established tool and an established platform.”

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