I have partnered with Paribus to share this information with you.
All opinions are my own and were not influenced by any parties.
Like many of you, I love to shop online.
For me, it is more convenient than driving to find the deal in the store. Not only that, but I can often find coupon codes to find the best deal possible.
But, what happens when you buy to see the price drop just a few days later? I know the frustration all too well. You paid $50 just to see that the same item is now being sold for $40. That is $10. $10 that should be in your pocket.
When this happens, you might be able to get the online store to make an adjustment. You must first locate their price matching policy if one exists. Then, you have to reach out to customer service and provide all of the details about your order and the new pricing. You wait for a response and cross your fingers to hope you see a refund.
There is a service available called Paribus – that will actually help you get your money back! Of course, I had my questions about this app and how it worked, so I took some time to check it out myself.
HOW DOES PARIBUS WORK?
It is pretty simple really. Stores often offer a guarantee that if the price drops after your purchase, you can get your money back. The only catch is that you have to ask them for it. I don’t have time to keep checking to see if that happens – – and neither do you. Enter Paribus. They do this for you.
You just have to sign up with your email and then simply connect the accounts you might shop at. It also scans your inbox for any receipts that might come through. You do nothing differently. Just shop as usual. That is when Paribus goes to work.
It will start to scan the Internet for the price drop, missed a coupon or better deal for any of the items you have purchased. If they find something, Paribus lets you know so you can possibly get a refund.
It is just like that moment you find the coupon for the laundry detergent — after you bought it. You are pretty much stuck. However, ifParibus can find the online coupon or discount, it will take care of getting you your money back!
WHERE DOES THIS WORK?
There are merchants that Paribus currently works with: Target, Staples, Gap, Old Navy, J. Crew, NewEgg, Zappos, Macys, Bloomingdales, Bonobos, Nordstroms, Athleta, Piperlime and Banana Republic.
You truly do nothing differently with your shopping habits. Grab the items you need with the peace of mind of not having to worry if the price drops tomorrow or if a coupon code is around that you did not see. It is truly no risk.
WILL IT WORK FOR ME?
If you do not shop much online, then Paribus is probably not the best app for you. It is designed with the online shopper in mind. Even if you only shop online from time to time, it is worth signing up because it is totally free and you never know when it will find you some free money!!
You will have to give it access to your account where your receipts are sent. Some may not feel comfortable about this. So, the workaround is to make a NEW or “dummy” email address that you use for shopping online. That way, only your shopping receipts are in the account which Paribus accesses, keeping them out of your “good” account. (This is honestly a smart way to shop online anyhow).
Keep in mind that they are not “live” in your inbox. Your account is still secure. Here is what Paribus says about security:
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First, Paribus does not live in your inbox. It places webhooks to detect and pull store messages based on sender and subject alone. So, inbox security stays under the supervision of companies that you already trust (e.g., Google and Microsoft).
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Second, security is embedded through their architecture, including dedicated firewalls, VPN services, intrusion prevention systems and stringent access controls.
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Third, Paribus complies with the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS). Complete credit card information is never stored on Paribus servers. In addition, they use Stripe, one of the world’s most secure payment processors, to handle all transactions.
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Fourth, data is transmitted securely via SSL (TLS 1.2) bank-grade encryption. Any sensitive information stored is encrypted using AES-256 encryption.
HOW DO YOU JOIN?
It is very simple (and free) to get started. Follow these steps:
- Sign up with Paribus.
- Attach your accounts (they will prompt you for the details).
- Shop as usual.
One really awesome thing that happens when you sign up is that they will go back 30 days on all of your shopping accounts to see if there is already money waiting for you!
So, what are you waiting for? Why not give Paribus a try. You are out nothing at all — except for getting MONEY BACK!