Warning for refunds?

[A Lowly Shopkeep]

I just got this message in the email after requesting a refund on a game.

"You’ve requested a significant number of refunds recently. Please keep in mind that refunds are not a method for trying out games. If we think the refund system is being misused we’ll decline to grant future refunds."

The Steam Refund Page (http://store.steampowered.com/steam_refunds/) says "You can request a refund for nearly any purchase on Steam—for any reason. Maybe your PC doesn't meet the hardware requirements; maybe you bought a game by mistake; maybe you played the title for an hour and just didn't like it."

So, what's going on? Is me playing a game for an hour, not liking it and getting a refund considered using the refund system as a "Method for trying out games" even though it states I'm allowed to get a refund for trying and not liking a game?

Could someone clarify please?
(Sorry if this seems like a mouthful, I'm not very good at wording things)

EDIT: Looking at my emails, I've refunded 5 games since December/January, when i started using Steam.

[󠀡󠀡󠀡󠀡󠀡󠀡󠀡󠀡󠀡󠀡]

you can try out a game that doesn't mean you have to try many games stop refunding games like give it a week for another refund , otherwise you won't be able to get refund later.

[Narcoleptic Marshmallow]

Originally posted by Lecherous Wretch:

Is me playing a game for an hour, not liking it and getting a refund considered using the refund system as a "Method for trying out games"

You just answered yourself. You are effectively exploiting the refund system as a means to demo games, which is not the reason the refund system exists.

I don't know how many "a significant number of refunds" is, but I've refunded games here and there, for most varied reasons, and not once got a warning for it, so you might want to slow down, whether you agree with the warning or not.

[A Lowly Shopkeep]

@All: Read the edit.

[The Giving One]

Originally posted by Lecherous Wretch:

So, what's going on?

It seems that you did not scroll down on that page that you quoted from in your title. If you did, you would have seen this....

"Abuse

Refunds are designed to remove the risk from purchasing titles on Steam—not as a way to get free games. If it appears to us that you are abusing refunds, we may stop offering them to you. We do not consider it abuse to request a refund on a title that was purchased just before a sale and then immediately rebuying that title for the sale price."

[A Lowly Shopkeep]

Originally posted by The Giving One:

Originally posted by Lecherous Wretch:

So, what's going on?

It seems that you did not scroll down on that page that you quoted from in your title. If you did, you would have seen this....

"Abuse

Refunds are designed to remove the risk from purchasing titles on Steam—not as a way to get free games. If it appears to us that you are abusing refunds, we may stop offering them to you. We do not consider it abuse to request a refund on a title that was purchased just before a sale and then immediately rebuying that title for the sale price."

At the very top of the page it says I can get a refund if I don't like a game. 5 games in 5 months does not seem a likely cause for concern.

Also, that was my question. It contradicts itself.

[Raven]

I agree with OP. Steam should revise or remove their statement about it, because it is contradictory.

[Darren]

It's not really. You can request a refund for any reason and be granted one of you are inside the automatic approval window.

However if it appears to Steam you are abusing refunds they reserve the right to remove your access to them.

This warning email indicates your activity has tripped their potential abuse system and if you continue the way you are you MAY lose access to refunds in the future should a Steam employee believe you are abusing it.

If you are refunding most of the games you buy and doing so often you will lilely trip this check. If you refund only a fraction of what you buy and do so infrequently you will be fine.

[The Giving One]

Originally posted by Lecherous Wretch:

At the very top of the page it says I can get a refund if I don't like a game. 5 games in 5 months does not seem a likely cause for concern.

That is not what it says. It clearly says "request".

"You can request a refund for nearly any purchase on Steam—for any reason. Maybe your PC doesn't meet the hardware requirements; maybe you bought a game by mistake; maybe you played the title for an hour and just didn't like it."

Not sure how you are seeing "get" in place of "request", but you have to "request" it before you "get" it.

Again, if it appears you are abusing the system, then your "requests" may be denied AND your ability to "get" refunds in the future may be taken away from you.

I am not really sure why this is so difficult to understand, really. Make your game purchases more carefully in the future. Read reviews, watch gameplay videos, be sure to check the store page for the system requirements, etc., and be sure you are more likely to want to keep a game before you buy it.

Thanks.

EDIT...Maybe you don't know this, but it was not that long ago that no refunds were given at all and THAT was the policy. Please don't help to mess up this good thing we have now by appearing to be abusing the system.

[Brenry]

Don't care about speculation or someone's moral input. Steam is all automated and rarely will you come in contact with a employee. Can anyone clarify if they have come across any instances of refunds being denied under the 2 hour/2 week period?

Suggesting one should be watching Youtube videos is about as much BS as most cash grabbing devs flooding Steam with their mobile quality games. All those Youtubers are alike for the most part. Overdramatic and trying to act like a cartoon pewdiepie just to get their own adsense monitization for video views. In most cases they never even paid for these titles they are gifted from devs as free advertisement.

Again, not interested in morality or supporting cashcow devs flipping a quick buck on shovelware. We're not talking brick-and-mortar shop where there is restocking fee's etc. If you go to traditional stores and buy clothes, etc, it's the same as Steam as stating; "No questions asked return policy"

[Darren]

And if you return every item you buy to that store every day for a week they will still not ask any questions about your refunds but they will stop allowing you to either refund items or make purchases in their store.

Steam is just doing the same.

[Brenry]

Originally posted by Darren:

And if you return every item you buy to that store every day for a week they will still not ask any questions about your refunds but they will stop allowing you to either refund items or make purchases in their store.

Steam is just doing the same.

You're speculating. Steam isn't doing anything. Refunds are all handled by computer transactions. Devs of crappy games don't see revenue until end of monthly cycle. Steam has your money the moment you deposit money into your wallet and non-refundable. It's theirs to keep regardless. We're on a different page anyway, the games in your library are AAA titles, not the sh$t that plagues Steam with all those crappy misleading indies.

[Pheace]

Originally posted by Didymuscle:

You're speculating. Steam isn't doing anything. Refunds are all handled by computer transactions.

Since speculation isn't your thing, can we see your source for that 'fact'? Particularly the 'all' part.

[Brenry]

I dunno man, it's common sense. Try using google yourself and see how far back people btch and complain when they try to locate a toll free number to get in touch with Steam Customer Service. It's not there. Steam is a cyborg.

And to further touch on that morality shtick above people try to cling to about the notion of "abusing" steam refunds to try out games. That is such a load of B$. I recently rewatched Totalbiscuit and Jim Sterlings videos from the time refunds were allowed and they both touched on the fact that people aren't doing Steam refunds to try free games, when it's a pain in the a$$ that takes nearly a week to process.. when people can visit any torrent site and try-before-you-buy that way with ease.

[Washell]

Originally posted by Didymuscle:

Refunds are all handled by computer transactions.

Originally posted by Didymuscle:

that takes nearly a week to process..

An automated system wouldn't take a week to handle requests. People mistake the common support practice of having default answers copy/pasted into tickets as it being an automated system. Most, if not all support staff are also in skim read/guesstimate mode, because most tickets are either short novels that bury their problem somewhere deep in their prose, or consist of nothing more than "it doesn't work!" only with more misspelling and expletives.

The long and short of it is, that when we buy a game, Valve pays the transaction fees. When we refund a game, Valve pays the transaction fees again. Each refund is a loss for the company, written of as PR expense. Customers who refund a lot, stop being customers and start being people who only represent a financial loss to the company. Thus, Valve reserves the right to stop offering refunds to them.

Theoretically, you should be able to get away with more if you exclusively use the Steam Wallet, as refunds would then cost Valve little to nothing, but I'm not going to test that theory.

[Brenry]

Originally posted by Washell:

The long and short of it is, that when we buy a game, Valve pays the transaction fees. When we refund a game, Valve pays the transaction fees again. Each refund is a loss for the company, written of as PR expense.

What transaction fee? Refunds are not allowed to be deposited back into one's bank account. The digits are all stored on Steam's own digital currency system in Steam Wallet. Same goes for Sony Store, once you give them money it's theirs. I have to speculate there are no transaction fee's with this process.