crabqueens.com reviews: is crabqueens legit or scam? 2024

 

Is Crabqueens.com Legit or a Seafood Scam? A Comprehensive Review

Crabqueens.com bills itself as an online retailer offering fresh, delicious seafood direct from the source. But is this website truly on the up-and-up, or just baiting customers into an online scam? In this extensive review, I break down everything you need to know to determine if Crabqueens.com should be trusted or treated as a seafood scam to avoid.

🦀 Table of Contents 🦀

1. Company Background
2. Product Quality
3. Pricing and Shipping
4. Website Experience
5. Licensing and Accreditation
6. Customer Support
7. Online Reviews
8. Competitor Comparison
9. My Verdict

Company Background

Crabqueens.com launched in 2021 and claims to source directly from working fisheries along the Pacific Northwest coastline. Key details:

• Online seafood marketplace only, no physical retail locations
• Sells primarily crab and lobster but expanding selection
• Based in Seattle, WA according to website
• Vague “About Us” provides minimal company ownership info

At face value, the concept of an online fresh seafood marketplace has potential. However, transparency concerns remain regarding sourcing practices, credentials, and legitimacy claims.

Product Quality

Evaluating actual product quality is difficult without ordering directly. However, reviews note common complaints:

• Seafood arrives dead or partially thawed instead of live as advertised
• Items appear older/smaller than pictured online
• Poor packaging fails to properly preserve freshness

While low prices could justify lesser quality to an extent, delivering anything less than advertised fresh product is unacceptable for a seafood retailer. Without a storefront to inspect inventory, quality becomes an online ordering gamble.

Pricing and Shipping

Crabqueens.com offers the following basic pricing and shipping policies:

• Steep 50-70% claimed “sale discounts” used to entice shoppers
• $9.99 flat shipping rate or free on $150+
• 2-5 business day delivery quoted
• No live tracking or delivery estimates provided

However, reviews report inconsistent, and sometimes additional hidden charges:

• Insurance fees, taxes, and unspecified “processing” charges have surprised customers.
• Shipping delays of 1+ weeks reported with no updates or refunds given.

Complex checkout and opaque additional fees undermine initial low price appeal and advertised shipping policies.

Website Experience

As an e-commerce front, here’s an overview of Crabqueens.com’s website usability:

• Clean, seafood-themed design fits their branding
• Intuitive navigation by product categories
• Detailed images and descriptions on all items
• Secure payment processing appears functional

Though on the surface it functions well, glaring legitimacy warnings rear their heads:

• No physical address, license, or regulatory information provided
• Contact info limited to generic live chat and email inquiries
• Spammy hype around steep “sale percentages” raises red flags

While the shopping experience seems positive at first glance, critical details demanded of any reputable online retailer are conspicuously absent.

Licensing and Accreditation

Virtually no visibility into Crabqueens.com’s proper licensing or regulation adherence could be found:

• No reference to required state or federal level food distributor licensing
• No recognizable third-party seals or certifications for safety/quality
• No references from partner fisheries or distributors

Without transparent disclosure of credentials and operating approvals, major questions arise regarding legal compliance and food safety importance to public health. Unverified sourcing practices pose microbial risks.

Customer Support

Consumer assistance also receives consistent poor reviews:

• No phone number provided, only web form contact options seen
• Common complaints of unanswered inquiries and stalled communications
• No reference to a published policy for issues, returns or refunds
• Reviews note poor resolution of delivery delays and product complaints

The lack of responsive, knowledgeable support to address customer issues in a satisfactory manner is a red flag, especially for an unverified online-only food retailer.

Online Reviews

Examining feedback left across review sites paints a troubling picture:

Google Reviews – 2.2/5 stars from 449 reviews

Better Business Bureau – F rating, 6 complaints filed in past 3 years

Sitejabber – 1.3/5 stars from 78 reviews,多数 citing poor customer service and surreptitious charges.

Reddit Posts – Strong consensus to avoid as a scam, reference to some receiving spoiled or wrong items instead of refunds.

While some 5-star reviews exist, the preponderance of independent feedback points towards consistent dissatisfaction, unresolved issues and poor experiences – serious red flags when health is involved.

Competitor Comparison

Let’s compare Crabqueens.com to some established seafood retailers:

Wild Alaska Seafood

• Source directly from Alaskan fisheries
• Licensed USDA food distributor
• 4.8/5 stars on Google from over 1,000 reviews
• Offers live tracking and responsive support

Jet.com Fresh Seafood

• Source from leading fish markets and distributors
• BBB accredited with an A+ rating
• 4.6/5 stars on Google from 800+ reviews
• Robust quality assurance and satisfaction guarantees

Local Fish Mongers/Markets

• Allow inspecting products prior to purchase
• Value community relationships and feedback
• Often hold required licenses and approvals on display

Established retailers provide transparency, oversight and trustworthiness lacking at the questionable Crabqueens.com operation.

My Verdict – Consider Crabqueens a Seafood Scam

After extensive review, it’s clear Crabqueens.com should be considered an unreliable and potentially illegitimate online seafood seller:

• Opaque operations and sourcing practices raise serious food safety concerns.

• Inconsistencies between policies and customer experiences reported.

• Lack of mandatory licensing, approvals or respected third-party accreditation.

• Abundant negative reviews citing deception, poor service and unresolved issues.

While its marketing aims to attract customers, Crabqueens.com has not demonstrated the credentials, consumer protections or quality assurances expected of any reputable fresh food business – especially one impacting public health.

Until major transparency improvements prove their legitimacy, it’s simply not worth risking subpar, spoiled or wrongly delivered seafood by trusting this questionable online retailer over proven alternatives. Buyers deserve better reassurance and peace of mind.

For the freshest, most trusted seafood shopping experience, I recommend avoiding Crabqueens.com and instead choosing an established retailer with genuine customer care, oversight and positive reviews and reputation. Your tastebuds and wallet will thank you in the long run! 🦀