Andy Hinderberger 
Introduction: A Simple Purchase Gone Wrong
Imagine making an everyday online purchase from a retailer you’ve trusted for years, only to find yourself fighting to get your own money back. That’s exactly what happened to me when I placed an order with Walmart on October 25, 2024. What should have been a routine transaction turned into a financial nightmare, leading me to take legal action against one of the largest corporations in the world.
This blog post will detail my ongoing lawsuit against Walmart, explaining how their payment processing failure caused financial harm, why they refused to fix it, and how their own employees admitted fault. If you’ve ever been frustrated by big corporations mishandling your money, you’ll want to keep reading.
How It All Started: The Transaction That Triggered a Lawsuit
On October 25, 2024, I placed an online order with Walmart for my usual groceries. The total amount was $210.49, which was correctly authorized as a pending charge on my debit card. This is standard procedure—when you place an order, the merchant asks the bank to hold the funds until the order is finalized.
Everything seemed fine until the next day.
On October 26, 2024, at 10:33 AM, Walmart did something completely improper—instead of finalizing the $210.49 authorization hold, they processed a brand-new charge of $199.28, leaving both amounts tied up in my account at the same time. This effectively doubled the money Walmart was holding, restricting my available funds.
🚨 Key Problem: Rather than finalizing or adjusting the original hold, Walmart ignored it and charged me again, leading to a total of $409.77 held or charged simultaneously.
Walmart’s Customer Service: A Cycle of False Promises & Lies
Naturally, I immediately reached out to Walmart’s customer support, hoping to resolve the issue quickly. Instead, I was met with a frustrating cycle of misinformation, contradictions, and outright lies.
1. Walmart Admits It’s Their Own Billing System’s Fault
On October 27, 2024, at 9:49 AM, I was speaking with a Walmart supervisor named Ahmed. I explained that my bank had not received a release request from Walmart, meaning the hold was still active.
Ahmed responded:
“It’s kind of an issue on our billing system as the charge isn’t processed yet, and that’s what is causing the conflict. So I can’t disagree with this one.”
🚨 Key Takeaway: Walmart’s own supervisor admitted that the issue was on their end. Yet, despite this admission, they took no immediate action to fix it.
2. Another Walmart Supervisor Calls Their Own Escalation “A Lie”
Later that day, at 3:22 PM, I reached out again to follow up. I had been promised an escalation of my case earlier in the day. When I asked what happened, another Walmart supervisor (also named Ahmed) shockingly admitted:
“Andreas, it seems to be a lie, but as a Supervisor, I am providing you proper info so that you will not get any runaround, and your issue gets resolved.”
Let that sink in for a moment.
❌ A Walmart supervisor openly admitted that their own escalation was a lie.
❌ Instead of resolving the problem, they wasted more of my time.
Even with these admissions, the funds were still not released, and Walmart continued delaying.
The Financial & Emotional Toll of Walmart’s Mistake
For over a week, I had hundreds of dollars tied up due to Walmart’s incompetence. This had real financial consequences:
💰 Restricted Access to Funds: I couldn’t use my own money, which meant delaying essential purchases.
😡 Hours Wasted Fighting for My Own Money: I spent countless hours dealing with customer service, only to receive misleading information.
💔 Ruined Plans with My Stepchild: Because I didn’t have access to my funds, I had to cancel planned Halloween activities—something I can never get back.
Despite their own supervisors admitting fault, Walmart still failed to fix the issue in a timely manner.
Legal Action: Taking Walmart to Court
With no other options left, I filed a lawsuit against Walmart in the Justice of the Peace Court, Precinct 1, Comal County, Texas (Cause No. S124444).
Legal Claims Against Walmart
In this case, I argue that Walmart’s actions constitute:
1️⃣ Gross Negligence – Walmart knew about the issue, admitted fault, and still failed to correct it, causing unnecessary financial harm.
2️⃣ Unauthorized Transactions – The second charge from a different merchant account was not authorized, making it an improper and fraudulent charge.
3️⃣ Failure to Follow Proper Payment Processing Procedures – Walmart’s own Terms of Service state that authorization holds should be finalized or released, yet they did neither.
4️⃣ Financial & Emotional Damages – Their delays, false promises, and negligence led to real financial and emotional distress.
What I’m Seeking in Damages
I have asked the jury to determine the total damages, with a request for at least $5,000, and up to $20,000, the maximum allowed in justice court.
Why? Because companies like Walmart should not be able to mishandle customer transactions, admit fault, and then walk away with zero accountability.
Why This Case Matters for Everyone
This case is bigger than just me. It’s about holding corporations accountable when they mishandle customer transactions and refuse to take responsibility. If Walmart is allowed to get away with this:
❌ What stops them from doing it to other customers?
❌ How many other people have suffered similar financial harm?
❌ How often does Walmart’s system improperly hold funds without fixing it?
Companies like Walmart have unlimited resources, but that doesn’t mean they can ignore their own mistakes and let customers suffer the consequences.
Final Thoughts: Fighting for Consumer Rights
If you’ve ever been frustrated by a big corporation mishandling your money, this case should matter to you. I’m taking this stand not just for myself but to ensure that Walmart is held accountable for its negligence.
As this case moves forward, I’ll continue posting updates here on my blog. If you’ve had a similar issue with Walmart or another major retailer, I’d love to hear your story in the comments below.
💬 What do you think? Should companies like Walmart be held accountable for mishandling customer transactions? Let me know in the comments!
🚀 Stay tuned for trial updates and legal developments!
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