Poor Customer Service in the US

I purchased a high ticket item over the phone through a UK customer service representative who was extremely poliet and helpful. Unfortunatley, because it was expensive they decided to place my order on hold, pre-authorize payment immediately and then return an amount less than a dollar that I need to verify before they release the item. I placed the order over the phone to ensure I received it within the 2-3 day delivery time stated on their website. The issue is that the return amount can take up to 5 days to appear back on my credit card. I spoke with 2 customer service representives and a manager in the US to ask if they could simply charge me another amount under a dollar that I could confirm. No one would help me. I then received a call from the rep in the UK who called to apologize and do her best to help me.
I think it's a poor business practice to charge a persons credit card but not release their order without asking them first.