My Little Rant!

[Norm F]

Nothing to do with PSE, but it does have a photo.

Bought a new barbeque at Home Depot this weekend. Purchased it "assembled" and paid the $40 delivery charge cause I didn't want to have to mess around with it. It arrived on schedule this morning and was left in my driveway as pictured, minus the sign of course which I scooted home and placed on it for the day. They delivered it with an empty semi and a fork lift but couldn't round up the resources to unpack it and put it in the back yard.

For those unfamiliar with this mammoth retailer, part of their slogan is "we can help." Mind you, that does follow "you can do it." It should be, "You'll have to do it, cause we won't help."

There, now I've got that off my chest. :)

http://www.pixentral.com/show.php?picture=1wahw44bPED3XrJUU4idjU086QWuj1

[rtronick]

That reminds me when I bought my new TV from Best Buy. It was a 36" Sony tube set, weighing in at over 250 lbs. I paid $50 extra for home delivery, which included in-home setup. Set up delivery on a Saturday. Of course, no set time. Just between 8am - 1pm. Well, I called around 3pm to see where my tv was and was told that they delivered it at 10:30am. I told them that I hadn't received it, and hoped that they didn't deliver it to the wrong address. The Manager told me the address, and it was indeed mine. I looked out my front window to see a very large box sitting at the end of my driveway. The box was also very wet, because it was raining most of that day. Needless to say, I didn't buy that tv :>)

Randy T

[Norm F]

Randy,

Wow! I thought my experience was outrageous. That really takes the cake. Was the TV okay? :mad: :( :confused:

[rtronick]

I think that tv was toast. The box was soaked all the way through. I will say, the Best Buy manager really came to the rescue. He and another employee loaded a new tv into his truck, and delivered it to my house & set it up that night.
He told me to come to the store on Sunday to talk to him. When I went to the store, he again told me how sorry he was, and how unprofessional the FORMER employees were. He then gave me a free 4 year extended warranty and a $200 gift card for my trouble.

[Norm F]

Well, good happy ending. Home Depot thanked me for calling. :(

[NMarti]

Norm
You should send them your photo! I had a bizarre delivery by UPS. I ordered a very nice, somewhat expensive watch for my hubby for his birthday one year. I waited & waited - pre-internet check on delivery days. Finally I called the company and they said it was delivered. I called UPS and they said it was delivered and left by the front door. I figured some of the kids in the neighborhood stole it when they saw the package. I filed a claim and received a new watch. FOUR months later when we opened the bar-b-que for the first time on the BACK patio - there was the package! I asked the driver if he was sure he put it by the door and he insisted he was. Don't have a clue how it got there. I called the company and asked what to do with the lost watch and they couldnt find any record of the claim because 4 months had passed. Said to do whatever I wanted. Sooooo - my dad also got a nice watch that year.:D

[Shari]

Nancy - I love it!!!! Norm I would send them the photo too. You just cannot depend on anyone these days. There is nothing worse than getting home from the store to find something was not put in the bag or the charge was wrong etc. I double check everything these days and it is a big pain.
Shari

[skstarkiller]

Here's my "Story" sorry it's so long!

So, about three years ago, I bought a Sony Vaio Laptop from a local chain electronics store. It was an "open box" item so I got $200 off the retail price. Along with it, I purchased a three year extended warranty to help protect my investment.

The computer worked great. There were of course occasional glitches that were usually easily solved. I loved this laptop and used it on a regular basis. Then, one Easter, I was a guest preacher at one of our local churches, and when I went to power up, I got nothing. I tried everything I could think of to no avail. I was forced to go get a loaner laptop we have at my office and use that for my sermon.

The next day, I took my laptop in to have it sent out for service. I asked them to fix the power issue and to replace a small plastic cover piece that had broken off the back. I was told it would be no problem and that I should have my machine back in 3 to 4 weeks. Seemed like a long time, but I was OK with that. They noted the scratches and sent it in with the battery.

A week later, I got a call that the repairs were done, and I could come in and pick it up. When I got there, I asked them to let me power it up before I left just to make sure it was fixed. When I hit the power button, nothing happened. The tech said, let's make sure the battery is connected correctly. When he went to check, they had kept my battery at the service center. I had my power cord out in the car, so I went and got it. When we plugged it in, still nothing. They grabbed a battery from another unit and still nothing. I also noticed that the plastic cover I had asked to be repaired hadn't been. I also noticed there was a deep gouge in the laptop near the keyboard that wasn't there when I sent it in.

I was very upset, but didn't lose my temper, because the people at the store weren't the ones who had done the repair. I asked, "If they didn't fix the problems we sent it in for, what did they do?" The tech looked at the repair order and told me it said they had spent over 30 minutes soudering the memory socket back in place, that they had fixed the keyboard, and that they had formatted the hard drive. None of which I had asked them to do, nor were they known problems.

The tech grabbed a manager and we agreed to send it back with a request that they fix it right this time, and that they replace my battery with a new one. Again I was told it would be 3 to 4 weeks. I was OK with that as long as I had it back by the end of May.

Well, ten days later I got a call telling me they had found that the problem with my laptop was caused by "liquid damage" which wasn't covered by my warranty and that I would need to pay $240 to have it fixed. I was outraged, as I have NEVER had liquid in or near my laptop. I called customer service and was told I was out of luck. I complained that had there been liquid damage they should have noticed it the first time they had the machine and told me then. The rep agreed and talked with his Supervisor. They told me they'd send it to be investigated and would get back to me in 48 hours. 2 days later, after not being called back, I called the service center and was told there was nothing they could do because the guy I talked to was off until Sunday and that he was the only one who could do anything. So, I called my local store and talked to the sales manager. he said he couldn't do anything then, but would check into it.

On Sunday, I called in and left another message for "my guy". He never called me back. On Monday I went into my local store and talked with the Sales Manager. He called the center and discovered that the escalation and investigation had been closed with no result. They re-escalated it and told me I'd be called in 24 - 48 hours with a result. Again, after 2 days, no returned phone call. So, I called the local Store general Manager, who was aware of the situation. He said he'd been calling and was waiting himself for a cal back. He told me to call in again to the Service Center. I did.

Finally, I got someone who was willing to help me. He worked with my local store's General Manager. They both agreed, I'd been treated badly and that any liquid damage should have been found initially. So, rather than make me pay the $240 to have my machine fixed, I went in to my local store and they gave me a brand new laptop, no charge.

I guess what I've learned is that persistence pays, and that if you treat people with respect, they are more likely to help you than if you yell and scream at them. Anyway, thanks for letting me share my story.

[Norm F]

Phil,

Wow! That is quite a story. Glad it worked out in the end. It's good that they gave you a new laptop 'cause the old one was probably obsolete after all the time they took.

Shari, good advice.

Nancy, that's a weird one. I bet one of your neighbors saw the parcel and thought, "hey, that's going to get stolen. I think I'll stick it in the bbq.

More than anything, I was kinda ripped that they parked the stupid thing right in front of my garage door and left it on a pallet. What the heck am i supposed to do with a pallet? I think I'm going to call and insist that they pick it up.

[snooze]

Norm, do what I did. They said they can not pick up the pallets , so I took them to the the store and put them in front of there door . They sure did not like that.

Dennis

[Bayla]

I could be wrong but in my experience this wouldn't happen in the UK....whatever you order and from whomever, it ALWAYS has to be signed for (in triplicate) along with a disclaimer if it's still packaged that it's been signed for unseen.

A while back I ordered a sewing cabinet for my sewing machine. The guy offered to carry it up three flights of stairs & set it up - who was I to refuse?:) I left him to it, & went to make him a cup of tea for his troubles (one thing to note - the British worker always has to have a cup of tea on the job, usually before he even starts the job!) When I went up to have a look, I realised that the cabinet was the wrong colour....the poor guy had to dismantle it & carry it back down....when the replacement arrived a few weeks later he made sure to unwrap it downstairs first!:)

Last year I took delivery of a brand new freezer. They were going to leave it in my hall. No way! I got them to unwrap it before moving it into the kitchen. Just as well as it had a great big dent in the side, so back it went....getting them to redeliver it on the right day was another story, they tried three times when I was away & had told them I would be away, but at least they didn't leave it parked at the end of my driveway:) The bin men (garbage workers?) would have carried it off!

Bayla

[kevq]

Hi,
I ordered a 37" TV from a well known store to be ready for the World Cup matches. Delivery promised in one week. Came the day, no delivery. Phoned store, told delivery would now be first week in AUGUST! Told them politely what they could do with the TV.
Went to a small retailer in our local village, placed order, set delivered next morning by two very efficient chaps. They took the old set away, replaced all the leads as they said they were not up to standard for the new set. They took just over an hour to do the job, had a cuppa and left.
Just goes to show that bigger is not always best.
Kev:)

[Pauline]

Kev your experience is exactly the same kind I have always have when dealing with the 'small' locals stores. All the big chain type stores are 1/2 hour away from us. Many many times I have priced stuff there first and then looked at the local country stores. Each and every time the small stores have been cheaper. NO DELIVERY charge.......they bring the item in and unpack and set it up AND take away your old piece. I have bought a fridge, stove, leather sofa, and chair and deep freezer as well as washer and dryer this way. I only paid $20 for them to take away my old deep freezer and in my eyes that was a bargain!! The big chain stores will not even consider taking away your old stuff and charge $50 for delivery.

When my upright freezer was delivered the guy was dismayed by what looked like a little dent on the side and said he would give me $50 off. Hey no problem, I knew it would end up dented by someone anyway and he even said that. Well I can't even find the dent and I think it was just a smudge of dirt from the belt holding it to the dolly! NEVER would have got that from the big chain. They would pretent there was nothing wrong.

So I will ALWAYS buy locally from the small shops if at all possible.

[CarolLHB]

I love these stories!

Years back we bought a refridgerator and because of where it was going in the kitchen, the door handle had to be switched to the other side. I made the request in the store and was assured that it would be done prior to delivery. Sure enough, the delivery men hauled it up to the second floor (no elevator) and the handles hadn't been changed. When we told the delivery men that they needed to be on the other side of the door, they said there was nothing they could do about that, until my husband told them to take it back down the stairs and return it to the store. The next thing the delivery man said was "do you have a screw driver?"...the handles were changed in about two minutes!

[emkayess65]

Hi, my story sounds puny. In the store I asked if the hinges on the dryer door are standard for that model. "OH, its 4 screws and the delivery guys will change it if necessary!" The delivery guys did not have a level(necessary on a basement floor) or a screwdriver. It was 5:30 and they didn't want to do it and they said again "4 screws" easy. I could see it takes more than 4 screw - by my count 27 - if you count undo/redo.
The salesman and storemanager kept saying "4 screws" easy do it yourself.
They changed their tune real quick when I said I would contest it with the credit card company. I got phonecalls from the storemanager and the warehouse manager and a service person same day. No service call charge (about $80), just the $15.00 charge to change the hinges and the inside panel of the door for this model.
So get out the big guns - mention the credit card

[Pauline]

I think it's really sad when companies try to pull the wool over your eyes and you feel the need to fight for what is right. When we bought our big screen tv at Leons, the lady was writing up the bill and added a $200 extended warranty to the price. She didn't ask, she just wrote it up. We told her about 5 times we did not want the extended warranty. She wasn't listening and made a comment about how sensitive the tv was and if jarred it could put the projector lights out of sink.....etc. I just looked at her and said that if it was that sensitive we didn't want it............Well she couldn't scratch off that $200 charge fast enough!!! :D

[e-mailsucks]

I live in a city that is full of "the big box stores" and the little guys. I've found that the Big Box Boys sell on Volume, but the little guys sell on After Sales Service. Even if their prices are a little higher, it's still worth supporting the little guy.

Brian :)

[JRR]

I have no idea why I sat and read through everyone's stories, but they are very interesting! LOL I agree, though, kindness gets you more than well, unkindness!

[TonyW]

Well I read through these stories too and thought we've been lucky and then got a call to say that the promised delivery of new furniture is going to be delayed and we've just got rid of the old stuff. They were very apologetic and it will only be 4 days late (we hope!) but it's going to be lying on the floor watching television for the next few days. Oh well, I still have my computer chair and the weather forecast is looking great.

Tony