Isn’t Having A Warranty Supposed To Prevent This Kind Of Agony?
On the sheet of paper Best Buy gave me when I dropped off the camera to be repaired it says that the scheduled completion date was the 20th. So when I dropped by on the 20th and was told the 25th, I was a little bitter, but hey, only five days, and I can handle that. Fast forward to today.
I call Best Buy and ask where my camera is. I talk to Customer Service wench, Marianne, who says she’ll find someone to help me and proceeds to hang up on me, instead of putting me on hold. So I call back, tell her who I am, and she acts annoyed with me and says, “I’m getting someone, just wait a minute.” Then prances off to do who knows what without letting me tell her that she hung up on me.
About three minutes later I get to talk to some guy who has no clue about the status of my camera, only that it isn’t there. He does manage to tell me, after much clicking of his keyboard, that it was received at the Connecticut camera repair shop they hire to fix stuff for them. I start asking him about the wait time, and he says that they have a thirty day policy and it hasn’t been thirty days yet. He then gives me the number to the repair shop so I can check on it myself and he can get back to discussing Magic cards or Dungeons and Dragons or whatever it is the pimply Geek Squad people do while they take an hour in the back room to answer a simple question.
I call Connecticut and get their brand of “customer service” which is listening to a long list of non important information and then being told to leave a message without any promise of your message being acknowledged or returned. I leave my message between clenched teeth, hang up and call Best Buy back, where I ask to speak with a manager and get the same grease ball I started with.
I explain to him that this company’s reluctance to provide him or me with any information really isn’t good customer service. He goes on and on about how this can take from two to four weeks depending on back ordered parts (which they usually get informed about, but since we have no information, clearly, he hasn’t been). I ask him at what point they just replace the camera so I can get back to my life. I explain that I bought the expensive warranty so I didn’t have to be without a camera for long periods of time. It gets me no where.
Last time my film camera broke, I brought it in under warranty and it was replaced right there with no questions asked. Policy has changed in the past few years, I guess, and not for the better. I suppose with a camera they think that if they can fix it, it will save them more money to not just replace it outright, but since it takes so long the only reasonable option left to me is to, upon finding my camera in need of repair, cause it enough damage to render it obviously unrepairable, so that they replace it with more immediacy and don’t make me crazy waiting for it!
So, for now, I just sit here and stew and look at the large pile of Gymboree clothing and Leap Frog stuff I have to list on eBay, but cannot take pictures of. I keep watching my baby grow without being able to take a picture of how cute she is. And I plan my nasty letter to several different branches of Best Buy, if upon hitting the thirty day mark I am still without answers.
Heya sweetie - I didn’t realize you responded to comments via email. I almost never put my real email in my comments because of the nasty people out there who like to use emails for spam. So mine probably came back returned. I’ve included a real one now and feel free to stop by my blog and comment there would be happy to have ya!!
That sucks about Best Buy. I hope you get that camera back soon! I would try to get someone higher up, like a district manager.
Comment by Allarial — September 27, 2005 @ 1:45 am
Best Buy is known for passing the buck and giving the runaround. I’m sorry you’re without your camera.
It might be best if you write to their corporate headquarters, you’ll probably get a faster resolution that way. Good luck
Comment by momof2 — September 27, 2005 @ 1:46 am
You need to carry an unconcealed weapon. Maybe a spiked club would get you more service..
Comment by scott — September 27, 2005 @ 10:30 am
That sucks Lou. Sounds like the right hand doesn’t know what the left hand is doing. Hope they get it figured out soon for you. I know I would hate to be without my camera for 30days or more. Even a few days would be torture.
Comment by DenimRoseDesigns — September 27, 2005 @ 11:25 am
I would have had a screaming hissy fit in the store, started crying.. the whole nine! (I did that at Fry’s as a matter of fact and I made out like a bandit on my warranty deal) - I hope you get the thing back soon!!!
Comment by tj — September 27, 2005 @ 3:44 pm
Ooooh that kind of CS BS makes me sooo mad! And I would absolutely FREAK without my camera for that long… I agree with TJ… if you can get *into* the store (I know, avec kids can be reeeeeaally difficult) and ruffle some feathers that way, I bet you’ll see your camera inside of a week. Why they don’t take the preliminary phone call seriously is beyond me… asking for trouble, IMO. Give ‘em hell, Lou.
Oh, luuuuuv the ruffle-butted baby! Have a good day!
Comment by Lisa — September 27, 2005 @ 6:09 pm
My dream is to actually have a screaming hissy fit. The troubl eis, when I get really angry in person I’m not articulate. I just cry. And although that is effective, I just can’t bring myself to do that ( although, giveme another 2 weeks sans camera and I just might be there).
I’m much better in print where I can articulate my anger. I do like Scott’s idea. . . how about a mace?
Comment by Lou — September 27, 2005 @ 7:05 pm
aw, that STINKS! I hope you get your camera back soon!!!
Comment by brandy101 — September 27, 2005 @ 7:09 pm
That is such coporate crap. I hope you get some answers soon.
Comment by Irish Breen — September 27, 2005 @ 7:30 pm
Yeah, the big stores like Best Buy always have horrible, horrible customer service - that’s how they keep their prices down (since they don’t have to pay money for competent people who actually care about their job).
I say do whatever you can to make those bastards suffer. Call, call, keep calling. Call the regional offices for Best Buy. Even if you don’t get your camera back faster, at least you’ve spent the time getting payback for the poor service.
Comment by Jack Burden — September 27, 2005 @ 8:56 pm
Oh- how I feelyour pain…Exact same thing- however…they’ve had my camera 8 weeks!!!! This Sunday the store manager is going to be there and I will be greeting him to open the store where I will be staying until I leave with a new camera. I have had it with Best Buy’s Geek Squad BS- I’m over it.
Comment by Sarag — November 17, 2007 @ 7:10 pm