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Best Buy ripoff --Fraud--Eau Claire Wisconsin
I had never purchased a computer before and we went to Best Buy to check out all they had to offer and both myself and my husband found the computer, monitor, keyboard along with these items we also purchased Windows XP, Norton systems, and three other items as well, which Best Buy installed before allowing me to take my new computer (HP) home that day. The whole cost of everything was $1,450.00 including tax.
When we went to check out to pay cash for the whole thing my husband asked if everything is in the carton along with the computer and both employees who helped us assured us that everything was in the carton. We also purchased an extended warranty for the computer and everything else too which was not cheap but being my first new computer I didn't want to risk any trouble that we would have to pay for down the road.
It wasn't until my son was here for a visit that he asked for the Windows XP disk along with the other disks that we paid for and were installed at time of purchase and I not knowing any different said we never did get any at all.
Both my husband and myself have contacted Best Buy at least 10 different times in the past two weeks and they will not do anything about the disks as for giving us what we paid for. The Store manager even told my husband that we are crap out of luck now. He also said that there is nothing that we can do about it either and as for the extened warranty that will only do us any good if there is a serious problem with the insides of the computer, you'll have to excuse me but I don't know what the insides of a computer are called.
We were also told my several people that they themselves have had problems with Best Buy and they got the same treatment as we got from Best Buy too.
After spending over $1,400 for the computer and all the other items you would think they would treat us a bit better and give us what we paid for but they refused.
We purchased this computer in May of 2005 and it's already been back in to Best Buy for them to fix a few problems.
I would hope that someone would know the magic to get everything that we paid for and nevr did receive from Best Buy.
This is what is know as Fraud!
Carol
anywhere
U.S.A.
10 Updates & Rebuttals
Carol
Mondovi,Wisconsin,
U.S.A.
I have taken advice and now------
#11Author of original report
Wed, September 06, 2006
After I sent Best Buy the proof they requested from me they have not replied since so now my next move will be to contact a few of our Senators to see what they can do to help with this matter.
I have had to ask for help from different Senators in the past with great results after being told that nothing could be done in the two different cases and now my husband who is truly fed up with the crap that Best Buy has thrown at us and now will not reply to any of our emails or even in the Eau Claire, WI. store so now he wants to take it to our Senators to see if anything can be done.
In response to one rebuttal, we made a mistake we we said that we purchased Windows XP, after I contacted HP about what was going on they corrected us about the XP stating that it was supposed to come with the computer and this too I told Best Buy in the last few emails that we sent to them and as usual they still did not reply.
As far as we are concerned we were ripped off by Best Buy and for them not to reply but to just stop in the midst of it all is poor management as far as we are concerned.
Thank all of you for all your help and keep your fingers crossed for us. Thanks again.
Danielle
Royal Oak,Michigan,
U.S.A.
do a search
#11UPDATE EX-employee responds
Wed, August 23, 2006
Carol-ripoff report does not allow phone numbers to be posted, but if you do an internet search for Wisconsin Department of Consumer Affairs, there are a number of links including one where you can file a consumer complaint. I would advise you to do this! Or look on the inside of your service plan. There is a number of fine print and I know that there is contact information for Wisconsin there as well. Good Luck and I hope that this has helped!
Carol
Mondovi,Wisconsin,
U.S.A.
Contact number needed
#11Author of original report
Wed, August 23, 2006
If you would give me the contact nember for Wisconsin Consumer Affairs I would appreciate it very much and thank you for your information too.
I will keep you posted too.
As for getting Norton in a box that did not happen, the disk was laying in the bottom of the zip lock bag that they placed just the instructions and no other disks at all.
I called the computer company and they said that a lot of things were missing that I should have received after I paid for them and they assured me not to worry about Windows XP because they will talk me through it if I need their help.
We also noticed that the box that had the computer in it has the bar code cut out of the box as well as the box that the monitor came in too.
I asked both companies if this is a normal practice and they both said NO they have never heard of it before and don't understand why Best Buy would do such a thing either.
I also found the ad booklet with the computer and everything listed that I was to get when I purchased my computer and there is over $459.00 that I paid and nothing to show for it either.
I upgraded the monitor and that should have only been $40.00 more then the total price of the complete computer but it shows I paid over $259.00 more then I was supposed to pay for the monitor and with the print fading I had to make several copies of the receipts so the prices are clear enough to still read.
No one at Best Buy will talk to either of us now and that is no way to treat a customer for any reason at all.
I'm very disapointed in Best Buy and I promise I will never again enter any Best Buy store again.
I will never advise anyone to go to Best Buy either.
Any more ideas from anyone who has gone through this with Best Buy? I sure can use the help in this matter.
Carol
Mondovi,Wisconsin,
U.S.A.
Contact number needed
#11Author of original report
Wed, August 23, 2006
If you would give me the contact nember for Wisconsin Consumer Affairs I would appreciate it very much and thank you for your information too.
I will keep you posted too.
As for getting Norton in a box that did not happen, the disk was laying in the bottom of the zip lock bag that they placed just the instructions and no other disks at all.
I called the computer company and they said that a lot of things were missing that I should have received after I paid for them and they assured me not to worry about Windows XP because they will talk me through it if I need their help.
We also noticed that the box that had the computer in it has the bar code cut out of the box as well as the box that the monitor came in too.
I asked both companies if this is a normal practice and they both said NO they have never heard of it before and don't understand why Best Buy would do such a thing either.
I also found the ad booklet with the computer and everything listed that I was to get when I purchased my computer and there is over $459.00 that I paid and nothing to show for it either.
I upgraded the monitor and that should have only been $40.00 more then the total price of the complete computer but it shows I paid over $259.00 more then I was supposed to pay for the monitor and with the print fading I had to make several copies of the receipts so the prices are clear enough to still read.
No one at Best Buy will talk to either of us now and that is no way to treat a customer for any reason at all.
I'm very disapointed in Best Buy and I promise I will never again enter any Best Buy store again.
I will never advise anyone to go to Best Buy either.
Any more ideas from anyone who has gone through this with Best Buy? I sure can use the help in this matter.
Danielle
Royal Oak,Michigan,
U.S.A.
Return the service plan
#11UPDATE EX-employee responds
Wed, August 23, 2006
If the computer company advised you to return the service plan, DO IT. All I will say is that the Geek Squad are not as qualified to repair computers as a reputable firm. Most of the kids working in the Geek Squad do not have enough experience.
What will happen if you have an issue, is that Best Buy will ship your computer to a service center to be fixed. If they determine that your problem is software, you will be charged for them looking at the unit as software issues are not covered under the service plan.
You can return a service plan at anytime though they will prorate your return. DO NOT LET THEM TELL YOU THAT YOU HAVE TO MAIL IT IN. That is a lie.
And in the State of Wisconsin (where I used to live and work for Best Buy), they cannot make deductions for any work that they may or may not have done. If they do not cooperate there is a contact number for Wisconsin Consumer Affairs. I would suggest getting in contact with them immediately!
Tom
Cinnaminson,New Jersey,
U.S.A.
You bought WindowsXP???
#11Consumer Comment
Tue, August 22, 2006
Was this a brand-new computer? If so, you did not need to buy WindowsXP. It comes pre-installed with the computer. If Best Buy told you that you needed to buy this program, they outright lied to you. Did they give you the WindowsXP box? How did they ring it up at the register?
This just sounds too fishy to me. If you also bought Norton, you should have had the program box as well. It doesn't come in the computer box, it's seperate.
And yes, most if not all computers sold today do NOT include the original CD's. You need to buy a blank CD-R and make the restore disks yourself. You can thank Microsoft for this. All in all, I really don't see much of a ripoff here. You say this is your first computer, you should then read all of your documentation and see you could resolve most of this yourself.
Have you gone back to Best Buy with the computer and your receipt and told them to fix it right then and there? If not, do so.
And no, I don't work for Best Buy.
Have a nice day.
Tom
Cinnaminson,New Jersey,
U.S.A.
You bought WindowsXP???
#11Consumer Comment
Tue, August 22, 2006
Was this a brand-new computer? If so, you did not need to buy WindowsXP. It comes pre-installed with the computer. If Best Buy told you that you needed to buy this program, they outright lied to you. Did they give you the WindowsXP box? How did they ring it up at the register?
This just sounds too fishy to me. If you also bought Norton, you should have had the program box as well. It doesn't come in the computer box, it's seperate.
And yes, most if not all computers sold today do NOT include the original CD's. You need to buy a blank CD-R and make the restore disks yourself. You can thank Microsoft for this. All in all, I really don't see much of a ripoff here. You say this is your first computer, you should then read all of your documentation and see you could resolve most of this yourself.
Have you gone back to Best Buy with the computer and your receipt and told them to fix it right then and there? If not, do so.
And no, I don't work for Best Buy.
Have a nice day.
Tom
Cinnaminson,New Jersey,
U.S.A.
You bought WindowsXP???
#11Consumer Comment
Tue, August 22, 2006
Was this a brand-new computer? If so, you did not need to buy WindowsXP. It comes pre-installed with the computer. If Best Buy told you that you needed to buy this program, they outright lied to you. Did they give you the WindowsXP box? How did they ring it up at the register?
This just sounds too fishy to me. If you also bought Norton, you should have had the program box as well. It doesn't come in the computer box, it's seperate.
And yes, most if not all computers sold today do NOT include the original CD's. You need to buy a blank CD-R and make the restore disks yourself. You can thank Microsoft for this. All in all, I really don't see much of a ripoff here. You say this is your first computer, you should then read all of your documentation and see you could resolve most of this yourself.
Have you gone back to Best Buy with the computer and your receipt and told them to fix it right then and there? If not, do so.
And no, I don't work for Best Buy.
Have a nice day.
Carol
Mondovi,Wisconsin,
U.S.A.
Worse then fraud
#11Author of original report
Tue, August 22, 2006
After being in contact with Best Buy via the internet for several weeks already I have found proof of what I'm saying here and now Katie who was the person who replied from Best Buy got my email telling her everything I have, now she will not communicate with me at all.
Yeah, I even called the computer company and before I ever mentioned the place where I purchased my computer the person to whom I was talking to asked me if I purchased my computer from Best Buy and I replied that I did.
The person I spoke to is going to call tonight to explain in detail what their company can do for me.
I also explained that I purchased an extended warranty from Best Buy and he said that was a mistake to do that because Best Buy doesn't follow through with their warranty like they explained they would do.
After going through all of our receipts for everything we purchased from Best Buy related for my computer we realized that we paid out more then $459.87 then we should have and never received what we paid for.
Now please don't tell me about maybe I lost some of the papers or even a disk or two after we got home because every bit of information related to this sale went into my locked filing case and believe me nothing got lost because there wasn't anything to lose cause we never did receive any backup disks to lose.
Any more ideas?
Best Buy did not get their way so now they refuse to communicate with us in any way at all.
Doesn't sound good to me but what do I know anyway? I'm a sucker for being ripped off anyway.
Kristy
Beverly Hills,California,
U.S.A.
how to resolve your issue
#11UPDATE EX-employee responds
Sun, August 13, 2006
Just to clarify..
You need to contact HP tech support directly.. to ask them a question. About 98% of PC's today do NOT come with a Windows XP disk. They expect the PC owner to buy blank CD-R's and create backup OS Restore disks on there own. So if the PC ever blows up, you can pull out these cd's and fix your PC. If they agree that they don't ship a win XP cd with the PC, have them walk you through creating the disks.
If you purchased norton antivirus spyware protection etc. then yes you should have recieved the CD's with it. The problem here is that you purchased in MAY 2005. It's now like 15 months later if you have of mentioned this in the first 30days life would have been easier. Right now, it's possible you were given the CD's, but "lost them" a year later. Your best bet here is calling norton and paying the $5 for replacement CD's (or have your son do it)