Complaint Review: Lowe's Home Improvement Companies

I'd be shopping elsewhere if I were you! I can understand if it is damaged weathered or discountinued merchandise, but building materials get real Lowes! Big blue signs or not I would've explain my frustration the same way Mike. I shop at Lowes on occasion but, after reading this I won't be buying anything I don't plan on doing immediately. Thanks for explaining why there are better places to shop who would go out of the way to earn a customer who is planning and has spent a large sum of money with their establishment.

First of all, I work at Lowes- at the return desk. Have you spoken with a manger about your situation? if it was only 101 days since your purchase, that's only 11 days over the return policy, and MOST managers will be willing to let it slide, as long as you are cool and calm and NICE about it. I can't tell you how MORE WILLING a manager will be to help you if you are NICE, whereas if you get up in their face and scream and throw a tantrum like a little kid, they are not going to want to help you at all. Have you gone any FURTHER UP than the STORE level? Even if a manager is completely UNWILLING to help you, sometimes a call to CORPORATE will help them cooperate a little. And, what I can not STRESS the most- your beef is with the managers. The associate at the return desk has NO CONTROL over what the manager decides to do or not do. Don't yell at the associate or call them names. Don't give the associate attitude. We just work here. We don't get paid enough for you to yell at us. Save your breath for the management.

First of all, I work at Lowes- at the return desk. Have you spoken with a manger about your situation? if it was only 101 days since your purchase, that's only 11 days over the return policy, and MOST managers will be willing to let it slide, as long as you are cool and calm and NICE about it. I can't tell you how MORE WILLING a manager will be to help you if you are NICE, whereas if you get up in their face and scream and throw a tantrum like a little kid, they are not going to want to help you at all. Have you gone any FURTHER UP than the STORE level? Even if a manager is completely UNWILLING to help you, sometimes a call to CORPORATE will help them cooperate a little. And, what I can not STRESS the most- your beef is with the managers. The associate at the return desk has NO CONTROL over what the manager decides to do or not do. Don't yell at the associate or call them names. Don't give the associate attitude. We just work here. We don't get paid enough for you to yell at us. Save your breath for the management.

First of all, I work at Lowes- at the return desk. Have you spoken with a manger about your situation? if it was only 101 days since your purchase, that's only 11 days over the return policy, and MOST managers will be willing to let it slide, as long as you are cool and calm and NICE about it. I can't tell you how MORE WILLING a manager will be to help you if you are NICE, whereas if you get up in their face and scream and throw a tantrum like a little kid, they are not going to want to help you at all. Have you gone any FURTHER UP than the STORE level? Even if a manager is completely UNWILLING to help you, sometimes a call to CORPORATE will help them cooperate a little. And, what I can not STRESS the most- your beef is with the managers. The associate at the return desk has NO CONTROL over what the manager decides to do or not do. Don't yell at the associate or call them names. Don't give the associate attitude. We just work here. We don't get paid enough for you to yell at us. Save your breath for the management.

First of all, I work at Lowes- at the return desk. Have you spoken with a manger about your situation? if it was only 101 days since your purchase, that's only 11 days over the return policy, and MOST managers will be willing to let it slide, as long as you are cool and calm and NICE about it. I can't tell you how MORE WILLING a manager will be to help you if you are NICE, whereas if you get up in their face and scream and throw a tantrum like a little kid, they are not going to want to help you at all. Have you gone any FURTHER UP than the STORE level? Even if a manager is completely UNWILLING to help you, sometimes a call to CORPORATE will help them cooperate a little. And, what I can not STRESS the most- your beef is with the managers. The associate at the return desk has NO CONTROL over what the manager decides to do or not do. Don't yell at the associate or call them names. Don't give the associate attitude. We just work here. We don't get paid enough for you to yell at us. Save your breath for the management.

I agree with the original rip off report on the subject of 90 day return policy at Lowe's. As a commercial contractor I have experienced several instances where I could not return items within the 90 day period required by Lowe's for reasons beyond my control.

I have also had situations where I have purchased items more than 90 days earlier and the item could not be serviced locally and required me to pay freight charges to ship the item back to a service center and wait weeks to get a replacement. I have solved this problem by only buying through Home Depot although I believe Home Depot is not always staffed as well as it should be the economic advantage ot the over 90 day return policy offsets any service difficulty especislly for a commercial contractor.

I agree with the original rip off report on the subject of 90 day return policy at Lowe's. As a commercial contractor I have experienced several instances where I could not return items within the 90 day period required by Lowe's for reasons beyond my control.

I have also had situations where I have purchased items more than 90 days earlier and the item could not be serviced locally and required me to pay freight charges to ship the item back to a service center and wait weeks to get a replacement. I have solved this problem by only buying through Home Depot although I believe Home Depot is not always staffed as well as it should be the economic advantage ot the over 90 day return policy offsets any service difficulty especislly for a commercial contractor.

I agree with the original rip off report on the subject of 90 day return policy at Lowe's. As a commercial contractor I have experienced several instances where I could not return items within the 90 day period required by Lowe's for reasons beyond my control.

I have also had situations where I have purchased items more than 90 days earlier and the item could not be serviced locally and required me to pay freight charges to ship the item back to a service center and wait weeks to get a replacement. I have solved this problem by only buying through Home Depot although I believe Home Depot is not always staffed as well as it should be the economic advantage ot the over 90 day return policy offsets any service difficulty especislly for a commercial contractor.

Sarcasm and finger pointing aside, any reader can check the return policy at Home Depot by clicking their web site:

Returns with original receipt after 90 days of purchase A store credit or credit to a Home Depot Commercial Credit Account may be issued for the original purchase price**

Anyone who thinks that building materials are not returned and resold by all vendors including Lowes is fooling themselves. These materials are durable, some with over 20 year lifetimes in use, and the manufacturer designs and packs them to be transportable. The materials in question are in new condition.

Events can occur that have a negative effect on someone trying to get a project completed. If this happens, you need to be part of a network that supports you, not one that leaves you hanging. Loews left me hanging. Home Depot or numerous other vendors would have supported me. It's as simple as that. You never know, you may be in my shoes some day.

Maybe the guy is right - maybe Home Depots in the big city of "New Yotrk" let their customers return any kind of merchandise, regardless of condition, at any time, for any amount of money the customer demands. Now if I can only figure out where "New Yotrk" is, I would love to go there myself so I can scam the store just like this guy is trying to do. ROFL!!

Hmmm... you DIDN'T see the HUGE blue "return policy" signs all over Lowes, where you have been buying all of your construction materials up to this point. And you also NEVER ONCE looked on any of your many receipts, where the return policy is also printed? YET, you are ABSOLUTELY SURE that Home Depot accepts returns after 90 days. Interesting ... May I suggest that you double-check this "certainty" BEFORE loading up on your next supply of materials at Home Depot? I have a feeling that you will see a VERY similar, if not MORE STRINGENT policy at Home Depot, as you have seen at Lowes.

HINT - The return policy at Home Depot is stated by means of HUGE TACKY ORANGE SIGNS. If you don't notice those, like you managed to miss the HUGE BRIGHT BLUE SIGNS at Lowes, then I am afraid there is nothing anyone can possibly do to help you in this situation. Something tells me that we'll be seeing another identical report from you in the next few days ... except this time it will be referencing Home Depot. :-)

Thanks Paul. I'm not blaming anyone but myself. The report specifies 101 days. No, I did not see the signs. Lowes is only responsible to the extent that they want my business. Plenty of other places including Home Depot allow returns after 90 days. Thanks for your help.

Sorry, Mike, your expressed dissatisfaction with Lowe's return policy will likely not send many people eagerly shopping at Home Depot. At least not this writer.
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One could assume that in planning any such projects the necessary permits should be secured PRIOR to the purchase of materials,and that the project had the blessing of all authorities involved. Particularly so in an area so described:"Here in New York we have a lot of regulations and government agencies along with inspections, disputes, waiting and confusion."
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You allude to your "having made a mistake". I agree. Expecting such unreasonably liberal policies on the return of materials "left at the job site" was the mistake, however.
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As a matter of fact, I would choose to not shop where the selection of building materials included that which had spent over 3 months at some other's 'job site'. It's highly unlikely such "materials" would subsequently be resaleable as "new".
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Mike,I would suggest you cool off, step down, and let the people with REAL problems verbalize them.

You have kept the merchandise, ON A JOB SITE, for over 90 DAYS, and you expect Lowes to allow you to return it? Did you not see the HUGE BLUE SIGNS all over the store, clearly defining the return policy? Why is Lowes supposed to be responsible for your legal issues and your now inability to continue with the construction? You don't even say how much "over 90 days" it was .... was it 93 days? Or 156 days? I can see how Lowes might reasonably bend the rules if it were only slightly more than 90 days, but certainly NOT if it were MANY days past. At any rate, being aware of the return policy is YOUR responsibility as a consumer. Before you give your hard-earned money to a store, wouldn't you want to know the rules to get that money back if need be?

Anyway .... just HOW is shopping at Home Depot from now on going to solve the problem? In case you do not know, Home Depot has the same 90 DAY RETURN POLICY as Lowes. Additionally, you MUST present a receipt with EVERY return at Home Depot (Lowes on the other hand will accept returns without a receipt). What exactly is your complaint? You are upset about one store's supposedly-stringent return policy, and so you are encouraging others to shop at a store with an even more stringent policy? Yeah, that makes sense. ;-)