Complaint Review: Safeway Supermarket Stores

I am the owner of this report written.I just changed emails so I haven't been able to get in to reply to the folks who posted their
opinions.So please bear with me.

It is now Nov 11 2005, Veteran's Day.I would like to tell you what has happened since this debacle back in April 2005.I hope the victims of Katrina are doing better and I am replying to the person who added that in their comment.Please note my report was way before Katrina, in April.I know what matters in life.Yes it is small compared to Katrina.Nevertheless, it is still unfair business practices and at the very least, on principle, wrong for Safeway to continue to not accept terms of a written agreement aka raincheck, they signed and endorsed.

Here is what has happened since April.My mother and I had been in their store on many events and inquired about the grigich hill.He (wine manager)said he was having problems "stocking it."We went into the store for over two months.No wine was put out on that brand.Then after three months when the raincheck expired,which they knew from day one from a report to their main offices, they redid their wine section, filled it up with the wine written on the raincheck, and told me they were not going to accept my raincheck, since it was expired.

I told him he knew and let it expire, full well knowing about it.One of the workers told me that they got the wine in late May-which attests that they waited until the raincheck was expired to fill their shelves with it, and many bottles of grigich hills cab.At that point they could have said (to let themselves off the hook)we finally have the wine in stock, let me get you your twelve bottles at the price on the raincheck,get your ten percent off, and thank you for your time.Instead, I got the runaround.
I was sick of the whole entire mess.Yes this was stressful and embarrassing from day one.You were not there, at any of these places, when I was patronized and belittled.So Please don't rate my feelings.It is the truth to the whole mess.

Recently I went and called upper management at their main offices.I talked to a woman who was an employee at Safeways main management branch for the entire contra costa area.She said she would look into this problem.Instead I get a man calling me back,trying to weasel out of the raincheck.I told him about the raincheck.He knew.Told him he could give me a gift card to cover the wine.He said he wasn't going to be out that much money or for that specific wine.

I asked him how his position differed from the lady's I talked to in upper management.He said it was the same as hers.UGH! She gave him "the dirty work to do." First he started by telling me he would give me a fifty dollar gift certificate.I told him that was unfair since it would barely cover the cost of one bottle.He still started finagling, he would give me one bottle free.I got so tired and said why don't you just give me three free and we can forget this.Then he said no he wasn't going to be out that money.SO he said,I will go as high as giving you a $75 gift certificate and no more.This would cover about one and a half bottles.He wouldn't budge.The lady in the upper management where Safeway does all their main customer service and human resource work, basically gave me to the "con man" in the same position as herself.Not to anyone else, above her position or her looking into the matter, as she promised.It was on their file from day one when I reported it.

Now I am not budging from this.The bait and switch person, I appreciate the advice and writing my congressman, might be an alternative.
So you can see that Safeway is admitting they messed up.They just couldn't find a way to work with the raincheck for twelve bottles at less than 13 bucks each as stated on the raincheck.
I think this proves in some way, how unfair business practices work.It is true from the responder who said, had I been full of money and an important member in the community, this issue would have been resolved ASAP.Since I am a regular person as most of you, I get the merry go round.Now there is no more time to waste on them trying to dupe me more.

I appreciate people understanding that in all fairness, I just wanted the raincheck validated.Get my wine, pay the price on the raincheck and be done with it.Now I am sickened more by the rest of this business, of them truly showing how crooked they are.I feel sorry for the person who works for Safeway and is going through a nightmare.Thank you for confirming that Safeway not only does bad and unfair business practices, they make their loyal customers and workers feel like trash.When all I wanted was to get the raincheck approved, get the wine, and go home.Amazing how we live in the world of the greedy, their's not mine.I only wrote the 2k and other things to hopefully catch someone being able to tell me where to go to get this all attended to and finished aka punitive damages.

I hope no one else goes through any humiliation after trying to redeem rainchecks they wrote but now over and over deny.Our world is the pits and the greedy are still in charge.While us regular folks go about are business and are cheated and played with, when all that needed to be done, was honor what you wrote.Nothing is resolved on this issue still.I guess now you get the real picture about Safeway.Their latest actions of dumming me down, almost work.But I got tired of listening to someone haggle me with a small token certificate, instead of writing off the wine as a loss or giving me a gift certificate for the twelve bottles of wine, like in a contest.But they just cannot find it to fix the problem and instead pour more salt on a very big wound.This is the entire truth.I experienced all of the above and more.Honesty in this society is costly.The greedy win out and that is why big business can squeeze us little guys.But at least us little guys can write down somewhere people can go and see the reality of life today in 2005 and the Business who abuse their power positions.

Samuel and Chicago need to get informed. And it is debatable which of you needs to learn more.

In 25+ of various retail jobs, I have never heard a company or manager say that "The customer is always right" That is a customers quote.

Safeway, the company in question, had a company-wide policy to give the customer anything short of a Toyota Truck....this however was a few years ago. Meaning if a customer complains, compensate them anything less then a Toyota Truck. To their security, nothing is in writing.

All Safeway consumers have paid inflated prices to allow Safeway to maintain many many high powered lawyers.....and Politicians. So if you want to duke it out with them...go for it.

And for "Chicago", your thought that upsetting the customer will lead to Safeways destruction. Get real! They have been operating this way for more then 75 yrs.

And if you think that they operate unethically towards the "Customer is always right"...go work for them and find out the real nightmare. You don't have a clue how they really are.

File a complaint with the Attorney General's office in the state where the store you made the original complaint on. Look up the local attorney general's website of that store lcoation on the internet, call their number and request their office to mail you a complaint form. There are different offices within that state for different area codes, so make sure you are directed to the right phone number/office. And, make sure you have the area code or city or county of where you had the problem originally, even if you live somewhere else. If you live in another state and the store is located out of your state, you can't file a complaint with your own state. You have to file a complaint with the state that the store or company you had a problem with is located in or in the state where the store's main corporate offices are located. In your situation, I would suggest you just file a complaint with the location where the problem was.

Now if this was a true crime, I'm not sure, but you could probably drive over to the district attorney's office of that store location and file charges. I've seen it happen before. I've heard of licenses of companies being lifted for malpractice, or you could threated it, but that's just an example of one extreme situation. And that usually only happens if such a thing as a company steals hundreds of dollars from a customer/client without giving them the product. But you should never trust the justice system or the government. Justice can be as corrupt and money-grubbing as everything else.

Contrary to the poplular belief expressed in an ealier post....the customer is not always right, and is often FAR FROM IT.

They may be right this time, but that statement is far out-dated and many customers still feeling this way just try to ram it down some poor company's throat now hoping for a freebie or hand-out they know they will get if they complain loudly enough.

I've been in customer service one way or another for nearly 20 years....that statement is not even close to the truth.

And other consumers have the right to tell him what they think of his complaint.

I have had my problems with Safeway in downtown Los Angeles, CA myself. And their customer service SUCKS! If a customer does not understand something, explain it properly. But have you heard the saying, "THE CUSTOMER'S ALWAYS RIGHT!" If Samuel had a serious problem with their service, then Safeway should have resolved it, even if it was not by the "rules." I GUARANTEE you, if Samuel was spending hundreds of dollars a month at Safeway or if he was someone of prestige or wealth, he would have it his way. There's nothing wrong with some customer satisfaction. If he felt like he was being treated unfairly, then Safeway should go out of their way to make him happy. Apparently, it made him very pissed off that something like this happened and blames it on Safeway, so Safeway should do something about it.

Eventually, if this kept happening, Safeway will end up losing the competition. There are plenty of businesses that have ended up losing business because of such complaints like this. Being in business means you're in a competition with the business world, not your customers. If you piss off people from your own team or who are supporting your team, then you will keep losing out.

It's because of complaints like these that other competitive businesses DEVELOP. So, when a customer like Samuel complains about something in particular about Safeway, another competitor will say, "Hey, I've got a solution!" and end up building more business. So, Safeway SHOULD go out of their way to make sure that customer doesn't get so pissed off to the point where he doesn't feel valued and feels that somehting was improperly done and risk ruining Safeway's reputation.

I've had plenty of customers tell me that they weren't satisfied with something and didn't understand the rules or polices, but if they want something their way and really feel STRONGLY about it, then it should either be explained to them or they should be treated specially. YOU DON'T WANT TO ARGUE WITH THE CUSTOMER NO MATTER HOW WRONG THEY ARE. That's why many stores' mottos are, "We make you feel like a valued customer." It comes from complaints such as Samuel's.

If you have a raincheck, they are obligated to honor it, otherwise it's called bait & switch. There are laws about advertising "sales" and then not having stock, which is why they are then obligated to give out rain checks. This is a law.

For you to ask for free stuff is one of the more stupid comments I've heard here. Get your research done on the laws about advertising false "sales" and take that, along with your raincheck, to the store manager.

If you are insistant on being an a*s about things, then I suggest picketing the place. They'll cave after awhile but just how much is your time worth anyway that you are willing to practically camp out for some wine?

Go buy some Raymond cabernet....it's every bit as good. Grgich Hills is overrated anyway (except for the merlot) and are you really that much of a wine snob to notice the difference?

Cripes, it's simply amazing some people have nothing better to b***h about than wine. People like you should take a tour of New Orleans so they realize the insignificance of themselves and petty bitching about stupid things...it's obvious you were one of those silver-spoon crybabies.

Samuel, asking for 2k and such really sounds silly. I work for Safeway as a checker for almost 4 years now. I've written alot of rainchecks, recieved alot of rainchecks, and has heard of no complaints to this day. On Safeway rainchecks, it has a store issued area, stating which store its from, and a raincheck must be redeemed at that store. The liquor departments compete for business, the managers get bonuses when their sells do well. This compels them to lower prices and to compete. So it is very possible that wine may be a different price at another store. But then again, if it was in the Safeway ad, then it should be the same for that entire area. San Jose ads and Contra Costa ads I believe are different. But the bottom line is that a raincheck written at a store must be redeemed at that store! They are just afraid of fruad, I mean come on, its a Liquor item, Safeway is edgy of that. Also, we are not allowed to change the prices of Milk, Tabbaco, and yes, Liquor items based on California State Law.

My store has taken precautions to raincheck fraud, the employee must write their name clearly, must write "One Time Use Only" and "No Limit" at the top of the raincheck, so that the customer cannot just take 2 of the "4" written on the check at the sale price and then keep the check.

Yes a manager may get fired for selling Liquor at such a low price. Rainchecks are also not to be written on any other form except the raincheck form. If its on another form, then how can they believe that it is real? I cant tell you how many fraudluent rainchecks we get, they are just doing their job based on how they are trained.

You state....
" Now i want free twelve bottles grigich hills cab and six bottles of cakebread cellars cabernet sauvignon,for all the hassle, a written apology, and 2k safeway gift certificate, for all the duress and stress and humiliation and embarrassment they caused me"

This is the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard a customer say. The "Duress and Stress"???
Its WINE, they laughed at you because they probably thought you were trying to pull somthing! And I do not believe that it was that humiliating, nor embarrassing, Ive seen customers like you, and you probably raised your voice when the clerk tried to write the 1800 number on your raincheck, and you probably raised your voice during most of your conversations with these managers. Your just being silly.

Samuel,

Dude, you must be the one coming from another planet if you think Safeway will give you a $2K gift card for your troubles. Or if you think you can sue them in Small Claims Court for damages in the amount of $4K. If you tried, the judge would surely laugh you out of the courtroom.

Safeway sucks. There is a store less than a mile from ny house that is always dead, even though they are in the middle of a sprawling community. Everyone goes elsewhere (including me). I only use them if I need something real quick.

I agree with Anita, take a chill. If you have a problem with the raincheck, then simply take it back to Pleasant Hill and get the manager who gave it to you. If they are not the Store Manager, then get them involved also. Demanding $2K in gift cards is not going to get you anywhere as you will be made to seem unreasonable.

Safeway does have a policy to give the customer anything short of a Toyota Truck.

Anita - Center, California
U.S.A.

My reply to you Anita is that you must be coming from another planet.Safeway has had three months to clean this mess up.All they have to do is to now give me a 2k gift tag for all this b.s. and stress.That way they don't have to worry about being sued for small claims court of 4k..

Yes that me be alot to expect from them, but i am getting to the point where nothing is happening, so I am gonna go public in the papers.As my raincheck wears out on the tenth of this month, june, they know that.They will be restocking the wine in store after my raincheck is due.They are sneaky and know they are wrong.Time for someone in the customer service area of Safeway, to correct this situation, so no one else has to go through all this hell, humiliation, and stress.

Safeway does have a policy to give the customer anything short of a Toyota Truck.

Anita - Center, California
U.S.A.

My reply to you Anita is that you must be coming from another planet.Safeway has had three months to clean this mess up.All they have to do is to now give me a 2k gift tag for all this b.s. and stress.That way they don't have to worry about being sued for small claims court of 4k..

Yes that me be alot to expect from them, but i am getting to the point where nothing is happening, so I am gonna go public in the papers.As my raincheck wears out on the tenth of this month, june, they know that.They will be restocking the wine in store after my raincheck is due.They are sneaky and know they are wrong.Time for someone in the customer service area of Safeway, to correct this situation, so no one else has to go through all this hell, humiliation, and stress.

Safeway does have a policy to give the customer anything short of a Toyota Truck.

Anita - Center, California
U.S.A.

My reply to you Anita is that you must be coming from another planet.Safeway has had three months to clean this mess up.All they have to do is to now give me a 2k gift tag for all this b.s. and stress.That way they don't have to worry about being sued for small claims court of 4k..

Yes that me be alot to expect from them, but i am getting to the point where nothing is happening, so I am gonna go public in the papers.As my raincheck wears out on the tenth of this month, june, they know that.They will be restocking the wine in store after my raincheck is due.They are sneaky and know they are wrong.Time for someone in the customer service area of Safeway, to correct this situation, so no one else has to go through all this hell, humiliation, and stress.

Safeway does have a policy to give the customer anything short of a Toyota Truck.

Anita - Center, California
U.S.A.

My reply to you Anita is that you must be coming from another planet.Safeway has had three months to clean this mess up.All they have to do is to now give me a 2k gift tag for all this b.s. and stress.That way they don't have to worry about being sued for small claims court of 4k..

Yes that me be alot to expect from them, but i am getting to the point where nothing is happening, so I am gonna go public in the papers.As my raincheck wears out on the tenth of this month, june, they know that.They will be restocking the wine in store after my raincheck is due.They are sneaky and know they are wrong.Time for someone in the customer service area of Safeway, to correct this situation, so no one else has to go through all this hell, humiliation, and stress.

Safeway has the same sale priced items onsale in all their stores.The only difference is, is that some safeway stores do not carry many safeway premium wines.But, most of them do carry premium wines.This case has remained stagnate and their is no response from safeway.Thus, I feel I will find out how to sue them in small court system.I have the written proof, eyewitnesses, and dates of all this milarchy.

I would warn consumers to beware of Safeways in Walnut Creek at the Broadway store, Contra Costa blvd, and in San Jose off of San Carlos.They do not treat people humanely and in fashion, partronize and belittle you in front of other customers, so that you finally, walk out, disgusted.Of course you just leave your groceries there, after they spend time harrassing you about not accepting the raincheck.

Why should I shop at any of the Safeway stores when they are very condescending and show lack of customer service over and over again.No customer service as they just show consumer fraud, as they use the loyal customer as a rag doll, putting them through the mill and not following through with store policies, to honor their written safeway raincheck.

To Samuel - Walnut Creek, California

You must step back and take a breath.

ALL Safeways do NOT have the same prices.

If the item is an ADVERTISED Sale Item, then it is the same in most every store in the Ads area unless otherwise stated in the ad.

Rainchecks are honored in only the stores where they are written. If another Safeway honors another Safeways raincheck, that is a courtesy and not policy.

Rainchecks are written for ADVERTISED sales items; NOT for in-store sales.

There is a limit to how low wine can be sold. So if the sale price is to the limit, there is NO case discount.

I do not shop at Safeway, but if you do and have a problem, only see that STORE'S MANAGER. Not the assistant manager, head clerks, etc. If the Store Manager isn't there, get the phone number and call them. If you still are not satisfied contact the district manager.

Safeway does have a policy to give the customer anything short of a Toyota Truck.

To Samuel - Walnut Creek, California

You must step back and take a breath.

ALL Safeways do NOT have the same prices.

If the item is an ADVERTISED Sale Item, then it is the same in most every store in the Ads area unless otherwise stated in the ad.

Rainchecks are honored in only the stores where they are written. If another Safeway honors another Safeways raincheck, that is a courtesy and not policy.

Rainchecks are written for ADVERTISED sales items; NOT for in-store sales.

There is a limit to how low wine can be sold. So if the sale price is to the limit, there is NO case discount.

I do not shop at Safeway, but if you do and have a problem, only see that STORE'S MANAGER. Not the assistant manager, head clerks, etc. If the Store Manager isn't there, get the phone number and call them. If you still are not satisfied contact the district manager.

Safeway does have a policy to give the customer anything short of a Toyota Truck.

To Samuel - Walnut Creek, California

You must step back and take a breath.

ALL Safeways do NOT have the same prices.

If the item is an ADVERTISED Sale Item, then it is the same in most every store in the Ads area unless otherwise stated in the ad.

Rainchecks are honored in only the stores where they are written. If another Safeway honors another Safeways raincheck, that is a courtesy and not policy.

Rainchecks are written for ADVERTISED sales items; NOT for in-store sales.

There is a limit to how low wine can be sold. So if the sale price is to the limit, there is NO case discount.

I do not shop at Safeway, but if you do and have a problem, only see that STORE'S MANAGER. Not the assistant manager, head clerks, etc. If the Store Manager isn't there, get the phone number and call them. If you still are not satisfied contact the district manager.

Safeway does have a policy to give the customer anything short of a Toyota Truck.

To Samuel - Walnut Creek, California

You must step back and take a breath.

ALL Safeways do NOT have the same prices.

If the item is an ADVERTISED Sale Item, then it is the same in most every store in the Ads area unless otherwise stated in the ad.

Rainchecks are honored in only the stores where they are written. If another Safeway honors another Safeways raincheck, that is a courtesy and not policy.

Rainchecks are written for ADVERTISED sales items; NOT for in-store sales.

There is a limit to how low wine can be sold. So if the sale price is to the limit, there is NO case discount.

I do not shop at Safeway, but if you do and have a problem, only see that STORE'S MANAGER. Not the assistant manager, head clerks, etc. If the Store Manager isn't there, get the phone number and call them. If you still are not satisfied contact the district manager.

Safeway does have a policy to give the customer anything short of a Toyota Truck.

Hey man! I am not crying about anything.Yes they will pay! I can sue them easily.Yet I think going public to a consumer fraud complaint can embarrass them into "doing the right thing." It's time people started fighting these kinds of cases.Big Business can not always take advantage of the little guy! Now I will file with many public forums to make them responsible.Wait and see.Something good will come of this travesty of justice! I don't waste my time complaining.I am hoping someone has a great idea how to expose them and embarrass them publicly, worse than they did to me.But the fact is, they owe me the items, prices, on the raincheck.Since they are railroading the attempt to be fair and honest, now it is my time to try and find another way, an honest way, to make them Pay!!!

your Just another customer that comes and ges every day! if you decide to shop at another Gorcey they WOULD not care.they have a million other customers to take your place.and you really think they will just give your twelve bottles grigich hills cab and six bottles of cakebread cellars cabernet sauvignon,for all the hassle

think twice.
i used to live in cailfonia and safeway is safeway just like luckys fod store thye never give s**t away for free.

and you really think thye care if you posted this? thye do not....you wasted all of your time crying here for nothing.and if people who shop at safeway read this you think they are going to care? **NO** they will keep on shopping there..