Complaint Review: Best Buy & Geek Squad - Longmont Colorado

I wouldn't let it go too much longer. A reasonable amount of time IMO would be about 3 weeks for corporate to contact you with a resolution offer. Small claims court or a dispute with your credit card company is still a viable option. In the mean time, I would take numerous pictures of the botched installation and then get an estimate or two from seasoned professionals as to the cost to correct the botched installation. Good luck.

I am the one who filed the original report. As to date we have a $75.00 gift certificate to Best Buy. We have been watching to see if that would straighten up the crooked tv hanging on the wall ( with wires outside the wall everywhere ). It did not work. As far as not being cordial about my complaint, I don't see where they were cordial either with their shoddy work and representation of what they would do. I work in a customer service department and know from experience this is NOT the way you handle customers. The Geek squad certeainly has the right name. I have filed a complaint with the corporate office and they promised they would be checking into this issue.

I should know what I'm doing. In addition to being a self-employed computer consultant, I am also an industrial electrician complete with state certification and union card. I've been in the electronics/computer/navigation/communications business for over 30 years. Your advice to keep contacting the store to get the installation done properly was spot on. You should have left it at that instead of taking the tone you did in your rebuttal to them. You were less than cordial in your rebuttal to them under the guise of "helping." Seems to me you can dish it out but can't take it. When it comes to the technical stuff, leave it to the pros. Your explanation for the cable "rating" was not. State and local regulations determine what cable should be installed in walls (and the NEC.) They could have had the installation done by a professional for less than what they paid for geek squaders to botch it. Now, as to a solution for them. They should take pictures of the botched installation and contact Best Buy corporate HQ in WRITING to have the installation re-done correctly and in a timely manner. If Best Buy doesn't rectify the situation, then small claims court would be an appropriate venue to obtain a refund. Another option depends on the credit card they used to pay. VISA Platinum has a sort of "buyer protection" system for defective products and faulty services- so they might dispute the charge for the installation with their credit card company. Visa will take the dispute over the phone and you can email them scanned copies of letters and pictures that support the dispute.

Robert, you seem like JAFO (see the movie Blue Thunder) who 'thinks' he knows something. I'm trying to help this nice lady out and offer her advice on how to rectify her unpleasant situation and all you offer is nonsense. I didn't feel it was necessary to list and explain every type of 75 ohm connection (RG6, RG59, RG11, etc.)...(single, dual, quad shield, copper, steel, aluminum) the list goes on and on. If you're so concerned with signal loss why wouldn't you suggest a composite video or S-Video connection over RG6? She wants her TV hung straight and the wires in the wall. I dont think she needs to be bogged down with a bunch of technical garbage that doesn't get her any closer to a solution. We dont even know IF she has a VCR, I was just offering a suggestion in case so all bases would be covered. (By the way Ma'am Robert is correct, RG6 would be "technically" better than RG59). Your second paragraph makes no sense at all. I never said that a CL rating applied to some special conductors within a cable. Of course it refers to the jacket of the cable that will be exposed inside the wall, (pardon me, I thought that was understood). If she goes to any reputable dealer and asks for cables that are CL rated for IN-WALL USE they will know exactly what she's talking about. Once again I didn't feel the need to explain in lenghthy detail about the different class ratings (CL2, CL3). I'm sorry if 'rating" is not a word that you use but I'm not familiar with the nomenclature that you employ. In the future why dont you offer your own solution instead of trying to pick apart someone elses attempt at helping others.

""If you have a VCR you can just hook it up with a plain old RG-59 (tv cable) it's going to look like crap on your HDTV anyway so theres no reason to invest in HQ cables. "" RG-59 is the cheap stuff and has a higher signal loss. If the cable is going to be longer than 6 feet, it would be better to use RG-6. Also "CL" is not a certification for cables. The 'CL" stands for the CLASS of GENERAL PURPOSE cable (cables that normally do NOT have a voltage rating stated on them.) Class 2, Class 3 etc. The classification has to do with the insulation on the cable; type of material, temperature rating, etc.

Make sure you buy cables that are CL rated for in-wall use or you will be right back to square one. I dont know how else to explain this... we will NOT install non-rated cables within your walls. Also, tell the store that their $75 gift card is unacceptable. You want the TV hung straight and you will have the proper cables available when the installer arrives so the install can be completed as per the contract.

Which part of the contract do you still not understand? It's written in plain english. IF Michael led you to believe that the cables were included with your installation, he was mistaken. If you are unable to read and comprehend a simple contract with a brief description of services that will, and will not be performed then maybe you should not sign one. As far as you being ripped off goes, you have no one but yourself to blame (let me explain...again). The technician came to your home to install your TV. You failed to provide him with the (required) customer supplied cables. You refused his in home solution which was to build the cables on-site for you. He hung the TV and connected it the only way he is allowed in that situation (exposed wiring). Where exactly is the rip off? I already told you that you have a one (1) year warranty on your install and if the TV is crooked you are certainly entitled to have it fixed. If you would like to have a different technician come out for the service call then be sure to request one (what's so hard about this?). If you are unsure about which cables you may need I can help you out with that too. Look on the back of your video sources (i.e. Cable/Satellite box, DVD, etc.) and see if they have HDMI outputs, they will be clearly marked HDMI output. If they have them then you need one (1) HDMI cable for each source. If they dont have an HDMI output then you will need a Component Video and audio cable. Component video requires three (3) separate cables (Red, Green, Blue) for video and two (2) separate cables (Red, White) for audio, that's a total of five (5) cables. You can find them online or in any other Audio/Video store. If you have a VCR you can just hook it up with a plain old RG-59 (tv cable) it's going to look like crap on your HDTV anyway so theres no reason to invest in HQ cables. Measure the distance from the middle of your screen to the back of the equipment and add 3-4 feet to be safe on distance. Stop calling us rip off artists and take some responsibility for your own actions. Now call and set up an appointment to get this fixed. P.S. You're welcome

All in all we still do NOT have an "in the wall" installation that Michael told Len we would have. My husband did read the contract. Now Best Buy wants to send us a whole $75.00 gift certificate to a store we or our friends will never shop in!!! WOW....what upstanding professionals they are there. We are still out $325.00. and the TV is still hanging crooked on the wall. Great job of a rip off.

Get your story straight Lady. There are so many inconsistencies in this tale, where do I begin? In one paragraph you state that they wanted to charge you $485 for some special cable and then later on you made up some BS about being able to buy the same cable they were forcing you to buy for $200 across the street for $10. Which is it? I'm sorry that your salesperson Michael did not explain everything thoroughly to you (he may have been new and unaware) but that does not entitle you to free products and services. If you or your precious husband Len would have taken the time ( about 90 seconds ) to read the installation contract you signed between the time you purchased it and the time they showed up to do the install you would have known that cables were NOT included. To illustrate this point I would like to quote one line from the installation pledge of the service I assume you purchased ( It's the only ON-wall installation we offer for $300 ) Geek Squad Basic Mounting Of Flat Panel 33 and Up - $300 Attach and conceal customer-supplied cables from the flat panel TV to the nearby tuner, A/V source components or cable connection by routing up to 25 feet of cable through one (1) stud bay in a single standard frame wall Did you happen to catch that customer-supplied part? I'm not making this up. I invite you and any other skeptical individuals out there to look it up on the company's website for yourself. NOW! Let's get to the part of your diatribe that really pissed me off. You accused my fellow installer of lying and trying to rip you off. First of all, we have no ulterior motives when we come to your home. We are trying to deliver an ultimate customer experience. We do not receive commissions or bonuses, but we do have to answer for our time, and the materials on our service vehicles. I must digress for a moment because there's one part of your recollection that actually made me laugh out loudyou claimed that our hero Len went to several tv stores in town to find out what special cable he needed for this code that was required(pardon me, I'm laughing as I write this) I find it very hard to believe that a person who has the time to drive around to several TV Stores (your words) could not spare a minute and a half to read and comprehend a document that he signed and agreed to, but that doesn't even matter. Your TV Store heroes were correct on one pointthere is no special cable that is indigenous to your area. In actuality the whole country is affected by the fact that any low-voltage wires run within standard frame walls must be (CL rated). Best Buy is a multi-billion dollar, fortune 100 company. There is NO Way that they are going to allow an employee to install a non-rated cable in your wall, and why would you want him to anyway? So you can save a few bucks?? Are you aware that improperly rated wires within your walls could (not would, but COULD) void your homeowners insurance? I'm sorry that your house burned down Mrs. Len but we found non CL rated wires within your wallsyour claim is denied I have to say that my favorite part of your whole testimonial is the part where you try to rally any readers of this thread to your side by stating THIS WILL BLOW YOU AWAY!! He couldn't do it because that was a cable Best Buy makes themselves. LOL I'm so proud that you threw that LOL in there, but the lol is on you. We actually DO make our own cables on sight, in your home. It's called a Multi Conductor Video Run - $225 If you're still on our website looking up the flat panel mount you can check this one too. We will install a custom length (up to 25 feet) of cable through one (1) stud bay in a standard frame wall up to 5 conductors and terminate with precision machined, gold or silver plated connectors on both ends to connect to your audio/video equipment. It's hard to tell from your account because you're so full of BS (and I think I have proven that) but what I can deduce is that he was probably going to charge you for two (2) Multi-Conductor Video Runs (did you possibly have a DVD & Cable Box? ) each one requires 5 wires (conductors) so you would need two (2) MVR'S, hence $450. I have never personally charged a customer for 2 MVR'S in that situation but on the other hand, I have never run into people like you before. The only legitimate claim you have is that the TV was installed crooked and left with fingerprints all over it. Regarding that I am appalled and ashamed. Unfortunately, not everyone takes pride in their work like I, and the majority of GS Installers do. I know that right now you must think that I'm the Anti-Christ for the way I've pointed out your absurdities, but I'm really just trying to defend something I believe in. We offer professional services at reasonable prices and we stand behind our work. As far as your credit card being reimbursed, you can just forget that. There was a service performed (albeit incomplete) and we do not refund labor. I want to help you so if you do what I say, you will be satisfied. 1 Don't go to the store (it's a waste of time and all you're going to accomplish is pissing off more people (and yourself)) 2 Call 1-888-BESTBUY to set up a service call ** you have a 1 year warranty on your installation** (tell them that your TV is crooked and you would like it fixed) they will not argue with you and set up a convenient date. 3 While you wait for service date procure the cables that you need, if you don't like BB's prices then buy them elsewhere, just make sure they are CL rated (when you look for cables you will notice if they are CL rated or not) we will NOT, I repeat NOT install any cables within your walls that are not CL rated regardless of where you bought them. ** just a side notethere is NO tv power cord rated for in-wall use, if you do not want power cord exposed then you will have to hire an electrician to install a 120V outlet behind your TV.** << there is NO exception to this rule. 4 When installer shows up to straighten your TV show him/her your original receipt and explain that you did not receive full service on original install. 5 Hand him/her the cables and ask politely to run them in the wall. They will have to take the Tv off the wall to straighten it anyway so it should not be a big deal. 6 Treat Installers like human beings and you will be amazed at how far we'll bend over backwards to help you. Remember, we are people with homes, families, and TV's too. 7 Be careful when you throw around libelous terms like liar, rip-off artist, cheater just because you're pissed. As I have proven here you are 100% wrong, but you can be made whole if you just calm down and deal with your situation like an adult. Peace Out !

installation contract very carefully. Small claims court could be a viable option for you. Around here, you could have had a licensed electrician do the work for less than what they charged you.

installation contract very carefully. Small claims court could be a viable option for you. Around here, you could have had a licensed electrician do the work for less than what they charged you.

installation contract very carefully. Small claims court could be a viable option for you. Around here, you could have had a licensed electrician do the work for less than what they charged you.