Complaint Review: Best Buy - Kennewick Washington

On 3/19/06 I purchased a Toshiba D-R4 DVD recorder from Best Buy in Kennewick, Washington. I paid $159.99 for the unit and an additional $49.99 for a four-year extended warranty. When I asked the check-out clerk, who was pushing the extended warranty, what the warranty covered, she said, "Well, basically whatever ever goes wrong, we take care of it, including covering normal wear and tear during the four years." When I asked what "taking care of it" meant, she replied, "Just bring it back to us, and most of the time we'll just give you a new one." With people behind me in line, I didn't push the "most of the time" issue, assuming at that point that Best Buy's warranty strongly resembled Staples' (which I have found from experience to be quite worthwhile).

I live in Walla Walla, which is about an hour away, so I typically go to the "tri-cities" (which includes Kennewick) less than once per month, always motivated primarily by making a run to Costco. So, a no-hassle extended warranty seemed like a reasonable way to cover the potential hassle factor of having bought the unit from a store an hour away from home.

When I got the unit home, my goal was to convert my extensive VHS collection to DVD to save space. However, within the first few copies I ran into significant problems. The unit would burn the copy onto the DVD just fine, but then the unit would not "finalize" the disc without multiple attempts. Often I would have to eject the disc and reinsert it repeatedly, then going through the lengthy (and slow to respond) menu structure to try the finalization process again and again before the unit would eventually perform the finalization.

I was initially using Memorex brand DVD-R discs, however, upon reading CAREFULLY through the user manual, I discovered that the Toshiba only recommends using a few brands of disc, including Maxell. So, I went out and purchased a spindle of Maxell discs, according to the type recommended by Toshiba.

That reduced the incidence of the problem, but it still happened. Going online I found many reviews of the unit that complained about this disc finalization problem, stating that this unit is the most "finicky" about disc brand of any unit on the market.

I found the ongoing finalization problems increasingly frustrating, and even with Maxell discs the incidence increased until the unit would not finalize some discs at all, and it balked but would eventually finalize more than half of the discs. At this point, the frustration reached "critical mass" enough for me to make a dedicated trip to Kennewick just to return this unit, which I did on 5/3/06.

At the store I found that the extended warranty really didn't resemble what the check-out clerk had told me (READ that fine print--ALL of it--before you buy--even if you have to hold up the check out line for an hour to do it)! As the Geek Squad geek pointed out to me, the "No Lemon Policy" apparently takes complete priority, which means that this policy overrides ANY notion you might have been led to have that "taking care of it" could include a "quick" fix or replacement! The policy states that "After three service repairs have been completed..." Best Buy may then opt to either replace the unit with a "comparible" unit or with another of the same unit.

I was pretty upset to find that (given the cost of gas!) I was now on the hook for potentially SIX MORE trips to Kennewick to solve the problem (for pick-ups and then subsequent returns), and I pointed out that I would NOT have purchased the extended warranty had I realized that the "No Lemon Policy" basically sets the ONLY bar for how Best Buy will attempt to resolve the problem, even when I had brought in printouts from reviews showing that the finalization issue is a known problem with this unit.

But, having no option, I dropped the unit off. The "promise date" for the completion of repairs was 5/13/06, and I was told it would likely be only a week. I reminded the geeks that I live in Walla Walla, and said, "DON'T call me to tell me that this unit is 'fixed' and have me make the two-hour round trip only to find that it is not fixed! This model is known to have this problem, so I doubt if you CAN fix it. So, be SURE it is fixed before you waste my time and gas money."

At that point, three weeks went by without me hearing anything from Best Buy. At that point I called to be told that the unit was not yet repaired, and I thought, "Well, at least they are taking this seriously, and, as predicted, are finding the problem harder to solve than they had thought."

Finally, after almost four total weeks, I called again. This time the person on the phone told me that their computer screen showed that the unit had been repaired over two weeks earlier and that the store had tried to call me multiple times without reaching me. I pointed out that I have voice mail on my cell phone and an answering machine on my home phone, and I had never received a single message. I also pointed out that I had called less than a week earlier and had been told that the repair was not yet complete! They could find no record of that call.

Nevertheless, I hoped in my car the next day (5/23/06) to go get the unit back. Once I got home, I plugged it in and burned a disc. First disc, and the unit would not finalize it. I burned another disc with a different movie. The unit would not finalize it. So much for "fixing" the problem!

I tried burning multiple discs over the next few days until I could get a chance to make the trip out to Kennewick again, which I did on Sunday, 5/28/06. At this point, my goal was to speak to the store manager and have him just exchange the unit for a more expensive Sony that they had in stock.

It turn out that it is nearly impossible to actually talk to a store manager, despite repeated requests of various clerks and geeks. Instead, I got pushed through 45 minutes of the same questions and answers by various clerks and geeks, while supposedly my unit was being "tested" to see if the problem really still existed (a process that was supposed to take "no more than 10 minutes").

By the time I had explained for the umpteenth time why I was certain that the problem was NOT a function of my attempts to burn copy-protected tapes, I finally became demanding: "I am NOT dealing with any more of you people. I asked to speak to the store manager when I first got here, and I intend to speak to the store manager and nobody else at this point!"

Suddenly, the "store manager" (although his card actually says "sales manager") appeared. He introduced himself as Jamie "the store manager" and asked what the problem was. I explained, yet again, the process I had already gone through to "fix" a model of DVD recorder that probably could not be fixed due to the fact that the model is known to have this particular problem. (Toshiba, wake up to the fact of a serious design flaw.)

I stated that the simple "fix" at this point was for me to just get a store credit for the Toshiba unit and then immediately spend that store credit on the more expensive Sony model. Jamie looked at the paperwork and said, "Well, I would love to help you, but you first brought the unit in for repairs after the 30 day return period. So, now we just have to go through the extended warranty process."

I replied, "You mean to tell me that just because LESS than two weeks too long passed, with me living in Walla Walla, you can't do ANYTHING for me to just replace this model with something that doesn't have a known problem like this?"

He said, "There is nothing I can do. Corporate has my hands tied on matters like this."

I stood gaping in disbelief and responded, "I simply don't believe that Corporate tells you that if even ONE day passes beyond the 30 that you have to tell the customer, 'Well, you're screwed.'"

He said, "I have no control of the matter. We have policies, and I have to abide by them."

I said, "Ok, I'm going to write to Corporate about this, so let's be perfectly clear right now. I have three witnesses here, and we are all going to be crystal clear about what you are claiming. So, you are telling me that you, as the store manager, have absolutely ZERO latitude in making a customer like me satisfied? You are telling me that because I brought this unit in for repair LESS than two weeks after the official return period, there is NOTHING you can do besides turn this into an extended warranty issue? NOTHING?"

He said, "Corporate will tell you that once the return period has passed, we are not allowed to accept the item back as a return. Our hands are tied."

I said, "I simply don't believe it, but if it's true, then that is the stupidest 'policy' ever invented in the corporate world, and I have never heard of a manager being THAT hamstrung before in my life! So, either you are bold-faced lying to me in front of witnesses, or Best Buy is the stupidest corporation on this planet. Either way, you have made me into an enemy! I intend to inform everyone I can about what has happened, warning them to NEVER buy your extended warranty, and warning them that Best Buy has no concern for customer satisfaction even in a case like this!"

At this point, Jamie started issuing threats: "You are getting really loud, and I'm going to have to ask you to leave."

(I was NOT getting loud, as witnesses will attest; I was, of course, being quite direct in my speech, but I have a Ph.D. in philosophy, and so I know something about how to craft my speech without resorting to loud or crude language.)I replied, "Wait, so you're telling me that you will ask me to leave and thereby NOT honor the warranty I have paid for?" Jamie said, "I have the right to refuse service to anybody for any reason."

I said, "Oh, so Corporate gives you the right to do whatever you like for ANY reason to REFUSE service to an unhappy customer, but your hands are TOTALLY tied about how to resolve the situation to make them HAPPY?"

Jamie replied, "Look, I'll take the unit in, and we'll try to fix it, but that's all I can do at this point. Take it or leave it."

Thereby given NO option, I submitted to having the unit admitted to the care of the Geek Squad yet again. As of today (6/5/06), the geeks have had the unit for more than a week, and I have heard nothing. Furthermore, I am now looking forward to at least four more round-trips to Kennewick before I have any HOPE of finally getting this unit replaced with one that actually will finalize discs! I will have spent more on gas and the extended "warranty" than the unit is WORTH!

Of note is the fact that while we were going the rounds through the clerks and geeks prior to talking with Jamie, we overheard another extended warranty being sold to a nearby customer. The customer was told, and this is a direct quote: "If you have any problem with this purchase, just bring it back to us, and we'll give you a new one." Now that is a bold-faced lie, and that is how these warranties are sold--and nobody is going to take the time to actually read through the entire multi-page pamphlet containing the warranty information while standing there at the checkout counter, with other people waiting in line. We BELIEVE what we are told when we buy the warranties, and we are lied to!

So, the moral of the story: Do NOT, I repeat, do NOT be lured by the (sometimes) good prices of Best Buy. According to one of their managers, as a corporation they allow their managers endless latitude about how to make customers angry, but they officially extend ZERO latitude to their managers about how to make customers satisfied (unless, of course, there is the hint of a chance that this manager was just lying to me.... Noooo!). IF Jamie was lying (and I use that term carefully and intentionally, given how carefully I crafted my questioning in front of witnesses), then he should be fired immediately and with no further ado. If he is telling the truth, then BUYER BEWARE and have nothing further to do with Best Buy!

Second moral: Even if you are seduced by a particular "deal" into buying from Best Buy (for shame), do NOT, I repeat, no NOT be suckered into buying one of Best Buy's rip-off extended "warranties." Unlike other reputable stores, like Staples (which, in my experience, just instantly replaces a defective unit with another one from the shelves, rather than forcing you to go through the whole "fixing" process), Best Buy will run you through a ridiculous mill of "fixes," with no assurance that you will ever have a working unit as a result. Furthermore, during the "fixing" process, you can be ASSURED of one thing: as in my case, it is likely that you will be WITHOUT the item for more total time that you will HAVE the item you paid for. Think about it, since I bought the unit in mid-March, I have now been without the unit longer than I have had the unit in my possession. As the "fixing" process continues, that disparity will only increase. There is only ONE way to hold these corporations accountable for these extended "warranties" and that is to buy them ONLY from companies that actually have customer-friendly ones (like Staples) and avoid like the plague those companies (like Best Buy) that use these "warranties" to fleece a generally unsuspecting public!

Best Buy has indeed made of me an enemy, and I intend to warn everybody I know or ever come into contact with to avoid dealing with the company. Class action lawsuit anyone???(I have sent an exact copy of this posting to Best Buy Corporate.)

Richard

College Place, Washington
U.S.A.

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