- Report: #368665
Complaint Review: Best Buy - Princeton New Jersey
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Best Buy
251 Nassau Park Blvd Princeton, 08540 New Jersey, U.S.A.
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609-514-9500
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Best Buy Horrible treatment at best buy Princeton New Jersey
I have NEVER had such a HORRIFIC experience as I did today at Best Buy. This is a long story but read on and you will be astonished.
I am a contractor, and on 06/06/08 I purchased a window unit A/C from the Best Buy in West Windsor, NJ. I installed the unit and it seemed to work fine. Within a day or two my customers left for vacation and upon their return weeks later, discovered that the A/C didn't work.
I removed the A/C, took it back to the store on 07/08/08, and they tested it (because I am a liar) and gave me an new identical unit. Again, I installed the A/C and it seemed to work fine. Once again, within a day or two my customers left for another vacation. When they returned, the new unit wasn't working.
I brought this second unit back on 08/12/08 and again, they tested it (because I am a chronic liar). The unit performed OK but still showed some signs of quirkiness. The manager offered to "do me a favor" (his words) and allow me to either get another unit (yeah right!) or give me store credit since I was past the 30 day exchange period.
The kicker here is that I was told the 30 day exchange period started from the day of the initial purchase!! The other option offered me was to have the unit sent out for service. Great, my poor customers can continue to sleep in the living room because their third floor bedroom is too darn hot!
Under normal circumstances I would have had both units returned to the store within days but due to my customers' vacations, it was impossible to do this.
After the second unit failed, I had been instructed by my customers to get a new unit elsewhere. I told the manager this so his offer was simply unacceptable. Due to these unusual vacation circumstances, all I wanted was a credit to my MasterCard.
I was told by the manager, who could not have been older than 25, that a refund was out of the question. So I asked to please speak to his manager and he said HE was the manager--no way!
I then asked to whom else I could speak and he said to call 888-BESTBUY. I asked him to call and he handed me the phone! When I got a busy signal I hung up the phone and continued requesting to either speak to his superior or give me a refund. The manager continued his insistence that this was impossible. Finally he said, "This conversation is over," and began to walk away. We continued to banter a little and then I simply left the store.
So I called 888-BESTBUY as instructed, spoke to a CSR who gave me the same scripted lines. I asked to speak to his manager. After too long of a wait, his manager got on the phone, gave me the same run-around, and when I asked to speak to someone higher up, she claimed there wasn't anybody else. I suppose she is the CEO!! I continued to insist that she allow me to speak to someone over her and she HUNG UP ON ME!!
I am appalled at the manner in which Best Buy treats its customers. In their employee's own words, Best Buy is doing customers a "favor." Are they favoring us by allowing us the privilege of shopping there? I was under the impression that retail operations exist to serve the customers! Additionally, it's not as if BB is the only electronics store around.
I do not think my request for a refund was unreasonable, and I understand the need for a return policy, but is there no room for an exception considering the circumstances? Oh, that's right, to BB I am a liar like many of you who read this might be if you attempt to return a defective item to BB.
As I explained to the BB manager, my customers have now spent far more money for my labor than the $270.00 for the A/C! If either unit had performed properly, I would have saved myself three trips to BB, two installations, the numerous trips to the third floor bedroom for installation and removal of the A/C and the incredibly disrespectful treatment by BB employees!
As I mentioned earlier, I am a remodeling contractor. My customers are mostly residents of an upper-class town and they spend thousands upon thousands of dollars for appliances when I do kitchen renovations. BB certainly will no longer get my recommendation, in fact, I will discourage anyone from patronizing BB. In addition to me, BB has also lost another customer in what I think may be the beginnings of a domino effect. Upon recounting my horrid BB experience to my customer, I heard the words, "I'll never shop there again either!"
Major BOOOS to BEST BUY!
P.S. After posting this complaint, a rebuttal was posted by a Best Buy employee who wrote (and this is a direct quote), " ...FYI; we DO THINK every customer is lieing to us."
Jhahh
PRINCETON, New Jersey
U.S.A.
Click here to read other Rip Off Reports on Best Buy
I am a contractor, and on 06/06/08 I purchased a window unit A/C from the Best Buy in West Windsor, NJ. I installed the unit and it seemed to work fine. Within a day or two my customers left for vacation and upon their return weeks later, discovered that the A/C didn't work.
I removed the A/C, took it back to the store on 07/08/08, and they tested it (because I am a liar) and gave me an new identical unit. Again, I installed the A/C and it seemed to work fine. Once again, within a day or two my customers left for another vacation. When they returned, the new unit wasn't working.
I brought this second unit back on 08/12/08 and again, they tested it (because I am a chronic liar). The unit performed OK but still showed some signs of quirkiness. The manager offered to "do me a favor" (his words) and allow me to either get another unit (yeah right!) or give me store credit since I was past the 30 day exchange period.
The kicker here is that I was told the 30 day exchange period started from the day of the initial purchase!! The other option offered me was to have the unit sent out for service. Great, my poor customers can continue to sleep in the living room because their third floor bedroom is too darn hot!
Under normal circumstances I would have had both units returned to the store within days but due to my customers' vacations, it was impossible to do this.
After the second unit failed, I had been instructed by my customers to get a new unit elsewhere. I told the manager this so his offer was simply unacceptable. Due to these unusual vacation circumstances, all I wanted was a credit to my MasterCard.
I was told by the manager, who could not have been older than 25, that a refund was out of the question. So I asked to please speak to his manager and he said HE was the manager--no way!
I then asked to whom else I could speak and he said to call 888-BESTBUY. I asked him to call and he handed me the phone! When I got a busy signal I hung up the phone and continued requesting to either speak to his superior or give me a refund. The manager continued his insistence that this was impossible. Finally he said, "This conversation is over," and began to walk away. We continued to banter a little and then I simply left the store.
So I called 888-BESTBUY as instructed, spoke to a CSR who gave me the same scripted lines. I asked to speak to his manager. After too long of a wait, his manager got on the phone, gave me the same run-around, and when I asked to speak to someone higher up, she claimed there wasn't anybody else. I suppose she is the CEO!! I continued to insist that she allow me to speak to someone over her and she HUNG UP ON ME!!
I am appalled at the manner in which Best Buy treats its customers. In their employee's own words, Best Buy is doing customers a "favor." Are they favoring us by allowing us the privilege of shopping there? I was under the impression that retail operations exist to serve the customers! Additionally, it's not as if BB is the only electronics store around.
I do not think my request for a refund was unreasonable, and I understand the need for a return policy, but is there no room for an exception considering the circumstances? Oh, that's right, to BB I am a liar like many of you who read this might be if you attempt to return a defective item to BB.
As I explained to the BB manager, my customers have now spent far more money for my labor than the $270.00 for the A/C! If either unit had performed properly, I would have saved myself three trips to BB, two installations, the numerous trips to the third floor bedroom for installation and removal of the A/C and the incredibly disrespectful treatment by BB employees!
As I mentioned earlier, I am a remodeling contractor. My customers are mostly residents of an upper-class town and they spend thousands upon thousands of dollars for appliances when I do kitchen renovations. BB certainly will no longer get my recommendation, in fact, I will discourage anyone from patronizing BB. In addition to me, BB has also lost another customer in what I think may be the beginnings of a domino effect. Upon recounting my horrid BB experience to my customer, I heard the words, "I'll never shop there again either!"
Major BOOOS to BEST BUY!
P.S. After posting this complaint, a rebuttal was posted by a Best Buy employee who wrote (and this is a direct quote), " ...FYI; we DO THINK every customer is lieing to us."
Jhahh
PRINCETON, New Jersey
U.S.A.
Click here to read other Rip Off Reports on Best Buy
1 Updates & Rebuttals
Theheavens
Williamsport,Pennsylvania,
U.S.A.
Ridiculous.
#2Consumer Comment
Tue, September 02, 2008
I am a Circuit City employee, and out of curiosity I thought I would look up people complaining about the many things I know they'd complain about. Let me explain something. You were arguing with a manager of Best Buy, not the CEO, or someone who can really make decisions to bend the rules as far as you want, although your luck was terrible and it's understandable to be upset, but you have to understand that they're merely doing their jobs. From the sounds of it, I'd honestly pin you as that angry guy who doesn't understand what protocol is, or chain of command. Honestly, there are policies, of which not even the Manager (I know what you're thinking "OH MY GOD, THE MANAGER CAN'T DO ANYTHING?!" Exactly.) can do anything to change, without having it fall back onto them. The 30 day return policy is put in place because after 30 days, generally an item tends to be far too "used" to be able to recycle or return for defects, as that's a long enough period that the product should be working fine. I don't think you understand the things that we in retail have to put up. I don't intend to be insulting, but you sound like most likely you're one of those arrogant people who walks into a retail store, and immediately expects EVERYTHING YOU WANT to just drop onto your lap. I think the perfect example is how you just EXPECT them to believe you that the A/C was broken. Well, if they test it is working fine, why give you a new one? You own a business, somebody comes in with a broken computer/car/air conditioner/t.v. They say the image is skewed. You just give them a new T.V. Sounds like a good idea, doesn't it? Not really. Especially the money you lose in the process, you have to understand, these are businesses, not charities. Here's a grand example of what we as retail workers have to put up with in a day. Today, we had 2 gentlemen come in at separate times, not together at all. The first gentleman demands that we send one of our associates over to him, not just anyone, the one. That's understandable, some people have a favorite sales person, but he didn't just demand, he demanded that he stopped helping who he was with, and that if anyone else talked to him, he would leave.... He swore up a storm, insulted multiple associates, and then off with (for protective reasons we'll call him STEVE) Steve he went to buy a computer. Lovely! Second gentleman comes in, asks about a computer we have in our flier. We promptly find out that we sold out of the system earlier in the day. The man becomes extremely outraged at this fact, and tries to throw onto us that he drove 50 miles to get this computer in particular, and that it's in our ad so we need to have it. I try to save our sales associates. (We have a mostly new staff.) And take over. (I'm the P.C Tech. you can imagine the stories I have) Immediately I explain, as kind and calm as I possibly could, "Sir, the ad is a national ad, and includes all circuit city stores, so as the ad is covering all of our stores, it does not include stock, and covers most of the larger stores, which for the most part can always honor the ad." He immediately rebuts "Well, you said it was a national ad.. Is Muncy Pennsylvania not in America?" Of course, when you're rude, arrogant, and sarcastic, what do you expect? "No, sir, Muncy is not in Pennsylvania. In fact, it's not even in America." He looked like I just raped his family. "I DEMAND TO SPEAK TO YOUR MANAGER." Of course, I got my manager, and he defended me to no end; The point of the story is, the worse you act to a retail worker, the less you're going to have of a chance to get anything, that and the fact that, you don't know how bad of a day the person you're talking to has had. Chances are, you're not the first jerk to come in that day and treat them poorly. People also fail to realize, these stores do not make their products, they merely sell them, and that these are stores, NOT yard sales. Do not barter, do not blame the random workers, and you'll most likely get a lot further than treating everyone like a criminal and pretending you know how their store operates, or how it should.
