PDA

View Full Version : Best buy and their bad policies.



eXo
Jun 15, 2008, 09:32 AM
My shipmate has forwarded this to our entire ship


FW: Best Buy/Bad Policies
Tuesday, June 3, 2008 1:18 PM
From:
"Harris, Sean L MMC NPC, Pers-403" <[email protected]>
To:
undisclosed-recipients
Interesting read. Definitely didn't know about their return policies.
Use this link to see some other interesting facts about returns:
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?type=page&contentId=111717704408
7&id=cat12098


Sean

-----Original Message-----
Subject: FW: Best Buy/Bad Policies



-----Original Message-----
Subject: FW: Best Buy/Bad Policies


[] I think I have heard of this before...





________________________________




Best Buy has some unbelievable policies....



If you purchase something from, Wal-Mart, Sam's Club, JC Penny,
Sears etc., and if youreturn the item with the receipt, they will give
you your money back if you paid cash, or credit your account if paid by
plastic.



Well, I purchased a GPS for my car, a Tom Tom XLS from
'Best Buy'. They have a policy that it must be returned within 14 days
for a refund!


So after 4 days I returned it in the original box with
all the items in the box, with paper work and cords all wrapped in the
plastic. Just as I received it, including the receipt.



I explained to the lady at the return desk I did not
like the way it could not find store names. The lady at the refund desk
said, there is a 15% restock fee, for items returned. I said no one told
me that. I said how much would that be. She said it goes by the price of
the item. It will be $45.00 Dollars for you. I said, all your going to
do is walk over and place it back on the self! Then charge me $45.00 of
my money for restocking!! She said that's the store policy. I said if
more people were aware of it they would not buy anything here! If I
bought a $2000.00 computer or TV and returned it I would be charged
$300.00 dollars rest ock fee!! She said yes, 15%.


I said OK, just give me my money minus the restock fee.



She said, since the item is over 200.00 dollars, she
cant give me my money back!!! Corporate has to and they will mail you
a check in 7 to ten days.!!



I said 'WHAT?!' It's my money!! I paid in cash ! I want to buy
a different brand..Now I have to wait 7 to 10 days. She said, our
policy is on the back of your receipt.



I said, do you read the front or back of your receipt?
She said well, the front! I said so do I, I want to talk to the
Manager!.



So the manager comes over, I explained everything to
him, and he said, well, sir they should of told you about the policy
when you got the item. I said, No one, has ever told me about the check
refund or restock fee, when ever I bought items from computers to TVs
from Best Buy. The only thing they ever discussed was the worthless
extended warranty program. He said Well, I can give you corporate phone
number.



I called corporate. The guy said, well, I'm not supposed
to do this but I can give you a 45.00 dollar gift card and you can use
it at Best Buy. I told him if I bought something and returned it, you
would charge me a restock fee on the item and then send me a check for
the remaining 3 dollars. You can keep your gift card, I'm never shopping
in Best Buy ever again, and If I had been smart, I would of charged
the whole thing on my credit card! Then I would of canceled the
transaction.



I would of gotten all my money back including your
stupid Fees! He didn't say a word!



I informed him that I was going to e-mail my friends and
give them a heads up on this stores policy, as they don't tell you about
all there little caveats
So please pass this on. It may save your friends from
having a bad experience of shopping at Best Buy.





Check it out for yourself...

Shattered_weasel
Jun 15, 2008, 02:11 PM
Sounds like the guy was a dick.

Raine_Loire
Jun 15, 2008, 02:27 PM
Yup he's a dick, and he's sensationalizing to try to make himself a victim. And in fact there are parts that he's flat out lying. If he bought a $3000 TV and returned it there would not be a restocking fee. If he had said his GPS was defective, there would not have been one.

His website link doesn't work, however the actual refund policy is on the best buy site.

"Restocking fee
A restocking fee of 15% will be charged on opened notebook computers, projectors, camcorders, digital cameras, radar detectors, GPS navigation and in-car video systems unless defective or prohibited by law. A restocking fee of 25% will be charged on Special Order Products, including appliances unless defective or prohibited by law."

Instead of getting mad, he should have just done some research into it. What a douche.

Also

"Refund method
Refund will be in the same form as original purchase. Exceptions: Cash, debit or check purchases over $250 will be refunded in the form of a mail check within 10 business days of return."

He lied about amount too, or misunderstood...

Powder Keg
Jun 15, 2008, 02:36 PM
Those are the types of customers that don't belong shopping.

eXo
Jun 15, 2008, 02:42 PM
Yea it didnt sound right to me either but since he mailed it to the bulk folder i got it also ....i have never even meant this dude before but it's lol pwned!

Rubius-sama
Jun 16, 2008, 02:08 AM
There's no restocking fee in Canada, and no special policy for returns over $250





June 4, 2008:

Dear Valued Customer,

We understand that a bulk email message has recently circulated on the Internet that Best Buy charges a re-stocking fee. This information is incorrect – all our stores in Canada do not have restocking fees. Our policy has been and still is to provide convenient, hassle-free returns for our customers.


http://www.bestbuy.ca/helpsection/EN/returns.asp?returnsID=1&logon=&langid=EN

beatrixkiddo
Jun 16, 2008, 02:17 AM
Yup he's a dick, and he's sensationalizing to try to make himself a victim. And in fact there are parts that he's flat out lying. If he bought a $3000 TV and returned it there would not be a restocking fee. If he had said his GPS was defective, there would not have been one.

His website link doesn't work, however the actual refund policy is on the best buy site.

"Restocking fee
A restocking fee of 15% will be charged on opened notebook computers, projectors, camcorders, digital cameras, radar detectors, GPS navigation and in-car video systems unless defective or prohibited by law. A restocking fee of 25% will be charged on Special Order Products, including appliances unless defective or prohibited by law."

Instead of getting mad, he should have just done some research into it. What a douche.

Also

"Refund method
Refund will be in the same form as original purchase. Exceptions: Cash, debit or check purchases over $250 will be refunded in the form of a mail check within 10 business days of return."

He lied about amount too, or misunderstood...

Customers often take "the customer is always right" a little too far, especially when they don't bother reading signage.

Getintothegame
Jun 16, 2008, 02:35 AM
You kow, there's a saying out here.... 'give them the pickle'. It is a story of a waitress who was trained well - so well, she followed every rule. She recieved an order for a sandwich, which comes with a pickle, but the customer wanted one extra. The policy says that each customer gets one pickle.... so what do you do?

Basically, make the customer happy - if they want the extra pickle on the burger, give it to them!

I can't stand it when customer service is crappy or lazy. I guess that's what I get for working in retail/housing for a while.

beatrixkiddo
Jun 16, 2008, 02:38 AM
Yes but there's a line that is often crossed by customers with ridiculous expectations or demands. The term is customer "service", not "servitude"

Shattered_weasel
Jun 16, 2008, 05:14 AM
You kow, there's a saying out here.... 'give them the pickle'. It is a story of a waitress who was trained well - so well, she followed every rule. She recieved an order for a sandwich, which comes with a pickle, but the customer wanted one extra. The policy says that each customer gets one pickle.... so what do you do?

Basically, make the customer happy - if they want the extra pickle on the burger, give it to them!

I can't stand it when customer service is crappy or lazy. I guess that's what I get for working in retail/housing for a while.

There's a difference between a pickle and a 50$ video game that you know someone has just stolen from another store and is trying to return it at yours.

Kent
Jun 16, 2008, 06:23 AM
...I've returned several things to Best Buy over the years (including an $800 monitor), and never paid a restocking fee. :/

Solstis
Jun 16, 2008, 09:11 AM
Best Buy has tried to make me return video games for the same game (no, I'm returning it) or for store credit.

There was this time with Skies of Arcadia that I actually wanted to exchange the game for another (bad disk), but Best Buy forced me to get store credit instead (I think the price had lowered, or a sale had ended).

Best Buy, traditionally, has terrible customer service from cashiers to floor staff (they may have gotten better, and Circuit City is catching up), but I have never encountered stocking fees.

eXo
Jun 16, 2008, 12:45 PM
The main reason that i avoid bestbuy is that with the exception of the one over joyful greeter at the door who is being polite just to get a good view of my pockets !!! Im never approached by a sales associate to see if i needed any assistance...on the day in question was the day before playday !!! i had my heart set on purchasing a T.V 40 inches + i had cash in pocket burning to be spent however the end result is that my girlfriend at the time threw an absolute hissy fit at the idea of me buying a TV after we were not ackowledged for almost a hour.. got the old i'll get someone to assist you crap with no results lol.


.......................

VioletSkye
Jun 16, 2008, 01:00 PM
Some stores must enforce their policies better than others. My wife and I have returned several things to Best Buy and we were never charged a restocking fee. Last thing we returned was a digital camcorder which ended up not being a good choice because the software for it sucked. So we returned it and exchanged it for a different model (Sony Handycam) and they didn't give us any hassle. I'm friends with two of the "Geek" squad agents (the only two in the entire store that know anything about computers) and talk to them for a bit when I go in. One works behind the counter and the other is a "special" agent lol who drives around in that stupid looking Geek Squad bug lol. I won't get into how utterly inept and clueless the rest of the geek squad is (that's a thread for another day lol.) Anyway, it has a few perks in that they get a pretty good discount on certain items in the store, especially Dynex stuff which is their store brand and they purchase items for me from time to time (which is a huge no-no even though they say most of the other employees they talk to do it as well.)

I totally understand people getting upset that no one seems to ask if they need help though, although I personally like it. I hate being bugged by employees unless I specifically want help with something :-P

beatrixkiddo
Jun 16, 2008, 01:03 PM
Unless someone who arrived/ask for assistance after me received assistance first, I'm more than happy to be patient. I have a job helping customers and I understand how busy people can be. :/

Shattered_weasel
Jun 16, 2008, 01:49 PM
Best Buy has tried to make me return video games for the same game (no, I'm returning it) or for store credit.


That's going to happen with almost every electronics store. Mainly because people will open the game or movie, find out they don't like it and then try to return it thinking they will get a free game. Retail doesn't work that way.

Sekani
Jun 16, 2008, 02:24 PM
I can't get mad at a company for following their stated policy, especially when they're polite about it.

Radio Shack, on the other hand, failed to follow the return policy right in front of the register on multiple occasions. I don't shop there any more.

Getintothegame
Jun 16, 2008, 04:22 PM
There's a difference between a pickle and a 50$ video game that you know someone has just stolen from another store and is trying to return it at yours.

I was thinking this situation - with how much the person had to go through to get the restocking fee and everything, even with the receipt.

Of course, If you have no record of the transaction, that is another problem. And I'm really liking that some stores have records of them on file as long as you use a debit/credit card.

Although, I can also see the argument with even having the receipt - if someone for instance bought an Xbox to replace the RROD, and returned the broken one, that is pretty tricky too.