NewsMy Best Buy Performance Service Plan (PSP) Experience: Part II
I didn’t expect to be posting a follow-up within 36 hours of my first post, but the saga has come to an end… exactly three weeks (to the hour) after it began.
To make a long story short, I called the store, they called corporate as I was instructed by corporate yesterday.
Corporate then called the repair center and basically told them to “put up or shut up”. The repair center then called me, asking if I new if a replacement had been approved yet. After nailing every last mistake the repair center had made… they promised me a callback within 10 minutes.
That callback came from Best Buy Corporate. And, I received a personal apology on behalf of the company for all the trouble I’ve been put through. That kind of admission is one that is crucial for companies to put forth. Don’t just say sorry for the inconvenice, customers hate that. Know what was screwed up, and own it. That shows you want to make things right.
Anyways, the corporate supervisor I spoke with found out that basically, if you have a Westinghouse HDTV, there aren’t any parts… anywhere. Westinghouse is not working with repair centers to vend parts for their units to third-parties.
Of course, Best Buy acknowledged that it was the Chino, CA Repair Center’s fault… they knew about the lack of parts and didn’t tell anyone, hoping they could get the parts in late June instead of losing credit for the repair.
So, my 18-month-old Westinghouse 32-inch W3213 was replaced with a Westhinghouse 32-inch SK-32H540S. That was exactly the comparable replacement that I had in mind, and I didn’t even have to ask for it. Corporate approved the price difference.
Now, getting the TV wasn’t as easy as I was promised. I had to wait for over 20 minutes just for one guy to key in my service order number, say “oh… it’s you“, and hand me back to the desk I was at before, for them to finish the transaction.
And yeah, I bought the PSP for the new TV. $60 for a new one every 18 months isn’t that bad a deal. Hopefully I won’t have to tack on the cost of a crusade the next time.
[...] You can read the conclusion to the saga here. Trackback | Permalink [...]
I just finished reading your saga, whcih provided some relief to know I’m not the only one being stiffed by best Buy, I thought I would tell you my epic horror story, which continues today, mostly just to let anybody else out there who’s dealing with Best Buy what they may be in for when going with a PSP. I have a Magavox 42″ plasma that I bought from Best Buy back in April 2006. I bought a four year PSP, at the urging of the sales guy, given “plasmas are prone to breaking”. No problems with the TV over the last two years. In July of this year, I started getting a black line across the bottom…by early August the whole screen went black. My first call to Best Buy customer service was August 2nd. They put me in contact with a local “repair center” (its some dude with small shop and van in a nearby town), and he came and picked up the entire TV. He was sure it was hosed, given my description, but wanted to take it apart to be sure. A week later, he told me in fact the plasma screen was shot and that they were sending a claim to Best Buy to try and find the part. This was August 8th.
Since August 12th, I have been on the phone with Best Buy customer service at a a rate of about every two days. At first they were telling me that the repair center was looking for the part. When I called the repair guy myself, he told that’s not true, as Best Buy has not authorized him to go forward locating the part. Turns out that Best Buy was trying to locate the part themselves at a cheaper cost than what the repair had quoted. They finally started telling me that beginning the week of August 19.
Through the weeks of August 19, August 26, September 1, and September 8, I have been getting the same story. In my increasing frustration, which hit an apex today as I was screaming on the phone, I have been demanding a replacement. To no avail. Although I am talking to “supervisor” at some central facility in Texas, I am getting the same answer: “they’re still looking for the part and haven’t made a decision on the replacement TV.” I asked him who “they” were, and all he says is “corporate”. I told him (yelled at him) that I’m a 10 year customer of Best Buy with a Best Buy credit card who feels as if I’m being ripped off. “I understand your frustration sir and apologize for this situation.” I tell him that his customer service reps have twice filed for a replacement TV, and have promised phone calls back to me, but that I’ve not received one return call from anyone at Best Buy. I told him that, even though I bought a warranty on the TV, I’m doing all the work. “I understand your frustration sir, and do apologize.”
So, its now six weeks and I have no answers, and of course, no TV. I am so pissed off with Best Buy, that I’m going to cut up my card. I’ve run out of ideas on what to do get my TV back (either repaired or new). This lesson in customer service has been comical. It is particularly frustrating that I have to re-explain my story every time to the new person I get each time I call, let alone that I can’t get an answer from anyone.
Any thoughts on a course of action at this point are welcome.
The first step I would take, in your case, is to go to the local store, and ask to speak to a manager. Explain to them everything you just wrote (calmly), and say that you want to start a junk-out order.
If they try to pass you off to 800-Best-Buy, remind them that 800-Best-Buy does not handle junk-out orders for home theaters, and that the store must work with the corporate office themselves to escalate the matter to a junk-out order.
If the store won’t cooperate (and I don’t see why they wouldn’t, but it is possible), I would then go the BBB complaint route. That usually will get you assigned to an ombudsman at the corporate office, who would then initiate the junk-out.
I had three junk-outs initiated before one went through. Often times, the junk out orders are sent to corporate for approval, and just sit there. The only solutions at that point are to either file a new one (often same result), or for the store’s manager to call corporate him/herself and talk to an escalation rep.
Oh, and don’t trust a word the repair center says. It’s in their interest to wait… an indefinite period of time… if necessary to get your part in. If there’s a junk-out order, they don’t get any money for the repair. So, they would be happy to tell you for the next year that they’re still working on your TV.
Call corporate and request a junk out. 888-237-8289. After 4-5 weeks, this should easily be approved so you can get a replacement TV. If they forward you to a repair facility. call the local store and speak with the General Manager.
Wade, as we’ve noted a couple of times at least (with multiple experiences now)… simply asking for a Junk Out doesn’t cut it.
Best Buy appears to be actively ignoring Junk Out orders, until they have been escalated by multiple people. We’ve had stores file a Junk Out, and just have it sit there.
Asking to speak to the GM of the store, is a good idea… but usually the GM only will intervene after you have filed a Junk Out order with the store, and already have not gotten a response to it. This is because the GM has to spend quite a long time on the phone with corporate, in order to chastise them into completing the Junk Out request.