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Updated by user May 04, 2014

Hello Everyone,

After this post being up and due to all the pressure and word of mouth, I got a call from BB corporate sometime in Spring 2013.

Long story short - after listening to my complaint the customer service manager offered to send me a replacement TV, so as to put an end to the situation and within a week a new TV was delivered to my house which is working fine as of the date of this post.

I wanted to thank this website and all the support I got from the users in order to help me with resolving the matter.

Original review posted by user Sep 04, 2012

Everyone... I am dealing with an absolute Best Buy Horror... this is beyond anything I have ever seen. It looks like the company is luring consumers in the stores and if there are problems with the products their representatives are ready with lawyer like excuses to deny you any help.... please read below for my story and click the link for FB posting:

My Fiancรƒยฉ and brother bought me a birthday gift - 51 Inch Samsung 3D plasma TV from Best Buy on 09/01/2012. This purchase was made at the Bayshore, NY location - Order # 0442060****

The TV set was picked up from the store at 7:30 PM on Sept 1st and brought to the house using our truck. At the time of purchase and until the next day - 09/02/2012, the TV set was in its original Samsung manufacturer's Box, as shipped from Samsung. When the TV set was picked up, it was carried out by a Best buy employee to the front of the store using a regular hand cart, with the set tilted and resting on its bottom right hand corner. Upon pick up, the TV set was laid flat on the its back in the truck and driven back to the house. I have bought Plasma TV's before from Best Buy and other major retailers and have used the same method to transport the TV from the store to home.

The TV set was opened on 09/02/2012 at 6:00 PM at my house, which is when we actually had some free time to set it up. Much to our surprise, when we opened the box & looked at the plasma, there was a crack in the screen at the bottom right hand corner. As such we immediately called the store and spoke to the customer service department, who did not give us any answer over the phone and asked us to bring the TV in its original packing back to the store. To avoid any further delay, we packed the TV set and brought it back to the customer service department at Bayshore, NY.

Upon arrival, the customer service department inspected the TV set and to our surprise instead of helping out with the situation, accused us of not transporting the TV set properly from store to home. Within a matter of minutes, there were representatives from TV department, customer service department and Geek squad, stating that it was our fault that the TV set was damaged and that there was nothing they could do for us. Being a long-time Best buy customer, I explained to them that I was not trying to make any money or hurt the store, but that there was a genuine transportation problem with the set prior to it being purchased and I am only looking to make an even exchange as this is a birthday present. As the representatives further ignored the situation, the following was also mentioned about transporting the TV home:

1. There were no written instructions, as to how the TV should be transported, and that if this is such a big issue why isn't delivery made mandatory by Best Buy.

2. The original box does not state โ€“ "หœFragile' OR "หœGlass'

3. Best buy did not open the box and let us inspect at the time of purchase. More so, given the fact that the set was carried out on a hand cart tilted on its bottom right hand corner is quite conducive to where the screen was cracked. As such, as a customer I was only using the 30-day exchange / refund policy to make an even exchange, which only seems fair.

4. Lastly, Best Buy store also did not make us sign a waiver at the time of purchase regarding transportation methods.

After the above was stated, there was no consultation with the store manager at all and the employees just handed the TV set back to us and asked us to leave the premises with it. At this time, I refused to take a broken set back and left it with the customer service department and asked for the store manager to review the situation, which was denied by the employees.

At this point, being a loyal long time Best Buy customer I am quite frustrated and unhappy about the whole experience and have never experienced such rude/unprofessional customer service before. Please help me to find a clear/timely resolution to this matter as I feel quite helpless. In addition, I have also reported the matter at the 800-bestbuy hotline, with case # 10403****, who also suggested me to report the matter at corporate level for resolution.

UPDATE - I was requested by a Best Buy corp employee - Melissa who also manages BB's FB page to email her this issue and she will get back to me with updates. However that was just a way to get me off the topic and what i received back in email was the same *** that i had to put with at the store.

FB Page Link: https://www.facebook.com/bestbuy/posts/101******** />

Here are email replies from the Corp Geek Squad employee Aaron:

1st Reply

Hello Anubhav,

The purchase of a brand-new TV is by no means a small investment, so I can imagine how disappointed you must have felt to learn that your TV's screen was damaged. It'd be disheartened too if I found myself in a similar situation, especially if the staff at my local store wasn't able to offer an immediate solution.

Whenever an item is delivered by one of our retail stores or fulfillment centers, Best Buy is responsible for any damage that may occur to that product while it's in transit. This means that if a TV is delivered damaged by us, it can be replaced whether or not we are able to verify how the damage occurred. If a customer chooses to bring a product home themselves though, this guarantee does not apply and the customer accepts full responsibility for the safety and transport of the item once it leaves the store.

That being said, I regret to inform you that the associates you spoke with at our Bay Shore location were correct: your TV cannot be returned if it has suffered physical damage. I have, however, notified the store's management team of the situation. I've also asked that a member of that team contact you once they've had the opportunity to review your account. Although I cannot make any guarantees, I have confidence they will be able to help you find a resolution.

Thank you for your patience and understanding.

Agent Aaron

Geek Squadร‚ยฎ Community Connector

2nd REPLY - this is after i asked the same questions again:

Anubhav,

Like I mentioned in my previous message, customers accept full responsibility for the transport and care of any self-delivered product once it leaves their local store โ€“ no waiver is required for self-delivery and we do not instruct customers how to transport their purchases. Best Buy also reserves the right to deny any return - including the return of damaged merchandise - as explained in our Return & Exchange Policy:

http://bbyurl.us/RTE

It's unfortunate if this does not meet your expectations, but our position in this matter remains unchanged. Again, while I cannot make any guarantees, I would encourage you to wait for a response from the management team at our Bay Shore location.

Thank you for taking the time to write.

Agent Aaron

Geek Squadร‚ยฎ Community Connector

At this point, I will be taking this legally to small claims court and also with the local and state authorities. Anyone in the NY Metro area facing the same issue is asked to reach out for collective action. Any tips or advise would also be appreciated..

I just can believe living in America, the government allows stores like Best Buy to operate in this Fashion!!

Monetary Loss: $923.

Location: Warwick, New York

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Guest

Phone insurance is ripoff they do not honor claims or drag it out for days saying they can't find it

Patrick Nkk

do I think a bunch of a *** post on this site? sure.

but do I think that some people have valid complaints? definitely. I'm sorry for what happened to you and I honestly hope it works out but if I had to guess..

I'd say you're screwed. they don't seem to want to budge.

Guest

get em the old fashioned way.... Get yourself a big honkin' sign ....

Put ASK ME WHY I'M HERE on it.Check with the police beforehand and find out where and how to protest. Check with the mall management if applicable.... if a stand alone store... DO NOT GO ON THE PROPERTY....

walk back and forth with the sign, quietly do no engage with store employees/... you can also take your case to the media... newspapers and TV/radio stations have consumer sections... use them, that's what they are there for...

people in this country forget they have rights.... use them... the reason i say check with the police is some municipalities require a permit or signup, plus it's a nice heads up for the police to know ahead of time... you could even ask them to assign extra patrol if they have time....

check with your credit card co.... i got my ex-boss to come to the store i was protesting and he tore off for the police dept. when he saw me and NOTHING came of it because i didn't violate any laws and had EVERY right to be there.... exercise your rights.....

you might even get somewhere by doing this...

just be smart about it and don't lose your temper... good luck.....

Guest

Don't waste your time with those government agencies. It's time that you moved on and took your business elsewhere.

Be very brief with your credit card company. Just state the facts that the TV was broken when you opened the box and that was the result of the employee using a hand truck or the TV was already broken. Tell your credit card company that you are on a fixed budget and cannot afford to eat the loss and be bullied by Worst Buy. Go and buy a LG LED TV on Amazon.

Much better experience and less hassle with these BBY idiots. That's how I bought a 55" TV for my sister.

Plasma is old technology. Get LED and make sure it's 240mhz and 3D.

Guest

You are going about this wrong. Since you bought the set on "HSBC MC Credit card," call the credit card company and dispute the charge.

Best Buy sold you a TV that was broken.

These TV sets are packed from the manufacturer really well. If HSBC asks you what the merchant's response was, tell them the merchant told you to "f off."

Guest

Everything you've done is not going to amount to a hill of beans. None of those agencies, departments,etc, is going to do anything for you.

Having worked in retail management I completely understand where Best Buy is coming from, and believe me, it's not some big scam or conspiracy, it's simply the GM of a store watching his bottom line.

Most likely the screen broke during transport because it was laying down, causing the glass to flex and that combined with the vibrations from the road/truck, broke the glass.

I agree that the box should flag it as fragile, since there is a large pane of glass.

The rest of what you said is a bunch of dramatic nonsense. The reality is you probably broke it, they have no obligation to do anything for you.

THAT BEING SAID, back in the day when I was in store management, I would have exchanged the TV. Our attitude was, unless we were 100% certain the customer was at fault, we gave them the benefit of the doubt and exchanged the product or worked out some kind of mutually satisfactory solution. BUT that was my store, there were probably other stores that wouldn't have done that, basically the policy of the store regarding ambiguous situations like that is set by store GMs. There usually isn't a corporate policy. So I'm sure there are Best Buy stores that would have exchanged it for you, unfortunately you are dealing with one that is more concerned with their bottom line than customer satisfaction. He/She doesn't want to eat the cost of repairing the screen and having to sell it afterwards as an open box item.

Anubhav C

Guys, in addition to filing a complaint with CC company, I have filed a complaint with NYS Dept of consumer affairs... only BBB is left... BB Corp is serving me with the same BS as the store general manager.

Anubhav C

Russ,

TV was bought as a gift on a HSBC MC Credit card by my Fiance, as she knows i like products from BB... i have filed a case, but did not know that i had to go in planned for a disaster, given that i have spent 1000's of dollars at BB before.... just a couple of Black friday's ago i had spent close to $5K at BB... Even having that in my history BB is being completely inconsiderate .... and mind you this is my first exchange at BB in years of buying products.

Just have a very very bad taste about everything.

Alan C Xap

At least BBY is consistent - across ALL complaint boards - they are consistently *** when it comes to damaged returns. This means that the managers put profit/loss on one item - a damaged TV that they are not getting full credit for - ahead of the customer.

The customer, in effect, is on trial every time there is a return. You wonder why they are downsizing.

I would test the new CEO with an executive email. Call corporate and demand the CEO's office.

Also, lodge a complaint with your state's Attorney General. You can't do it alone.

Guest

In addition to reporting to BBB, try the the department of Consumer Affairs. And as I mentioned previously, I hope you paid with Amex, and if not at least some credit card?

Please tell me you did not pay with cash.

The only way I see them treating people like this is if you paid with cash. They know that credit card companies will most likely side with the customer, especially Amex.

Guest

You did pay for the TV using Amex right? I mean you would be *** not to.

In that case, just initiate a claim with amex and problem solved. Also report to BBB.

Anubhav C

For all those who are posting BS without reading the facts, here is how good Best buy truly is...

Picked up the same set, even though it had a crack, only to find out when it was plugged in that this is a bad set which does not even plug ON and has a bad Board.... Best Buy does not want to talk OR see this TV, yet has a big advertisement sign outside their store to help customer's within 30 days of buying the any HDTV - what a load of F**k-Ing BS!

When i went to get the TV, NO employee or security guard was on site... it was like everyone just stirred clear, no one checking people's receipts as they were walking out OR any other customer svc indivdual in site.... talk about knowing when to act as a ghost... please tell me if that does not sound suspicious to anyone.

Honestly, the worst $1000 pain to have.... better off booking myself a weekend getaway to Vegas with this money.... I hope BB goes down sooner rather than later

Guest

I totally agree with Eek. You don't stand a chance in court.

I just can believe living in America, the government allows stores like Best Buy to operate in this Fashion!!

Really, Reallly???

lol. Call Obama, in his America the government will control everything, I'm sure he'll give you a brand new TV along with your free healthcare and a $16 trillion deficit.

Guest

Looks like you may be SOL. Stores don't have to return anything...it's mostly because it's good customer service; they are by no means forced to have a return policy. Best Buy may in fact have a clause in the terms specifically about the TV, or they can refuse it under the catch-all term.

But let's look at your numbered list here. It's a TV. Of course it's fragile; it's common sense. It's your responsibility to open it up before you buy it....not the store's. I always check ever high price item before I buy it. Again, it's sorta common sense.

It would be a fruitless effort to take it to small claims. You'd lose. You may have to chalk it up as an expensive lesson learned. You may be able to squeeze something out of them if you are annoying enough, but it's unlikely. Sorry this happened to you...it sucks. Just don't ever shop there again and check expensive items before you take them.

Anubhav C

Update as of 9/6/12 - No calls or any further emails from Best Buy corporate or local store in regards to this case!

Anubhav C

Update for all the folks following this.... Still no word from BB, but as soon as there was a post on their FB page about this they were really quick to get it off the headlines.

The Story of Ripping people off continues with Best Buy - The Worst place to buy anything for urself or your loved ones!

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