Best Buy Online - Shopping sites NEVER to use

[Greebo]

What follows is a repost from another forum (no, not THAT one). This happened TO me, I'm not reposting someone elses story. I'm just copying and pasting the story here to spread the warning.
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Oh my god, I have had A DAY with Best Buy online.

Ok, so you guys all know how I got a $100 gift certificate for Best Buy over the weekend.

And how we went to Best Buy to find a new radio/cd/alarm clock and the one we really liked was not in stock there or at any other Best Buy in the region.

So ok, I go to Best Buy online to see if I can use my gift card there, and lo and behold, I can! Yay!

So I find the item I want and add it to my cart. It left me about $20 bucks left on the card, so I figured I'd go ahead and use overnight shipping, which put my order at $104 and change, so I planned to charge the remaining $5.00 to my credit card.

So I put put in my gift info and the credit card info for one card (which had plenty of room on it, bear in mind), and hit submit. I get back an error message that tells me *nothing* but "there was an error". No details, no feedback, no visual clue as to what is wrong. Great web site design, really. (No, not really)

Ok, I take a wild guess and try a different card. Ok, the order goes through. Yay. (I think)

So a bit later I'm looking at my email and there's an email from Best Buy that there's a problem with my order (thats about all the info they gave - pretty pathetic) and to please call this number...

Ok so I call it, and unsurprisingly I get someone who's obviously based in India, but I talk to them and give them another credit card (which actually was the FIRST card I used) and they update the order... ok, fine.

So I look at my email a couple hours later and there's ANOTHER email with the same useless message. Ok, fine, I call again, and this time I ask the rep to change the shipping method so that the cost of the order is fully covered by the gift card. He does so and I verify on the website that the order has been updated.

Not 2 minutes later here is a new email saying my order has been cancelled. W_T_F!!!

Ok, so this time I am getting pretty irate. I call them back, and ask for a manager. Runaround. The guy takes my order number because he has to "log the call" (why the heck do they have me key in my order number if they're just going to ask me for it, anyway?) and tells me the order was cancelled automatically because they couldn't get payment authorization for my credit card.

I tell him I just 5 minutes ago got off the phone with them UPDATING my order so that they didn't NEED my credit card info.

Oh well yes now that he reads more closely he sees that but the system still auto cancelled my order. (GREAT system design - after a sales rep updates it, it still goes through and nukes orders when it can't get credit card validation it DOESN'T NEED!) Ok, reopen my order, I tell him. I'm sorry I can't do that but they will re-issue my funds to my gift card. (I WOULD HOPE SO) and it will take 24-48 hours. WHAT? It didn't take 24 hours to zero my gift card! More hemming and hawing. I ask, again, to speak to a manager. Again, no luck. (The guy also flat out refuses to admit that they're not in the US).

Hey, guess what, the Best Buy main corporate number is listed ON their website and its not some "route you to india 888 number".

Finally I tell the guy to get the money back on my card and that I'm calling corporate HQ. Of course by this point I've completely lost patience and my neighbors are getting a little tired of hearing my phone call...

Today on the way home I do intend to call their corporate head quarters and give them a nice strong piece of my mind, followed up with a letter to the director of their online ordering AND customer service departments.

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Later, I posted this reply to my own post:
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Just sent them this email. Doubt it will do a whit of good, but at least I got it off my chest:

In regards to the above order number, I am extremely displeased with the horrible service that I have received on this day.

I've been a regular, enthusiastic customer of Best Buy for years, but this weekend and this morning my previously high estimation of your network of stores has been reduced to nearly nothing. I have purchased TVs, computers, montiors, printers, movies and games totalling thousands of dollars over the years in your stores. I am extremely close to vowing never to shop in your stores again, and to go instead to less convenient, but more service oriented vendors.

I received the $100 gift card (used on the referenced order) on Saturday as a bonus from work. On Sunday, my wife and I went to go find something to spend it on. Needing a new alarm clock, we checked out your stores selection, and found one that we liked very much (the one in the order) only to find that it was out of stock. In the entire region. *See Item 1

I figured, no problem, I'll look for it online and see if I can use my gift card there. I was happy to learn that I could use my giftcard online, so I went to place my order.

When I first submitted my order, no tax was shown, and my order (with overnight shipping) was just under $100.00. However, my order was kicked back because tax pushed it over $100. So I put the rest on one of my Visa cards.

When I submitted my order a second time, I received an error message. The message told me there was a problem processing my order. It didn't tell me what the problem was, nor did the page provide me with any visual clues. *See Item 2


My credit card had plenty of available credit on it for the roughly four dollars that I was charging to it, but I took a wild guess that maybe my bank's network was offline or something (which has happened before) and entered a different credit card.

This time the order went through. A short while later, however, I got an email about there being a problem with my credit card and that I should call your 888 number.

I did call the 888 number, and fed the automated system my order number and phone number. And I was eventually transferred to a representative who asked me for, you guess it, my order number. *See Item 3 The representative, who had an extremely heavy Indian accent, took my information and I gave him my first credit card number (which by this time I'd checked to ensure had room on it). He updated my order and I hung up.

A few hours later, I checked my email again, and had another email saying there was a problem with my credit card. I called back and waded through the same waste of time on the phone system and this time the rep (who at least this time didn't sound like they learned English as a fourth language, just second), changed my order so that my shipping method was reduced to 2nd day delivery, and my order dropped below $100. I verified the change on your website and hung up, and closed the site.

A very short while later I had a new email saying my order had been cancelled!

I called back had an extremely unsatisfactory discussion with the rep I got this time (and this time English was the fourth language again). First I asked to speak with a manager. I was refused. *See item 4.

He informed me that my order had been cancelled because payment authorization on my credit card hadn't been able to be obtained. *See Item 5. I informed him that 5 minutes earlier I had had my order changed so that NO charge against my credit card should have been made. I asked him to re-open the order. He could not because the system auto-closed it. *See Item 6.

At this point I asked to speak with a manager again. This time he tried to find one, or so he said, and a few minutes later I was told none was available, which by this time I felt was a cock-and-bull story.

The customer representative went on to tell me that since the order was cancelled, I had to resubmit it and that in 24-48 hours the money on my gift card would be refunded. *See Item 7. That was the last straw. Your system took the funds from my gift card, your system had problems verifying my credit cards which both banks state are avaialble, your system cancelled my order and your reps were unable to reopen my order. *I* should not be penalized by having to wait up to two days to get back the money on the gift card.

I have reached the limits of my patience. Below, I include the list of major failures in your online and customer service system that have no excuse.

***Item 1: Your stores should not display items on the shelves that they don't have in stock. Especially when no store in my immediate region has them in stock.

***Item 2: When there is a problem placing an order, your web site should state the nature of the problem MUCH more clearly than it does currently (which is no detailed information at all).

***Item 3: When a phone system asks you for an order number and phone number, the call representative should actually be GIVEN that information, otherwise don't waste the customers time making us enter it.

***Item 4: When a customer asks for a manager, they should never be refused. Especially when the customer is on their third call in the same day.

***Item 5: NO Order Processing system should automatically cancel an order that a customer service rep had updated moments before.

***Item 6: Customer service reps should not be prohibited from re-opening orders that an automated system cancelled.

***Item 7: When refunding money to YOUR gift card system, triggered by an order cancellation done by YOUR automated system, causing a customer to reenter their order on YOUR system, there is NO excuse for refunding not to be immediate.

I expect the money on my gift card to be refunded *immediately*. I will *NEVER* use your online ordering system again, and if I have to wait more than 12 hours to be able to use my gift card, then using the gift card up when the funds ARE returned will be the last time I shop in your stores.

This entire experience has been extremely unsatisfactory.

Sincerely,

Chuck Haeberle

 

[mpartovi]

wow...quite a write up.

I once bought about 1K worth of car audio stuff from my local Worst Buy.

I work about 70 hours a week...so go figure, I didn't feel like installing it myself. So I fork over about 200 bucks more for their "trained professional installers" to do it.

***now...take into mind, i was having some subwoofers, 2 amps, and a new head unit installed...4 maybe 5 hour job at the MAX (for someone who mildly knows what they're doing).***

I came back the next day...at the correct time...and WHOA...they still have my car sitting in their install bay all gutted out with NOTHING installed!!! OK OK...i have patience....next day...same thing...ok. Im alright...ill just bum a ride off someone. 2 more days go buy...and i've lost it. I actually go behind the "INSTALLERS ONLY" section and start looking at my car and asking the guy...wth??? why is it not done yet.

"oh...well...its a german vehicle...and its a little harder to find the right wires and to pull the Head unit."

Needless to say...i had them pack everything up...and button my car back up.I went up to the returns and got to the front and said: "I wanna return ALL this...and I dont have a receipt." Their manager was pretty p***ed.

 

[Let'sgoflying!]

Huge Impersonal Frustrating Company Syndrome.
Plaguing our lives.

Did I tell you about the microwave "broken in the box" I received in July that still has not been fixed? Thanks, LG Electronics "You can't call the Returns Department, they don't talk to the public"

 

[jesse]

Well here is my input regarding worst buy. Afterall I worked for them for two years doing computer repair.

First off it is IMPOSSIBLE to get *anywhere* with ANYONE at 1-888-BestBuy and beleive it or not that is the only number anyone knows. That's all everyone in the store has. That's all the managers know.

It used to be decent up until about last year when they decided to close their call centers and hire a third party company to do it (could very well be based in India). So the people are not even Worst Buy employees.

The online system (Best Buy 3.0) has been a complete diaster since day one. Actually up until maybe 6 months ago you couldn't use a gift card online. Not only that the prices between the website and the store were different. The store would not match the website.


As far as the installers knowing what they are doing it really depends. In my store about 2 of the 8 guys knew what they were doing. The rest of them I wouldn't let get NEAR my car. Even the two that somewhat knew what they were doing I wouldn't let them do anything beyond a car radio install.

I installed a remote start and secuirty system in my car and one of the guys offered to do it. I asked him a few questions about how it worked and let's just say they won't be helping. He had absolutely NO clue how the factory GM Passlock II system works (checks resistance of ignition switch, if it doesn't match it turns the fuel pump off. You have to essentially fake this out with a module)


The company is a COMPLETE disaster and cannot make their mind up on what they are going to do, Though they are a pretty profitable company but I suspect that will go away eventually.

Products are *never* in stock that you want and can be extremely hard to find even in the several state area. It seems that the corporate office likes to play the game of advertising really great deals with extremely limited stock that is gone on the first day, when the ad runs for the whole week.

I would wear my keyboard out if I tried to tell all of the stories I've seen there.

50% of the time I was on the side of the customer argueing with the management and corporate regarding their stupid policies they would make up that they did not even understand.

The other 50% of the time the customer......Was not right. Infact I had several instances with them that were most unenjoyable. I had one customer that when I turned around and walked away took his E-Machine tower and threw it over the counter to come over my head and explode right in front of me into "little pieces". I had one hick customer threaten to shoot me with his shot gun. I had one that put his fist through the credit card scanner and another who put it threw his laptop and then told me to fix it. It's just not a whole lot of fun when it's normal to have someone scream and swear at you and there isn't a damn thing you can do about resolving their problem. It really burns you out. Over time any employee becomes a little less customer friendly.

Just my two cents.

 

[gibbons]

Me! Me! Me! My turn!!!!

I don't have a Best Buy story, but I do have a Circuit City experience. It came last week as we started shopping for a new TV. We were looking at a 55" LCD Sony. When I started writing down model numbers and prices the sales guy lost interest and wondered off. Before I left he came up to me with a new price slip for the TV I was looking at - $300 higher than the price on the TV. "I shouldn't tell you this, but the price is going up $300 tomorrow." You've got to be kidding!! I'm a 47 year old guy. Does he think I just fell of the turnip truck?

I just laughed and walked out. I'd pay more at the store down the street to keep from putting money in that guy's pocket.

 

[Aztec Driver]

Come on guys, you people are old enough to know better. If you want experience and quality, go to your local small retailer and pay more for it. You'll get a good job, the person will actually know something of what they speak of, and they will take care of problems when they arise. Go to "Big Box Mart" and get exactly what you pay for. If you are able to install and repair the units yourself, great, buy it for cheap. If you can't, you're better off talking to your local retailer. It will be more expensive, but how much is your blood pressure worth?

An appliance retail sales AND SERVICE provider.

Bryon

 

[wsuffa]

I won't shop at Best Buy.

Two key reasons:

1) they had several folks arrested (!) several years ago for using a palm pilot to do comparison shopping. Note taking is NOT allowed in their stores.

2) recently they made a corporate decision to simply not provide service to 'undesirable' customers. They defined 'undesirable' as folks that don't spend enough at Best Buy. Apparently they are tracking and rating customers and dropping service for chea... ah... people who don't spend enough.

 

[Greebo]

Well, I've learned some more things about Bestbuy.com from my long, outraged call to their corp HQ that confirm that one should do NOTHING on their site but price and availability check (which at least its good for that...)

When I placed my order using CC#1, and it couldn't authorize it (which it should have been able to) and I changed the cc #, it KEPT the first cards info (it presented me with no way to remove it either).

Every time a change got made to my order, it tried to get fresh authorization for both cards, despite the fact that 1) cc1 shouldn't have been used, 2) auth had already been given on cc2, and 3) by the last time, no CC auth was even REQUIRED.

The BB.Com response to my lengthy email? Form letter. Of course.

Thats why their buggy, crappy, POS system kicked out my order.

But, at least they DID follow thru on recrediting my gift card w/in 24 hours (should have been friggin immediate since it was their screw up but yeah, thats not gonna happen) and the CC that had the $4.00 charge yesterday no longer has it.

So, after thinking about it - I will still use Best Buy for retail purchases. They're close, and they have a good selection. I have never had bad service in their stores.

But I will NEVER use BestBuy.com for any ordering again. Ever. And Best Buy is going to get much less of my business than they used to - BB will now be my last choice for local options, not my first.

 

[jesse]

Well like I said their website is not even good for prices or to see if the item is in stock. Stock is generally off at Best Buy. If it was accurate to two or three items that was pretty normal.

Also the prices are NOT the same. The website may be lower or higher. If it's lower the store *MIGHT* match it depending on the managers.

As far as customers being singled out. Corporate calls it "customer centricity" you ask key questions to identify which group the customer fits in . Apperantly they think there are only about five types of customers. They also do surveys of hte store to target what the majority of the customers are in that store, and target their inventory to match.

Let's say you live in a town with a low median income. The store will be targeted at that and will carry lower priced (lower quality) items. If you live in an area with a high median income more high end products will be carried.

My last words are: NEVER BUY AN OPEN BOX ITEM FROM BEST BUY . You have no idea what those things have gone through.

 

[Jim Chumley]

The latest issue (Dec 2005) of Consumer Reports confirms your personal ranking of BB. Of eight internet sites, BB is No. 8.

1. Crutchfield.com
2. Amazon.com
3. Costco.com
4. J&R.com
5. Buy.com
6. Dell.com
7. CircuitCity.com
8. BestBuy.com

It's also near the bottom of the list on walk-in stores.

Jim

 

[wsuffa]

I have always had good experiences with Crutchfield. Recommended.

 

[DeeG]

"oh...well...its a german vehicle...and its a little harder to find the right wires and to pull the Head unit."

You've got to be kidding me! How dense are these guys? I managed to take out the stock Becker stereo/CD player out of my Mercedes, and install a new Blaupunkt with remote in less than two hours. That included six new speakers, and reworking the stock 'fader' knob that is a permanent part of the console. AND I did it without any instructions and no special tools (I didn't have a proper wire stripper, I had to use a knife), and it worked perfectly.

 

[bharris]

You've got to be kidding me! How dense are these guys? I managed to take out the stock Becker stereo/CD player out of my Mercedes, and install a new Blaupunkt with remote in less than two hours. That included six new speakers, and reworking the stock 'fader' knob that is a permanent part of the console. AND I did it without any instructions and no special tools (I didn't have a proper wire stripper, I had to use a knife), and it worked perfectly.

Dee, it's obvious you wouldn't qualify for a job at BB .

 

[gkainz]

You've got to be kidding me! How dense are these guys? I managed to take out the stock Becker stereo/CD player out of my Mercedes, and install a new Blaupunkt with remote in less than two hours. That included six new speakers, and reworking the stock 'fader' knob that is a permanent part of the console. AND I did it without any instructions and no special tools (I didn't have a proper wire stripper, I had to use a knife), and it worked perfectly.

Dee! Wow! If you're not too busy, my cassette is stuck in my Dodge truck... yeah, I know ... bleah! cassettes...so old school - at least I didn't say "8 track"!!!!

 

[Brian Austin]

Dee! Wow! If you're not too busy, my cassette is stuck in my Dodge truck... yeah, I know ... bleah! cassettes...so old school - at least I didn't say "8 track"!!!!

Time to buy a new truck!

 

[gkainz]

Time to buy a new truck!

Aw, not HERE, TOO!?!? I keep hearing that at home all the time!!! I don't WANT to buy a new truck! OK, actually, I would love a new truck, I just REALLY like not having payments, and there's a lot about the mechanical-everything 12V Cummins that I really like over the electronic-everything 24V Cummins...

 

[Brian Austin]

Aw, not HERE, TOO!?!? I keep hearing that at home all the time!!! I don't WANT to buy a new truck! OK, actually, I would love a new truck, I just REALLY like not having payments, and there's a lot about the mechanical-everything 12V Cummins that I really like over the electronic-everything 24V Cummins...

LOL...I agree, although I'm not a Dodge fan by any means. My 2000 Ford F250 has 181,000 miles on it and still going strong. The CD player has started skipping, though. I was teasing my wife: "Time for a new truck!" No way, was the response. No payments, good health, still tows the fifth wheel with no problems. Get a new stereo.

Ah, well. I was thinking the next one might be a F350 dually with the Tow Commander package and the 6.0L Powerstroke. I've heard good things about it.

 

[gkainz]

I'm not a Dodge fan, either - grew up in a family-owned construction company of "All Fords, all the time", but wanted the Cummins. Unfortunately, the only way I could get it without some major custom work on my part was in a Dodge shipping container.

'97 Dodge 2500 CTD, 155,000 miles - just getting broken in nicely.

 

[Brian Austin]

I'm not a Dodge fan, either - grew up in a family-owned construction company of "All Fords, all the time", but wanted the Cummins. Unfortunately, the only way I could get it without some major custom work on my part was in a Dodge shipping container.

'97 Dodge 2500 CTD, 155,000 miles - just getting broken in nicely.

Yeah, I definitely agree on that one. The Cummins is bombproof compared to the rest of the pack. I'm comfortable with the Powerstroke (although I've got the 7.3L, not the newest one) but I'd love to see a Cummins diesel in a Ford with the Allison transmission.