Dryer Wars II: Revenge of the Customer
The Sears appliance section is not generally busy on a Tuesday lunch time. Nevertheless there were a few customers looking around, shadowed by bored-looking sales staff--one of whom quickly peels himself away and approaches me.
"Have you been helped?" he asks.
"I purchased a dryer on Friday," I replied in a controlled tone. After all, he wasn't the salesman who had sold it to me, nor was he an installer. "After some trouble with the delivery, it was finally installed today. However, when the installer tested it, we found that there was no heat."
"I see. So you just need to do a Re-Select."
"I'm sorry, I don't know what that means."
"You pick out the model you would like to replace your current model. A Re-Select."
"I want the same model."
"Okay. We can do the paperwork here and then you can call the 800 number to schedule a delivery time."
Self control begins to slip. "When I purchased the dryer, the salesperson had my pick out delivery times as they appeared on the screen. The delivery was scheduled from here by you guys."
"Well that's not part of the Re-Select process."
More slippage. Louder voice--which in a quiet department filled with a number of bored sales people, attracts some attention. "Then I don't want to do a 'Re-Select.' I'd like to have a functioning dryer that I paid for in this store."
"Was the dryer you purchased a floor model?"
"No."
"Did you purchase it online--sometimes the more inexpensive items are refurbished and are not under warranty."
"No. I bought it in this store on Friday." I pointed. "It was that model right there that is currently $550. The Black Friday price was $350. You guys tacked on a bunch of other fees so I ended up paying $100 more than the advertised price, but that is the model that I asked for and purchased."
"So is that the model you want in exchange?"
Louder still. "It is, unless you would like to upgrade the model to compensate me for my time and trouble."
"Okay, well, let's just get started with the Re-Select...."
"Fine, as long as you call and schedule the delivery."
"But they're going to want to talk to you."
"You just tell them to put me at the top of the delivery list."
"But we don't handle that from the store."
"You did it before. And you didn't even have to call in."
"But that was for a purchase. This is a Re-Select."
"You seem to be operating under the assumption that the first transaction is complete."
"It is complete. You purchased the appliance and it was delivered. Transaction complete."
Just shy of shouting. Now the customers are looking. And the ones speaking to sales people are beginning to look a little nervous. Come to think of it, the other sales people looked nervous, too. "No. The transaction was for a functioning product. The product that was delivered to me is not functional! I came back to rectify that situation. If you cannot provide such a remedy, I suggest you find me someone who can!"
The sales guy looks at me dully. "Did the installers offer to call a repair technician for you?"
Luckily, at this point, a manager came along. "May I see your receipt, sir?" I hand him my receipt. Up to this point, the first sales guy had never asked for it. "Ah, I see. Bob was the person who helped you." He turned to the sales guy. "Can you go get Bob, please."
"I think he's on break."
"Just go get him!"
The sales guy shuffles off...
The rest of the story plays the way it should. I explained to Bob (who, apparently, had been rousted from his lunch break) and the manager why I was so frustrated. They were properly appalled that the first installers wanted me to remove the railing from my wall so that they could bring it up the stairs--and that I and my wife had had to do it. They made the phone call themselves and they spoke to the scheduling supervisor to make sure that it will be delivered in tomorrow morning's delivery window. There were many apologies.
"We'll see," I said. And so we shall....
<<end rant>>
He's logged it as a tested and defective unit so that I can now go to the store (good thing I didn't go yesterday! 
Now that is too funny! ...Wow the Treefam has given me 2 good laughs so far today...keep it up guys!
I blame lack of sleep over the past several weeks.
