BEWARE!! best buy wd120 hd deal

[kellybrf]

so i went to bb to pick up my hd since i figured it was about time i got some more space. when i came home to install it there was a quantum hd, manufactured in jul 95 sealed in the box. i called up wd and they said theyve had this problem w/bb before, that people buy it, replace the hd w/something else (the guy said one time someone ended up w/a router), then reseal return it. so i go to exchange it and bb would not take it back, claiming it was factory sealed and i have to take it up w/wd. after about an hour on the phone w/both companies i am still out $300. from now on, i would suggest opening the package before leaving the store, in front of someone, so you dont get screwed.

anyone have any suggestions on how to get my money back (or just an exchange)? im going to try and return it at another bb and see if they notice its not a wd hd, but other than that i dont know. i bought it w/blue, but im worried that their return protection wont work either b/c its not what the package says it its. thanks guys.

brian

[verve247]

Wow, that's horrible. isn't that considered fraud? I think the best way is to talk to a manager at BB inperson.

[brainsmile]

hmmm... I think that there is less problems if you order it online since they probably verify returns. I'm glad I did that.

[modena]

If the hard drive in the box is better than one of the ones you have now, keep the one in the box, and put one of yours in the box, and seal and return it. Just a thought, it isnt morally correct, by why should you be the one that is screwed, right?

[kellybrf]

since it was manufactured in 95 im assuming its a crap drive. does anyone know where i can go to reseal the package, b/c i could take it back then. i know may not be right necessarily, but im just getting my money back?

brian

[tyler]

I would check with American Express... while I have no experience with your situation, it doesn't hurt to check with them before you do something unethical yourself. You were ripped off plainly and BB isn't standing by you... see if AmEx will.

After all... [cut from AmEx website]

Return Protection
Return Protection lets you return a covered item purchased with the Card [ even if you purchased it online ] when the merchant won't take it back. Just contact us within 90 days of the purchase, and you will be reimbursed for the full purchase price, up to $300 per covered item.

Return Protection offers you guaranteed product satisfaction on designated items purchased entirely with an eligible Card. Returns must be within 90 days of purchase. Refunds are for up to $300 per item, with a maximum of $1,000 annually per Cardmember account. For more details or to file a claim, call 1-800-297-8019. Any item purchased from a store that has an established return/satisfaction guarantee program greater than or equal to the terms of Return Protection, and provides coverage for your request for a refund, will not be covered under Return Protection. Cardmembers will be asked to send their original store receipt and the record of charge or any other itmes deemed reasonably necessary to process the request for a refund within 30 days. Coverage is subject to certain terms, conditions, and exclusions

[joshboyd_21]

wow the whole thing is total crap.... i would be extrememly pissed

[modena]

Also if you bought it by credit card you can call the credit card company and tell them what happened. Then tell them you are not going to pay the charge because they didnt give you the right thing. The credit card company will take care of it for you most likely!

[cratervalley]

If I were you I'd file a police report, that way you'd have some documentation, and obviously the person that did the switch was doing something illegal. They may be able to track it somehow. I'd call the store manager (or visit in person) and tell him your intentions to file a police report and see if he will be willing to cooperate with authorities. He may just offer to take care of the whole thing on the spot.

[irwin]

Originally posted by kellybrf
since it was manufactured in 95 im assuming its a crap drive. does anyone know where i can go to reseal the package, b/c i could take it back then. i know may not be right necessarily, but im just getting my money back?

brian

All Electronic Boutiques, Babbages, and EBX's have shrinkwrap machines in the back.

[cratervalley]

Or better yet go to office depot and buy a shrinkwrap machine, and do it yerself. You can then shrink wrap the shrink wrap machine and pretend it is new and take it back too.

[kellybrf]

amex said theyd take care of the situation, but im still pretty pissed at bb and would like to see them eat the money, i was thinking of contacting the police as well, but guess i should leave well enough alone. ill definately be opening everyting in store though from now on.

brian

[sbp]

This has happened before. Some dude bought a Visiontek GF3 Ti500 and got a Diamond Riva TNT2. http://www.nvnews.net/forum/showthread.php?s=&threadid=2718

Some other guy bought a sealed 8500 and got a Radeon Vivo!
http://arstechnica.infopop.net/OpenTopic/page?a=tpc&s=50009562&f=67909965&m=7330914413

[ufcrusher]

We had this happen all the time at Good Guys. What basically happened in our case is that so long as it was within a day or so (in otherwords reasonable time to notice that it wasnt what you bought) we would take it back.

For the most part, the damn idiot cashiers who in reality were paid dirt compared to the sales staff handle all returns. As such, most of them didnt have a clue as to what is supposed to be in the box and what isnt. For example, I watched one of them try to run after a customer who returned a receiver because he thought it was the wrong remote. I stopped the kid, told him to go look at the product wall, at which point he said, Holy crap, they have LCD remotes now. So you are not dealing with a bunch of braniacs. If it looks sealed, they dont bother to open it, even when policy dictates it.

I think the best was the person who steamed the factory seal off the box and then reattached it with a hairdryer to try and fool us. When I went to open the box, he goes, why are you opening it, its new. I said, its policy, and then cut it open. Wasnt even close to what was supposed to be in the box. I called the manager over, who proceeded to tell the guy there were two options. One we would be glad to call the cops and have him busted. Two, the product was now non-returnable (the real one) and a notice was to be placed in the system concerning his actions. He chose two, go figure.

Everyone is out to take you to the cleaners, buy smart.

[Justin42]

Now this thread has me freaked; the BB's closest to me are all out of the HD (go figure) so I am having them ship me one... hope that it's the right drive! (although it seems like having one shipped from the wherehouse, especially when they are out of stock and need to restock, may be more secure than having one at a store pulled aside for you)..

Hope there's not a problem!

[mallowjr]

This is really stupid, my room mate did it too. When the Riva TNT2 came out he replaced the ATI card he had in his computer into the box and returned it for his $200 back (to comp usa).

Some people can't help but break the law...

-ELmO

[cratervalley]

If you are worried, let the cashier know your concern and open the item out of the shrinkwrap right in front of them after you've purchased it. That way you can be sure you are getting what you expect. I saw some guy at Best Buy trying to return a video game because someone took the original disc and shrinkwrapped the jewel case and returned it, and he ended up buying that one.

[attgig]

:disa: people :disa:

[brainsmile]

well someone's happy.

[kellybrf]

alright, so after being assured by amex that they will take care of it i went to pick up another one (this time making sure it was a wd), and to my suprise there was a caviar in the box. dont know if they all say that, but it definately says wd caviar, 120.0 gb. i guess it all worked out after a little bump in the road.

brian

[brainsmile]

Originally posted by kellybrf
alright, so after being assured by amex that they will take care of it i went to pick up another one (this time making sure it was a wd), and to my suprise there was a caviar in the box. dont know if they all say that, but it definately says wd caviar, 120.0 gb. i guess it all worked out after a little bump in the road.

brian what's the difference?

[mallowjr]

I dunno if it was got apex or not,
But I've read the news AMEX is not going to do the money back guarantee deal after MAY 1st.

So use it wisely,
ELmO

[OremuS]

Originally posted by kellybrf
alright, so after being assured by amex that they will take care of it i went to pick up another one (this time making sure it was a wd), and to my suprise there was a caviar in the box. dont know if they all say that, but it definately says wd caviar, 120.0 gb. i guess it all worked out after a little bump in the road.

brian

Just curious, but since you technically have the box for 2 of these hard drives can you send in the rebate for both of them? Might have to have them sent to different addresses and under different names, but you could essentially end up getting the new drive for free if you get the rebate for both of them. This might be sheisty, but it is definately less sheisty than putting the wrong product in a box and retunring it to the store.

[kellybrf]

i was thinking of sending in both rebates, but was worried about amex on that one. ive never used the return protection, but i would think i need to send box in. the rebate requires the capacity label, which has the upc on it. but i was just going to cut off the part w/the capacity on it, and leave the upc. theres also a barcode for the serial number. has anyone ever send in wd rebates before?

brian

[Napoleon54]

This is a strange thread. There are several people complaining about customers ripping off stores, intentionally returning the wrong items, etc... Yet at the same time there are people suggesting more and better ways to do it. Do you not realize that the people you're complaining about or ripping off are the very ones that you're talking to right now? Or In some instances one person is doing both; the starter of this thread, who got ripped off himself, is now contemplating sending in two rebates for the same item, thus ripping off BB. In that case you're actually complaining about yourself.

I think anyone who is well-versed in logic or philosophy would say that this thread is F'ed up.

2 cents from a deals page lurker.

[modena]

Originally posted by Napoleon54
This is a strange thread. There are several people complaining about customers ripping off stores, intentionally returning the wrong items, etc... Yet at the same time there are people suggesting more and better ways to do it. Do you not realize that the people you're complaining about or ripping off are the very ones that you're talking to right now? Or In some instances one person is doing both; the starter of this thread, who got ripped off himself, is now contemplating sending in two rebates for the same item, thus ripping off BB. In that case you're actually complaining about yourself.

I think anyone who is well-versed in logic or philosophy would say that this thread is F'ed up.

2 cents from a deals page lurker.

Um, so you are saying if you were screwed out of $200 at no fault of yout own, and no one was gonna refund you the money in any way shape or form, you would just take a hit for $200. What are you trying to prove. By you losing $200 and doing "the right thing" which it is, you are not making the world any better. People will always do this, rip off stores. And there is a big difference in the people here talking about it and other people. Other people have in mind when they buy the product that they are gonna take it home, switch it with an item of lesser value, then return it. Brian (starter of thread) here got out right screwed. He had no intention for this to happen. We here are all trying to give him ideas, WHO THE F*** CARES IF BIG BUSINESS GETS SCREWED OUT OF A FEW BUCKS!!! He didnt deserve to lose the money, and neither do any of us. The bastards that do the exchange crap in the first place, those are the ones we should be bitching about!

[sbp]

Originally posted by modena


Um, so you are saying if you were screwed out of $200 at no fault of yout own, and no one was gonna refund you the money in any way shape or form, you would just take a hit for $200. What are you trying to prove. By you losing $200 and doing "the right thing" which it is, you are not making the world any better. People will always do this, rip off stores. And there is a big difference in the people here talking about it and other people. Other people have in mind when they buy the product that they are gonna take it home, switch it with an item of lesser value, then return it. Brian (starter of thread) here got out right screwed. He had no intention for this to happen. We here are all trying to give him ideas, WHO THE F*** CARES IF BIG BUSINESS GETS SCREWED OUT OF A FEW BUCKS!!! He didnt deserve to lose the money, and neither do any of us. The bastards that do the exchange crap in the first place, those are the ones we should be bitching about! All this is doing is passing the buck along. You don't get screwed some sap down the line might. And yes the bastards who did this in the first place need to be slapped hard. :bonk: :bash:

[ThunderMH]

Exactly! No one cares if big business is screwed, but in the end, it's not big business who gets screwed, but the all the little people because big business will pass the screw job onto us. Hearing all these stories on how people are getting screwed is really pissing me off. Where are you guys having these problems? If it's a Best Buy near my area, I'll know what store to stay away from...

[kellybrf]

personally, i got screwed at the bb in cincinnati (eastgate). for those concerned about the double rebate, i know it is a bit shady, and im not sure that im even going to try, but if they would have shown one shread of concern that i got ripped off by their store i would never think about it. the general manager happened to be sitting right there, so i got him right away. first of all, he was straight from a porn movie- bald w/a pony tail, gold braclet and chain and those goofy 70s glasses- but more importantly he was a dick. after a few minutes of reasoning with him unsuccessfully, i had western digital on the phone and he wouldnt even talk to them and try to work something out. basically, w/o saying it, he told me to **** off, the company just made $300 off me. for a company that advertises their customer service, i found it ironic that the store manager wouldnt honor the return policy when i was standing under a 20 version of it. im not that any of this is a valid justification, just that it makes it a whole lot easier.

brian

[craziepanda]

maybe instead of getting two rebates or finding other shady methods of compensation, you should go to your local news/radio station/newspaper and tell them about this. i'm not sure how the amex return policy works (so the following might be unnecessary), but maybe go threaten bb first, tell them that if they don't return your money then you will go to the media and tell them what happened. or perhaps forget threatening them and just go straight to the media. i know that over here in the bay area, CA, there are news programs that have done special segments on stores that screwed people over, and i'm sure something as popular as bb would make them really interested in this story.

just a suggestion if you really want revenge...

[DoPeY5007]

I just have one thing to add to this mess, as long as you go to the manager "calm" and not screaming and all pissed off, they will usally help you out....


and if that doesn't work, call the corp. office, that usally will get things straitend out


;)

[OneStepAhead]

The best plan is to ALWAYS buy major items with a credit card. A REAL credit card, not a debit card with a CC logo. You have rights with a CC that you do not have with cash, check or debit.

Plus, if you have the RIGHT cc, you get a rebate or reward or something on all purchases. And maybe even an extended warranty.

If you run a cc balance, you need two cards, one that you use for current purchases and ALWAYS pay in full each month, and the other that you carry the balance on.

[PokeyThePenguin]

WoW!!! I always thought that Fry's was stupid because whenever I returned an item without opening it they would open the perfectly good factory sealed box and check the contents (well just one of the reasons I think they are stupid :D ). After reading this post I realize why they do that and IT MUST BE A FAIRLY COMMON PROBLEM for them to do that (Am I making a wrong assumption? Is there another reason Fry's opens unopened boxes that are returned).

If BB is not going to check the contents of an unopened box then the next guy in line is going to get screwed, like kellybrf did. What BB is saying is we think kellybrf is trying to screw us and not admitting that they got screwed by the original guy that returned it. In other words, they are passing the buck to kellybrf. I'm pretty sure BB doesn't open the returned box b/c it would be harder for them to sell a returned item but I am curious as to if this is a common occurance at BB and they know about these types of situations but won't do anything about it. They should at least keep a record of the person who originally returned the item and red flag that person. If they catch anyone doing these types of things they should prosecute them.

[Laserhawk]

After i read this thread i remebered something the last time i was at my local best buy....... They had a shrink wrap resealing machine there. Personally that bothers me alot. What if a consumer did return it and best buy found out about it and resealed it and sold it to someone. I think retail places should be banned for having the kind of equipment. I think twice about trusting products from that store again....... just my 2 cents

[Kenshin]

Yeah, I don't blame Fry's for doing that. I mean, considering the sheer volume of crap that's returned for not working, I'm sure the last thing they need are some jokers trying to return their crap. :bonk:

[ACE]

Whanever I buy anything at BB I take it to the service desk and ask to open it for inspection before I go to the checkout counter. They have always been obliging and I have never had a problem. Just my $.02

[jmalm]

I work for a Staples in central PA, and our manager has a strict policy on letting the customer aware if a product was returned. We have these stickers which we have to place on all returned products which are GOOD and can be resold. We still will most likely reshrinkwrap them, but the sticker is blatently seen. As a bonus for the customer they get 10% off the item, just cause it was returned. But we always check the box after it was returned, not at the register sometimes, to verify everything is in it - and we have the correct person check it (eg. comp sales guy checks out HD).

Just my two cents. GO Staples! :)

[dealsdyker]

3 years ago I went 30 miles to Best Buy to get a new CD ROM. Same problem, someone stuck their cheap 1x broken CD ROM in the box and returned it. Bastard! I drove back and ripped the return folks from one end to the other. They gave me a new CD ROM and a 50% discount for my hassles and their mistakes.

[slikkster]

This nonsense offered earlier about "who the F* cares about Big Business getting screwed" is so naive. I live in NYC, where car insurance rates continue to skyrocket. Why? Do we have a disproportionately higher rate of accidents here? Nope. So many jerks are pulling off insurance scams and fraud. Who pays the price? The little guys. You and me. No free lunch. You SHOULD care if ANYONE gets screwed, because sooner or later, you're going to end up paying the price for it. What is Big Business, anyway? Oh, just some companies that probably make up the bulk of your 401K plans. Who cares if they lose money? This doesn't excuse the BB deal, but if you're a BB manager and someone comes in and just happens to claim they got something in the box that wasn't what it was supposed to be, wouldn't you be just a tad suspicious? I think now the advice that has been given to check at time of purchase is the best course of action. Sucks, but better safe than sorry.

[call-in]

retail stores should have a system to determine if the box was returned by someone else. if it is, then they should at least try to cooperate with the customer.

just my ¢2 :)

[brainsmile]

oh joy... my Hard Drive came... and much to my surprise, I got screwed as well. Western Digital? Yes. 120GB? No! I got a 8gig HD. Talked to BB.com and they said to go to the local store down the street and that they would put a note on my account order if I encounter any problems

[sizemic1]

Originally posted by brainsmile
oh joy... my Hard Drive came... and much to my surprise, I got screwed as well. Western Digital? Yes. 120GB? No! I got a 8gig HD. Talked to BB.com and they said to go to the local store down the street and that they would put a note on my account order if I encounter any problems

HAHAHA..oh man..not really laughing at you Brain..but geez..this whole thread is pretty unbelievable. Especially with the online ordering.
It does appear that inspecting the item before you purchase is the best way to deal with it. Too bad you can't do that online. I'm curious to know how the B&M store handled your return.

[dbaker]

This is no big deal. Call American Express and dispute the charge, you can even do it online with most cards. Problem solved in <5 minutes without so much excitement.

[brainsmile]

Originally posted by sizemic1


HAHAHA..oh man..not really laughing at you Brain..but geez..this whole thread is pretty unbelievable. Especially with the online ordering.
It does appear that inspecting the item before you purchase is the best way to deal with it. Too bad you can't do that online. I'm curious to know how the B&M store handled your return.

Well I went into the local B&M (on mira mesa blvd for those in SD) and being happy as a squirrel finding a nut in the dead of winter I go right up to the customer service desk. It's such a nice day today

Note: first I set off all the alarms while ENTERING the store. The guard is all looking at me like I'm stealing something.:rolleyes: Sheesh. :johnwoo2:

So I go up to the counter and tell them what happened. "I took it out of the bag, and started to install it when I noticed that it didn't seem to be the right HD". He looks at me and says, "well these usually come sealed in the bag". I look at him like he's Joey Tribiani and he's gonna figure out what he just said. But no... nothing. :rolleyes:

So he looks at me and says yeah this is an 8GB drive. Ok so now we're on the same page again kind of. I continue on with my story and tell him that I called the BB.com customer service # and they told me to come here. He goes and checks with the store manager. Passes him off to me and the manager says... well I'm not going to take a $120 drive and credit your card back for $300+.

First thing I think is... who in their right mind would pay $120 + tax for an 8GB drive??? Because I would love to meet him and sell him a couple thousand drives.

So he goes and calls BB.com and talks to them. All the while looking at me funny. I just shrug my shoulders and smile. After a few min, he says... well you're gonna have to send it back and ask for a refund. I say ok. He goes on to say that the packing is done at western digital's factory site (duh! :bonk: ) and that's probably where the error occurred.

Ok whatever. So I just got back from the post office and paid $9 for shipping, insurance, etc. Gonna call AMEX and tell them what's going on. Thank goodness for CC's. Ok... that's all.

Bye Bye

[kellybrf]

yeah, as soon as i called amex they told me they would take care of it, not to worry about anything and when the bill came call them up. im still upset and kinda suprised at best buy though, i thought they would handle it better. oh well.

brian

[grappa]

Dude, at least with VISA if they get a certain number of returns, VISA fines the company! I'm sure AMEX probably has similar policies for companies with extensive returns. Sadly, I'm not tp upset to see BeastBuy shaft themselves with their "stellar" customer service. :rolleyes:


G

[Justin42]

Thought this thread needed some GOOD news to balance all the bad news. My WD 120gb drive came yesterday, along with the firewire case I bought to put it in, and the correct drive was actually in the box and everything works beautifully.

Not trying to rub it into anyone's faces but I know I was freaking out reading this thread. Just thought I'd reassure anyone else still waiting for their drive...

[brainsmile]

Originally posted by Justin42
Thought this thread needed some GOOD news to balance all the bad news. My WD 120gb drive came yesterday, along with the firewire case I bought to put it in, and the correct drive was actually in the box and everything works beautifully.

Not trying to rub it into anyone's faces but I know I was freaking out reading this thread. Just thought I'd reassure anyone else still waiting for their drive... I'll trade you boxes :P :bonk:

[Kent Wang]

Is the Best Buy the only culprit? Seems like you would see this kind of behavior in all stores (with the aforementioned Fry's excepted). Maybe the other stores are simply more willing to not give you a hard time about it. But, please post your experiences with other stores here.

[bachviet]

That's why I buy OEM drives 'cauze I know exactly what I get! I think Fry's open all the boxes including the boxed CPU to make sure that the correct items are in there!

[brainsmile]

Dear *****

We wanted to let you know that we've received the items you have returned to us, and we have credited your account. We hope that you have found our return service top notch. The details of your return are below.

Date of Return: Apr 5, 2002
Credit Card Used: ***********1004
Source of Items: Order #2284957 on Mar 25, 2002

Item Description Type Qty Web Price Total Status
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Western Digital 120.0GB Intern --- 1 $299.99 $299.99 Returned

Item Subtotal: $299.99
Tax: $23.25
Shipping & Handling: $0.00
-----------------------------------------
Total credited to your account: $323.24

Please note that it may take your credit card company 1-2 billing cycles to reflect this credit on your statement. If you have any questions regarding your bill, please contact your credit card company.

Gotta Get It Now! Did you know you could pick up your online purchases* at your local Best Buy store? For your future online orders, consider the quick and convenient option of in-store pickup. Not only will it speed up the order process, but you won't be charged a thing for shipping and handling. What could be better than that?

Your satisfaction is our main goal and we value your business. We hope you continue to shop at BestBuy.com http://www.BestBuy.com to fulfill all of your home and entertainment needs.