Futureshop Thread

[Calgary Flames]

Originally posted by CaptainCrunch+Feb 18 2005, 12:45 AM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (CaptainCrunch @ Feb 18 2005, 12:45 AM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> <!--QuoteBegin-Calgary Flames@Feb 18 2005, 06:18 AM
You should try another future shop and lie to them... just say when you bought it there was a slight crack and you thought nothing of it and just recently you noticed the crack grew... No need to get into the science of how Glass reacts to temperature

There is nothing wrong with lying to Futreshop.

Honestly that rarely if ever works. Electronic store employee's have become so jaded by customers trying to screw them over that they're willing to refuse the return and give you a manufacturers phone number as opposed to trying to get an rma number for that product.

When I was managing the FutureShop in Medicine Hat, I was more than willing to take the risk as opposed to eating inventory. [/b][/quote]
You'd be SUPRISED... never fails for me personally.

[jam26]

Come to think of it...I've been buying more electronics from LD as well...I always feel a little uneasy doing so - because they don't specialize in electronics.
But I always get good service and good prices and have never had to return anything I've purchased from there.

[CaptainCrunch]

Originally posted by Calgary Flames@Feb 18 2005, 06:12 AM
Futureshop are a bunch of weasels.... I applied there and some of the questions they asked were unbelievable... the entire interview was basically 20 questions asking "Have you ever screwed your future employer out of money?" They are a paranoid bunch over there and I even declined their offer to be hired because of their ways. and I even responded telling them that their company are a bunch of snakes from what i've seen as a customer and I refuse to work for them.

I still buy from there, but I do not deal with their staff.

I'm working for a company that helps its clients in the design and setup of thier pre hiring and onboarding procedures and honestly I can't blame companies for asking these questions.

For the most part, its getting tougher to trust people in an interview because people can misrepresent themselves so smoothly now.

The intensity and thoroughness of companies hiring practices are really being ramped up due to the costs of hiring a person and getting them up to speed.

If you think about this the average cost of hiring and training a person is $13,500 minimum, and if you hire somebody thats not a great fit thats money thats lost.

Its going to get a lot harder for people to sneak thier way into jobs that they have no right to fit into.

You can also expect that a lot of the larger companies are going to insist on a tight background check as well as multiple references before they even think about extending an offer.

Paranoid, nah, you have to look at thier past hiring histories.

[CaptainCrunch]

Originally posted by Mean Mr. Mustard@Feb 18 2005, 06:46 AM
Defacing public property would that include putting a poster up on a tree or something similar.... but I wouldn't post it on future shops door but in the parking lot I would put a couple posters up.

I wasn't so much upset about the service plan, but the fact that I asked and they pretty much said if there are any problems it would be a direct exchange so I took the salespersons word at face value. Big mistake I found out. Then I got to dealing with the manager and I have never met such a complete dumbass in my life who really in the situation could only be described as rude, and in all honesty attempted to brush me off.

Also I realize that there is nothing that is complete coverage, but it just upset me that a portable electronic device wouldn't be allowed to be kept in a pocket during tempetures of -10. Then refering to me being outside at such a temp as abuse just pushed me over the edge. If there was any evidence that i had mistreated the product then fine accept it for what it is and say no it looks like it has been abused, but there was nothing physically damaged on the machine other than the one crack. There were no signs of abuse, just a poorly made product.

Never by a extended warranty unless you can take a copy of the terms and conditions with you in written form. As it stands right now, you have no leg to stand on.

[Mean Mr. Mustard]

I know that, and I realize I am in a situation where I really can't win... but at the same time I expected a quality product that obviously wasn't delivered and then they deal with it in a fairly ignorant manner.

[jam26]

I feel for ya Triple-M.
I hate it when large corporations screw their customers.
I am in a dispute with Day's Inn...due to a technical glitch they had me booked in two of their hotels in the same city on the same night (damn online booking!)
They have insisted on charging me for both of the rooms - even though I obviously only stayed at one of them.
They have refused to help me resolve this (because they are independently owned).
I travel quite a bit and spend about six nights per year in Day's Inns. Now that is and always will be zero. I would've been happy with a coupon for a free night's stay. Instead, they lose thousands over the next few years. Bunch of geniuses running these companies.

[photon]

Good lessons though.

1. Don't buy the extended warranty.

2. Don't expect any warranty to cover inflicted damage, however accidental.

3. Don't expect any help from the sales people at Future Shop

Costco has an amazing return policy too, it's another good place to shop that provides great service.

[kobasew19]

For computer parts, I would say hit up memoryexpress. They usually have pretty good deals.

[CrzyCanuck]

I have heard some people will buy a new one and then return the defective one...

[Maritime Q-Scout]

Originally posted by CrzyCanuck@Feb 18 2005, 11:46 AM
I have heard some people will buy a new one and then return the defective one...

when I worked retail in an electronics store I couldn't think of a way around something
buying new and returning defective.

However, I know atleast with Radio Shack they record the Serial Numbers off of high end electronics to avoid such a problem, as well as warranty issues.

I've been on both ends as a p/o'd customer, and as an employee. Often times (by often I mean 99.999999999999999999999998% of the time) the employee's hands are tied and HAVE to follow company poilcy, Radio Shack is turning into the managers are bascially sales associates that do more paperwork and get a bit better pay, they aren't given much disgression. Future Shop I don't know what their policies are like.

As for an LCD screen, no warranty covers them... if you get the Damage 1 warranty on your cell phone (it's a warranty on a warrany basically) they give you one replacement of your cell phone, no matter what happens... you break the LCD screen, drop it in water, get angry and run it over with your car etc. They send it away and the repair centre replaces it, most times but not always with a referb (sometimes new).

I've been told LCD can't break unless it's physical damage... ie: not manufactorer's defect.

Rarely does an extended warranty a) take hold until after the manufactorer's warranty has expired, and b) cover anything above the original. (mind you I've seen Radio Shack give replacement warranties on stuff that the manufactorer says to repair).

What I could do MMM is print off Future Shops' Product Service Plan and look it over. Provided you don't get an ass working, they'd be more than willing to say "but it says right here in the PSP that this is supposed to happen". I don't know how many times I've done something for a customer that was bending what I was supposed to do, as there was a policy that would allow me to do it with no repremand (hehehe studying policy helps with that though).

Good luck, I hope you get it replaced, or at the very least fixed. I know from my experiance as long as you're not an ass when you go in, the employee (or me) is more than willing to help you out.

[Flames89]

May be an aside but for those with an iPod:

1) Get a case!! Protects the little bas**rds from disasters like these

2) The warranty is actually good to buy when you get an iPod. Why? Because their batteries have only about a 2 year lifespan, at which point you can return it to the store and have it replaced. Otherwise costs about $150US to send it away to apple to fix.

[Jagger]

I've had to return lot's of electronic items over the years to many different merchants and can honestly say that I've rarely had a problem doing so. I've found that most times it comes down to attitude. Approach people with respect, explain the problem, and if it's in their power to help they will do so.

MMM's problem with his Ipod does not sound like a defect issue to me and Futureshop was probably within their rights to not help in this case. It was certainly not prudent of a manager to treat a customer in such a fashion though and that would be the crux of any complaint that I would be lodging. Of course, sometimes it is difficult to remain cool if the customer is coming unglued. (Not saying that that was the case in this circumstance.) That said, Futureshop have created an ongoing problem for themselves here. MMM is going to tell everyone how annoyed he is at the store and could very well mould potential customers perception of the store. How many people, besides this message board, have you told about this MMM? Therein lies the problem for Futureshop and their ilk. Dissatisfied customers are only to happy to spread the gospel regarding poor service and that will lead to problems down the road for some companies with tough return policies.

Personally I've returned many products to Futureshop without any hassle, although they were all genuine manufacturing defects. A place that I have found great for returns is everyone's favourite exploiter, Wal-Mart. I've bought cheap TV and DVD players there for my kids in the past and returned them when they quit over a year after purchase. Most times I've had no receipt but they take them back anyway, no questions asked, and give me a comparable product or cash back in some cases.

The route I would be taking regarding Futureshop would be a strong, but polite, letter to Futureshop's head office regarding the situation. Make sure to explain that you are most upset with the way the staff treated you. Explain that you were told false information by the initial salesperson. Point out that you purchase many many electronic items over a year and that you were a loyal Futureshop customer up to this point, as were your family, but, after being treated so poorly, will now actively shop elsewhere, and inform other people why that is the case. This may or may not get you somewhere but, at this stage, it's the best option imo.

[hah]

Sorry to hear about your experience.

I thnk you should call up Apple and explain your issue, maybe they can help you out.

[fredr123]

Originally posted by Jagger@Feb 18 2005, 09:49 AM
The route I would be taking regarding Futureshop would be a strong, but polite, letter to Futureshop's head office regarding the situation. Make sure to explain that you are most upset with the way the staff treated you. Explain that you were told false information by the initial salesperson. Point out that you purchase many many electronic items over a year and that you were a loyal Futureshop customer up to this point, as were your family, but, after being treated so poorly, will now actively shop elsewhere, and inform other people why that is the case. This may or may not get you somewhere but, at this stage, it's the best option imo.

Could not agree more. The best grounds for you to plead to Head Office are without a doubt the rude/insulting treatment and the misinformation from the original sales person. Many of those warranties and extended service plans are not at all what they are cracked up to be. Salesmen make them out to be the perfect insurance policy that covers your ass no matter how the device is damaged. In actual fact, the wording of the thing you sign usually only protects against manufacturer defects. Not a lot of help in your case.

In my experience, complaining to upper management about poor treatment from sales people (and even lower management) is good for a cookie tossed your way.

Pursuing your concerns with Apple and their products' performance in cold weather should be an alternative ground to pursue simultaneously.

[calf]

I don't see how buying protection against manufacturer's defects would help anyways? Someone can correct me if I'm wrong, but if you buy something that doesn't work, based on no fault of your own, shouldn't it have to be replaced by the store/manufacturer regardless of if you paid the $100??

[fredr123]

There is an implied warranty of fitness in the law for many goods you buy. Within various acts in Alberta there are exceptions to this basic rule. Under the Sale of Goods Act, when a buyer expressly tells the seller the purpose for which you are purchasing the goods, the seller is bound by a warranty that the goods are fit for that purpose.

In your case, I doubt you told the salesperson at Futureshop that you wanted to take your Ipod out in the cold, put it in your pocket and bump it against things. Even with a crack in the LCD, it probably still plays music which is what you probably bought the device for. Plus there are issues with agency in that the salesperson probably didn't have authority to issue collateral warranties and other kinds of promises.

The extra $100 extends the warranty against manufacturer's defects beyond the standard time offered by the original manufacturer. At least, that's how it works in my past experience.

[hah]

What is the Apple warranty on the IPOD?

Some credit card offers double the manufacters warranty, if you paid for your IPOD on a CC.

[Reaper]

Originally posted by photon@Feb 18 2005, 12:50 AM
Costco has an amazing return policy too, it's another good place to shop that provides great service.

Costco will let you return anything to them regardless of age or lack of receipt.

I swear, you could probably return a dead body to them as long as the shirt had a "Kirkland" tag on it.

[octothorp]

Home Depot is another place with a great returns policy. I bought a router a few months ago (wood-routing, not packet-routing), and after a couple weeks the motor died on me. They didn't even want to know how I was using it, and the details around how it died. Just opened the box to make sure it was in there, and then gave me my refund. Literally no questions asked.

Anyway, that doesn't help much if you want to buy an ipod, but I suggest getting apple products from apple dealerships--either the one on centre-street north, or the one on Macleod trail south. They know the products a lot better, as well as knowing exactly what the warranties cover.

London Drugs is great, too. My luddite parents get me to come along any time they buy computer stuff, and the London Drugs people are always pretty helpful. Only downside is that they don't actually do any of the repairs in store there, they all get shipped out to contractors, so sometimes that can be a pain.

[Hot_Sauce]

First off let me say that your situation sucks MMM. Tough spot to be in.

I'm not sure if I have ever gotten into a 'can't stand that f-ing store' type scenario. Thats not to say that I have not had my share of broken equipment and questionable returns. Maybe I'm just lucky but I don't think so.

I negotiate deals daily in my work and have one of those type of heavy on the relationship type jobs. Maybe it gives me insight into how to work people.

I recently had to return a couple of pairs of used skates to SportsMart (I'm sure there's a few negative stories about these clowns). Point is they have a no-return on used items policy. I walked with the cash - when I figured the best I could do was get in store credit.

If you have a chance I would strongly urge everyone to look for a negotiation workshop or seminar you can attend. If your lucky and work for a large company they will probably encourage you to go and will pay. Otherwise look at the UofC cont education or SAIT or wherever.

We all face a lifetime of being screwed by car salesmen, realtors, lawyers, Future Shop.....it is well worth the time and the money to mitigate as much as possible.

Unless you like being screwed that it is....