Best Buy & Geek Squad Policies

[IC82]

Hey there everyone, I'm new to the forums and I'm thankful that they exist. Unfortunately, I wish that I had seen them BEFORE purchasing my phone and warranty from Best Buy. I've mostly had a pleasant shopping experience at Best Buy despite hearing about other shoppers horror stories. I recently brought my phone in for repair and it really needs to be replaced (at least the screen). I have a few questions for you guys.

First off, has anyone had a really positive experience with the mobile performance plan? Like you received your replacement or had your phone repaired within a month?

Is there ANY way to check on the status besides going in store or calling the store and asking to check on the status? The Best Buy Mobile reps seemed to be very clueless on the whole matter ("Maybe a few weeks?"). 

If I were to get a replacement phone, would I still be able to get insurance from my phone's carrier (Sprint)? I'll probably have to check with them but I wanted to see if anyone knew here first.

I ended up going with the loaner phone (Samsung SPH M520) which is nowhere near as cool as my HTC Touch Pro that's in the shop but it's been pretty cool. I use my phone for work and Sprint Mobile Email Service isn't a great substitute for the Exchange server/email system on my other phone. I will say though that the M520 is pretty sturdy, has great battery life and better sound/clarity than my other phone. I've also never had a slider phone before so I'm having fun with that but I can't wait to get my Touch Pro back. Hopefully someone will tell me a positive experience that will make me feel that I can get my phone back soon.

Thanks for reading and your time.

[penone]

I'm in the same boat as you - except mine is an HTC Touch (not the pro).

It's been 3 weeks now and still waiting. To be honest I have not even attempted to contact anyone about the status on my repair because I know I will not get any answer that will satisfy me. 

I'm really thinking about either a) cancelling my sprint contract - paying the penalty and going to ATT and getting an iphone or b) using the upgrade discount that sprint offered me and getting the htc touch. I personally think my phone is not repairable that I am entitled to a new phone. Since I am pretty sure that HTC no longer produced the touch (haven't for a few months now) chances are that I would end up getting the Touch Pro as my replacement (Best Buy - can you please confirm?). Hence why I am on the fence with making a decision - why pay for something when I can get it from the insurance? 

The loaner I was given - same as yours - I really can't stand. I miss my touch and the fact that I can listen to my music using my bluetooth headphones that I can't seem to be able to do with the Samsung. (looked at some forums and it is an issue with the phone itself.) 

As for what Nokia wrote (" No, there is no way for customers to directly check the status of their repair. Even for us it's hard, because RMS very rarely picks up their phones.") - why in the world would a company give business to someone who they cannot communicate with?!?!?! I know in my business if a vendor didn't pick up the phone when I called - especially with ALLLL the business I give them - they would be dropped! My clients are too important to me to have a vendor that I cannot communicate with. Real bad business decision Best Buy! Let's hope your other decisions are not as bad or I can see you going the CCity route (remember them?).

-P.

[IC82]

I've rarely been frustrated by anything more in my life. First off, when I purchased my phone through Best Buy and replacement plan from the West Paterson NJ Best Buy, I was told that I would be given a replacement on the spot. I was really annoyed that I was wrongly informed but held out hope that I would be able to get a replacement soon or at the very least have my phone fixed. When I brought my phone in to be serviced, I was told that I'd be called when my phone was received at the service center. I was never called and there was no update on the status of my phone for nearly three weeks when I was simply told it was "In Repair". I finally called a month after bringing in my phone and was told to call when the mobile manager was on duty. I called the mobile manager who said that she would send an email asking for an update and that I should call back the following week. I just called on Tuesday and was told that my phone had been repaired and was being shipped back to the store and would be here by Thursday. I called today and was told to come in. I came into the store and the mobile manager told me that I was approved for an instore exchange. Great, I'll get me a new HTC Touch Pro. Nope. Apparently the store doesn't carry the phone anymore and no other store does. My only options were to take any phone that was valued at the same price of my phone or under. But NONE of the other phones come close to the phone that I had. I opted reluctantly to go with the HTC Snap. This phone has no touch screen capability, no wi-fi and not even the full keyboard that my HTC Touch Pro had. In addition, it took the staff an hour and a half to process the exchange. I'm so annoyed. I was told that if I had processed my return a couple of weeks earlier, I would've had a new HTC Touch Pro phone. I don't know why the store wouldn't set one aside for me if they knew that it was possible that I would need an instore exchange. My brother bought the same phone as I did and had similar issues that needed to be repaired. He, however, made the smart choice of selecting the Sprint Protection Plan and I chose the Best Buy plan. NOT ONLY DID MY BROTHER RECEIVE A BRAND NEW HTC TOUCH PRO PHONE FROM SPRINT WITHIN THREE BUSINESS DAYS, BUT HE DID NOT HAVE TO PAY THE $150 DEDUCTIBLE THAT BEST BUY MOBILE EMPLOYEES TOLD ME THAT I WOULD BE FORCED TO PAY IF I RECEIVED A REPLACEMENT FROM SPRINT. I've tried out this HTC Snap phone and it's lacking in every way. The only thing that I was offered for my inconvenience was a phone accessory. I wish that I had never bought this protection plan from Best Buy. I wish that I had never purchased this phone from Best Buy. If I can give anyone any advice, it's to get your protection plan elsewhere. Another Best Buy employee even came by and asked "Why are you getting the Snap and not the Touch Pro?" Gee thanks buddy, apparently you didn't know that your store doesn't carry the phone either. 

[IC82]

Ah thanks Nokia, you're the exact person I didn't want to hear from on this topic. Your posts are informative but hardly helpful. I'd have appreciated it if one of those members with a BBY had spoken to me about this matter.

[Nokia]

Unfortunately, as I don't represent BB, I'm not able to offer any sort of concession. A Community Connector should be along shortly to address your concerns.

[Melissa-BBY Senior Social Media Specialist]

Hi IC82,

It can be very challenging to find a cell phone that has all of the features you have been accustomed to or that meet your needs. I am very sorry to hear of the troubles you had with your cell phone repair, that were only made worse when the phone you wanted as a replacement became unavailable.

I was glad to see that Nokia was able to provide some answers to your initial questions about our repair and replacement process. Your review of the Samsung SPH M520 loaner phone was great as well. I know not much can compare to your own phone, but it sounds like you had a good experience with the loaner.

It was disappointing though, to read of the frustration you had with the rest of your repair experience. I am uncertain why the representative you had purchased the phone from explained that the plan you purchased was a replacement plan, as for cell phones these are service plans. We do try to provide service as quickly as possible, but there are occasional delays that can occur. After an extended delay like yours, the store can generally get an approval for a replacement to be provided. I imagine it would have been upsetting to find out the phone you wanted to replace yours with was no longer being carried, and that the ones we do carry, do not have similar features to what you had.

I would like to partner with you to attempt to find a more acceptable solution for you. I have sent you a private message with some additional information to do so. To check your private messages, first make sure you are logged into the forums, and then click the envelope located in the upper right corner of this page.

Thanks for posting!

Melissa
Community Specialist
Best Buy® Corporate

[penone]

Interesting thread.

I posted earlier in the thread. It took EXACTLY 30 days for me to get my phone back - but I did get it back. To be honest, I would have been very upset if the phone could not be fixed and all I was offered was the Snap. As IC82 stated - the phone is nothing like a Touch or Pro. That is like comparing a Honda with a Lexus. Sure - Honda makes great cars - but when you are driving a Lexus for a year you really don't want to end up driving a Honda as a replacement.

I'm curious - why not offer the Palm Pre as a replacement? That is certainly equivalent in the features department as the Touch and Pro.

As for anyone reading this thread in hopes of seeing if the Best Buy Black Tie Warranty plan is worth it ---- it isn't. Get the replacement plan with your provider. As IC82 mentioned you would get a much more rewarding exprience if anything were to happen to your phone - definitely not have to wait 30 days for a resolution to your problem.

IC82 - come back and let us know what BBY offered you.

-P.

[penone]

30 days for when I dropped it off. And - the date on the sheet that the BB clerk gave me in the store had the 18th of July - which was exactly 30 days from the day I dropped it off. I wasn't aware it was 30 days from the day of arrival at the service center as it was not explained to me that way - but whatever.

As for the Pre being more expensive - the cost for the Touch - when I bought it - was  $200 with a 2 year activation. The cost of the Pre - $ 200 with a 2 year activation. So if I was to renew my contract with Sprint for 2 years I could not have taken the Pre as a replacement? It's the same cost as what I paid for the Touch?And I quote from your earlier post - "What my store has been doing is looking at what the customer performed when they got the phone, and using that price. Ie. you bought a Touch for, say, $150 for an upgrade. Now you have been approved for NL replacement. So what we would do is tell you you can get any phone that is less than $150 on an upgrade. I can't verify that this is how your store operates." BTW - I would think that ALL Best Buy stores operated under the same guidelines. Guess I was wrong.

Not that any of this matters - I do know 2 things for sure - 1) I will NEVER buy a cell phone from Best Buy again. 2) I will never buy any sort of insurance from Best Buy again - regardless of the product. Thank goodness for my credit card's (and it is NOT a HSBC card - the horror stories I am reading about them!) insurance plan on my purchases!