Best Buy & Geek Squad Policies

[taximomuv3]

I purchased a Maytag french door model fridge on May 2nd and was given May 18th as my delivery date.  On the website it stated it was available for purchase, and gave a list of available dates beginning with May 18th and onward.  I phoned a store to place the order instead of using the website because I wanted to speak to an actual person who could verify everything.  My current fridge is dying, and I stated I NEEDED the new fridge to arrive prior to our vacation departure (May 21st) so we wouldn't come home to a dead fridge and rotten food.  I was told by the sales associate that according to their system, the unit would be delivered on May 18th, so I purchased it.  He told me that someone from the warehouse would call w/an appointment time a day or two before to confirm it.  Well, it is now  May 17th, and the phone call I got from the warehouse was to inform me that the fridge is on backorder & wouldn't arrive until June 13th.  I AM LIVID. I told him this was unacceptable - explained why we needed it when we do, and he was NO HELP whatsoever.  After placing me on hold, I was then informed this is a special order item, and they take up to 6 weeks to arrive.  I said "no it is NOT a special order - it is available on the website as a purchase, and is NOT flagged as special order."  I checked right when I had him on the phone and told him that according to the website I can purchase it today with an available delivery date of June 2nd!!!!  WHAT IS GOING ON????  Why is there not anyone who doublechecks the orders placed to be sure the products will arrive when they are promised, or at the very least why isn't the customer informed of the delay PRIOR TO THE DAY BEFORE IT IS SCHEDULED TO ARRIVE????  I am LIVID and don't know what else to do - of course today is Sunday so there's no warehouse manager I can talk to.  If I cancel this order & buy one somewhere else, I'm bound to run into the same time schedule at this point so I am stuck and I think Best Buy KNOWS THIS.  I WANT SOME REAL HELP HERE - TODAY - as far as I am concerned this is false advertising, and SOMEONE should be able to contact Maytag and find out where the product is and why we weren't informed of any delays within a day or two of the order being placed so I would have other options.  WHAT DO I DO  NOW????  ((((FUMING!!!))))

[Starflyer59]

I am afraid you will not find any help here TODAY. The moderators are usually not here on the weekend.

[starhelper2587]

Did the store place a Customer Fulfillment order for appliance?  It would have an order number that usually starts with a 7.  Or did they place it over BestBuy.com through the store?  That order number would start with BBY01.

[taximomuv3]

Thanks for your reply.  There is no "order number" on the receipt that I can see anywhere that pertains to the whole order.  There's a "Val#" at the very top, followed by the dated and time of purchase.    Nothing that starts with "BBY" or with a "7".  There is a  note at the bottom of the receipt that says "Your Customer Service PIN is:" followed by a 17 digit number.  The delivery date of May 18th is noted several times on the receipt, and after the Appliance Delivery charge there is an order number that begins with a 4 (9 digits) but not sure if that's the order for the delivery itself or for the purchase??   Thanks for your help - anything is better than nothing...lol!

[starhelper2587]

Try our Customer Fulfillment line (1-866-231-5464).  This department was recently setup to assist with the type of in-store order I think you're referring to.  Even if the store didn't include an order number, this department should be able to search for your order with your name or #.  They may be able to give you some other options.  They are open until 9 tonight (eastern time I would assume).  If they can't find anything for you, then the store may have used BB.com.

[taximomuv3]

So I spent an hour on the phone this morning between the Customer Fulfillment department and the Customer Resolution department (I think that's what they called it).  Customer fulfillment dept. did nothing other than confirm the unit was marked as backordered, and then referred me to the other department.  That rep was actually more helpful and couldn't understand why they took so long to notify me of the shipping delay - his job must be to placate and calm down angry customers because he was good at it.  He said he sent an email to Maytag asking them to expedite the order and also sent an email to the store where I purchased it for them to follow up on it and to keep me updated on the delivery.  I also told him I was a little more than upset that my BB card was already charged when the item hadn't shipped yet - I told him that when I saw the charge I thought that was a sure sign it was on it's way to me.  He said that's what usually happens, and was apologetic yet again for their error.   He told me he could contact the store and find out why they did that - that it shouldn't have been charged until it shipped - but warned me that if they removed it from my account it might very well wind up cancelling the order, so he suggested I waited until the fridge got here before I had them adjust that charge date. ( I have no payments/interest for 18 months so I won't owe anything in the meantime, but I don't want my 18-month clock ticking until I actually HAVE the darn appliance in my house, or it's actually on it's way at the very least)    

After speaking to the CR rep, I phoned Maytag myself to get confirmation I wasn't being railroaded by Best Buy and lo and behold there are 30 of my fridge models in stock and ready to ship...they are NOT backordered!! All Bestbuy has to do is phone Maytag themself and get it shipped from a different warehouse!!  If it weren't for the 18 mo. no interest/no payments, I would have cancelled the order with Best Buy and ordered it directly from Maytag myself today. 

[Elizabeth-BBY Community Supervisor]

Hi taximomuv3,

I've asked Dorothy, one of our Community Connectors, to see how she can be of assistance in getting you the answers and resolution you need.  You should hear from her shortly.

Thanks for posting!

[Dorothy-BBY Community Supervisor · Accepted solution]

Good afternoon taximomuv3 -

Having a fridge that is dying is never a good thing, and I can understand your need to get a new unit prior to departure on your vacation.  It dismays me that you have run into such roadblocks when trying to purchase a new unit.  Please allow me to shed some light on a few of the questions you have posed.  I happen to know a bit about Special Order units after being an Appliance department supervisor for 5 years. 

When you place a special order on an appliance, the Retail Ordering System (ROS) should prompt out a minimum of 3 -4 weeks for the unit.  All special order appliances are considered "back-ordered" when purchased.  The inventory team receives a report daily notifying us of the status of said special orders, which are generally given to the Appliance team.  Once the unit is off backorder, the Appliance team is supposed to notify the customer and move the date up, if possible.  By monitoring those reports, the team should always know the status of the units in question.  While I cannot explain why the store failed in this process, rest assured I will be addressing this discrepancy. 

As far as the charge for the product, anytime you make a purchase in the stores, the purchase is automatically charged to your method of payment.  Online is a bit different, as in the purchase is not charged until either the product ships or there is a pickup in the store.  This is why your credit card would already reflect the charge. 

I would like to partner with you and see what I can find out about why there is such a delay on the unit.  I am sending you a private message with further details.  To check your private messages, first ensure you are logged into the forums, then click the envelope in the upper right hand corner.  

Regards,

Dorothy

Community Connector

Best Buy® Corporate

[taximomuv3]

I am happy to report that I just received a call from the store where I placed the order telling me that the refrigerator just arrived in the warehouse and will be scheduled for delivery the day after we arrive home from our trip.  It would have been nice to get it on time, but a week late is better than a month, so I will consider this a successful resolution. 

Thanks for all the help!!

[tboz]

Agreed.  The delivery experience is terrible.  I'm on hold now with customer service.  Today the delivery guys messed up our third delivery attempt.  Excuses, excuses.