Best Buy & Geek Squad Policies

[cleric_80]

A while back my mom & wife went out shopping and got me a DVD from a Bestbuy in Bluffton, SC. Nothing wrong with the DVD but my wife has me hooked on widescreen so I took the DVD to our closest Best Buy (Beaufort, SC) walked in, got my "I'm not stealing this" sticker found the widescreen format DVD on the shelf & went to the customer service desk.

When I got there they asked what they could do for me & I explained that I was bought a DVD as a gift the day before and I simply wanted to exchange it for a different format. My DVD was still shrink wrapped, had a best buy sticker on it, and completely unmarked except for the return sticker on it.

They charged me $9 to exchange this dvd... 9 f-ing dollars to swap from full frame to widescreen format. Needless to say I was shocked and demanded to know why. I was told that because I didn't have a recept they had to assume that I bought it while it was on sale & I had to pay the difference... I had to pay the difference on an unopened DVD that I was exchanging for the exact same movie just a different screen format, that was less than 24 hours old. I asked to see the cashier's boss & eventually their boss & eventually their boss until there was no longer a higher authority to speak to on the matter.

My wife insisted that we just go home but I was making a 2 hour round trip drive simply to exchange a DVD and grab some dinner with friends. So I pulled some cash out of my pocket & started counting out the $9. At this point the cashier pointed out that because I didn't have a receipt that I wouldn't be allowed to make another return for a year. I looked the cashier in the eye & said "I'm not making a return now... I'm making an exchange. There is more than a subtle difference." At which point the cashier voided my dvd, refunded my money (sans the $9) then proceeded to re-ring up my new dvd.

After I paid (through gritted teeth) the cashier reminded me I can't make a return for another year and I replied with "Oh, I don't think that will be a problem... b/c I'm never stepping into a best buy ever again if this is how you treat your customers." And I have never been in a best buy since and I don't see any reason to.

[Nokia]

You keep emphasizing that the item was bought the day before, but also that you didn't have a receipt. The store has no idea when you bought it, and in the case of a no receipt return, you get back the lowest price within the return period of that item. That's normal for every retailer I've been to. The fact that it was bought the day before is irrelevant because of the lack of a receipt. Also, every retailer I've been to only allows each customer a certain number of no receipt returns.

How did your wife pay for it? If it was anything other than cash, the store should've been able to look the receipt up.

[cleric_80]

you are correct... the fact that it was bought 1 day before is irrelevant.

I'm more concerned with the fact that I wasn't trying to return it to get money back but I was trying to exchange a sealed dvd for the exact same sealed DVD with the same price tag value on both that was from the same company and got charged an additional $9.00

I wasn't trying to get anything back at all... I don't see why the store should have profitted by an addition $9 without any loss of inventory or actual hassle on their part except to scan 2 barcodes & hit a button on a computer for inventory purposes.

[GeraldRose]

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cleric_80 wrote:

you are correct... the fact that it was bought 1 day before is irrelevant.

I'm more concerned with the fact that I wasn't trying to return it to get money back but I was trying to exchange a sealed dvd for the exact same sealed DVD with the same price tag value on both that was from the same company and got charged an additional $9.00

I wasn't trying to get anything back at all... I don't see why the store should have profitted by an addition $9 without any loss of inventory or actual hassle on their part except to scan 2 barcodes & hit a button on a computer for inventory purposes.

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Except a "widescreen" dvd is NOT the exact same as a "fullscreen" actually, most people prefer widescreen and therefore it makes sense to pay more for that title. Its not a matter of the store profiting more off the higher priced one, Best Buy can choose to sell it for 10o dollars more if they wants. Capitalism my friend, love it. You should have had your receipt to prove what your wife paid. If you were so unhappy you could have kept your fullscreen version, obviously it is worth the 9 bucks to you.

[cleric_80]

that makes a lot of sense... except there was no higher priced one!!! they had the same price tag value, as stated in at least one of my previous posts.

Both were marked $19.99 on the best buy labeled price tags.

It was the exact same marked price = they turned a profit. I don't care how you rationalize that... they made a profit of almost 50%. I paid the $9 because I had already driven 60 miles to exchange a DVD, sucking an hour out of my life & another 60 miles & another hour to get home. I was not about to be denied at that point... may be petty but it's the principle of the matter and I'm sure many people including you have done similar at some point or another.

You can't expect every exchange for a gift to have a receipt since most gifts don't come with receipts... If I was trying to get money back from the store I could understand. But this is blatant BS.

[Mishki · Accepted solution]

To clarify the return confusion, the cashier was correct in calling it a return; an exchange is not possible when you no receipt an item because that is just how the system is set up.  Technically yes, it is an exchange, but the way it is processed it is not.  An exchange is a return and sale on the same receipt, which is not allowed for no receipt returns.  Unless the system has changed recently, I do not understand the part where you say he voided out the DVD and gave you your store credit because it suggests he was doing something not possible, but this may be a result of my own ignorance, who knows.

As for this case, I would likely have just made it an even exchange and been done with it, but I can't fault the employee for following policy by the book.  Everyone interprets a situation differently, and honestly I would side a bit more towards the OP here just because the chances of scamming Best Buy this way are very slim, and would only really be possible if the WS version had not gone on sale alongside the FS and you then tried to no receipt the item at another store for more than you paid.  However, with no receipt and scammers looking for any opportunity for free money, I can't fully take one side or another for an employee protecting the company, even though it is obvious you are not trying to take advantage.

[cleric_80]

ok maybe I should be a little clearer on the process of the ringing up but yeah that's basically what happened... he didn't physically hand me money/gift card. He took my dvd I brought in, scanned the bar code hit a few keys on the comp, scanned the WS version & said "that'll be $9". It's still dumb in my eyes but at least your explanation makes sense on some level.

[Nokia]

Again, it's because of the policy on no receipt returns. That is not a customer-facing policy because it's not meant to be. Per policy, you must have a receipt. An exception can be made, but penalties will sometimes apply. In this case, since it had been on sale within the last 30 days, the store automatically assumes it was bought during the sale period, just so they don't lose any money. Again, I've never seen a retailer with a different policy.

[cleric_80]

If I was making the exchange for a different title altogether or trying to get a refund I'd be more willing to accept it. You say it's the same at every other retailer you do business with but I have never had this issue come up in any other retailer I've done business with.

When I go to *business witheld due to word filter* as long as it's still sealed & has a *business witheld due to word filter* sticker on it they don't charge me and they don't give me any "it's been on sale in the last 30 days" business... they scan the item, ask me to get another copy from electronics & bring it back to customer service. In the rare situations there isn't another copy they give me a gift card & send me on my merry way. Before you say it I know different stores have different policies... this just goes to show you that these iron clad policies don't always fit the situation...

regardless of which I beleive (and I'm sure many other reasonable people would agree) I got a little shafted in my particular situation because a $20 item was sold for a total of $29.

As far as not being able to return anything for a year this was the FIRST & ONLY time I've ever returned anything to a Best Buy so I know I haven't overdone anything outrageous or suspect.

[Nokia]

How was it originally paid for?