Best Buy & Geek Squad Policies

[redbarron55]

You guys really don't get it do you?

[Mbrguy Trusted Contributor]

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redbarron55 wrote:

You guys really don't get it do you?

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Actually, I get it completely.  You are coming onto a web forum that was not set up to provide immediate customer service and are demanding exactly that.  There are different venues for getting Customer Service from Best Buy, this is only one of them.  Some are set up to provide immediate help, while some are set up to provide a different venue for people who are more comfortable with forums, though the wait time is generally longer than what you would get from calling the website.

It's like going to a car rental company and deciding to rent a Sedan rather than a Sports Car and then complaining that the Sedan doesn't go as fast as the Sports Car.

[redbarron55]

No I came here because the store manager said I should.

I ask for action because Best Buy should respond in less than a week.

You have goaded me into wanting to spend a little time to bring the poor customer response to the attention of as many as I can.

Once again I thank you for posting and running the posts up. There are now 4 pages over the last week and this gets bounced to the top of the list again.

Best buy told me to post here to get a response from the company / geek squad and here I am.

You are here I assume that although you aver not to work for the Company you do just the same and put the little trailer that it is all you and none of best buy.

There are an amazing number of dedicated trolls just like you that have nothing in the question, but yet seem compelled to come to the defense of the Best Buy / Geek Squad Black Tie Protection group.

Amazing dedication. Also amazingly counterproductive.

Keep it up. It seems that you and all of the other customers pretty much in the same boat are the only ones reacting. Surely not the assigned Allan BBY.

I am just tracking the days passing each and every day, perhaps several times a day depending on my schedule. I have a few idle moments though the day to spend with fruitless quests like finding Best Buy / Geek Squad Black Tie Protection customer support.

Most places and times Black Tie has the connotation of something special and highly sought after.

I guess in this connotation instead of formal and correct it means poorly trained geeks in a white short sleeve shirt with a skinny black tie dodging the customers.

My bad.

Best regards,

[redbarron55]

I am posting this as a listing of my home theater most purchased from Best Buy.

Here it is:

Epson 8350 HD projector - Best Buy

Samsung HW D7000 3D receiver  - Best Buy

USB Turntable Forget which - Best Buy

Surround speakers - Best Buy

Main Speakers - Heath Legato HH-1 (2 15" woofers - 36" exponential horn All Alter Lansing designed by James B Lansing

Center speakers (pair) Kilpsch Heresy 12" Woofer three way

Wireless for Dish Receiver Netlink - Best Buy

Wireless network - Best Buy

Dynex 42" HD flat panel TV - Best Buy

DSL Modem - Best Buy

This Laptop - Best buy

Rocketfish HAD Wireless video - Best Buy

Rocketfish wireless surround / audio - Best Buy

All of the above has produced a nice system. The speakers especially are very nice and irreplaceable.

I upgrade often like the 8350 Epson HD Projector. A great projector by the way.

The Samsung AV receiver has also been great.

Unfortunately I now have experience with Best Buy warranty and Geek Squad Black Tie Protection and it is abysmal.

I have always purchased most systems locally to have that local presence, however I am convinced the Best Buy is quite a bit worse than buying off eBay or any internet source.

I have been waiting over a week for a response from Geek Squad and this is totally unacceptable.

This experience and the ensuing irritation from the " I work for BB but I don't speak for them etc. Have convinced me to stay away in the future. Totally unprofessional, but then the apologists that troll the site are careful to explain this is not their business. They speak to support BB/GS just out of the goodness of their heart and purity of mind.

As soon as I have actually communicated with Best Buy / Geek Squad Black Tie Protection I will never darken their door again.

There are plenty of places to buy quality electronics at a lower cost with better customer support.

Best regards,

[redbarron55]

Start of the next day of waiting.

This is amazing premium service.

One should strive to avoid dealing with Best Buy / Geek Squad especially when you pay extra money for the service.

Please refund my money........ All of it .........No store credit!

Do it quickly enough and I might still deal with Best Buy.

Take your time and I might put my efforts towards a class action lawsuit to bring the poor premium service to light and cost Best Buy / Geek Squad as much money as I can.

Everyone should know of the contempt Best Buy / Geek Squad holds their customers!

Best regards.

By the way the headquarters domain is at-bestbuydot com.

So you would take the CEO's name and put a dot in between and put them together.

[Allan-BBY Community Connector]

Hi redbarron55,

I truly am sorry for any miscommunication, which happened at the time of purchase, causing you to believe that a bulb would be immediately provided if this projector ever malfunctioned. I can also say that this store should not have been guessing as to how long repairs of this projector will take.

The store is correct that in order to get any problems with this projector addressed the unit would have to be sent off to a service center, and repairs can sometimes be a lengthy procedure. I understand that is your belief that all that is needed is a new bulb, but we would need a diagnosis from an authorized service technician that this is the case before we could order a new bulb for the unit.

In my experience it is often the case that something is defective inside a projector causing a bulb to expire, and I cannot encourage you enough to have the unit looked at before installing the bulb Epson is sending you. This is exactly why we require the unit to be looked at by an authorized repair technician, and our stores do not have technicians that are authorized to diagnose problems with projectors.

If your Geek Squad Black Tie Protection (GSBTP) plan ever does approve your projector to be replaced the store that sent the unit off for service would replace the projector with the most comparable model we currently sell that does not exceed the original purchase price. If Epson sends you a new unit your GSBTP plan should cover this unit as long as they are the exact same model number.

I hope this answers your questions on this, and if you have any specific requests for me by all means post back to this thread.

Thanks for posting,

[redbarron55]

Thanks for answering after only a week plus. Your company really needs to reinforce your ranks to help control customer dissatisfaction.

After the experience of havinh Best Buy / Geek Squad extended warranty protection I would prefer to be without this very slow and not premium protection.

I have been a customer for quite some time and this is part of my home theater system and a week to get a simple reply is not acceptable.

My system consists of the following:

Epson 8350 projector - Best Buy

Samsung HW-D7000 3D AV center - Best buy

102" electric screen - Circuit City

Dynex 42" flat TV (backup) - Best Buy

Ion USB truntable - Best Buy

Rocketfish HD wireless video link - Best Buy

Rocketfish surround wireless audio link - Best Buy

D-Link wireless USB for the Dish receiver - Best Buy

Wireless ethernet switch - Best Buy

DSL Modem - Best Buy

Various surround speakers - Best Buy

Heath Legato HH-1 main speakers ( Google them)

Klispch Heresy center channel speakers

RCA VCR - Best Buy

Numerous computer and accessories for my control rooms. You know switches, computers, monitors, keyboards, UPSs, etc. I never get extended warranty because I am sure I can repair them as good as anyone. Definitely better that Geek Squad on time.

What you are warrantying is an assurance that at least two weeks will pass before I get any piece of equipment back!

Also I see from the recent TV show that last year many of the Geeks were flipping burgers.

I started with projectors with a Barco 5100 unit (actually two) I purchased off ebay and repaired one from two. Of course it weighed 250 lbs, but a heck of a picture and bright enough to burn the paint off the wall. I mobed on to a smaller Optima unit and then to the Epson. I have maintained these for years and cleaned, changed bulbs etc many many times.

The Geek I bought the projector from said that the warranty policy would replace the bulb if I called in the failure or went to the Geek Squad desk so that it would go quickly. Not only is this not correct the extended delay is a sure thing.

This is not in the least what I was told by the sales person.

To compare your warrant with the low end Harbor Freight I know about.

Harbor freight is a privately owned company that imports and sells low ent tools and equipment and if you buy their warranty (same rought percentage markup as  BB) they will instantly swap the equipment out or refund your money.

It is a numbers game. Some percentage will fail, but less that the percentage markup the you make money. Greater than the markup you lose.

BB/GS makes the bet and then welches on the payoff.

I admit it I made a mistake in purchasing the warranty in light of the service response and QOS.

Just what is the payoff to rectify this error? I know that Best Buy will not improve the QOS or response time. Nor does the system respond in any manner to a simple question about this warranty coverage.

I have spent many thousands of dollars on AV equpment and computer equipment and even more for my employers.

Does Best Buy care if this revenue stream is ended?

I guess not.

When the next bulb is needed you guarantee that I will have to wait two weeks and have to send my unit off to some pimply faced kid for repair. What is the driving force to do this?

If the unit were to be replaced before the end of the period you have warranted it for you will consider that the warranty is completely satisfied and the replacement will no longer be covered. This is not what I was told was the case.

Send me a check for the $259.?? and I will just consider that it was my error and not your misrepresentation.

We will both be happier.

Have a nice day.

I up grade regularly and so far I have bought mostly from Best Buy because of your local presence.

This experience has convinced me that this is of NO HELP in keeping may home systems playing

[Mbrguy Trusted Contributor]

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redbarron55 wrote:

Thanks for answering on the 5th business day from when my issue was addressed.  That was exactly within the average time frame (3-5 business days) for a response by you explained to me by your wonderful Super Users.

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Fixed it for Ya!  

[redbarron55]

Butt out jerk

[Allan-BBY Community Connector]

Hi redbarron55,

I make no excuses for my delay in responding to your concern, and if I had to wait this long for a promised response I would be equally upset. I can promise you that I hold myself to a higher standard than this, regardless of what response guidelines my team might have, and am truly disappointed in myself for how long it has taken to get you a response.

Once again I really am sorry for any incorrect expectations that you state were set at the time of the purchase, but I do need to be clear that your service plan does require the projector to be sent off for service if it develops a defect. Given that this is part of the terms and conditions of your plan no employee is allowed to make any exceptions to this.

I assume your reference to sending you a check for $259 is in regards to the price you paid for this service plan. I would not be able to send you out a check for $259, but your local store should be able to provide you a pro-rated refund for this service plan anytime during the life of the plan. Keep in mind that if you do request this refund your service plan would no longer be in effect, and any repairs beyond the manufacturer's warranty would be at cost to you.

With that said I would like to see if there is anything at all I can personally offer in this matter, and I am sending you a private message to gather some personal information. To check your messages you should log into the forum, and then click on the letter icon in the upper right-hand corner of the page.

Thanks,