Manufacturer Warranties and Protection Plans

[hassle71]

I’ve been a loyal Best Buy customer.  I purchase most my electronics from Best Buy. During my years of shopping at Best Buy, I’ve purchased four PSPs: IPod, video camera, surround sound and TV. When my daughters IPod stopped working I brought it back to Best Buy and repaired under the plan.

My recent experience with Best Buy has left me disappointed and furious.  I purchased a 42” Philips Ambilight Plasma TV in November 2005.  I paid $2500 for the TV and the 4 yr PSP for $400. The TV lost picture on August 14, 2009. A Geek Squad technician made an initial visit on Sept 22, 2009. He told me that he had to order three parts in order to fix the problem. He returned on Sept 28, 2009. He installed the new parts but this did not fix the TV. At this point he stated that my TV would have to be replaced and I would receive a confirmation number in 2 to 3 business days.  It actually took 8 days and multiple phone calls before I received the confirmation number. At this point we have had no TV for about 7 weeks.

I received the confirmation number on October 6th and went to our local Best Buy in Manteca, CA that evening. I spoke with a sales person who had to go to a computer to show us what TV could replace our Phillips Ambilight with since they no longer make this TV.  He came back with a printout and from the Best Buy Outlet Center with 2 TV’s for us to choose from.  One was a Panasonic 720p plasma on clearance for $649 and a Panasonic 1080p plasma on clearance for $849!!!  I asked to speak with a manager. Lao H. pretty much told us that he was doing us a favor by offering the $849 1080p because our TV was only a 720p.  I explained how the Ambilight works and even though our TV was a 42 inch, the back and side lights made for a much bigger viewing experience. I asked if he would consider letting me get a 47 or 50 inch that was on sale. He said he could give us a $850 gift card and we would have to pay for the difference. That doesn’t seem fair since I already paid $400 for the PSP and the 50 inch was still less than half the price of my original TV. Lao would not offer us a TV in that store that we could have as replacement.  Our options were to wait again to have one of the Outlet Center TV’s delivered or pay extra for a TV in the store. We left the store frustrated and empty handed.

I called customer relations a few days later. The representative was polite and helpful but could do nothing for us. The supervisor-Joseph-was rude and kept cutting me off. After a long hold, Joseph said that he spoke with Lao and he would not offer me anything else.  

The Panasonics from the Outlet Center do not have Ambilights (or a similar feature) USB ports or card slots. My TV could not be repaired and  could not be replaced with a product with comparable specifications or features. The exact words on the actual PSP brochure that I have is “or we will issue a voucher for the original purchase price at our discretion”.  After 2 months who do I contact to finally resolve this issue?

hassle71

[Nokia]

Sorry, but lights on the back of the TV does not equal a bigger screen.

[hassle71]

Nokia,

You are right the screen is not actually bigger...but when we were sold the TV we were told of the "larger viewing experience".  That must have been a script that was only used when Best Buy was selling the TV, not when it's time to replace it.  I found this Ambilight description Phillips website:

"Watching TV with Ambilight is an experience like no other. The sensorial halo of Ambilight Spectra adds a magical dimension to your viewing experience. It literally launches the movie out of the TV onto the wall behind it, enlarging the screen with an ever-changing burst of colour. It has to be seen to be believed." 

This must have been an amazing sales tool.  We have really enjoyed our Phillips Ambilight and it did live up to its expectations.  Unfortunately, the PSP has not. 

hassle71

[Nokia]

You will not be able to get another TV with that feature, but you will also not be able to get a TV with a bigger screen.

[hassle71]

Nokia,

I only expect to get one of the three options stated on the brochure of my PSP plan:

Repair-after almost 7 weeks, numerous phone calls, ordered and back ordered parts, a couple of cancelled appointments, 8 hours of missed work and 3 circuit boardsand a panel that is no longer available, the TV was not repaired.

or

Replacement- I went to my local Best Buy with a confirmation number I was not looking for a larger screen TV.  I was looking for a comparable TV. Instead I was offered a choice between 2 TV's that did not have the same specs and were from the outlet center, not even at there at the store. I was shown a black and white printout of how the TV's looked. I was not offered a 41, 42 or a 43 inch or anything even close to original TV.  When I asked the manager if there were any other more comparable TV's that we could choose from he pointed to his printout (which I still have) and  said these are our 2 choices or we could pay the difference on a larger TV. I am a reasonable person.  If we were offered a choice on comparable 42 inch plasmas in the store that we could actually look at, I would probably have a working TV right now. I believe that he did not want to replace our TV with a TV he had in the store. Even when the customer relations manager called him, he said the same thing-no other choices. So the TV was not replaced.

or the last option stated in the brochure-

A voucher for the original purchase price-the brochure does not say "up to the purchase price" or "not to exceed the purchase price" it states "the original purchase price".

Thanks for your comments.  You have made this frustrating situation more clear to me.  I have not asked for anything out of the ordinary or exceptional, just what is stated in the PSP. I posted on this forum to get help from Best Buy and although you are entitiled to your opinion, you seem to be a little antagonistic.  I will wait  for a reply from Best Buy .

hassle71

[Allan-BBY Community Connector]

Hi hassle71,

I’m sure you were at your wits end after being without a working TV for 7 weeks, and the fact that you have a family most likely made this experience even more upsetting. Hopefully I can shed some light on this for you, and more importantly work towards a resolution in this.

I do show you purchased a Performance Service Plan (PSP) along with the TV in 2005 to provide coverage on the TV beyond the manufacturer’s warranty. This PSP is intended to repair the TV not replace it, but if we are not able to repair a TV covered by a PSP the plan should replace it with the most comparable TV. I do need to be clear that it is up to the store that the replacement is processed at to determine what a comparable TV is, but I should be able to explain how they come to that determination.

The primary considerations are the screen size of the TV being replaced, the type of TV being replaced, and the maximum resolution of the TV. There are many secondary considerations that the store should try to match as closely as possible to what you had, but unfortunately with advancements and changes in technology these are not always able to be matched exactly. I should also point out that at no time should the store take in consideration the original purchase price in determining what a comparable TV is. I show you had a 42 inch 720p plasma, which means the store should determine the most comparable TV to yours would be one of the four TV’s we carry that are 42 inch 720p plasma TV’s.

I should also say the quote from your terms and conditions that say that we would offer a voucher for the amount of the original purchase price at our discretion is in reference to when we are not able to provide the customer a comparable item that meets the primary considerations for what a comparable item is. This is almost never the case, and in fact with TV’s unless it was a CRT TV we should be able to provide a customer with a comparable model TV.


The store was correct that you could put the purchase price of the TV they determine to be comparable to the one you had towards the purchase of any TV you want, but if the TV you want costs more that the purchase price of this TV you would be required to pay the difference in price.

I would like to try and get you a resolution in this matter, and I am sending you a private message to start that conversation. 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 for posting,

[DiabloDayv]

I too am in this same scenario having purchased most likely the same television.

When it was functioning, it was great but I would say my time with it 100% was very limited.

I am concerned by this trail as I have to return mine finally today.  After 5-6 service calls, parts are becoming harder to find and I was given approval for a replacement.  While I do not expect to be upgraded, I would like to expect some sort of options and inclusion of USB as I know several tvs these days all have this standard.

Comparing a Philips to an Insignia or the like is an insult.  Let me trade you a hyundai for your mercedes since they have the same MPG right and both have 4 doors as well . . .

[CrimsonRain]

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DiabloDayv wrote:

 Comparing a Philips to an Insignia or the like is an insult.  Let me trade you a hyundai for your mercedes since they have the same MPG right and both have 4 doors as well . . .

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I don't quite follow your analogy. Which TV brand would be the Hyundai and which would be the Mercedes? If you're going by tech reviews and Consumer Reports, then the Insignia would be the Mercedes. Philips has taken a step back from its former glory years to be dominated by Sony, LG, Samsung, and Toshiba. Insignia TVs rated quite well in the midsize (27"-46") affordable TVs lineup in Consumer Reports 2009 reviews.

[DiabloDayv]

Crimson,

My television was purchased back in mid to late 2006.

At its time, it was one of the best available and just over 2k not being part of the "affordable" tv lineups either.  They were a dominant player in the market back then.  While they may have slipped since then and focused on other consumer electronics platforms, the picture and overall quality of my television was great.  I never ever had any issue with display quality merely issues with mostly the power supply.  I also ran into 2 bad service technicians along the way.  One who installed new capacitors and incorrectly installed them in the board which was probably the biggest issue.

Let me guess - you probably drive a Kia too right?

[CrimsonRain]

Nope, I drive a Lexus. I've never been a fan of Korean automakers. My best friend had a Daewoo for years and it was in for major service almost annually.