BFG Problems? (UPDATE:Card should be here Friday)

[pe3046]

UPDATE:Card installed and working!
UPDATE:Card should be here Friday.

Tried to RMA my 8 month old video card to BFG. Setup a advanced replacement 8 days ago, no tracking # has been posted. Called 4 days ago and was told they had no video cards to send, called again today after being on hold for over and hour (yesterday was on hold for more then 2 hours and they never answered the phone). Is this normal for BFG to not have any video cards for warranty replacement? They told me to go and buy a replacement video card, and it is not their problem that they do not have any cards in stock. Is this normal BFG behavior? If so, what brand has better warranty service. After spending $350 on this card I don't want to get burned again, this is the first video card I have ever had go bad.

 

[Janooo]

What was the card?

 

[WaitingForNehalem]

Your card is in warranty so it is their problem. Demand to speak with a manager and if there are no replacements demand a refund. You are within warranty, therefore they must honor it.

 

[Fallengod]

Im not sure. Were you being rude with them?

Ive recently RMA'd a 8800gt with them and they were extremely easy and helpful. Ive RMA'd a few cards over the years, and BFG has always had top customer service.

Im not sure what to tell you here, as Ive never been put on hold for that period before. What card is this? It must be really new, as that would be the only reason they might not have any in stock.

It has a lifetime warranty, so I dont understand why youd think you got "burned." If they have none in stock, which is very odd, then its not like they can make one appear out of thin air.

This doesnt sound like BFG.

 

[Janooo]

Im not sure. Were you being rude with them?

Ive recently RMA'd a 8800gt with them and they were extremely easy and helpful. Ive RMA'd a few cards over the years, and BFG has always had top customer service.

Im not sure what to tell you here, as Ive never been put on hold for that period before. What card is this? It must be really new, as that would be the only reason they might not have any in stock.

It has a lifetime warranty, so I dont understand why youd think you got "burned." If they have none in stock, which is very odd, then its not like they can make one appear out of thin air.

This doesnt sound like BFG.

This could be a prove that GT200 EOL'ed. Maybe they will return the money and tell him to buy ATI.

 

[hclarkjr]

i hope this is not how they operate as i just bought a BFG card for the lifetime warranty

 

[pe3046]

It is a 9800GX2 (bought new from Newegg). I called 8 days ago, they took the info including my credit card# and said I should have the card shortly. I asked him where they are shipping from and he said Illinois which means I should get ground shipments in 1-2 days. Nothing was ever emailed, nor any communication from them after that so I called 4 days later and was on hold for 5 minutes before the call was answered. At that point I was told they had no cards, but they would talk to the warehouse to see what they could do. Did not hear anything again, called yesterday both corporate and RMA lines and after their automated phone system picked up the phones rang for over 2 hours with no one picking up (called from 4 to 6 pm eastern time). Called again today, was on hold for over an hour before the RMA department picked up. At that point I explained what happened with the previous call last week, and the rep said they had no video cards at all. I then asked should I go and buy a video card, and the rep said yes that would be a good idea and it was not HIS problem that BFG did not have any video cards. At that point I may have been a little upset, my system has been down for 2 weeks now. If they did not have any cards to send, should they have setup the advanced RMA? I could have bought another card at that point, or now I can buy another card.

Do I buy a cheap card, or at this point am I basically having to replace the 9800gx2 since they will not actually have any card to send as replacement? Guess I should have phrased the original post better, I don't want to waste money on a cheap card if I then have to replace the 9800gx2.

 

[CurseTheSky]

IMO, they should either send you a new comparable card (GTX 275? GTX 285? GTX 295 would be overkill, but more fair to the customer than sending nothing at all - hell, even sending two GTX 260s should be fair enough), or refund your money.

If they really don't have ANY cards in stock, they should cut you a check for the original purchase price, apologize for the inconvenience, and tell you to go buy a new card. Hell, even send a "make-do" card like an 8400 GT for good measure.

Unless you're being unreasonable (demanding a 9800GX2 or nothing) or rude, they shouldn't be giving you a hard time.

 

[pe3046]

When I first learned they did not have any 9800gx2 (which then changed to no video cards at all) they offered to send a comparable replacement card. I said sure, whatever you can get out as soon as possible.

 

[nitromullet]

When I first learned they did not have any 9800gx2 (which then changed to no video cards at all) they offered to send a comparable replacement card. I said sure, whatever you can get out as soon as possible.

Yeah, I could see how they might have a hard time getting hold of a 9800GX2 because these have probably been EOL'ed a while now, but they should replace it with at least a GTX 275 or better.

 

[thilanliyan]

Contact Zap here on the AT forums...I believe he works for BFG (someone correct me if I'm wrong on that).

 

[pe3046]

Thanks, will do.

 

[Zap]

Is this normal BFG behavior?

No it is not.

Do exact replacement cards go out of stock on occasion? Yes. The replacement in that case will be a comparable card.

PM me some of the information you registered the card under (for instance email address and full name) and I will pass that information on to someone that can hopefully help you.

And yes, thilanliyan was right. I do work for BFG.

 

[pe3046]

Zap, I sent you a PM.

 

[SlowSpyder]

I too had a pretty terrible experience with BFG back in the GeForce 6800 days. Sorry for your experience too, hopefully Zap will take care of you. As for me, I have an unusable video card with a lifetime warranty that I would love to use in a second machine for old games. Meh... for me it's not worth bothering with their support again after the experiences I had for a card that's worth $10.

 

[icelazer]

Uh oh, I was just going to post something similar...I purchased a GTX 285 OCFU that appeared to have troubles with the driver stopped responding issue...I was issued an RMA and the product was shown delivered to BFG on Oct 19, the website has yet to be updated and the RMA support will not return my email. I called last week and suggested I file a lost item claim with USPS but they said they have it in the warehouse, but the site just hasn't been updated and blah blah blah I should hear something within the week. I haven't, and needless to say I'm a little peeved also

 

[pe3046]

Sorry to hear you are going through similar situation. Hopefully this will all be resolved to our satisfaction soon.

 

[pe3046]

Thanks to ZAP, I just heard that BFG will be getting a replacement card to me shortly. Tracking# has been posted and it is in transit and should be here Friday.

 

[icelazer]

Glad to hear!

 

[zagood]

I hope this isn't a common occurence...I can't imagine the average consumer coming out of a situation like this with anything positive.

 

[icelazer]

Hate to hijack but Zap helped me out as well, mine's on the way according to the website!

 

[Zap]

UPDATE:Card installed and working!

I hope this isn't a common occurence...I can't imagine the average consumer coming out of a situation like this with anything positive.

It is not common and the "average consumer" will get their replacement card. I probably just accelerated it by a few days to a week. There were just a few issues that caused a few backlogs this time, that's all. One thing is that inventory is done once a month, so any RMAs near the end and beginning of the month may not be the normal quick turnaround.

 

[toyota]

nm

 

[thilanliyan]

I'm glad we have some AIB representatives here. That's one thing I like about nV cards...their partners generally have good customer service. Although I myself have never had to RMA a video card...it would be nice to know I don't have to go through a hassle to get it done.

 

[icelazer]

Mine also installed and working as of yesterday, 2/2 Zap!

(And the original issue on mine was resolved...the display driver has stopped responding but recovered error)