Thank you for using the Better Business Bureau's Online Complaint System.
Your complaint has been assigned case #XXXXXXX.
Filed on : April 7 2005
Filed by :
MrNutz
Filed against :
Best Buy Co Inc
7601 Penn Ave S Building D6
Minneapolis MN 55423
Complaint Description:
On the morning of April 5, 2005, I accessed the BestBuy.com website and found the "Sanus 6-Tier A/V Component Rack" (SKU 5303593) available for purchase for $49.99. I called my local BestBuy retail store in Macon, GA to verify stock availability. The sales associate (Robert) confirmed that the store had two (2) of these items in stock. I asked Robert to hold this item until that evening.
At 7:45PM that evening, I spoke to David who was aware that I had put the item on hold. When we proceeded to checkout, the item rang up as $355. I told David that the BestBuy.com website was selling the product for $49.99 and he left to talk to his manager. When he returned he said that if he could verify that the item was selling for $49.99 his manager would allow me to purchase this item for the price I expected.
David was unable to access this item on BestBuy's website due a "technical problem" and recommended that I contact BestBuy's 800 number (888-237-8289) in an attempt to obtain verification of this price. In doing so, I spoke with a CSR and she verified that BestBuy.com did, in fact, sell the item for $49.99. I told her the situation at the store and asked her to provide proof to the store of her sales price. She recommended that I try to access this item on their website at a later time and then perform a store pickup. I told her that this night was my only opportunity to pickup this item b/c I was leaving the following week on a missions trip out of the country.
Due to the loud music in the store and her accent, I was unable to understand most of what she was telling me. After speaking to her for at least 20minutes, I let her speak to David.
David spoke to her for a couple of minutes and then put her on hold. He told me that he was also having difficulty understanding her, but was under the impression that she was going to fax her price sheet to his store. I told him that sounded great and he when he went to take her off hold, he told me she had disconnected.
I called BestBuy's 800 number once again and spoke to another CSR. I told him what had happened and that I needed proof of the BestBuy.com price faxed to the store. He stated that he was unsure of how he could fax his information to the store, but told me that I could purchase the item through him and use the "store pickup" option. I told him that sounded fine and then he told me that BestBuy.com no longer had this item in stock. I told him that this store had two (2) in stock and I could pick up one of theirs. He said that he was unable to do this and that I would have to call back again and speak to the "Customer Complaints" dept.
I called BestBuy's 800 number again and spoke to a CSR in the Customer Complaints dept. She gathered my info and I filled her in on the issue I was having. She said that she understood the problem and was going to transfer me to the sales dept to resolve the issue. In doing so, she gave me the impression that she was going to speak with a sales representative to solve my problem.
The sales representative that I was transferred to was given no history of the issue so I once again stated the situation and asked her to help me. By this time I had already missed an appointment I had made that night and could not understand why I was being shuffled from one person to the next. This sales person only had access to the BestBuy.com website and was unable to access the webpage for the item I requested. She gave me the same option to purchase the item online, which I told her was fine if I could do a store pickup. She repeated the previous CSR and told me that it was not in stock for me to do this. She told me another option was for me to have the store order it. I said that sounded fine if I would get it for the website's advertised price. She told me that I would have to order the item for the store's price of $355 and I told her that was unacceptable.
After seeming to only go in circles with her, she finally told me that she was unable to help me at all. She stated that she could understand my frustration and I asked her several times if she had a manager or supervisor that could help me. She said that no one could help me and my only option was to use the online email help system. I did not find that to be a satisfactory option since I have had much better customer service experiences with Sears and Office Depot w/o having email an anonymous website link.
At this point, the store I was calling from was closing so I gave up on receiving customer satisfaction. She expressed her apologies and I left the store at 9:15PM.
On April 7, 2005, I received a call from one of my relatives thanking me for the information on the "Sanus 6-Tier A/V Component Rack". He stated that when he went to his local Best Buy retail store the item rang up at the advertised price of $49.99. I was very much shocked that he was able to purchase the item for this price without encountering any of the headache I went through.
I once again called my local Best Buy to check the price. The sales associate I spoke with stated stated that the price was $355, but he was aware of this pricing issue and had just turned down a long-term customer who had inquired about this item. I asked him if any of this made sense to him and he honestly replied, "No."
Since I now had verification that a Best Buy retail location was selling the item at the advertised price of $49.99, I contacted Best Buy's Customer Complaints dept via their 800 number. The CSR I spoke with, LaTisha, listened as I filled her in on what had happened. She put me on hold and contacted my local store to verify the price difference. After a 10min hold, she told me that BestBuy.com and Best Buy were separate entities and did not have to have the same pricing structure. I told her that the retail store in Jackson, MS was selling it for $49.99. She told me that I could only obtain that price if I had purchased it online and selected "In-Store" pickup. I let her know that my relative did not use this option, but was able to purchase the item for $49.99. She put me on hold again.
After about 20mins, she returned to the phone and confirmed that the store was selling it for $49.99. She also said she had spoken to my local store again and they were willing to make a deal with me. She said they were willing to give a discount on the item and sell it to me for $279. I told her that was unacceptable and since it was still over $200 more than Best Buy's website and other retail store.
She stated in a joking manner that if I wanted to buy it for $49.99 I would have to drive to Jackson, MS. I told her that I did not find her comment funny and did not see that as a viable option for customer satisfaction. I also let her know that I had done a websearch while I was on hold and had discovered that a number of other people had purchased this item for $49.99 at their local store. She once again put me on hold.
After about 5 minutes, she gave me a case # (17147247) and transferred me to her supervisor, Rachael. Her supervisor asked me to explain the situation which I did. As I was giving her a condensed version of what had happened so far, she cut me off and explained to me that the Best Buy retail stores do not have to adhere to the pricing of BestBuy.com. I acknowledged that even though this did not make sense to me as a consumer, I understood what she as well as the other CSRs had told me. Then, I relayed that I had found several people that had purchased the item for $49.99 from their local retail store.
I asked her why Best Buy was able to price match other retail stores, but not their own. She stated that their policy stated that they did not have to price match their store. So I asked her if the Best Buy retail stores had a posted Policy in which they were able carry products at different prices. She answered that they did not and that the stores could set their own prices at will.
She also stated that the advertised price of $49.99 was below the cost of the item and that they would be taking a loss if they had sold it to me for that price. I stated that a number of others stores were honestly selling the product for that price and that was not a satisfactory reason for her to deny a consumer from purchasing the item for that price. I stated that I was not aware that stores could have different pricing policies and did not see why I should be forced to understand this price discrepancy. Especially when the store associates honestly didn't understand completely.
Her final response was that I should buy the item online and pay a shipping charge of $55. Or I should drive to Jackson, MS and purchase the item at the advertised price of $49.99. I told her that even if I did want to purchase the item online, I had been told several times that item was not in stock through the online warehouse. And that I did not find her suggestion to drive to MS to pick up the item to be a very funny joke. I stated that I had already spent well over 2 hours with CSRs and had not received any customer satisfaction.
I let her know that I would file a complaint with the Better Business Bureau b/c of the lack of customer satisfaction I received through this ordeal. She told me she could no longer speak with me if I was threatening her with legal action. I was confused as to why she would make such a statement and told her that I was not threatening her in any form. She said she was unable to help me with this issue and we disconnected.
Your Desired Resolution:
I have basically given up in getting this item for the price that Best Buy advertises it for on their website and in their other retail locations. As of now I just feel that this corporation has taken the "big business stance" that their consumers don't matter.
Overall, I am disappointed at the lack of true concern I received from Best Buy's customer service representatives throughout this ordeal and have never been treated so "noticeably insignificantly" by any retail business.
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