CompUSA....BEWARE!!! UPDATE pg.2

[Chrissi Pooh]

Just a little public service announcement....

About 4 weeks ago I needed to order a new modem for my PC at home and was told that CompUSA would be the cheapest so I scanned their products online and decided to purchase a modem, a new set of speakers (for PC) and the biggest purchase I have made in about 4 years, a digital camera. The camera was priced at $99.97 what a steal!!! So I placed the order and within 2 days received the modem and speakers...no sign of the camera.

I called the following day and the lady told me that it would come in a few days well within a matter of an hour I had an email from her saying it wasn't coming and if I wanted it I would have to reorder......Wait a minute, you already charged me for it now it's not coming, I have to wait 14 days to receive my money back and you want me to reorder and pay you another $100 that I don't have???? so we went a few rounds and then she just stopped sending answers. A week or so later I called to check on my refund and got the run around, and called again about a week later except this time I was told it would be 3-4 more days well that would make it 17-18 days for refund not 14 days like I was originally told so I wrote a letter and told them everything that had happend and included my emails back and forth. I told them this was my first experience and would be my last.

I get a message on my answering machine monday saying "we received your letter, reviewed your account and placed the reorder for you" now I am ticked beyond words, i call and leave a message to please call me that I never once said reorder anything.

Keep in mind I still have not gotten my refund and they are charging me for a second camera. I have left messages 3 days in a row now and I finally see the first refund coming through but I have also been charged for the second camera and it's more than the first.

I'm sorry this is so long but I wanted to share with over 50,000 of my closest DIS friends and hope that no one else has to go through the crap I've been through!!!

 

[Esmerelda]

I had sort of the same issue with a computer about 3 years ago with "CompUSA". After several weeks of my computer never coming in, they weren't going to return my deposit when I had to cancel! I told them they would return my deposit or I'd get it back in small claims court. Keep in mind, my computer was supposed to be there in about 7-10 business "days", not weeks. I went right down the street after my money was refunded to another place and went home that night with a computer and have been very happy ever since.

I'm sorry you had to go thru this ordeal,
Esmerelda

 

[Chrissi Pooh]

Emerelda- I'm sorry this happened to you and obviously you were spending more money than me. It makes me so mad because $100 to me is food for me and my daughter for about 2 1/2 weeks or more....I don't have a lot and I really wanted this camera for her upcoming birthday in 2 weeks and now I have to wait for these people to stop playing with my money and go searching for another one......uuuugggghhhh!!!

 

[Stimpy]

Similar thing happened to my father from CompUSA. He also had a lot of problems getting rebates back from them.

I would call my credit card company and tell them not to authorize any of the charges for the camera. Good Luck!

 

[Chrissi Pooh]

I did call the bank that I have it with but by that time they had already recieved authorization but CompUSA had informed me that they would call the bank and cancel the transaction well that was yesterday and it still shows so I am just trying to sit tight and give them time to do whatever it is they need to do before I go postal on them!!!!

 

[C.Ann]

My son-in-law is currently at odds with CompUSA over my DD's laptop.. They brought it in for repair (a disk stuck in the disk drive) and they had to "send it out" for repairs (of course).. Weeks went by and no word.. Finally they called and said it would cost $900 to repair as it had "obviously been dropped" and needed an entirely new hard drive.. Well - the two of them went ballistic because it had never been dropped so they demanded it be returned to the store so they could inspect it.. When they went up to look at it, it looked like it had been flung across a room and slammed on the floor! My son-in-law is livid over this and getting a terrible runaround..

He may have them over a barrel though as the original repair order mentions nothing about all of these other broken parts so hopefully they'll get it fixed and never do business with CompUSA again!!

A friend had a similar problem with them.. Bought a computer from them and in less than 3 months it died.. When they took it in for repairs (under the warranty) of course the response was, "You must have dropped it.." Yeah - like you move your desk top computer system every day - right??

Avoid them like the plague!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[CRB#33]

Chrissi, I'd mention the word, "Lawyer" in my next e-mail and phone message and see if you can't get a better response.

Good luck.

 

[beachbunny]

I'm so sorry for you Chrissi Pooh! I agree with C.Ann, avoid them like the plague!!!

My biggest problems with CompUSA are: (1) the people who work there are not helpful; and (2) they never have sufficient quantities of the stuff they advertise. For example, last weekend, I went to purchase headphones that had been advertised in that morning's paper. They weren't on the shelves. I tried approaching two salesclerks before finding one who would help me. The first two made eye contact, turned, and walked away (I'm not kidding). The third guy walked to a table, pointed and said that if they're any left, they should be there - then he turned and left without another word. There were no headphones on the table. After that, I gave up and left. And no, they weren't busy. Finally, just forget about asking them technical questions. You may or may not get a correct response.

By the way, did you see the advertisements? It's their 20th Anniversary this weekend.

 

[Tina]

They may be bad, but they can't be worse than Best Buy. They are the WORST!!! For an amazing read, check out the customer comments at http://www.bestbuysux.org

Its a real eye-opener!

 

[Chrissi Pooh]

WOW....I regret not coming here and asking about them before I bought the merchandise!!!

Thanks everyone for responding!!!

 

[crazelion]

Think CompUSA is bad then don't ever buy anything from Circuit City. They is a bunch of liars. Believe I should know I work for them this Christmas and could not believe there busniness practices.

 

[pixiemomma]

We had a problem with the company Circuit City has it's warranties. They accused us of abusing the laptop, blah blah. The person my husband spoke with was extremely rude and lacked command of the English language. We eventually went through the store manager and resolved everything.

On the flip side of that we have had very good luck purchasing small electronics at Sears. They stand by their warranty.

 

[Dopeygirl]

What a grrrrr situation for you!!! I hope it gets worked out soon!

CompUSA used to be the only one of the chain computer/electronics store at which I would shop (got fed up with the rest of them). Then a couple years ago I had a run-in with an employee who didn't think I was capable of making a computer purchase w/o my husband (I couldn't find what I wanted, so I asked for help...was told to come back with my husband). Spoke with a manager who didn't seem at all concerned. I didn't want anything for it, I just wanted to let him know what a rude employee he had. Called and sent a letter to the district manager and never heard back. Haven't shopped there since. I was pretty disappointed because, outside of that idiot, the one we went to had a really great staff.

 

[ByTheSea]

Wow, talk about the run around - sorry to hear this.

I will stay away from there myself.

 

[BibbidyBobbidyBoo]

I am so sorry you are getting the runaround!
The only experience I have had with CompUSA in the past was never getting the rebates I sent in for... I finally gave up on the correspondence because it was clear they were never going to live up to their promises even though I'd done the rebates exactly as specified.... it's the only rebates I've ever sent off for that I have never received. I won't do business with them again. I don't take kindly to being ripped off!

 

[jipsy]

Call them today and ask to speak to a supervisor. Tell them that you have every piece of correspondence documented and that if this situation is not resolved within 5 days you will be reporting them to the Federal Trade Commission.

Any mention of the FTC always gets things done.

 

[Chrissi Pooh]

UPDATE!

Thanks everyone for your responses!

Well it looks like they have cleared everything up, I finally see the credit to my account for the first camera and there is no sign of the transaction for the second.

By the way the last message I left never did returned....great customer service I tell ya!!!!


STAY AWAY FROM COMP-USA!!!!!!

 

[Dan Murphy]

 

[GoofItUp]

I'm so sorry you had so much trouble with CompUSA. I really don't have feelings for them one way or another. I've never had bad service from them, but I've never had good service there, either. Glad it was resolved for you.

 

[ohanafamily]

I will say from the beginning that I have a corporate account with CompUsa and I have a rep who is really good. I buy several items from them over the course of the year.

Having said that, I have had real problems with them over the years. It really depends on the store. I took an HP printer in for a PM, and was told the insides were broken. when I got it back unprepared the printer had been damaged beyond repair. My rep made it right, but I do not bring printers into that store.

I once bought a Lexmark Printer (an expensive high volume laserjet) and bought the On-Site Maintenance package (they have since changed their warranty service provider). One of the big selling points was a PM every year. OK, I can deal with a tech coming to my secure area once a year to do a PM on an on-site service call. Well, come my 14 month anniversary, I call for a PM, "Oh, we do not have a field tech who can service that machine, it has to come to our depot", "OK, send somebody to pick it up", "The nearest depot is 300 miles away, we will send you a box" "I have on-site maintenance","Oh, that means we pay for the shipping both ways". "Ok, let me get this straight, I paid almost as much as my printer was for an on-site warranty where you do not come to my site, but mail me a box. I will be down for a minimum of 2 weeks, and you will be gracious enough to pay for the box and shipping (which will add 3 days for it to get to me)." I was more than a little livid, and haven't bought an extended warranty from them since.

I wound up calling a local company that could come on-site and PM the machine. I was not able to get my money back.

Again, they no longer use Warrantek.

I have similar stories with all of the shops around Dallas, Fry's sells used and broken equipment. I bought a computer from them, hooked it up, it didn't work. Took it back, they gave me a refund, but didn't have any more. They told me to come back on Monday. I did, my original computer was re-sealed and back on the shelf. I ordered the same unit from another store, and It worked flawlessly out of the box. I do not shop at Fry's anymore.

All in all, it really depends on the salesperson and what you are looking for. I have lots of good stories too. The bad ones are more fun.

Usually, Best Buy has 1 person who actually understands the technology; the trick is finding that one person.

If you have a problem, you can always ask for a manager; but when you buy from a "Box" store, you should expect them not to have the amenities of a retail store.

My last laptop I bought from CDW, (an Acer) and I saw online that it had a "Covers everything" warranty" I actually read it, and there were a lot of exclusions. I had a tech support person on the line (because I had trouble registering it on their website) he assured me that the fine print was a legalese stipulation and they actually did cover Aggressive Misuse.