I work at an electronic retail store and it can be rather frustrating the attitudes customers have towards us and how much they can get away because "The customer is always right." This will be the tale of a ridiculous example. One day I had a lady come into my store, and I just knew she had the face of an angry stupid person. I'm not
exactly sure what it was, but I'm sure those of you who work in retail can
understand when you see someone and you just know that you’re about to have a
bad time.
Not to disappoint she started telling me her situation. For the sake of this story her name will be Vicky.Vicky had dropped off her ASUS laptop to our store with a “faulty” screen to be fixed under warranty so it was sent off to service several weeks ago. This morning she received a call from the ASUS repair centre saying that they would not be able to fix her laptop under warranty because the screen had been physically damaged thus voiding the warranty. In order to replace the screen they would have to charge her for the labour and the replacement screen which would cost her about $250. So they were asking her if she wanted to proceed or not with the screen replacement.
Outraged by the proposition she went into the store to dispute it. And that’s where we were, she coming into the store to dispute the fact that her laptop had a broken screen due to physical damage. When a monitor or screen is physically damaged, it’s really damn obvious. There’s huge ugly colours and artefacts all over the screen. Anyone would be able to tell, let alone a Computer technician. It wasn't the fact that her screen was physically damaged that she was unconvinced and unhappy about, it was something else. The laptop she purchased was an ex display unit, so we have it up on display on our Laptop benches so people can see and touch them. Typically we only sell display units if it’s an old laptop that’s at its end of life and is being cleared out and replaced by a newer model. Due to it being a clearance, the price is reduced a fair bit so what you’re paying for the hardware you get on them is generally quite good. We then also take off a further discount for it being a display unit. So it means you get a really good deal, in exchange for buying a display unit and regardless you still get the 1 year warranty from the date of purchase with the Laptop.
She purchased her laptop as an ex display in the same fashion. She was insisting that she couldn't have possibly damaged her laptop screen. “It’s only me and my 22 year old son at home, no Children and no pets. I haven’t dropped it, I asked my son and he didn't say he had either. There’s definitely no way we damaged it ourselves so I'm not going to pay $250 to fix something that’s not my fault and that I didn't cause.” Naturally my response was what you would expect, a response that absolutely makes sense. I asked her how if she didn't damage her screen, then how might the screen have been damaged? The absolute definite and obvious conclusion that she came to was that It was damaged whilst it was on display, when it was on the store it must have had some over curious customers play around with the screen, touch it too much and damage the screen. I asked her that as unlikely as that was, if the screen was damaged in store then surely she would have noticed in when it was up on display and that she wouldn't have bought if it were the case. Her response was that there wasn't signs of the damage when she bought the Laptop, so it must have been damaged in store during display but then gradually taken time for the signs of the physical damage to actually appear, because she is absolutely certain that she definitely did not damage it herself, nor did her son because he said so.
I explained to her how ridiculously unlikely that was, that due to the nature of how screens work if the screen is damaged it will show the signs immediately. It generally worsens over time, but once the screen is damaged you will straight away see the cracks on the glass, the huge blocks of colours or complete lack of making certain sections of the screen unreadable. She was still rather disgruntled at this stage and in a rude snobbish tone she answered “Not likely, but definitely still possibly wouldn't you agree? It would have to be that, So you’re going to have to pay for the repair fee because we definitely did not damage it ourselves.”
To her I said “We’re not going to be able to pay to fix your laptop was that was broken due to physical damage. Yes it was on display but if it was fine when you bought it then I really don’t see how it could take time to show up as then having a broken screen ”
And because raising your voice and getting pissy and people who are trying to be reasonable and just doing their job always helps, in a rather loud tone she said “Yes but it’s still possible isn't it?”
Callum: “Erm, not really?”
Vicky: “But it’s possible! It must have been damaged in store.”
Trying not to be too patronising I said “Well… maybe if you didn't notice the signs when you first got it, and then over the next couple of days it became much more noticeable. But even then it should always be pretty obvious when a screen is damaged. Was it gradually getting worse and worse over time or did it suddenly happen one day?”
Vicky: “Well I was using it one night, but then I went to bed so I closed the lid and put it down on the desk. And then the next morning when I went to use to it just came up with all these weird colours.
Callum: “Okay, and you’re sure that when you put it away it wasn't dropped or anything. Or after you went to bed your son didn't use it after you?”
Vicky: “I asked him if he knew what happened and he said he didn't know.”
Callum: “Right. Okay…”
Not sure of how to handle the awkward circular conversation, I told her I’d call up the ASUS repair centre and confirm the situation. I talked to a technician and he confirmed that the screen was indeed physically damaged, and you can pretty much see two pressure points where it’s originating from. I explained to him the situation I was in with the customer disputing it, so I asked him if it’s at all possible that if a laptop had its screen damaged that it might take a while for it to show, he basically laughed a bit and said of course not. If the screen is broken, the screen is broken and you’ll know straight away. He then told me about how he would often get stuck in a similar situation where people would break their screen and they would just refuse to accept the fact that it’s physical damage and voiding the warranty when it’s very obviously so.
At this stage I was confused as to why the Laptop was even sent to service in the first place. In our store the first month for an item is referred to as the “Early life failure period” so if a customer has a faulty unit in the first month from the date of purchase we can replace or refund the item, instead of repairing it. Where generally the warranty for electronic items needs to be repaired. Bear in mind the manufacturer sets the warranty for the item, not the retailer. We’re just the middle man when it comes to warranties. As a result I asked her when she purchased the Laptop from us.
Still frustrated, her response was that “She doesn't know.”
“You don’t know?”
“I can’t remember when I bought it, why does it matter it’s still in warranty.”
So I went and checked our warranty system to find her service repair log, because that would say the date of purchase. Before I proceed bear in mind this happened in April. I looked it up and saw the date of purchase. 26th of October. FREAKIN OCTOBER. She bought the laptop 6 months ago, and the service repair was booked in just two weeks earlier. So she had bought the laptop and had it at her house, being used by her son and herself for over 5 months. So that she was claiming she bought a display unit that was damaged in store, but yet it took 5 months for the signs of physical damage to finally show on her screen. I went back to her, dreading the conversation about to take place. Firstly I said that I checked the date of purchase and it was bought all the way back in October. Unsurprised she said “Yeah, and?”
I said that there’s just no way that a display unit that was damaged in store would take that long to show it’s signs of physical damage. The very notion of the screen not showing as damaged when the screen is physically damaged is just so unlikely in the first place, let alone over a 5 month period.
Sticking to her favourite line she again responded with “YES, unlikely but definitely still possible.”
This was an interesting situation to be in because normally dealing with
unhappy customers you have to be very empathetic and appreciative of their
situation, but try and calm them down and reason with them “Yeah I can
understand it definitely would be a bit frustrating having your TV start to
fault just after the one month replacement period. But unfortunately that means
I'm not able to give you a refund. However when it gets sent to service they’ll
can fix the issue and make sure your TV is all working 100%” If the customer is
very persistent and obnoxious you can sometimes make an exception and just give
them the refund for the sake of getting it over and dealt with because all it’s
doing is stressing you out and wasting your time whilst there’s other people
waiting to be served and other things to be doing around the store. As much as
it’s frustrating to have obnoxious abusive people being rewarded for bullying and
intimidating you and your co-workers despite just doing your job and trying to
help. That’s still just a case of their interpretation of store policies or
business practises and thinking that they deserve better because they are
special and entitled.
But going back to the situation where she insisted that her physically damaged screen was damaged in store 6 months ago, but didn't show up until now and to the question of “Unlikely, but it’s still possible isn't it?” There was no way I could be empathetic and understanding with her, try and be polite and reason with something so ridiculous. And I could do was be blunt and tell it how it was, which felt odd. “No, that’s not how screens work...” Without her really saying anything I continued. “When a screen is damaged you will know, I don’t see how it’s possibly for it to not only be damaged in store which is already very unlikely. But then for the next 5 months have a working absolutely fine and then all of a sudden one day have the screen come up as being broken. That’s just not possible.”
She was very agitated and unhappy at the response. “Well what can you do for me then? I’m not going to pay $250 to fix something I know I didn't do. As I said my son is 22 and it’s not like we have any kids or pets. Are you sure you guys can’t pay for the repair? I really think you should given that it was a display. And I tell you this is the last time I ever buy a display unit.”
Callum: “No we definitely can’t pay for the repair.”
Vicky: “I'm sorry but that’s just not good enough.”
Callum: “Well that’s the situation. Your screen is physically damaged after you having the laptop for over 5 months. It is unreasonable to expect us to pay for the repair.”
Vicky: “No I get it, but I just can’t accept that. I know I didn't break it, and that’s not good enough so what you’re going to have to do, you’re going to have me get me in contact with your area manager because I’d like to take this further.
Not to disappoint she started telling me her situation. For the sake of this story her name will be Vicky.Vicky had dropped off her ASUS laptop to our store with a “faulty” screen to be fixed under warranty so it was sent off to service several weeks ago. This morning she received a call from the ASUS repair centre saying that they would not be able to fix her laptop under warranty because the screen had been physically damaged thus voiding the warranty. In order to replace the screen they would have to charge her for the labour and the replacement screen which would cost her about $250. So they were asking her if she wanted to proceed or not with the screen replacement.
Outraged by the proposition she went into the store to dispute it. And that’s where we were, she coming into the store to dispute the fact that her laptop had a broken screen due to physical damage. When a monitor or screen is physically damaged, it’s really damn obvious. There’s huge ugly colours and artefacts all over the screen. Anyone would be able to tell, let alone a Computer technician. It wasn't the fact that her screen was physically damaged that she was unconvinced and unhappy about, it was something else. The laptop she purchased was an ex display unit, so we have it up on display on our Laptop benches so people can see and touch them. Typically we only sell display units if it’s an old laptop that’s at its end of life and is being cleared out and replaced by a newer model. Due to it being a clearance, the price is reduced a fair bit so what you’re paying for the hardware you get on them is generally quite good. We then also take off a further discount for it being a display unit. So it means you get a really good deal, in exchange for buying a display unit and regardless you still get the 1 year warranty from the date of purchase with the Laptop.
She purchased her laptop as an ex display in the same fashion. She was insisting that she couldn't have possibly damaged her laptop screen. “It’s only me and my 22 year old son at home, no Children and no pets. I haven’t dropped it, I asked my son and he didn't say he had either. There’s definitely no way we damaged it ourselves so I'm not going to pay $250 to fix something that’s not my fault and that I didn't cause.” Naturally my response was what you would expect, a response that absolutely makes sense. I asked her how if she didn't damage her screen, then how might the screen have been damaged? The absolute definite and obvious conclusion that she came to was that It was damaged whilst it was on display, when it was on the store it must have had some over curious customers play around with the screen, touch it too much and damage the screen. I asked her that as unlikely as that was, if the screen was damaged in store then surely she would have noticed in when it was up on display and that she wouldn't have bought if it were the case. Her response was that there wasn't signs of the damage when she bought the Laptop, so it must have been damaged in store during display but then gradually taken time for the signs of the physical damage to actually appear, because she is absolutely certain that she definitely did not damage it herself, nor did her son because he said so.
I explained to her how ridiculously unlikely that was, that due to the nature of how screens work if the screen is damaged it will show the signs immediately. It generally worsens over time, but once the screen is damaged you will straight away see the cracks on the glass, the huge blocks of colours or complete lack of making certain sections of the screen unreadable. She was still rather disgruntled at this stage and in a rude snobbish tone she answered “Not likely, but definitely still possibly wouldn't you agree? It would have to be that, So you’re going to have to pay for the repair fee because we definitely did not damage it ourselves.”
To her I said “We’re not going to be able to pay to fix your laptop was that was broken due to physical damage. Yes it was on display but if it was fine when you bought it then I really don’t see how it could take time to show up as then having a broken screen ”
And because raising your voice and getting pissy and people who are trying to be reasonable and just doing their job always helps, in a rather loud tone she said “Yes but it’s still possible isn't it?”
Callum: “Erm, not really?”
Vicky: “But it’s possible! It must have been damaged in store.”
Trying not to be too patronising I said “Well… maybe if you didn't notice the signs when you first got it, and then over the next couple of days it became much more noticeable. But even then it should always be pretty obvious when a screen is damaged. Was it gradually getting worse and worse over time or did it suddenly happen one day?”
Vicky: “Well I was using it one night, but then I went to bed so I closed the lid and put it down on the desk. And then the next morning when I went to use to it just came up with all these weird colours.
Callum: “Okay, and you’re sure that when you put it away it wasn't dropped or anything. Or after you went to bed your son didn't use it after you?”
Vicky: “I asked him if he knew what happened and he said he didn't know.”
Callum: “Right. Okay…”
Not sure of how to handle the awkward circular conversation, I told her I’d call up the ASUS repair centre and confirm the situation. I talked to a technician and he confirmed that the screen was indeed physically damaged, and you can pretty much see two pressure points where it’s originating from. I explained to him the situation I was in with the customer disputing it, so I asked him if it’s at all possible that if a laptop had its screen damaged that it might take a while for it to show, he basically laughed a bit and said of course not. If the screen is broken, the screen is broken and you’ll know straight away. He then told me about how he would often get stuck in a similar situation where people would break their screen and they would just refuse to accept the fact that it’s physical damage and voiding the warranty when it’s very obviously so.
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| Replacing a screen is expensive |
At this stage I was confused as to why the Laptop was even sent to service in the first place. In our store the first month for an item is referred to as the “Early life failure period” so if a customer has a faulty unit in the first month from the date of purchase we can replace or refund the item, instead of repairing it. Where generally the warranty for electronic items needs to be repaired. Bear in mind the manufacturer sets the warranty for the item, not the retailer. We’re just the middle man when it comes to warranties. As a result I asked her when she purchased the Laptop from us.
Still frustrated, her response was that “She doesn't know.”
“You don’t know?”
“I can’t remember when I bought it, why does it matter it’s still in warranty.”
So I went and checked our warranty system to find her service repair log, because that would say the date of purchase. Before I proceed bear in mind this happened in April. I looked it up and saw the date of purchase. 26th of October. FREAKIN OCTOBER. She bought the laptop 6 months ago, and the service repair was booked in just two weeks earlier. So she had bought the laptop and had it at her house, being used by her son and herself for over 5 months. So that she was claiming she bought a display unit that was damaged in store, but yet it took 5 months for the signs of physical damage to finally show on her screen. I went back to her, dreading the conversation about to take place. Firstly I said that I checked the date of purchase and it was bought all the way back in October. Unsurprised she said “Yeah, and?”
I said that there’s just no way that a display unit that was damaged in store would take that long to show it’s signs of physical damage. The very notion of the screen not showing as damaged when the screen is physically damaged is just so unlikely in the first place, let alone over a 5 month period.
Sticking to her favourite line she again responded with “YES, unlikely but definitely still possible.”
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| Show us how it's done Picard |
But going back to the situation where she insisted that her physically damaged screen was damaged in store 6 months ago, but didn't show up until now and to the question of “Unlikely, but it’s still possible isn't it?” There was no way I could be empathetic and understanding with her, try and be polite and reason with something so ridiculous. And I could do was be blunt and tell it how it was, which felt odd. “No, that’s not how screens work...” Without her really saying anything I continued. “When a screen is damaged you will know, I don’t see how it’s possibly for it to not only be damaged in store which is already very unlikely. But then for the next 5 months have a working absolutely fine and then all of a sudden one day have the screen come up as being broken. That’s just not possible.”
She was very agitated and unhappy at the response. “Well what can you do for me then? I’m not going to pay $250 to fix something I know I didn't do. As I said my son is 22 and it’s not like we have any kids or pets. Are you sure you guys can’t pay for the repair? I really think you should given that it was a display. And I tell you this is the last time I ever buy a display unit.”
Callum: “No we definitely can’t pay for the repair.”
Vicky: “I'm sorry but that’s just not good enough.”
Callum: “Well that’s the situation. Your screen is physically damaged after you having the laptop for over 5 months. It is unreasonable to expect us to pay for the repair.”
Vicky: “No I get it, but I just can’t accept that. I know I didn't break it, and that’s not good enough so what you’re going to have to do, you’re going to have me get me in contact with your area manager because I’d like to take this further.
Callum: “Um, okay. But he’s just going to say the same thing
I did, given the situation.”
Vicky: “Well as a customer I have certain rights so we’ll have to see what he can do for me. I would like his contact number.”
Callum. “Okay… well I can’t just give you his contact number. I’ll give him a call now for you, I’ll explain the situation and see what he has to say.
So I called him and explained the whole situation, that she wanted us to pay for the repair of the Laptop that she clearly broke herself over the 5 month period that she had the laptop. Where she insists that the blatant physical damage on her screen was caused when it was on display 5 months ago, but didn't show up until now. He said that he would confer with his regional manager and give her a call back. Which surprised me, that he didn't just out right say no like the reasonable thing would to do.
Next time I spoke to my area manager. Asked him how it went with the lady and he said he’ll be coming into the store to buy a new Laptop. WHAT? “WHY!?”
Area Manager: “I Spoke to the regional manager and he said that if we don’t get this sorted it’ll just come back to us so we might as well just keep her happy.”
Callum: “But she broke her laptop, she had it for over 5 months it was clearly broken due to physical damage and she’s getting a new one?”
Area Manager: “Yeah but sometimes it’s just easier to keep them happy rather than having it drag on and escalate.”
Callum. “Right.”
Vicky: “Well as a customer I have certain rights so we’ll have to see what he can do for me. I would like his contact number.”
Callum. “Okay… well I can’t just give you his contact number. I’ll give him a call now for you, I’ll explain the situation and see what he has to say.
So I called him and explained the whole situation, that she wanted us to pay for the repair of the Laptop that she clearly broke herself over the 5 month period that she had the laptop. Where she insists that the blatant physical damage on her screen was caused when it was on display 5 months ago, but didn't show up until now. He said that he would confer with his regional manager and give her a call back. Which surprised me, that he didn't just out right say no like the reasonable thing would to do.
Next time I spoke to my area manager. Asked him how it went with the lady and he said he’ll be coming into the store to buy a new Laptop. WHAT? “WHY!?”
Area Manager: “I Spoke to the regional manager and he said that if we don’t get this sorted it’ll just come back to us so we might as well just keep her happy.”
Callum: “But she broke her laptop, she had it for over 5 months it was clearly broken due to physical damage and she’s getting a new one?”
Area Manager: “Yeah but sometimes it’s just easier to keep them happy rather than having it drag on and escalate.”
Callum. “Right.”
About a week later Vicky came back into the store with a $499 gift card that was sent to her, to the value of the laptop she bought. So instead of telling her too bad, she broke her laptop due to physical damage. Or instead of paying to get her laptop fixed... She got bought a brand new laptop. And that pissed me off, for the principle of it. That even though how absolutely in the wrong she was, she still got what she wanted because of her kicking up a fuss and complaining, being persistent and obnoxious when it was entirely her fault that she or her son broke her own laptop.
It was also made much worse by the way she was rude and ungrateful when she came back into the store. There was an awkward unspoken "Har har, you were wrong and I won.". I was frustrated me because there I was holding my ground and doing the right thing, despite the pressure and the stress of the situation, which then was entirely negated by the area manager just caving in and giving her a new laptop, makes me seem like I was in error and she was acting all smug like it. I had to help her find a replacement Laptop and she kept making comments about what a pain in the arse it’s gonna be now having to reinstall all of her programs, and recover all of her files. She seemed to completely oblivious to the fact that she’s getting handed a free laptop to her for no reason other than upper management being scared of hurting stupid persons feelings.
So the moral of the story is Customers can get away with lots of stupid stuff if they are persistent and obnoxious enough, and it's damn ridiculous. Whether or not there is bullying, harassment and disrespect to the staff. Upper management will cave and give them what they want even if they are being entirely unreasonable. That’s retail life.
Not long after we received her old laptop back from the ASUS repair centre unfixed. After looking at it's absolutely blatant how obvious the recent physical damage was. I'm actually very surprised it got sent off to service at all to begin with. This is the end result. You can see the two pressure points where the screen must have been closed or carried by.
