Saturday, May 02, 1998
Tim O'Malley
xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Saginaw, Michigan
48602
Best Buy
Pattye Hechter
P.O. Box 9312
Minneapolis, MN
55440
Dear Pattye:
Thank you for your letter of April 26, 1998. It was nice to hear from you in such a timely fashion. I apologize for the delay of my reply. I was down with a bout of African Ramjack Fever for about ten days.
You must have missed the day at law school when they told you to, "Read the file before you write the letter." A casual glance at the file would have cleared up a lot of your confusion. Let me try to bring you up to speed.
I gave Leila Dennison a Microtek Scanmaker E3 for Christmas 1997. Since she bought her Packard Bell computer from Best Buy I told her to have the computer technicians there install the scanner.
Leila has hauled her computer back and forth to Best Buy's Saginaw, Michigan store many times in an attempt to get all the problems straightened out. The Best Buy computer technicians blame everybody and everything for their inability to install the scanner except their lack of expertise. They even stoop to lying. "Scanner defective," reads one note on the work order. A lie I was able to disprove by plugging the scanner into my Packard Bell computer. The scanner worked fine. The Best Buy technicians had no idea that Leila would be able to check on the lie. I will have to admit they tried everything. At one point they disabled her sound card and called it, "DONE." It was no trouble at all for them to run her back and forth. After all, why would they care, they had the $39.99
On the last trip she packed up the whole system and took it back. Since she bought the Best Buy Performance Service Plan
Leila was under the impression that after three trips back and forth she could get a new computer. Leila figured that she could rely on the time honored legal principle, "You broke it, you bought it'. Although the Best Buy computer technicians broke it, they refused to buy it.
Unfortunately, like fine print every where, she had failed to read it on the extended policy. It turns out that you must have the computer shipped back to the Best Buy repair facility in Livonia Michigan three times before you can get a new one. No wonder Dick Schulze wants to make these plans 2.5% of gross. They are a gold mine.
Leila was unwilling to trust her new computer to the Best Buy computer technicians any further. They suggested that she needed to send it to the Livonia tech center for a restoration. Price, $60.00. This will take five days and will restore the computer to the state it was in when it came from the factory. Anybody who can read can put the disks in and restore the computer in less than two hours. There is some question as to whether or not the Best Buy technicians are all that familiar with the English language. The numerous miss-spellings on the work orders are a clue.
Phone calls to the General Manager of Best Buy's Saginaw store, Mike Everhardt at (517) 799-8266 went unanswered. A certified letter to Mike brought no response. Mike, it seems, is adept at dodging irate customers.
I wrote a complaint the Michigan Attorney General wondering if Best Buy is not fraudulently advertising "EXPERT" technicians when they do not have any employed. WNEM TV5 contacted your office and Myra Denin is all of a sudden in a big bustin' hurry to get this cleared up.
Myra refused more than once to say whether or not the Best Buy computer technicians are A+ certified under the guise of it being personal information. I would think that certification would be considered professional information. Be that as it may, given Best Buy's aggressive marketing and advertising campaigns it would astound me if your public relations people were not shouting it to the high heavens if the technicians were certified. Such a leg up on the competition would not be ignored. Pattye, you have refused more than once to say if they are certified. I take it that they are NOT!
Myra also suggested that I write the manufacturers to inquire weather Best Buy technicians qualify to work on their products. I wrote Microtek and Packard Bell on March 25, 1998. I have had no reply to date. After more than a month with no reply from Microtek or Packard Bell I will take it that they are not willing to say that Best Buy's computer technicians are qualified to work on their products.
Myra Denin is a lawyer for the Consumer Relations Department of Best Buy as are you. It seems that the way Best Buy has things set up is this:
1. Got a complaint
2. Talk to our lawyers.
3. Don't like what they say:
4. Sue this EIGHT BILLION-dollar a year company.
Pattye, you have invited me into litigation twice already. Really, neither Leila nor myself want to sue. We like Best Buy. Besides, like almost all Americans we are intimidated by the legal profession. It does seem strange that Best Buy's Consumer Relations Department is staffed by a pack of lawyers. Lawyers are best known for their adversarial role in society. It puts the consumer a great disadvantage to right away face a lawyer over a complaint.
Myra's solution was to get Leila to pack everything up and haul it around town until she could find an Independent Computer Expert to fix things and send Myra the bill.
Our response to this suggestion was an emphatic, NO!
instead, since Best Buy's computer expert's broke Leila's computer, Best Buy should give Leila a new computer and by way of apology some other items. The apology list, as I call it. Since our time is extremely valuable I add things to the, "Apology list," as time goes on.
Myra did not have the authority, so she handed me on to you.
Your letter indicates that you are the top of the chain, well Richard Schulze is a rung above you, but as you say, "I am the senior attorney". Your position in the hierarchy of Best Buy, is I'm sure, exalted. That is why I hate to be the one to tell you this, but The Best Buy table of Organization does not read, "Pattye Hechter reports to Dick Schultz. If you would like to see for your self go to www.bestbuy.com. There is a list of officers; you are not even mentioned.
As I read the table of organization you are a long, long, really long way from the top. That is way I ask you once again to please send me the name, address, and phone number of your supervisor. Pattye, the fact of American corporate life is: Everybody reports to somebody. Even Dick Schulze reports to somebody.
I hope this clears things up for you. We have considered the solution offered by both Myra and you. The answer is still a resounding NO! Your solution is way too serving of Best Buy. You of course, are required to keep your clients best interests to the front. The plain simple fact of the matter is that the Best Buy computer technicians screwed up. They have enlisted you to avoid the responsibility for their actions. You want Leila to spend more time, money, and effort to correct problems caused by Best Buy. Is that reasonable? Is it fair? Is it Best Buy's policy to try and weasel out from under responsibility?
You close your letter with the lines, "Having said that, we will no longer correspond with either of you if you are unwilling to consider the solution that has been offered. I will restate that: in other words, any additional correspondence received will not be responded to." If it is your desire to ignore this letter. I cannot stop you. If it is your desire to close the door to communication. I cannot stop you. I will say it again. We have considered your solution. It is a typical lawyer's solution. It falls fat short of good customer relations.
Sincerely,
Tim O'Malley
cc: Leila Dennison
Certified mail 5/3/98
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