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Fernando of San Diego, CA April 27, 2008
This is a copy of the letter I sent to Dell's Legal Dept. (certified with return receipt) As of today (4/27/2008) no response Date of purchase: December 2, 2007
I purchased a laptop XPS M1530 for the amount of 2000 and made a big mistake when I thought that rather than completing the transaction online I could help a sales representative make a commission at no cost to me. Unfortunately I was led to believe by Mr. Rinaldi that he could guarantee me the same online special offers and get the order processed more rapidly through him. In more than one occasion I inquired about the 200 gift card offered with the purchase of this system and he reassured me that indeed the gift card would be mailed to me. I sent him an e-mail on January 23, 2008 after six weeks of waiting and he responded back two days later stating that gift cards could take between six to eight weeks to arrive.
Once again I patiently waited two more weeks and eventually I contacted customer care department at his suggestion. I was surprised to find out my name was not on the list? and therefore, I was not going to receive any gift cards. The operator was abrupt and rude and put me on hold as I requested to speak to a supervisor. Eventually I talked to Mike? who told me I should contact [Dell] legal department. Once again, I contacted Mr. Rinaldi to give him an opportunity to correct his mistake and he replied he was going to fix the problem after talking to his supervisor and would get back to me that same day which of course he did not. Further e-mails to him went unanswered.
I have been a loyal customer and I have purchased several desktops from Dell in the last 15 years. Furthermore, I have recommended Dell products to family members and colleagues alike. However, I am very disappointed at this clear case of false advertising, false promises, and plain deceit. The reality is that the 200 gift card was what ultimately convinced me of purchasing this laptop as I wanted to use the gift card towards the purchase of other Dell products. I can imagine after what I have found online, that I am not the only customer referred to you by customer service. The implication that simple mistakes intentional or unintentional cannot be resolved by the customer service department but rather they need to be dealt by [Dell} legal department makes me wonder about the integrity of [the] company and perhaps [their] litigious mentality that I do not share.
However, no matter how insignificant the value of the gift card is, I am not going to let [Dell} get away with this kind of behavior. I believe in principles and Im going to pursue every possible venue until my 200 gift card is sent to me.
Preston of Youngsville, NY April 26, 2008
When ordering a replacement fan for my desktop, The salesperson suggested upgrading the memory on my computer. I asked for an additional 1Gig of memory and was sent a single 1Gig card. The problem is that memory has to be installed symmetrically. When I asked for 1 Gig he should have told me I would need 2 512MB cards. I elected to upgrade only upon his suggestion. He should have recommended the correct configuration.
I have spent hours on the phone and emails trying to resolve this. I'm sorry but I have not spoken to one person who speaks English well enough to grasp the problem and offer a resolution. Years ago Dell's customer service was excellent. Now it is a pitched battle trying to get service. William of Carrollton, TX April 25, 2008
We were billed for ink cartridges which were supposed to be free. On 1/25/2008 we ordered a Dell Inspiron 1720 Laptop computer. In their offer we were supposed to receive a Dell Dollar certificate in the amount of 75.00. We received this coupon on 3/18/2008. On 3/23/2008 we used this coupon to purchase ink cartridges which were priced at 80.96 and charged the balance to our Dell Preferred Account. We printed out the completed order form from Dell showing that we did not owe them anything and that we had used our Dell Preferred Account to charge this item. When our statement dated 4/17/2008 arrived we had been charged 87.65 for these ink cartridges.
We called their Financial Services Customer Service department and were told by someone that we could not use the 75.00 Dell Dollars certificate; first because the amount of the purchase was only 74.01 (the purchase was for 80.96, very plainly stated on the computer printout of the order; second if we used our Preferred Customer account (the computer printout of the order shows that this account was used and there was no notice that we could not use this card. This was after repeatedly asking to speak to someone who could speak English, (when I asked where he was located, he spoke so poorly I could not understand what he said), being on the phone from 6:44p.m. until 9:20p.m. Repeatedly being put on hold, told that it would only be for one to two minutes and then left there for extended periods of time. Once after fifteen minutes, I hung up and called them back.
We repeatedly asked to speak to a supervisor and when we finally spoke with Gary Minhas, who did not speak any better English than the previous people we had talked to. He kept repeating that we had only purchased 74.01 and could not use the 75.00 credit. How can that be when the charge to our account if for 87.65? He could not answer this question. The total of the purchase was for 80.96 should have had tax added for 6.69 for a total of 87.65 less the 75.00 Dell Dollar Certificate for a total of 12.65 billed to our account. He also told me that now since we had attempted to use the Dell Dollar certificate, we could no longer retrieve the certificate to use on another purchase. In other words once you attempted to use this certificate, it is invalidated. I finally gave up trying to talk to them and hung up in frustration.
I then looked up the phone number of their Austin, Texas office and called that number. I at least got someone who spoke English without such a heavy accent. He at least verified that we had purchased 80.96 worth of merchandise from them. However, he told me that the Dell Dollar Certificate which we used was not valid if we did not use a debit or credit card other than our Dell Preferred Customer account. I told him that no where on the Dell Dollar Certificate was this stated and that their website accepted this charge as valid and did not state that we had to use a different debit or credit card. (We had an available credit amount of over 3,000.00 at the time all this took place). He finally said that they would refer my complaint to their corporate offices and someone would call within 24 to 48 hours.
In addition to speaking with them on the phone, I have emailed their financial service department offering to fax them copies of my Dell Dollar Certificate and a copy of the Order Summary printed from their website. My final correspondence with them was that they would answer my email with 1 business day. I believe their action is both fraud and deceptive advertising. If this is the way they treat what are supposed to consider their Preferred Customers, what do they do to the average customer? We will definitely never buy anything from them again.
What should have been free is now going to cost us 87.65 plus numerous hours and total frustration. Plus they are not going to allow us to use the 75.00 Dell Dollar Certificate for any other purchase. Joe of New City, NY April 23, 2008
On 4/14/08, I ordered a Dell desktop. The email confirmation indicated a 4/22/08 shipping date. I thought an 8 day delay strange, but even though I needed a computer, I decided to wait it out. On 4/22/08, I received an email from Dell indicating an estimated shipping date of 4/28/08.
I called customer service to inquire why such a long delay and was told there are delays getting the CPU that I ordered. I asked if I could change the CPU to one they had in stock and was told once the order was placed it cannot be changed. I then asked if we cancel the existing order can I order again with a CPU and other parts that are in stock. The rep said it would then take another week to assemble the computer. The rep became iritable as I continued to try and resolve the situation.
There seems to be no customer concern what-so-ever at Dell. I am not out any money, nor was there any hint of misrepresentation on the part of Dell. My main complaint is the way they (mis)handled my request for a prompt and fair resolution of THEIR problem.
Shannon of Brooklyn, NY April 22, 2008
On 3/22/08, I placed an order for two laptops to be shipped to my neice and nephew. On 4/8/08, someone at Dell canceled my order and rekeyed it in, putting in my old address (from 2 years ago) as the shipping address. The computers shipped there. I called Dell and was given the so sorry, our fault, we'll ship out two new computers ASAP and make arrangements to get the others.
A month later, my account has been sent to their Fraud Department, I cannot get anyone to call me back, I spend over an hour EVERY NIGHT on the phone trying to get someone to help me. Most of the reps are polite, some are down right ignorant and rude.
Out 1,500.00 plus tax and interest (that's still accruing). Ana of Kamuela, HI April 22, 2008
I purchased a brand new dell inspiron laptop in Nov 2007. for 650.00. it began to malfunction immediately. I called dell to return it & was routed to tech support. After countless hours on the phone the laptop would not function properly. I had transfered all my files to the laptop hoping to create an efficient working environment for myself r data from my desktop to the laptop with the idea of giving my desk top to my son. I worked and saved for several months to purchase the laptop. Dell techs & customer support continued to route me through endless calls while my return time of 21 days ran out & then refused to replace the laptop.
Months went by without any resolve to the dysfunction of this laptop. I had taken it to two repair shops in my community and both stated that the hard drive was faulty. I again went through the Dell shuffle being routed from one tech agent to another spending countless hours on the phone, hours that I am not being reimbursed for and are better spent as earning hours not hours repairing my own computer that should be functioning properly to begin with! The latest in that a new tech agent instructed me to reinstall the operating systems which meant all my data was , whatever, I can not & have not been able to even get into the system in over a month.
I had my son with me on this call since I am now so frustrated it is difficult to be civil at this point. The operating system would not install and after the agent hung up the phone as usual the laptop frozen in the middle of installation process. An agent was to call back the following day and did not the laptop is glowing in my office stuck in frozen for two days refusing to turn off. What is of course troubling to me is the lack poor quality of this product. What is worse however is the lack of integrity and the ease within which dell gathers billions of dollars producing faulty products they refuse to back up. I am a real person with a family a community and I work hard for my money. I expect when I spend 650.00 and I THINK spend 650.00 is A LOT of money. I respect the money I earn & expect that when I purchase something it ought to work, and it ought to work for many years. The laptop was a big purchase to me.
The consequences: 650.00 for a system that does not & never did function 300.00 in attempted repairs 57 hours of my time wasted 55.00 an hours frustration irritation loss of work Garrick of Santa Rosa, CA April 22, 2008
After purchasing a Dell laptop, a Dell salesperson called and offered me a warranty for a discounted price. I accepted the warranty, but when my bill came, the price was much more than I was quoted. After calling Dell, I thought I got the price fixed, then a year later, after noticing that one of my keys is not functioning, I was appalled to find out that Dell hadn't fixed the warranty price, instead had canceled the warranty altogether, even though their website lists my warranty as effective until 2011. I have been a Dell customer for over 10 years, but never again.
After a year of thinking I had a warranty, I'm now stuck with paying for a new keyboard that I thought I had covered all along. Teresa of Ashby, MN April 22, 2008
I sent my Inspiron 9200 to Dell for a repair when the screen went black while still in warranty. On March 18 it was picked up by DHLin a box shipped to me with a preaddressed label and shipped to Dell in Memphis TN where it was promptly repaired and shipped out on March 19th. On April 21 I still have not received my computer. After three calls, approaching three hours in duration I was told that my computer was shipped to an address that I lived at three years ago. It was then sent to a DHL warehouse in Miami where it sat in lonely silent for about three weeks. During my first lengthy call to Dell Tech Support, I was transferred to Customer Care who told me I needed to talk to Tech Support and was eventually transferred back, After more and more time on hold it was discovered that the repaired computer was sent to my old address by mistake and that I would receive it in two days. Even after the hour on the phone I was grateful for this information. When my computer did not arrive on the day that Dell assured me that it would, I again called the tech support number and went through the confusion of being transferred back and forth betweeen tech and customer care.
After a lengthy hold time I was told by Jim at tech support that unfortunately paperwork needed to correct my shipping address had not been completed by the first rep I talked with and it would now be taken care of. My computer would now have to be shipped from DHL in Miami back to Dell in Memphis before it could continue on to me. I would told by Jim's supervisor that I would receive my computer on Monday 4/19. On Monday afternoon the odds of my computer arriving were slipping away and again, for the third time I called Dell Tech Support, was subjected to the delays and transfers between tech support and customer care. This time I was told that the computer would be arriving at Dell that day and that I would be receiving it in probably two days. Howver, they could not give me a tracking number for this shipment. I was also given a sales pitch to buy an extended warranty for my system, which expired during the time that my computer was in Miami.i declined.
During the third call, while on a long hold time, I told my husband later, I just about started to cry. This experience has been so frustrating. In the past 5 years my family have been good customers for Dell, purchasing two notebooks and three desktop systems and hundreds and hundreds of dollars of ink. Dell, unfortunately does not provide the kind of professional customer service that should be expected of it. Apparently Dell's management doesn't care but they have lost one family of customers for good.
As a content writer for a large website the month without my notebook was frustrating but I used other computers when I could and finally bought a small ASUS eee out of necessity. It cost just over 400 but without it I would not have been able to write and submit articles for my job. Mark of Nevada, MO April 22, 2008
My wife and I bought a new Dell Inspiron 1420 3 months ago. We had an accident to where water spilled on the keyboard. The laptop cost us 1,200.00, and now on sale for 450.00.....go figure. Anyway, since we did not buy the accidental warranty coverage, we were given a number to call for out of warrant damage. After emailing Dell and getting a case number, that man responsible for talking to us was Mathew. I was asked to call Dell and give them the nature of the accident and to go over repair procedures. While on the phone with Mathew, he explained the the most it would cost me would be 438.00, and if that was the case, they would just send me a completely new PC. He said that the service was prepaid and that they would need the 438.00 up front and would not be debited to our account until DHL brought the return box and picked the unit up.
I repeated myself twice to everything Mathew explained to me, because I know that they record their conversation if needed for future referance. Twice Mathew told me that I would not be debuted until the package was in the hands of DHL, which in turn would mean Dell had possession on the unit. DHL came by our home while we were away and dropped off a return box without picking up the laptop. That night, while checking our banking account, we noticed that Dell had went ahead and debuted us the 438.00. My wife and I have been on the phone with Dell for a week now trying to get them to refund us took unlwfully from us. They were hateful the first time we called them, so we decided to persur other avenues for repairing the unit. Mathew is nowhere to be found and if you ask for them, Dell goes into this spill that there is several men with that name, but in all reality, it may just be a name, but there is a employee number attached to everything, I can assure you of that.
Last week we were told that the refund would be back to us no later that yesterday 2-21-2008, then after it not being there, I called last night and now they tell us it could be another 5-7 days. I asked, is there a business office i could talk to, and if you checked the records, the guy on the phone said, no! I asked, is there a credit card debartment I could talk to that responsible for issuing debits back to customers, hes said, no!, and that nobody really know who does the debuting. So we still dont have our money, my laptop that is 3 months old is sitting here looking at me, and we hate Dell. This was our 3rd computer from the. What is their problem?
Here's what we think should happen to those lying robots they call employees. We should not only get a replacement computer, but they absolute, most awesome, tap of the line, loaded to the gills laptop that Dell has to offer. 1,200.00 is very hard for my wife and I to come buy, and we did this, because I am a on-line group owner for suffering Americans called Broken Road Survivors, and I needed the top of the line computer to take care of my fellow brothers and sisters.
This has hurt my wife and I. We put our trust into large companies and expect them to be honest and willing to go the distance to keep customer satisfaction a number one priorty. Somewhere in the mist of very large profits, Dell seems to forget who is responsible for such profits, the American public, just like you and me. This give all large companies a bad name somehow, because when word like this gets out, and Im sure I am only one in many, maybe thousands, that have just had to take it because companies like Dell are large and you just cant fight them. Someone who knows the law can hit companies like this where it hurts, but then again, even lawyers know that litigation ties a person up for 2 years or more. Joana of San Antonio, TX April 21, 2008
Last month I purchase a m1530. A few days after receipt, it started omitting a burning odor. I called dell and scheduled a return. I was told that I would receive a credit once the return had been received. At that time, the sales person talked me into reordering the same system because it was about 250 cheaper. Instead of refunding me for the return and billing me for the new order, they processed the whole thing as an exchange and billed me the higher amount. I called and explained I had five pieces of proof that the item was a return, not an exchange.
1) I spoke to a sale person, Patrick, who promised me that he would note the account 2) I spoke to the supervisor, Lauren, who also promised that it would be handled as a return. I was told that the notes would be left on my account 3) The order was on my dell prefer account page when I logged in 4) I have an email confirming that the item had been RETURNED and I would receive a credit for my RETURN in 7-14 days 5) I have an email confirming my new order for the second computer I purchase.
The people in customer service keep talking in circles. They say that despite the notations on the account and emails confirming an exchange, they will not honor the original, written, agreement. What do I do now? I know I can file something with Consumer affair, but what else can I do? I cant believe there no way to make contact with corporate. Dont they care about customer satisfaction? Who is overseeing the customer service department?
I was over charge 265.79
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