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Best Buy Extended Warranty (Product Replacement Plan)

Feb 14, 2011   //   by DJ Meltdown   //   Blog, DJ Gear, WTF  //  1 Comment

There is one thing across the board that cripples businesses across the globe, consistency.  It’s true for all big businesses.  Have you ever tried getting a straight answer from Verizon, Comcast, or some other national company?  It’s impossible, and it’s impossible with Best Buy as well.

It’s a fact of the trade, most DJ’s use headphones, including me; and, like most DJ’s, I put my headphones through hell.  When I first start DJ’ing I found myself going through headphones like water.  Either blowing out drivers, or ripping the cords, or breaking the jack.  About 12 years ago another DJ turned me on to Radio Shack’s extended warranty program.  He told me that eventhough radio shack didn’t carry the best headphones, for $12-15 he could buy a 3 yr warranty and have them replaced any time, without question.  So, naturally, I went to Radio Shack and bought some headphones (with the warranty), and had no problem swapping those headphones out for a new pair when needed.

In 2008 Radio Shack amended their extended warranty so that you can only swap your broken product 1 time, thus eliminating the value that the extended warranty once provided.  Although $15 was much cheaper than paying $45-50 for a new pair of headphones, I wasn’t getting the mileage of swapping them 10 times that made it such a deal.  So when my last pair of Radio Shack headphones went down, I set out to find a company that had something similar to Radio Shack’s old extended warranty.

In November of 2009 I ventured into a Best Buy in Chicago, IL to see how the prices faired and what the warranties were like on a new pair of headphones.  Prices were fair on a pair of Sony MDR-V150 headphones, so I asked for the manager to clarify the warranty.  I spoke to the manager at length and made sure to ask him the very important details

  • Most importantly, does the warranty allow for multiple replacements within the warranty period? (he answered yes)
  • Does the warranty cover accidental damage such as rolling over the headphones with my desk chair (he answered yes, further going on to state that i could pretty much run over them with my car and they would still give me a new pair)
  • Are there any other fees/costs associated with obtaining a replacement (he answered no, just make sure you have your original reciept)

At this point, I thought I was golden, so I completed my purchase of the headphones & warranty and left.

In early February 2010, I needed my first replacement, so I headed to Best Buy to have the swapped and I was in and out in 10 minutes, no questions asked.  ”Great”, I thought.  I’ve since swapped by headphones another 4 times, in various locations throughout the Chicago area and in Connecticut, therefore when I went to swap my headphones again the morning of February 5, 2011, I wasn’t expecting any problems.

I walked into the Best Buy in Meriden, CT around 2:45 and searched for the pair of headphones I needed, but I wasn’t able to find them on the shelf, there were none there, nor was there a space on the shelf for them.  I approached the customer service desk, explained my situation, and the employee behind the counter looked up the item and said he had them in stock in back.  He called for a manager, and about 5 minutes later a new pair of headphones appeared.  At this point I thought all was going well, little did I know it was about to go WAY downhill.

Four(4) Best Buy employees tried figure out how to do a PRP (Product Replacement Plan) exchange in their computer system, all of them failing at some point in the process.  Now 30 minutes have elapsed in a process that has never taken more than 10 at any other Best Buy, and I’m dealing with a 5th employee while the manager (Bob) looks on offering no help to his fledgling employees.  The 5th employee enters some information into the computer, including asking for my drivers license for the 19th time, then turns to me and says…

The Product Replacement Plan does not cover accidental damage.

I called bullshit on that one, citing what the previous manager had told me, and also citing my past experiences.  He left his post and went to discuss this with his manager and he comes back to tell me that it’s going to be $6.00 to replace my headphones, at this point I lost it.  I screamed at him, “for what??”, and again reminded him of my prior experiences.  He then told me that the product replacement agreement stipulates that after they replace the product once, their obligation under the agreement has been fulfilled.  So all 3 of my original questions when buying the plan were negated in 1 trip to Best Buy…nice.  After 45 minutes of dealing with complete incompetency, I really didn’t care to ever set foot in a Best Buy again.  I told the clerk and the manager that I had enough and I was going to take the new headphones and walk out, they told me they would have to call mall security to taze me if I did that, so I left without anything (including my license).

After leaving I called up a guy that I deal with at Guitar Center and told him my story, he said to bring in the receipts, the broken headphones, and he would honor what Best Buy wouldn’t.  I called the store manager (Bob) later that night, had a lengthy conversation with him about the PRP process, and told him that I would be coming back in the morning for what I left there, and Guitar Center, unlike Best Buy, actually cares about how they treat their customers.

I arrived back at Best Buy about 10 minutes before they opened their doors (11AM). Once they opened up, I walked in and was greeted by the same staff of imbeciles I dealt with the day before. I promptly asked for the store manager on duty, unfortunately Bob wasn’t working. The manager on duty told me that everything I needed was at mall security (YAY!), so I left Best Buy and headed through the mall.

Upon arriving at mall security, I informed the rent-a-cop at the window who I was, and asked for my things. He promptly retrieved a bag of items that contained my license, receipts, and a shiny box with a new pair of headphones, but before he handed them over he asked what happened in Best Buy the day before. A little taken back, I asked if he didn’t have access to the security tapes. He then said, “Don’t get smart with me.” So naturally, I did, and responded, “Listen Blart… Are you going to give me my stuff, or do I have to call a real cop to straighten things out?” I was soon walking out with my stuff in hand.

I looked carefully at the receipts after getting them back, along with a new exchange receipt, there was a ripped page from part of the PRP agreement stapled to it, with a part circled in pen that outlines that Best Buy’s obligation ends once they replace the item.  At the top of the page above the circled area, the agreement lists the items for which that agreement applies, and nowhere are “headphones” listed.

OK, I admin, a pretty long story with a melodramatic ending… we have learned a few things

  • DJ’s should never buy headphones from Best Buy (Lesson learned)
  • Mall Security Guards will take every opportunity to exert a power trip
  • You can’t get a consistent answer from anybody in a large company

I’d love for Best Buy to elaborate on that last point….because there are still questions left unanswered.

  • Would still love to see the policy that applies to “headphones” in writing…
  • If Best Buy fulfills their obligation with the first replacement, why was it done a 2nd, 3rd, 4th & 5th time?
  • Why did it take 5-6 employees, and well over 45 minutes to do a simple PRP?
  • Why was there such a hassle, particularly over the replacement, if Best Buy was going to issue me a new set of headphones anyway.

I was also given a new receipt, which means when these headphones shit the bed, I can go back to Best Buy and exchange them again since my warranty contract doesnt expire until November of 2011. Please, somebody tell me why big corporations CANT get their shit together?

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