Sony's Customer Service just flat out SUCKS!

[Buddhist]

I apologize in advance for ranting but, i'm so frustrated with this.
So about three months ago, I purchased a Sony sdm-hs73 from bestbuy in Redwood City, CA. (17" flat panel monitor and I did not purchase best buy's extended warranty for another $100)
Yesterday while opening up my email, the monitor began flickering like crazy horizontally, then side to side like large waves. I conected my laptop to it to confirm that it wasn't a video card issue. Surely enough it was a monitor problem. I called Sony today to ask them what to do about this and they said that I only have two options.

1. Send it in, wait twenty days and then receive it back.
2. Send it in, secure another monitor with your credit card, and they will ship it out today. (And remove your credit card charge upon receiving your monitor). This replacement monitor they would send however would be a Refurbished model.

In either case, all the expensive shipping charges must be paid by me! The customer!

So Sony makes a defective product, and the customer has to pay for their mistake? WTF? Send me a refurbished monitor for my retail monitor which i paid full price for? WTF? :|

Sony, take responsibility for your own defective product!!!! :|

I don't know what else to say except although Sony sometimes makes very nice products but its clear to me that Sony doesn't give a rats ass about customer service. :|

If this is how Sony thinks it should treat their customers, i'll make it a point to not purchase their products again.

-M.T.O

(I've checked the closest repair center option mentioned below...and there isn't one within a 75 mile radius. And I live in Silicon Valley too! heh)

 

[bubbadu]

I had the EXACT same freaking problem happen to me a couple of years ago.... I got a 17" sony CRT from ubid for about 100 bucks... the damn thing lasted 3 hours! I called sony and they said that I HAD to ship it in and they would fix it and ship it back... what a joke... I can definilty understand your frustration.

 

[Hammer]

sony's CS is horrible. ive had bad experiences too.

 

[slackerinabox]

Weird.. My refurb sony notebook had issues and they sent me an Fedex box via overnight mail and picked up the laptop as well...

 

[DOSfan]

You have another unspoken option. As rare as it is.

Check you area (phonebook, net search, however) for a Sony Service Center. My step brother had a problem with a car stereo a few years back, and I found a center about 40 minute drive from us. That saves your shipping fees. But, they may no longer have service centers.

And, trust me. Sony has very, um, poor customer service. Just go to any of the websites for their SOE games. (EQ, Earth and Beyond, Galaxies, etc.) You will see more people ranting thatn you!

 

[crypticlogin]

In either case, all the expensive shipping charges must be paid by me! The customer!

So Sony makes a defective product, and the customer has to pay for their mistake? WTF? Send me a refurbished monitor for my retail monitor which i paid full price for? WTF? :|

Well it's not just Sony. More and more companies are adopting the same kind of RMA policies and it isn't until you contact them do they lay it out. Just try contacting another electronics brand and you'd be surprsied how many make you pay for shipping to them and how many will send you something other than a brand new replacement.

 

[Buddhist]

Originally posted by: tenchim

In either case, all the expensive shipping charges must be paid by me! The customer!

So Sony makes a defective product, and the customer has to pay for their mistake? WTF? Send me a refurbished monitor for my retail monitor which i paid full price for? WTF? :|

Well it's not just Sony. More and more companies are adopting the same kind of RMA policies and it isn't until you contact them do they lay it out. Just try contacting another electronics brand and you'd be surprsied how many make you pay for shipping to them and how many will send you something other than a brand new replacement.

I'm sure there are many other companies that are adopting the same principle. Its because they teach in business schools that the bottom line is what matters and thus business decisions should be made purely on the immediate quantitative gain (or minimization of loss in this case) for the company. When, really if we look at succesful companies, those that focus on a principle independent of profits such as "To provide the best products possible for mothers" (Johnson and Johnson) or "To make travelers always feel at home no matter where they are" (Marriott) have been the most succesful companies in their industries. B-schools really need to stop chanting the mantra about quantitative value in the short run of "a company exists for profits" and switch to "a company exists to maximize shareholder value, both financial and communal" as ironically, the short term quantitative business decisions tend to kill the company due to the long term qualitative sufferings. This is my personal opinion as a businessman and an entrepeneur.

-M.T.O

 

[Stark]

sony's been like that for years. it's funny, because when you spend more money for something you usually get better service (nordstrom, ritz-carlton, etc). With sony, you get crapped on.

 

[dman]

Sucks about the shipping, but, that's the way it works.

I'd do as above, and call back and ask if there is a local service center. Somehow I doubt you'll find one that services LCD displays,but, it's a possibility.

 

[AlienCraft]

Maybe there is some value to a brick and mortar outlet. There, you can drop it off at the return desk, pick up another for replacement and be on your way. That's what the differential between Internet sale and B/M sale buys you, imho.
I agree with the last post you made regarding corporate "direction".

 

[Ryan]

I could have told you that, and I've NEVER bought a sony product.

 

[nan0bug]

Originally posted by: Buddhist
I apologize in advance for ranting but, i'm so frustrated with this.
So about three months ago, I purchased a Sony sdm-hs73. (17" flat panel monitor)
Yesterday while opening up my email, the monitor began flickering like crazy horizontally, then side to side like large waves. I conected my laptop to it to confirm that it wasn't a video card issue. Surely enough it was a monitor problem. I called Sony today to ask them what to do about this and they said that I only have two options.

1. Send it in, wait twenty days and then receive it back.
2. Send it in, secure another monitor with your credit card, and they will ship it out today. (And remove your credit card charge upon receiving your monitor). This replacement monitor they would send however would be a Refurbished model.

In either case, all the expensive shipping charges must be paid by me! The customer!

So Sony makes a defective product, and the customer has to pay for their mistake? WTF? Send me a refurbished monitor for my retail monitor which i paid full price for? WTF? :|

Sony, take responsibility for your own defective product!!!! :|

I don't know what else to say except although Sony sometimes makes very nice products but its clear to me that Sony doesn't give a rats ass about customer service. :|

If this is how Sony thinks it should treat their customers, i'll make it a point to not purchase their products again.

-M.T.O

If you buy something from a brick and mortar store, and it's broke, do you expect them to send an employee to your house to pick it up and replace it?

No, you put it back in the box you bought it in and take it back to the store, unless you pay extra for an on-site warranty. The store does not give you gas money when you get there, you pay out of your own pocket for the transportation.

Most if not all companies operate in the same fashion. Hello, and welcome to last millenium.

 

[Buddhist]

Originally posted by: AlienCraft
Maybe there is some value to a brick and mortar outlet. There, you can drop it off at the return desk, pick up another for replacement and be on your way. That's what the differential between Internet sale and B/M sale buys you, imho.
I agree with the last post you made regarding corporate "direction".

I bought it at Best buy in Redwood City. I didn't however purchase the extended service plan (Best Buys extra warranty) which would of cost around another $100. So I did buy it at a brick and mortar.

 

[Gunther]

Originally posted by: DOSfan
You have another unspoken option. As rare as it is.

Check you area (phonebook, net search, however) for a Sony Service Center. My step brother had a problem with a car stereo a few years back, and I found a center about 40 minute drive from us. That saves your shipping fees. But, they may no longer have service centers.

And, trust me. Sony has very, um, poor customer service. Just go to any of the websites for their SOE games. (EQ, Earth and Beyond, Galaxies, etc.) You will see more people ranting thatn you!

I agree you should try doing this because it saves on shipping, only the cost of gas. I did this with my sony g400 trinitron and after dropping it off it did take a little while for them to get back to me, but surprisingly they sent me a new g400.

Edit: sorry missed the update But it still might be cheaper to just drive there yourself.

 

[rahvin]

I feel your pain, been there done it. I refuse to purchase any sony products. My ban will remain in place for the rest of my life, I would only take a sony product if it was free. I have a LOT of animosity for that company.

 

[Turkish]

exactly, my fvckin sony digicam's focus fvcked up a few months back, and they told me to ship it insured and wait for 4-6 weeks until they send it back... fvckin as$holes.

 

[Buddhist]

If you buy something from a brick and mortar store, and it's broke, do you expect them to send an employee to your house to pick it up and replace it?

No, you put it back in the box you bought it in and take it back to the store, unless you pay extra for an on-site warranty. The store does not give you gas money when you get there, you pay out of your own pocket for the transportation.

Most if not all companies operate in the same fashion. Hello, and welcome to last millenium.

I'd put the monitor back in the box and take it to best buy, but they would just tell me to deal with Sony myself. Your example is not valid as the problem isn't with the retail outlet, but with the manufacturer of the product.

If you insist on sticking to the same concept, are you saying I should drive to Sony's factory and hand them their defective monitor? That I'm to take responsibility for their products being defective? If so, thats got to be one of the dumbest things I've ever heard. Although, i'll give you the benefit of the doubt and believe you are neither a business who doesn't care about their customers, or an idiot as these are the only two groups that would believe this.

 

[nan0bug]

Originally posted by: Buddhist

If you buy something from a brick and mortar store, and it's broke, do you expect them to send an employee to your house to pick it up and replace it?

No, you put it back in the box you bought it in and take it back to the store, unless you pay extra for an on-site warranty. The store does not give you gas money when you get there, you pay out of your own pocket for the transportation.

Most if not all companies operate in the same fashion. Hello, and welcome to last millenium.

I'd put the monitor back in the box and take it to best buy, but they would just tell me to deal with Sony myself. Your example is not valid as the problem isn't with the retail outlet, but with the manufacturer of the product.

If you insist on sticking to the same concept, are you saying I should drive to Sony's factory and hand them their defective monitor? That I'm to take responsibility for their products being defective? If so, thats got to be one of the dumbest things I've ever heard. Although, i'll give you the benefit of the doubt and believe you are neither a businesses who doesn't care about their customers, or an idiots as these are the only two groups that would believe this.

The premise is simple. Either way, you're going to pay to get that monitor in their hands and a new one in yours, whether it is in the form of an on-site warranty, shipping the monitor to them, or the gas in your car to drive back to the store. It is incredibly naive of you to expect Sony to pay for the shipping. I highly doubt you will find any manufacturer that will go out of their way like that.

Obviously it is absurd to expect you to drive to their factory to give them the monitor, but why should they have to pay for it to be transported back to them? They're already fixing the defect in the form of a replacement monitor. If something goes wrong with your car, do you expect the manufacturer to send someone to your house to drive or have it towed to be repaired? Why is a monitor any different?

 

[NogginBoink]

Originally posted by: Buddhist

Originally posted by: tenchim

In either case, all the expensive shipping charges must be paid by me! The customer!

So Sony makes a defective product, and the customer has to pay for their mistake? WTF? Send me a refurbished monitor for my retail monitor which i paid full price for? WTF? :|

Well it's not just Sony. More and more companies are adopting the same kind of RMA policies and it isn't until you contact them do they lay it out. Just try contacting another electronics brand and you'd be surprsied how many make you pay for shipping to them and how many will send you something other than a brand new replacement.

I'm sure there are many other companies that are adopting the same principle. Its because they teach in business schools that the bottom line is what matters and thus business decisions should be made purely on the immediate quantitative gain (or minimization of loss in this case) for the company. When, really if we look at succesful companies, those that focus on a principle independent of profits such as "To provide the best products possible for mothers" (Johnson and Johnson) or "To make travelers always feel at home no matter where they are" (Marriott) have been the most succesful companies in their industries. B-schools really need to stop chanting the mantra about quantitative value in the short run of "a company exists for profits" and switch to "a company exists to maximize shareholder value, both financial and communal" as ironically, the short term quantitative business decisions tend to kill the company due to the long term qualitative sufferings. This is my personal opinion as a businessman and an entrepeneur.

-M.T.O

You've never been to business school, have you?

That's most assuredly not what's being taught in b-school. In any company, managers will make bad decisions at times.

 

[Buddhist]

The premise is simple. Either way, you're going to pay to get that monitor in their hands and a new one in yours, whether it is in the form of an on-site warranty, shipping the monitor to them, or the gas in your car to drive back to the store. It is incredibly naive of you to expect Sony to pay for the shipping. I highly doubt you will find any manufacturer that will go out of their way like that.

Obviously it is absurd to expect you to drive to their factory to give them the monitor, but why should they have to pay for it to be transported back to them? They're already fixing the defect in the form of a replacement monitor. If something goes wrong with your car, do you expect the manufacturer to send someone to your house to drive or have it towed to be repaired? Why is a monitor any different?

And the premise of my argument is very simple yet illustrates a truth.

If Sony's monitor did not become defective, i would not have to incur the charges of shipping or any other inconvenience. Therefore, it is Sony's duty to pick up the ball where it was dropped; with their product. To make me pay for their inconvenience they've caused me is the absurd logic. Fixing the monitor is the very least they _have_ to do. Generally, companies that barely follow through with their obligations have poor customer service. Hence, "Sony's customer service just flat out sucks."

"If something goes wrong with your car, do you expect the manufacturer to send someone to your house to drive or have it towed to be repaired?"

Yes, I expect the car company to pay for towing my car to the service center if its their fault that my new car won't start. To ask otherwise, and to accept otherwise is unjust.

 

[Buddhist]

You've never been to business school, have you?

That's most assuredly not what's being taught in b-school. In any company, managers will make bad decisions at times.

No i've not attended an MBA yet. However, i've spoken with many mba professors, alumni, students, and attended a very business oriented school. I've also spent the better half of the past three years looking at schools for an MBA. I'm willing to concede that certainly the environment within b-schools maybe changing from this quantitative mantra, to a mixed one (especially with business pop concepts like six sigma and TOC becoming more mainstream), but I'll also ask that you concede that they have focused on quantitative value princeply in the past. (Read 1980's)

I completely concur that in any company managers will make bad decisions at times. Afterall, managers are people as well. Bad decisions often need voices to illustrate them. I'm just trying to voice my opinion on what i see as a bad business decision by sony regarding how they treate their customers.

 

[AlienCraft]

Originally posted by: Buddhist

Originally posted by: AlienCraft
Maybe there is some value to a brick and mortar outlet. There, you can drop it off at the return desk, pick up another for replacement and be on your way. That's what the differential between Internet sale and B/M sale buys you, imho.
I agree with the last post you made regarding corporate "direction".

I bought it at Best buy in Redwood City. I didn't however purchase the extended service plan (Best Buys extra warranty) which would of cost around another $100. So I did buy it at a brick and mortar.

Aha, information left out of the original post.
Well, I called BB San Carlos, (there is none in Redwood City) and the manager there said there are other options for you if you didn't buy the extended warranty and bought it there. Bring it in and let their tech trouble shoot it was the best he was offering among the options he laid out to me. I learned they have only a 14 day exchange policy for monitors. They would ship back to Sony for you as well.
Sounds like "Total Satisfaction Shopping" is a thing of the past.
:disgust:
Hope things get sorted out for you.

 

[Buddhist]

Aha, information left out of the original post.
Well, I called BB San Carlos, (there is none in Redwood City) and the manager there said there are other options for you if you didn't buy the extended warranty and bought it there. Bring it in and let their tech trouble shoot it was the best he was offering among the options he laid out to me. I learned they have only a 14 day exchange policy for monitors. They would ship back to Sony for you as well.
Sounds like "Total Satisfaction Shopping" is a thing of the past.
:disgust:
Hope things get sorted out for you.

A good man! Thank you very much for your actions on my behalf. I really do appreciate it. Sounds quite promising. I was just going to head out to BB (and ya i guess it is San Carlos. Trixy BB Hobitts) and ask them that information myself. Thank you very much once again.

-M.T.O

 

[nan0bug]

Originally posted by: Buddhist

The premise is simple. Either way, you're going to pay to get that monitor in their hands and a new one in yours, whether it is in the form of an on-site warranty, shipping the monitor to them, or the gas in your car to drive back to the store. It is incredibly naive of you to expect Sony to pay for the shipping. I highly doubt you will find any manufacturer that will go out of their way like that.

Obviously it is absurd to expect you to drive to their factory to give them the monitor, but why should they have to pay for it to be transported back to them? They're already fixing the defect in the form of a replacement monitor. If something goes wrong with your car, do you expect the manufacturer to send someone to your house to drive or have it towed to be repaired? Why is a monitor any different?

And the premise of my argument is very simple yet illustrates a truth.

If Sony's monitor did not become defective, i would not have to incur the charges of shipping or any other inconvenience. Therefore, it is Sony's duty to pick up the ball where it was dropped; with their product. To make me pay for their inconvenience they've caused me is the absurd logic. Fixing the monitor is the very least they _have_ to do. Generally, companies that barely follow through with their obligations have poor customer service. Hence, "Sony's customer service just flat out sucks."

"If something goes wrong with your car, do you expect the manufacturer to send someone to your house to drive or have it towed to be repaired?"

Yes, I expect the car company to pay for towing my car to the service center if its their fault that my new car won't start. To ask otherwise, and to accept otherwise is unjust.

You can expect Jesus Christ delivered to your doorstep by topless dancers. Doesn't mean you're going to get it.

My point is that your expectations are unrealistic. This is the real world, and service like that is rare for mom and pop stores, much less international corporations. Making you pay is a way to deter people from shipping back perfectly good monitors because of insignifigant crap or just to get a new one when their warranty period is almost up. If you are too naive to see that, then you just go right ahead and be angry at Sony about something that every other manufacturer you will come across does.

 

[Buddhist]

You can expect Jesus Christ delivered to your doorstep by topless dancers. Doesn't mean you're going to get it.

My point is that your expectations are unrealistic. This is the real world, and service like that is rare for mom and pop stores, much less international corporations. Making you pay is a way to deter people from shipping back perfectly good monitors because of insignifigant crap or just to get a new one when their warranty period is almost up. If you are too naive to see that, then you just go right ahead and be angry at Sony about something that every other manufacturer you will come across does.

When my laptop needed repair under warranty, ibm paid for overnight shipping both ways. They also paid for the repair. Ibm went out of its way to make sure its customer was happy with both their product and their service.

That was a good experience that positively influenced me to buy two more IBM laptops since.

Sony's experience on the other hand is a negative experience. They don't care about how happy the customer is with their service or their product. This has influenced me to not purchase any more products from Sony.

You tell me who's being naive. Just because my opinion goes against the norm, doesn't discount its validity.