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How is Best Buy and returns these days?

J

joltaxt

macrumors regular
Original poster
Mar 4, 2011
109
0
In terms of returns, I've heard plenty of nightmare horror stories about them but these were prior to when they got rid of the ridiculous restocking fee. Anyone have any good experiences with them and returns?

I'm planning on buying an iPad 2 through them (no Apple store here) but want to make sure I'll be able to return it in 14 days no questions asked. The last thing I want is to take it to them only to have to fight with the manager to get my money back. Any feedback is appreciated.
 
As long as the manager has no reason to suspect return fraud, you should have no problems returning the iPad if you decide you don't want it.

Just package it up nicely with everything it came with and head to the store.

A side note is that SOME Best Buy stores have been asking for photo ID when returning.

Also of note - no cash returns for debit card/cash/check purchases over $250. They'll send a check in the mail.
 
If your a premier silver member then you get 45 days and no restocking fees. So when people buy The iPad 2 they have 14 days to return it. I have 45 days :)
 
Many people dislike best buy for some reason. While they may not be cheapest for a lot of stuff, their return policies are great and I've never had a problem there. A lot of things are 30 days but as has been said apple stuff is 14 days.
 
No hassle. Returned a Galaxy Tab and a Xoom. Full refund, no problems.
 
Best Buy probably has the best return policy. It's 30 days for most items (45 days if you're a Reward Zone Silver member) and no restocking fees. I've returned and exchanged many items at my local branch. They usually ask casually if there was anything wrong with the item. I just say, "I didn't need it."

For some items, like cameras and laptops, the policy is 14 days with a 15% restocking fee if opened. They would put a sticker across the box saying so, effectively a seal that you would have to break to open the box. I've never seen that sticker being attached to iPad boxes. I don't know if that has changed.

Just make sure to open the box neatly, keep all the packaging and keep the box around.

Hope this helps.
 
Best buy does not care about their customer

My 12 yr. Old son and I stood in the cold Wisconsin air at Best Buy last Friday for nearly 3 hours. They gave tickets to buy Ipad2 at 4:30 and said they will start selling at 5:00. The ticket guarranteed the purchase until closing. We went into the store to look at xbox games after getting the tickets. We were told if our intension was to buy ipad2 then we have to leave the store until 5:00 and were shown the door. This was done in a not very nice way. So we waited until 5:00 and then got in a new line to buy them. At 6:18, we each bought an ipad2. We got home and found that his had a crack from one side of the screen to the other. We immediately called BB. They said bring it in which I did at 7:00. The manager basically laughed at me for not buying an accidental protection plan and would not do anything to make it right. He said this is an apple problem. At 8:00 I was at an Apple store and they said it is a Best Buy issue. They did nothing. I have been a reward zone silver member since that program started. I called and they noted it in the computer. They said to call back the next day 10AM and speak with consumer relations. I did this. Consumer relations spoke with the General manager and he spoke with the manager who refused to help. I was told their was nothing they can do! I cannot believe this. The worst part about it was being laughed at for not buying a protection plan. They felt that we broke the screen, but honestly, we did not. I will not shop at Best Buy again.
 
farmermac said:
Many people dislike best buy for some reason. While they may not be cheapest for a lot of stuff, their return policies are great and I've never had a problem there. A lot of things are 30 days but as has been said apple stuff is 14 days.
Click to expand...

There are many reasons to dislike Best Buy, one of which is because their return policy is rubbish. A HUGE chunk of their inventory is 14 days and I, unlike another poster on here has seen, have never seen any tape indicating which products this applies to or ever been given a heads up that it applies to something I am purchasing. Their geek squad is also horrible and most of the service protection/buy back/black tie crap they give you the hard sell on is a complete and utter waste of money.

Now, back to the topic at hand, like others have said box it up real nice within 14 days and you're golden.
 
kansas-cty-shfl said:
There are many reasons to dislike Best Buy, one of which is because their return policy is rubbish. A HUGE chunk of their inventory is 14 days and I, unlike another poster on here has seen, have never seen any tape indicating which products this applies to or ever been given a heads up that it applies to something I am purchasing. Their geek squad is also horrible and most of the service protection/buy back/black tie crap they give you the hard sell on is a complete and utter waste of money.

Now, back to the topic at hand, like others have said box it up real nice within 14 days and you're golden.
Click to expand...

Not only is it posted on a massive board next to the customer service desk in every store, it's located on the back of your receipt AND on their website @ http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Help-To...es/pcmcat204400050023.c?id=pcmcat204400050023

Return and Exchange Period
You can return or exchange purchases within the timeframes below.

14 days for computers, monitors, projectors, camcorders, digital cameras, iPad, tablets and radar detectors
30 days for all other products
45 days for all products for Reward Zone Premier Silver members*
Click to expand...
 
mgford11 said:
Not only is it posted on a massive board next to the customer service desk in every store, it's located on the back of your receipt AND on their website @ http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Help-To...es/pcmcat204400050023.c?id=pcmcat204400050023
Click to expand...

Sure the board is massive, but it has about a billion characters on it, so not as obvious as you would make it out to be. Anyway, there might as well be a giant middle finger on that board since odds are the first time you would be in a position to read it is when you're standing in line ready to return something. Granted the policy is most certainly on the back of the receipt but how often do you go around reading the backs of receipts? It's up to the consumer to do their due diligence when purchasing and potentially returning a product; however, Best Buy does their part to make it as difficult as possible.
 
kansas-cty-shfl said:
Sure the board is massive, but it has about a billion characters on it, so not as obvious as you would make it out to be. Anyway, there might as well be a giant middle finger on that board since odds are the first time you would be in a position to read it is when you're standing in line ready to return something. Granted the policy is most certainly on the back of the receipt but how often do you go around reading the backs of receipts? It's up to the consumer to do their due diligence when purchasing and potentially returning a product; however, Best Buy does their part to make it as difficult as possible.
Click to expand...

How do they make it difficult when it is clearly stated on the website, in the store, and on the back of your receipt?

If bestbuy makes their policy difficult then I don't want to know how you think other stores are with their policies.
 
Whatever you do don't have any scratches on your Pad if you plan to return. Was replacing my Harmony One at Best Buy and a guy was trying to return his 64White Ipad and was denied because he had some very minor from what I could see marks/scratch on the back of the Ipad.
 
obey908 said:
How do they make it difficult when it is clearly stated on the website, in the store, and on the back of your receipt?

If bestbuy makes their policy difficult then I don't want to know how you think other stores are with their policies.
Click to expand...

So you spend your time scouring the internet and fine print to find all the nuances of everyone's return policy? I have no problem with the return policies of most stores since they treat all their merchandise the same. Best Buy's policy seems more tailored to screw you unless you buy their service plans.
 
iserian said:
Whatever you do don't have any scratches on your Pad if you plan to return. Was replacing my Harmony One at Best Buy and a guy was trying to return his 64White Ipad and was denied because he had some very minor from what I could see marks/scratch on the back of the Ipad.
Click to expand...

Manager to customer: "I can't accept this return because it has minor scratches on the back *wink*. So go home, list it on Craigslist, and sell it for $100 more than you paid for it. Run along now"
 
Rlewis6 said:
Consumer relations spoke with the General manager and he spoke with the manager who refused to help. I was told their was nothing they can do!
Click to expand...

If you paid with a credit card, simply initiate a chargeback. You'll definitely get your money back (probably instantly), and you'll probably get to keep the cracked iPad 2.

If you paid with cash, don't give up. Write a strongly worded (but polite) letter to Best Buy's central customer service email address and CC as many other Best Buy email addresses as you can find. Indicate that you will file a small claims case against them if they cannot rectify the situation. If you've contacted everyone and still had no luck, file a SC-500I form (Google search it). There is a very, very good chance Best Buy will settle immediately.

Also, which Best Buy were you at? My sister and her husband were at a BB store near the WI/IL border and it didn't sound especially fun.
 
Rlewis6 said:
My 12 yr. Old son and I stood in the cold Wisconsin air at Best Buy last Friday for nearly 3 hours. They gave tickets to buy Ipad2 at 4:30 and said they will start selling at 5:00. The ticket guarranteed the purchase until closing. We went into the store to look at xbox games after getting the tickets. We were told if our intension was to buy ipad2 then we have to leave the store until 5:00 and were shown the door. This was done in a not very nice way. So we waited until 5:00 and then got in a new line to buy them. At 6:18, we each bought an ipad2. We got home and found that his had a crack from one side of the screen to the other. We immediately called BB. They said bring it in which I did at 7:00. The manager basically laughed at me for not buying an accidental protection plan and would not do anything to make it right. He said this is an apple problem. At 8:00 I was at an Apple store and they said it is a Best Buy issue. They did nothing. I have been a reward zone silver member since that program started. I called and they noted it in the computer. They said to call back the next day 10AM and speak with consumer relations. I did this. Consumer relations spoke with the General manager and he spoke with the manager who refused to help. I was told their was nothing they can do! I cannot believe this. The worst part about it was being laughed at for not buying a protection plan. They felt that we broke the screen, but honestly, we did not. I will not shop at Best Buy again.
Click to expand...

Well, I bought mine at best buy and I noticed after opening the box that my bezel was damage and the glass edges where chipped... I took it to the apple store and told they specifcally that i was not trying to return/exhcange but wanted warranty support. They agreed and even pointed out more damage than i found... This was out of the box damaged... So they are going to do a warranty exchange. They told me that when they receive stock to sell, they also receive stock for just this purpose will have my replacement in the next few days.

I advise you to call apple or go to the apple store... DONT WAIT ANY LONGER! The more time you give them, the more it looks like you did it yourself, unless you can prove your time of ownership, time reporting it, and such... If you purchased it from another retailer... Good luck explaining to them as they will prob not do a thing about it. This is why you contact apple fore WARRANTY SUPPORT. This a manufacturer defect.
 
Thanks

anthony691 said:
If you paid with a credit card, simply initiate a chargeback. You'll definitely get your money back (probably instantly), and you'll probably get to keep the cracked iPad 2.

If you paid with cash, don't give up. Write a strongly worded (but polite) letter to Best Buy's central customer service email address and CC as many other Best Buy email addresses as you can find. Indicate that you will file a small claims case against them if they cannot rectify the situation. If you've contacted everyone and still had no luck, file a SC-500I form (Google search it). There is a very, very good chance Best Buy will settle immediately.

Also, which Best Buy were you at? My sister and her husband were at a BB store near the WI/IL border and it didn't sound especially fun.
Click to expand...

It was BB in Foxpoint( a suburb just north of Milwaukee). Thank you for the info. Rcih
 
Depends on who you get. I feel like best buy it's luck. Once I got a rep who let me return a gps no restocking fee even I used it for a week and the box stated 15% restocking fee on a sticker. Another time I got a guy who gave me trouble for returning an un opened pair of Bose headsets. You could try another best buy if the first doesn't work out. Never got my license checked though.
 
joltaxt said:
In terms of returns, I've heard plenty of nightmare horror stories about them but these were prior to when they got rid of the ridiculous restocking fee. Anyone have any good experiences with them and returns?

I'm planning on buying an iPad 2 through them (no Apple store here) but want to make sure I'll be able to return it in 14 days no questions asked. The last thing I want is to take it to them only to have to fight with the manager to get my money back. Any feedback is appreciated.
Click to expand...

I don't know if this has any relevance to your question, but I guess I'll share it anyways.

I bought my iPad and smart cover in Savannah Georgia and I'm on spring break over 1300 miles away. I returned my smart cover for full cash refund at the best buy here, no questions asked. The guy didn't even check it to see if it was damaged.
 
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