By DAVE LIEBER
Star-Telegram staff writer
Regan Ritter's mother searched for a video iPod at a rock-bottom price and bought one at a Target store in Fort Worth. Regan was ready to rock when she opened the gift on her 14th birthday.
But there was no iPod inside the box. Instead she found rocks. Not rock music. Rocks.
Someone had apparently taken the iPod, replaced its weight with rocks and then put shrink wrap around the box to make it look unopened.
Quite a scam.
Regan and her mother, Melanie Ritter, returned to Target and asked for another iPod. The store took her at her word about what had happened, but the iPod she wanted wasn't in stock. The Fort Worth woman asked for a refund, but because she had paid $350 using a new Target credit card to get a 10 percent discount, the store would only give her store credit.
Target employees were apologetic but said that was store policy, Ritter recalls. Only customers who paid in cash could receive a cash refund.
It didn't matter that Ritter had immediately paid the entire balance on the card. It didn't matter that she hadn't gotten what she paid for. No cash refund.
Employees did call other Target stores to find a video iPod for her and found one in Grand Prairie.
So on Regan's birthday, her mom drove her to the second Target. Inside, they explained what had happened and asked whether they could open the box before making the purchase. An employee said they would have to buy it first.
So they did, and then Melanie Ritter opened the box in front of Target employees.
Rocks were in that box, too.
Again, the mother asked for her money back but store employees denied the request.
Because it was her daughter's birthday, the mother decided to stop arguing. She told her daughter to pick out $350 worth of items around the store to use the credit on.
They left, disappointed. Then the mother contacted The Watchdog.
I contacted Target's media relations office. It took two weeks for Target to get back to me with an answer. "We regret any inconvenience this situation may have caused Ms. Ritter, as it (was) never our intention to disappoint our guests," Target spokesman Amy von Walter told The Watchdog in a written statement. "Our Guest Relations department will contact her directly to discuss the situation."
The statement concluded: "Our Investigations team is actively looking into this matter and will partner with local law enforcement as necessary. As this is an active investigation we are unable to provide further comment at this time."
A spokeswoman for Apple, which makes iPods, did not respond to a call and e-mail from The Watchdog.
I called von Walter with further questions. In a series of calls and e-mails, she wouldn't say much about the case.
But she wrote me that the store employees who would not give Ritter a cash refund were following store policy.
In a second note, she wrote, "In the end, we're pleased she was able to use her store credit in full to make other purchases."
That infuriated Melanie Ritter.
"That's not the way to do business," she said.
"It wasn't fair that I had to buy stuff that I really didn't want. I thought they didn't handle it properly."
Joel Evans, a Hofstra University business professor who co-authored Retail Management: A Strategic Approach, says: "Target is known as an excellent customer-service company. ... Over the years, Target has tightened up its policies to prevent bogus things from happening."
In an unusual incident, he says, stores should consider being flexible and giving a full refund to a customer. He says "employee empowerment" allows employees to make on-the-spot decisions to satisfy customers.
"You get large chains that end up with standardized policies that sometimes don't give employees the ability to bend the rules," he said.
Customers concerned about refunds should consider making big purchases with major cards like MasterCard, Visa, Discover and American Express in stores where the store credit card refund policy is similar to Target's.
With a major credit card, if you contest an item on your bill, the credit card company acts as your advocate, Evans says.
"In a situation such as this, a customer who uses a store credit card loses the credit card company as an advocate."
Target promises to keep us informed about the progress of its internal investigation into the missing iPods. Any information that comes, we'll share with you.
Let's hope that the culprit is found and gets to live his or her own version of the Elvis song Jailhouse Rock.
SOURCE:
http://www.star-telegram.com/news/columnists/dave_lieber//story/260075.html
Star-Telegram staff writer
Regan Ritter's mother searched for a video iPod at a rock-bottom price and bought one at a Target store in Fort Worth. Regan was ready to rock when she opened the gift on her 14th birthday.
But there was no iPod inside the box. Instead she found rocks. Not rock music. Rocks.
Someone had apparently taken the iPod, replaced its weight with rocks and then put shrink wrap around the box to make it look unopened.
Quite a scam.
Regan and her mother, Melanie Ritter, returned to Target and asked for another iPod. The store took her at her word about what had happened, but the iPod she wanted wasn't in stock. The Fort Worth woman asked for a refund, but because she had paid $350 using a new Target credit card to get a 10 percent discount, the store would only give her store credit.
Target employees were apologetic but said that was store policy, Ritter recalls. Only customers who paid in cash could receive a cash refund.
It didn't matter that Ritter had immediately paid the entire balance on the card. It didn't matter that she hadn't gotten what she paid for. No cash refund.
Employees did call other Target stores to find a video iPod for her and found one in Grand Prairie.
So on Regan's birthday, her mom drove her to the second Target. Inside, they explained what had happened and asked whether they could open the box before making the purchase. An employee said they would have to buy it first.
So they did, and then Melanie Ritter opened the box in front of Target employees.
Rocks were in that box, too.
Again, the mother asked for her money back but store employees denied the request.
Because it was her daughter's birthday, the mother decided to stop arguing. She told her daughter to pick out $350 worth of items around the store to use the credit on.
They left, disappointed. Then the mother contacted The Watchdog.
I contacted Target's media relations office. It took two weeks for Target to get back to me with an answer. "We regret any inconvenience this situation may have caused Ms. Ritter, as it (was) never our intention to disappoint our guests," Target spokesman Amy von Walter told The Watchdog in a written statement. "Our Guest Relations department will contact her directly to discuss the situation."
The statement concluded: "Our Investigations team is actively looking into this matter and will partner with local law enforcement as necessary. As this is an active investigation we are unable to provide further comment at this time."
A spokeswoman for Apple, which makes iPods, did not respond to a call and e-mail from The Watchdog.
I called von Walter with further questions. In a series of calls and e-mails, she wouldn't say much about the case.
But she wrote me that the store employees who would not give Ritter a cash refund were following store policy.
In a second note, she wrote, "In the end, we're pleased she was able to use her store credit in full to make other purchases."
That infuriated Melanie Ritter.
"That's not the way to do business," she said.
"It wasn't fair that I had to buy stuff that I really didn't want. I thought they didn't handle it properly."
Joel Evans, a Hofstra University business professor who co-authored Retail Management: A Strategic Approach, says: "Target is known as an excellent customer-service company. ... Over the years, Target has tightened up its policies to prevent bogus things from happening."
In an unusual incident, he says, stores should consider being flexible and giving a full refund to a customer. He says "employee empowerment" allows employees to make on-the-spot decisions to satisfy customers.
"You get large chains that end up with standardized policies that sometimes don't give employees the ability to bend the rules," he said.
Customers concerned about refunds should consider making big purchases with major cards like MasterCard, Visa, Discover and American Express in stores where the store credit card refund policy is similar to Target's.
With a major credit card, if you contest an item on your bill, the credit card company acts as your advocate, Evans says.
"In a situation such as this, a customer who uses a store credit card loses the credit card company as an advocate."
Target promises to keep us informed about the progress of its internal investigation into the missing iPods. Any information that comes, we'll share with you.
Let's hope that the culprit is found and gets to live his or her own version of the Elvis song Jailhouse Rock.
SOURCE:
http://www.star-telegram.com/news/columnists/dave_lieber//story/260075.html
