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Home Depot Terrible CS

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Dec 15, 2007
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Guelph

Home Depot Terrible CS

Had a terrible experience @ Home Depot lastnight. Rather then repost everything, I just copy/paste the story/complaint I emailed Home Depot Canada & US.




Just wanted to share my experience with the Home Depot - Guelph Ontario location.

My girlfriend and I went into the store on Friday night around 9pm. When we went in, right infront of the doors and cs area were some kids rocking horses on display/shelves. They were marked down 1/2 off for $25. Great deal! that's exactly what my gf wanted for her friends child for xmas. We decided to wait and do some other xmas shopping instore rather then carry it around.

We picked up a $75 tool box and some other items for our last minute xmas shopping. We went back to the rocking horses. There was one pink one left that my girlfriend wanted. So before bringing it to the checkout we/I removed the plastic ribbon sticking out of the bottom to test to make sure it works before getting it home and wrapping it. Sure enough, it didn't work. We set that aside and picked out another color. I once again removed the ribbon to verify it was in working order. The customer service rep started yelling at us from the behind the counter. Don't pull them out!! Your ruining it for other customers! Has I started to explain we were checking to make sure it worked, she came rushing over from the counter continually yelling at us that I am ruining it for everyone else. We tried remaining composed considering her loud obnoxious aggressive tone which was very difficult. Once again I tried explaining to her, we want to make sure we have a working unit before giving it has a gift. I showed her that the pink one that we were going to purchase did in fact not work after removing the battery tab. She then accused me of possibly breaking it! She would not let up and continued belittling us and went back behind the cs desk with another co-worker. My girlfriend tried telling her that she herself works in customer service and in no-way should she be yelling at us infront of customers let alone yelling at us period. As well has talking down to us and accusing us of breaking an item. The other CS working piped up and said to us there is a reason they are marked at half price. I said, so they are marked down to half off because they may not work? She replied yes, that's usually the case when items are discounted to half price. If this in fact the case, maybe there should be a sign posted "as Is" or buyer beware. They then said they could call a manager down if we would like. Of course we should have a manager come down, shouldn't of that been the case to begin with?? So your Guelph store manager came down to talk to us. Right away your CS employee started frantically telling the manager her side. I started to intervene to tell him what had happened. She once again obnoxiously said to me "Excuse me, I am talking right now!" I look at the manager and he told her to maybe take a walk to cool off. He started talking to us and has I started to explain the situation, once again she cut into the conversation to argue. Once again the manager told her to quiet down etc.

He was polite and agreed with things and asked if there is anything else he could help us with. ?? I'm not sure how exactly he helped to begin with, other then being polite, listening to what had happened.

I have never had such a bad experience from a store/business before in my life. Being belittled, bullied and accused of breaking an item. I would have dropped everything and left the store I was so angry and upset. If it wasn't the few days so close to Christmas I would have left everything there and not to be returned.

I really hope for your companies sake, that this isn't the norm and this is a specific store issue. I highly suggest you take more care and time training and recruiting experienced Customer Service Reps and make sure they are trained in dealing with and communicating with customers in a professional way.
58 replies
Deal Expert
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Oct 5, 2008
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Too long to read

Coles notes version?
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Dec 15, 2007
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MS MSP wrote: Too long to read

Coles notes version?
-picking out a rocking horse for Xmas

-pulled out battery tab to verify it works - doesn"t work

- picked out another color, pulled out tab to verify it works

-CS started yelling at us

-CS accuses us of breaking it

-CS wouldn't listen to what/why

-Other CS said its they are marked 1/2 price because they put items on 1/2 b/c they might be faulty and that's why they have sales

-CS belittled/argued/bullied

-Manager was polite, but useless
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Jun 30, 2006
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Did you atleast get the CS name so you could include it in the email.
Deal Guru
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Apr 23, 2004
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Hi there,

Uh, before pulling the tab, maybe it would be better to ask a staff first before doing so. The tab is there for a reason, so the battery doesn't drain before purchase. Do you know how annoying it is to find someone opening a brand new seal box, ripped it all open, then just simply hide it behind and go take a new seal box to buy one? Think for themselves without thinking of others...

Ju Leon...
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carmaster wrote: Did you atleast get the CS name so you could include it in the email.
Yes. Just didn't want to post it.
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inferno_gn wrote: Hi there,

Uh, before pulling the tab, maybe it would be better to ask a staff first before doing so. The tab is there for a reason, so the battery doesn't drain before purchase. Do you know how annoying it is to find someone opening a brand new seal box, ripped it all open, then just simply hide it behind and go take a new seal box to buy one? Think for themselves without thinking of others...

Ju Leon...
These were not boxed. The first one was a pink one. The only pink one. When I removed the tab I had full intentions on purchasing it. It didn't work. She picked another color, I removed the tab, it worked and I purchased it.

The polite manager agreed with me on checking the item before purchasing.

According to the one CS rep, they were 1/2 price do to some being faulty. Good thing I checked.
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Apr 23, 2004
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Hi there,

Faulty? Maybe it's just the battery? I got some toys that the tab wasn't pulled and pulled it out and it didn't work. Change the battery and there, it works. Some toys have cheap batteries in there with short lifespan.

Ju Leon...
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Nov 1, 2010
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Kanata
Maybe she had stocks in the rocking horse business. I hate csr's when they act like it's coming out of their pockets. It usually ends up coming out of the customers pocket when they increase the price of the item the next round. You should grab a hammer and a nail and see if the nail is sharp enough next time in front of her.
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inferno_gn wrote: Hi there,

Faulty? Maybe it's just the battery? I got some toys that the tab wasn't pulled and pulled it out and it didn't work. Change the battery and there, it works. Some toys have cheap batteries in there with short lifespan.

Ju Leon...
So I should assume the batteries are dead and pay an extra $5 for a new set that should already be included. All to get home and find out weather it's the batteries or not?

Imagine if I had to return it and the batteries for a refund. I can just imagine the CS staff how that would go over. Remember they are half price for a reason so I was told.
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Oct 21, 2013
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Tyrannosaurland
I would laugh in your face if you returned an item that was 50% off because you are too cheap to buy new batteries with the money you are already saving from this purchase. Give me that CS' name, I want to treat her to a beer.
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Tyrannosaur wrote: I would laugh in your face if you returned an item that was 50% off because you are too cheap to buy new batteries with the money you are already saving from this purchase. Give me that CS' name, I want to treat her to a beer.
How do you know it was the batteries? The battery tab was intact when I removed it. The batteries shouldn't be dead.

Saving? Or how much money I am spending?

I could give you her name, it would probably useful for you both. Sounds like you two would get along. Judging by your manners, you shouldn't have a problem getting hired has a CS there. You would fit right in.

Maybe the CS or manager should have offered to change the batteries to see if that was in fact the issue with the "toy".


My issue isn"t the toy. My issue is with the CS.
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Nov 4, 2013
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You keep writing 'has' when you should just be writing 'as'. It is creeping me out.
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ElHoardo wrote: You keep writing 'has' when you should just be writing 'as'. It is creeping me out.
Haha sorry !
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Tabooger wrote: Maybe she had stocks in the rocking horse business. I hate csr's when they act like it's coming out of their pockets. It usually ends up coming out of the customers pocket when they increase the price of the item the next round. You should grab a hammer and a nail and see if the nail is sharp enough next time in front of her.
It sounds like she was doing her job while the OP was tampering with the products. We only have the OPs side but I can see why she would be upset seeing someone like the OP pulling the battery tabs off the toys. They are there for a reason. I suspect things may have escalated with the OP's sense of entitlement. OP, if you want to remove anything off a product, buy it first, then take it home and you can do whatever you want with it. You don't have a right to do that in the store. Don't tamper with products and you won't have a problem.
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ElHoardo wrote: You keep writing 'has' when you should just be writing 'as'. It is creeping me out.
It is not the only mistake he has made.
April 28th is a National Day of Mourning for those killed or injured on the job. Mourn for the dead, fight for the living. We all deserve to return home safely at night.
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Cheap Cat wrote: It sounds like she was doing her job while the OP was tampering with the products. We only have the OPs side but I can see why she would be upset seeing someone like the OP pulling the battery tabs off the toys. They are there for a reason. I suspect things may have escalated with the OP's sense of entitlement. OP, if you want to remove anything off a product, buy it first, then take it home and you can do whatever you want with it. You don't have a right to do that in the store. Don't tamper with products and you won't have a problem.

So it's acceptable and professional for a CS to act in the manner she did?

Would it not be more appropriate for her to maybe ask me to come to the CS desk to discuss or explain to me if I was doing something against policy? Maybe offer assistance to help me? Should she have not contacted the manager to before it escalated?
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Oct 21, 2013
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Exocet77 wrote: Would it not be more appropriate for her to maybe ask me to come to the CS desk to discuss or explain to me if I was doing something against policy? Maybe offer assistance to help me? Should she have not contacted the manager to before it escalated?
Poor you. Maybe she should have offered to give you some milk and cookies after you felt publicly embarrassed for not knowing the difference between right and wrong. You cannot tamper with unpurchased items.
Build a man a fire, and he'll be warm for a day. Set a man on fire, and he'll be warm for the rest of his life.
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Nov 4, 2004
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MS MSP wrote: Too long to read

Coles notes version?
OP decided to 'try before buying'.

Claims the item wasn't working and he wasn't the one who broke it.

Was scolded by a CSR who witnesses a customer tampering with said item and likely had to deal with a ton of other BS from other customers during the fabulous rush of Xmas season.

OP says 'whaa, whaa, whaa' and writes a letter to the store's HQ hoping for some kind of freebie.
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So much "fluff" in that complaint letter. If that came across my desk I would never read the whole thing.
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