Absurd! Bait and switch desk, shoddy hardware, POOR, POOR, POOR customer service.
Written: Feb 16 '06 (Updated Feb 17 '06)
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I'm livid about the BillPayer desk that I received from Sears.com (item # 45037). They send envelopes full of fliers advertising their products and pushing for people to order from Sears.com. The desk that I ordered was one of those items (from one of those fliers).
I wasted an entire day putting together a desk (that arrived in a flimsy, falling-apart box), with damage and scratches from said box, and faulty parts and cams that fell apart both during and after installation. Then, while holding the original flier closer to the piece, I noticed differences between the desk that had been advertised and the one that I received.
I first noticed that the drawer rails were metal in the flier they sent to me, but the desk I received had cheap wooden strips for the file drawers to ride on--no real rails at all. Then, upon measuring the desk, I discovered that the desk I received and the one advertised on the flier that I ordered from were totally different--the one shipped being much larger and more shabbily constructed than the advertised one (and the space that I'd allotted for it). The term "bait-and-switch" flitted about my head. "Surely not," I thought. Bait-and-switch is illegal . . .
Upon calling Sears.com and complaining about the missing and breaking cams, the size differential, and the visual differences, the representative with whom I spoke said that the only remedy was to return it. I mentioned that I did not receive a copy of the warranty that the Sears' flier said would be included in the box. The rep said, "It has no manufacturer's warranty and no manufacturer that I can see." I asked, "Why did you advertise a warranty?" He said, "Ma'am, I don't have the answer to that. Your desk came from China. That's all I know."
I asked if he could send some new cams and parts--better ones--and maybe something to hide the scratches (as most were on the inside of the piece). He sent only the cams. Several of the cams sent didn't even survive the mail process--heavily padded though they were. Though the plastic bubbles lining the mailing envelope survived, the cams arrived already broken. How odd . . . Saved me the trouble of breaking them myself as I put them in the desk . . .
This is absurd! Sears should carefully inspect the quality of the products that their buyers choose for resale. Because they advertise them, Sears' name, not the manufacturer's name, is bound to these products--like Craftsman. Lowe's sells better cams than those that were supposed to hold the desk together for its life (not to mention hold the weight of two filled file drawers). They're aluminum, for Pete's sake. A magnet wouldn't stick to them! (I tried.)
No remedy in sight for the desk, which by now was wobbling, with drawers that I couldn't use (afraid to put any hanging folders in them for fear the whole damned thing would fall to the floor), I decided to return the it.
Now comes the fun part. You should try this at home. Really. I called Sears.com to admit that the desk had won and that I would send it back home. I was told to take it to the nearest Sears store. The store nearest to me is 30 miles away. (My post office is in Smiths Grove, but I live near Brownsville, KY.) We loaded the desk in our Jeep and took it to Sears in Bowling Green, KY . . . ONLY to be told that they could not and would not accept it. They were a "privately-owned" Sears and couldn't be made to take returns from Sears.com. Now, come on!!!! If they are not affiliated with Sears, how come you allow them to carry your name?
Prior to being told that we couldn't return the desk, one of the young men lifted it from the back of the truck. The top of the desk promptly broke clean away, and a large chip just fell off the back edge. He said, "This is a piece of $h!t, pardon my French."
My sentiments exactly. This type of shoddy product has ruined the Sears image and public confidence in other products from a store that even purports to sells its tools with a lifetime guarantee. (Don't try returning one of their electrical tools. No life-timer there.)
Nonetheless, we re-loaded the now-more-damaged-than-before desk into the Jeep. While still in the parking lot, I called Sears.com and demanded to speak with a manager. A supervisor promptly told me that since that store was privately owned, Sears.com cannot force them to take the return, that I could drive to another Sears facility that might--over 160 miles away--320 miles round-trip! I asked if I would receive some sort of credit for my trouble and gas expense, and she said that was "impossible." Thought so.
The SUV we had to use to haul the desk cost us $27.50 in gas for this round-trip. I said, "What kind of fool do you think I am?" She said Sears has received "dozens and dozens of complaints" about that desk. I asked what is being done about those complaints. She said that I would just have to box it up and return it to Sears.com (that Sears graciously pays for return shipping). I reminded her that the original box arrived in near-death state and has since been laid to rest. I asked if a box could be sent to me. She said, "No." I said, "You can't send to me a flat box that would contain this 65-pound desk?" She again said, "No. We can order a pickup. That's it."
I said, "Look, I didn't stupidly order the wrong size pair of pants or suddenly decide that I didn't like the color or style of this desk. It's faulty. But it's not my fault. It's Sears' fault. Sears.com is at fault. I've already wasted a day to put it together, a half-day to take it to Bowling Green, and now I've got to waste god-knows-how-much time to take it apart, provide a box that I'll probably have to buy, and pack it (with my own padding, nonetheless) in order to send it back????" She said, "We pay for return shipping, and that's all." I asked if I could have my money refunded now. She said, "Only when Sears receives the desk."
What she said next, nearly floored me. She added, "Look this is not a Sears product." I said, "What do you mean, 'this is not a Sears product'? Sears sells this product. It's Sears." She said, "No, it's not a Sears product. It has a different manufacturer."
I might remind everyone that, without a disclaimer (of which Sears had NONE), it is ILLEGAL TO OFFER A PRODUCT, CLAIM IT HAS A WARRANTY WHEN IT HAS NONE, and SWITCH IT WITH ANOTHER PRODUCT without customer consent--particularly if the replacement product is of differing size (larger or smaller) and of less quality than the pictured and advertised product.
I want to be reimbursed in full for the desk, taxes, and shipping, as well as for the gas that we wasted while "chasing the wild goose," courtesy of the instructions given by Sears' incompetent representatives. I should send them a bill for time it took to put it together, then take it apart, wrap, and box it. My time happens to be worth something, too.
I've received faulty merchandise before, but it's never cost me this much in time, effort, and money. I won't even mention aggravation. I now see why Sears is having a difficult financial time, why the value of their stock has fallen. Misery seems to love company. I've contacted the BBB.
I will never buy another product from Sears or Sears.com. Period.
Recommended:
No
What product did you purchase or try to purchase? Cherry-finished BillPayer desk, item#45037
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Epinions.com ID:
jaggwire
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Member: Trish
Location: Chalybeate (near Brownsville), KY
Reviews written: 2
Trusted by: 0 members
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