Best buy messed up my Samsung S4

[asanatheist]

Here's a summary of what happened
On 7/14th I took my samsung S4 to best buy to buy a zagg cover to protect the Gorilla glass 3.

* I bought a Zagg HD cover, and had Best Buy's "Geek Squad" apply the cover for me.
* They took the Samsung S4 using the S view flip cover and removed the Flip cover, exposing the back to the phone and proceeded to install the case at the back of their "Geek Squad counter". I could not see what I did.
* When I received the phone back I powered it on, and inspected it briefly. Seemed okay.
* When I arrived at phone I noticed there was a very large (1/4 of the screen) bubble, as well as smaller bubbles around the phone.
* I took it back to best buy, and they reapplied the cover. This time however they did not remove the case.
* When they handed me the phone the screen was wet, and the back was also considerably wet.
* I turned the phone on and immediate saw the screen flickering. I was told if I had to use the phone to use a light touch for the next 3 hours and if any bubbles or issues were present to bring it back.
* I decided to turn the phone off figuring it was probably the screen cover or touchwiz messing up.
* After 3 hours I proceeded to turn the phone on: No screen. Nothing. It would power up, you could see the soft touch buttons light up and hear sound but no screen.
* I called best buy to file the issue, they told me there was nothing I could do but if I wanted I could come in person and they'd see the issue in person.
* I showed up at best buy and what proceeded was: lying from the manager and staff (claiming there was no way to damage a phone from a zagg cover Install and that the solution they use could not cause damage but refused to state that the solution they use was non conductive.
* Manager proceeded to Pull the battery from the phone and showed me a Pink strip claiming there had been NO water damage. So there was nothing I could do. I took his word for it that there was no water damage but explained Best buy was still responsible for having damaged my phone. If Samsung said there was water damage, I would be coming back to best buy this time with intentions to seek alternate options to reach a resolution.
* Lied about providing legal representation (Best buy customer service), and dealings with courts. They said they had a Public defendant (later I researched and found it was a customer service branch). I asked the person on the phone if this Public Defendant was a legal representative, he said yes. I also asked if he was a best buy employee, he said no. Also that this legal representative would be the phone to deal in between Best buy and me, in an effort to keep this out of court.
* Manager proceeded to shift responsibility and encouraged fraud by telling me to go to the Samsung rep inside their best buy and tell them it's a defective screen.
The Samsung rep checked the battery and saw it had a pink strip and immediately said there was water damage. he excused him self, and came back a few minutes later telling me he just opened 3 new phones in box, all had white strips with a red dot. Also he spoke with the manager from best buy and the manager told him they'd do nothing.

I am out of warranty, out of a working phone, and best buy staff refused to do anything.

I have since called Corporate offices. They immediately listened and have been handling the case well so far. I was told they'd send in a request for an exchange of the device. However they have not called me on the allotted time they gave me (24-48 hours). When i called in I was told they were still waiting for approval. I explained urgency since I am out of a working phone, and out of warranty with the device since it has incurred water damage.

This has seriously been a terrible experience. Luckily I have been keeping tabs on names and statements in the event I have to take this to Small Claims which means I would need to buy a 2nd phone (will be placed in lawsuit as damages incurred).

* Best buy has damaged my $700 device.
* Best buy staff lied regarding Zagg shield installations, and liquid damage risks. Also lied regarding consumer rights and laws, and liability of a company performing a paid job for a device while under their care.
* Best buy staff encouraged directly the use of fraud to acquire an exchanged phone, also shifting their liability with the manufacturer WHO HAD NOTHING TO DO with spilling liquid on my device and ruining it.

 

[neonworm]

You are definitely doing the right thing by seeking legal action. That is just ridiculous.

Posted via Android Central App

 

[HPferoxCraft]

Wow that's crazy and yes definitely stay on top of them, the higher ups should have no problem replacing your phone. They definitely messed up, but the only flaw in your complaint is that you stated you immediately turned it on after the protector was applied, that in itself could have incurred damage. The handset should have been allowed to dry, the zagg instructions say 24 hours+ I believe. I think it's printed on the package. Other than that though you should be OK.

 

[asanatheist]

Wow that's crazy and yes definitely stay on top of them, the higher ups should have no problem replacing your phone. They definitely messed up, but the only flaw in your complaint is that you stated you immediately turned it on after the protector was applied, that in itself could have incurred damage. The handset should have been allowed to dry, the zagg instructions say 24 hours+ I believe. I think it's printed on the package. Other than that though you should be OK.

They said I could use the device just be gentle with the touch. I was not informed of this 24 hour wait time. In fact they took my box away for the Zagg cover. Apparently they have a pretty irresponsible staff.
They also stated they use their solution not Zagg's. So who knows if waiting 24 hours really would of done anything.

 

[dakhath]

* I bought a Zagg HD cover, and had Best Buy's "Geek Squad" apply the cover for me.

Not trying to be mean but this is where you went wrong.

I have yet to see the "geek squad" not be complete idiots without proper training.
They are expected to be experts in many fields and they are nowhere close to being competent in any area other than screw ups.
They are there to take advantage of customers lack of knowledge of the products that they purchase.
At least when you take your car to the mechanic you can get an ASE certified mechanic and they will have had at least some training and testing.
Same with a Doctor. They have had to go through specialized schooling to earn those jobs. Even then there are specialists in various fields of medicines since the area of medicine is so vast.

Judging from your post you sound like a very intelligent and articulate person.
I am sure you would have had no issue installing the Zagg screen protector yourself.

I agree that it wasn't handled properly by the Best Buy staff and hope that you can find some kind of proper resolution.

 

[Ezduzit]

Did the geek squad charge you $7.99 to install the zagg? If so they are responsible for the solution getting in the device, make sure you have a receipt showing the charge. At my location we would be held responsible for replacing your phone if we installed the zagg!

Sent from my busa!

 

[asanatheist]

Did the geek squad charge you $7.99 to install the zagg? If so they are responsible for the solution getting in the device, make sure you have a receipt showing the charge. At my location we would be held responsible for replacing your phone if we installed the zagg!

Sent from my busa!

Yes I did pay them the $7.99 for the installation. I have also kept my receipt. Thanks for the reminder however, and thanks to everyone else for the support.

So far still no call it's been 2 hours since I last called.

 

[Ezduzit]

Yes I did pay them the $7.99 for the installation. I have also kept my receipt. Thanks for the reminder however, and thanks to everyone else for the support.

So far still no call it's been 2 hours since I last called.

I would escalate it, keep calling corporate, have you talked to the GM of the store?

Sent from my busa!

 

[asanatheist]

I would escalate it, keep calling corporate, have you talked to the GM of the store?

Sent from my busa!

I spoke with a Gentleman who refused to identify himself as the manager. So I am not sure at all if he was or wasn't the manager.
My guess: probably not since managers are best buy tend to have that title on their shirt.

Right now I've escalated the issue to Corporate. Waiting for their call, going to give them until 5 then I will call again.

The sad thing about it is, the gentleman who talked to me kept lying. He didn't know I work in IT and have a family business. I know a bit about dealing with customers for over 5 years and while he maintained a "friendly" attitude, he kept stalling, lying, and making blanket irrelevant statements and trying to make it seem as if it was a Defective issue not water damage.

 

[msavic6]

This is why I never use wet-install screen protectors but that is beside the point. I would keep calling and continue too escalte the issue, try to contact a local news station as where I live there is a hotline where you can tell them about issues like this.

Sent from my SGH-I337M using Tapatalk 4 Beta

 

[Ezduzit]

I spoke with a Gentleman who refused to identify himself as the manager. So I am not sure at all if he was or wasn't the manager.
My guess: probably not since managers are best buy tend to have that title on their shirt.

Right now I've escalated the issue to Corporate. Waiting for their call, going to give them until 5 then I will call again.

The sad thing about it is, the gentleman who talked to me kept lying. He didn't know I work in IT and have a family business. I know a bit about dealing with customers for over 5 years and while he maintained a "friendly" attitude, he kept stalling, lying, and making blanket irrelevant statements and trying to make it seem as if it was a Defective issue not water damage.

Call the store and ask for the GM, PM me the location of the store and I'll find out tomorrow...


Sent from my busa!

 

[paintdrinkingpete]

Not trying to be mean but this is where you went wrong.

I have yet to see the "geek squad" not be complete idiots without proper training.
They are expected to be experts in many fields and they are nowhere close to being competent in any area other than screw ups.
They are there to take advantage of customers lack of knowledge of the products that they purchase.
At least when you take your car to the mechanic you can get an ASE certified mechanic and they will have had at least some training and testing.
Same with a Doctor. They have had to go through specialized schooling to earn those jobs. Even then there are specialists in various fields of medicines since the area of medicine is so vast.

Judging from your post you sound like a very intelligent and articulate person.
I am sure you would have had no issue installing the Zagg screen protector yourself.

I agree that it wasn't handled properly by the Best Buy staff and hope that you can find some kind of proper resolution.

Best Buy has a HORRIBLE reputation when it comes to their "Geek Squad". I would never let them touch anything of mine, even if the service was 100% free. I've way too many accounts and complaints of poor workmanship, shady business practices, and straight up refusal to accept any responsibility for me to trust them one iota.

To start, no one who actually knows their #$%& about computers or electronics would actually seek that job out. Unless things have changed, they really only employ inexperienced, untrained entry-level persons to begin with (probably because they don't pay enough for those with experience to even be interested in working there). Now, I don't have any problem with giving folks a chance to gain experience, but your entire shop can't be run by rookies.

When it comes to cell phones, I know Best Buy often has better deals than buying from the carrier, but again, I've heard way too many complaints and horror stories from folks who had issues with their phone after buying from them, and being unable to get any resolution. No thank you.

 

[rushmore]

Best Buy messed my son's computer up and could have easily blamed us with modding, but gave us credit to replace his computer that was a year old. I have yet to encounter issues with Best Buy, so must be store leadership dependent.

 

[t_r_k]

Well the zagg shield has bubbles in it for the first 24-48 hours until it fully dries and settles idk if they told you this. .

 

[HPferoxCraft]

They said I could use the device just be gentle with the touch.

Make sure you add that statement when mentioning turning on the phone immediately, you know if it goes to court. It doesn't matter the solution if it's in your phone and you power it on it can short out thing and cause havoc and rusting rather quickly.
Not saying you should have known this so don't get me wrong, just in case they say it's your fault for turning it on.
Sounds like you delta with some kids that don't really care about your property or their job. Don't wait for them to take care of it you get in there and demand they make it right and make sure you're talking to the store manager if your unsure call the sheriff office to help out. You'll get the manager asap. They destroyed your property, they'll make it right and hopefully reprimand their staff.

 

[tlo07]

I had Best Buy mobile install a Zagg Shield on an iPhone 4s and the person who did it did an excellent job. However, when I had the Zagg installed on my GS4, the girl who installed it SOAKED the front of the phone and the back of the shield before she applied it. She just kept spraying and spraying and spraying that stuff on the phone! Then when she squeegeed (sp?) it all I could think of was how much liquid was getting in around my speaker grill and the home button. I was lucky my phone wasn't damaged but I broke out in a cold sweat before she was done. I was really nervous! From now on, I'll make the effort to drive up to the Mall of America and have the guys at the Zagg kiosk install it up there even though its like an hour+ drive. They have done so many they are pros for sure. The problem with having Best Buy do it, one day you might get a person who has installed dozens but another day you might get a person who has only done a couple. I hope they replace your phone for you. I would be soooo mad!

 

[mhinc]

Not trying to be mean but this is where you went wrong.

I have yet to see the "geek squad" not be complete idiots without proper training.
They are expected to be experts in many fields and they are nowhere close to being competent in any area other than screw ups.
They are there to take advantage of customers lack of knowledge of the products that they purchase.
At least when you take your car to the mechanic you can get an ASE certified mechanic and they will have had at least some training and testing.
Same with a Doctor. They have had to go through specialized schooling to earn those jobs. Even then there are specialists in various fields of medicines since the area of medicine is so vast.

Judging from your post you sound like a very intelligent and articulate person.
I am sure you would have had no issue installing the Zagg screen protector yourself.

I agree that it wasn't handled properly by the Best Buy staff and hope that you can find some kind of proper resolution.

You took the words right out of my mouth.

 

[ne0ne]

A quick Google search yielded significant information on this topic. Specifically best buy messing up people's phones in this fashion. Take a look.

They tried selling me an invisishield for one of my tablets however once I saw they used liquid I backed out. Even deionized water can be bad obviously.

Sent from my HTC One using Tapatalk 2

 

[Notsosure]

Hence the reason why I don't ever use geek squad. A friend of mine who worked at best buy selling computers told me don't ever sign up for geek squad protection. They are a bunch of idiots that claims to know how to fix computer software and hardware issues. In reality the only they really know how to do is restart the system, cross their fingers and pray for a miracle.

Sent from my SCH-I545 using Tapatalk 2

 

[jrvtecaccord]

Hence the reason why I don't ever use geek squad. A friend of mine who worked at best buy selling computers told me don't ever sign up for geek squad protection. They are a bunch of idiots that claims to know how to fix computer software and hardware issues. In reality the only they really know how to do is restart the system, cross their fingers and pray for a miracle.

Sent from my SCH-I545 using Tapatalk 2

Using geek squad service to install the screen protector shouldn't be an issue. They should be liable for any damage during service, unless their is a written disclaimer stating otherwise. IMO the issue is with leadership handling the issue.