Dell to be sued for credit fraud?

[ahhaa]

just found at zdnet:

Dell is being accused of making false promises to customers to drive sales, according to a lawsuit filed Tuesday by New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo. The court filing accuses Dell and Dell Financial Services of 10 counts of fraud, false advertising and deceptive business practices, including offering misleading financing, and failing to honor rebates and warranties.

The state of New York is asking for an injunction of Dell's allegedly bad business practices and an order that the world's second-largest PC maker pay an unspecified amount of damages to customers found to be affected, in addition to a $500 civil penalty payable to the state of New York for each violation.

"Dell's consumers were intentionally misled, and they had to pay for that privilege. I hope this lawsuit sends a message to companies large and small that delivering a product is simply not enough--the promises they make must be delivered as well," Cuomo said in a statement Wednesday. His office set up a Web site Wednesday for consumers wishing to be part of the suit.

The suit (PDF: Cuomo v. Dell), filed in Albany County, N.Y., accuses Dell of "bait and switch" tactics in which customers are encouraged to apply for zero-interest financing, only to be misled and offered credit lines with up to 20 percent interest rates when they do not qualify for the financing promotion.

In addition, the suit alleges that Dell Financial Services bills customers for canceled orders, as well as for returned or missing merchandise. As a result, DFS and other collection agencies harass consumers for "months on end" for payments they do not owe, according to the petition.
The PC maker's advertising campaign, which touts its award-winning tech support department, is also targeted in the suit. Promises made on television are not met, according to the suit. Customers who purchased warranties are instead met with "a nightmarish array of obstacles in their quest for service."

more at: http://news.zdnet.com/2100-1040_22-6184057.html

[TBoneit]

Dell warranty and support, once you get past the Indian accent, is much easier and better than HP warranty support. I just spent 67 minutes today on the phone with HP to get warranty service on a laptop. Lets see, I also lost my temper when for the third time after telling their person that the bad memory made windows crash. I verified which one was bad with and memory test program. Next question I got asked for the third time was what happens when you put the bad memory in the computer. That was one problem. Bad memory. two problems total. spent about the same amount of time on the phone monday and that call ended up with the department you need is overloaded and we'll have to call you back. Needless to say no callback.

Their support used to be much better. In the past several years ago I RMA'd a CD Burner that had two days left of warranty. No problem. The replacement came with 30 days as that was their policy that you either got 30 days or what was left of the warranty whichever was longer.

Nowdays forget it.

[Chuck584]

I purchased a Toshiba A135-S4467 laptop at Best Buy when they were released with Vista. It died April 26th. Again and again I explained to the person on the phone the computer wouldn't even get to POST. I opted for Depot service as I assumed they could get parts quicked than the local service centers. It's been sitting at the Depot waiting for a motherboard since April 30th. A call today only elicited "we're waiting on parts".

They listed it as having "scratches" on the case and the LCD as having "scratches" and "dirty". I explained the machine was only used in my bedroom to wirelessly surf the web. It was shipped in pristine condition and I have photos to prove it. Girl then said it was "standard practice". I again told her that I took hi-res photos with the laptop and the day's newspaper in the hackground to confirm the date of the photo.

I am wary of what I will find when I opened to box after repair.

This is my second, and most likely last, Toshiba.

I've prevously had Dell and HP laptops. Dell was pretty good about shipping parts for me to swap in. HP has been pretty good to my handicapped brother when he's run into issues.

On the other hand, Dell's desktop service contractor was a nightmare and a half. Rather than take the time to release the fan clips properly on my 8400 the tech broke the tabs with a screw driver, figuring the fan would be helf when the case was closed. It might have worked but I have never done shoddy work myself and won't tolerate it on my equipment. That started a chain of events ending with a BBB complaint and Dell giving me an additional year of warranty.

The only computers I've been uniformly pleased with the service on are my Apples. Then again, they never needed service yet.

[Lucifers_Ghost]

Dell has terrible customer support in my opinion.

I used to work for a major telecom/isp here in Canada. They had a "deal" with Dell that if you signed up for high speed dsl on a 3 year contract, you got a "free" computer. Which essentially wasnt true cause all they did was jack up the price of the internet to offset the price of the computer.

Anywho, the deal said that 7 - 10 days after the signing of the contract, they would receive the computer. I wouldnt even BEGIN to be able to count how many times myself and other agents submitted orders only to have Dell say:

a) they never got them (even when I am looking at a confirmation from THEIR system)
b) they never got them (even when I fax them a copy of the confirmation from THEIR system)
c) they have the order but it was incomplete (even though I have a confirmation from THEIR
system)
d) they got the order but its being "processed" (even though its been 24 days since submitted)
e) wont take the call from an unhappy customer wanting to cancel because its been 24 days and even going so far as to say that they have to pay the penalty for cancellation.

It was just terrible. Do I NOT miss that job.
LG

[oldandinthe way]

The best technical support I have encountered is the IBM tech support on my Lenovo laptop.

Instead of following a script provided for them, the technicians listen to what you tell them you have observed and the steps you have taken, offer reasonable suggestions for further diagnosis and promptly take action to remedy the problem where action on their part is required. They will even ship a replacement part without asking for a credit card.

I have been involved with computers since 1967 and am generally treated like a newbie idiot by tech support people.

In my conversations with other Lenovo owners, this appears to be the norm rather than an exceptional technician.

[MJA]

just found at zdnet:





The suit (PDF: Cuomo v. Dell), filed in Albany County, N.Y., accuses Dell of "bait and switch" tactics in which customers are encouraged to apply for zero-interest financing, only to be misled and offered credit lines with up to 20 percent interest rates when they do not qualify for the financing promotion.

l

they did the same to me 3 years ago when I bought a monitor from them

[lordsmurf]

Dell sucks. There's really nothing more to say. You can get good equipment for a good price, but don't expect much else. They do make decent "out of the box" systems for people who don't want to build something better for less. The deals are not very good, and the tech support is terrible (the same can be said about most "big name" computer makers). I know or have known about 50 Dell employees, and I honestly would not let them look at my computers, because their knowledge is too basic or wholly unrelated to the need.

I have been involved with computers since 1967 and am generally treated like a newbie idiot by tech support people.

I find that "shut the **** up and listen to me, don't read a dumbass script" tends to work well in this situation. I don't know why. They either hang up or listen. Either way, it's better than the script that has NOTHING to do with your problem. If they hang up, I call back until I get somebody willing to drop the script crap. "****" tends to be an action word. They don't really seem to hear you until you cuss at them. I don't understand why that is. Same goes for the cable company, and other services. They treat you like you're 5 years old until you use an "adult" word.

[12Quidkidinnit]

I don't bother swearing at idiots on the phone (or in person). I find it more satisfying to just be assertive with them, even if this means firmly and politely repeating something if they don't get it the first time. If they interrupt, I say, "If you're talking, you're not listening", and they usually get the hint. Some places use customer anger as an excuse to end the call, so I don't give them the satisfaction.
Another useful thing is that when you want something, don't ask if they will do it, ask them when they will do it. And if you're not happy with the response, say so. Then ask their name and write it down.

[Lucifers_Ghost]

I don't bother swearing at idiots on the phone (or in person). I find it more satisfying to just be assertive with them, even if this means firmly and politely repeating something if they don't get it the first time. If they interrupt, I say, "If you're talking, you're not listening", and they usually get the hint. Some places use customer anger as an excuse to end the call, so I don't give them the satisfaction.
Another useful thing is that when you want something, don't ask if they will do it, ask them when they will do it. And if you're not happy with the response, say so. Then ask their name and write it down.

Many call center agents are told to lie and give false names for the express purpose that when you call back, it will be impossible to track down that person.

[ahhaa]

just FYI: most corporations list an 'investor relations' number and/or email. A hint here that you are 'shocked, shocked to find...' usually gets immediate attn from people with actual power to fix things... use sparingly & politely.

[TheFamilyMan]

met with "a nightmarish array of obstacles in their quest for service"

What more needs to be said about dealing with ANY "customer (dis)service" phone support now-a-days? I could write paragraphs about my (mis)dealings in the last year or two. I now flinch and put on my combat fatigues when calling those dreaded numbers.

[handyguy]

I wonder whose idea it was to sue? Probably some genius @ HP.