Bait and Switch at Lowes!

[jkeller]

I bought a dryer/washer Samsung pair on Black Friday. It was out of stock. No big deal, the guy said it would be delivered in 3 to 10 days. I paid in full and they cashed my check. Then I got a call saying it would be delayed till the week before Christmas, and I'm starting to get a little ticked off. Then, I get a call saying it won't be delivered till mid-February OR I could swap out for another pair, a Whirlpool that is cheaper and got a whole lot of one star reviews on their website saying it was crap and lasted all about a year. Meanwhile, Lowes is floating the loan and they have the full amount of money I have paid.

Furthermore, I called their "customer care" and the guy basically admitted the people who had paid regular price for the machine after the sale (not neccessarily in full) got theirs first, and when I went to the store another guy said "we have a list of people in the order they purchased" (yeah right, I was just told by the head person at customer care the truth).

Then when I went to see the machine they tried to con me into switching to, the guy starts blabbing about how many more features it has [that's great when people are saying it lasts about a year, costs more to fix then the machine itself, and sounds like a "jet engine" when it runs]. This is a classic example of a bait and switch. Meanwhile, they won't switch me to another color of the model I ordered (which was in stock) or the same unit as a top loader (which was also in stock).

This was purchased in La Plata, but I've heard similar stories from around the U.S. on their facebook page.

 

[Serenity40]

I don't understand why they won't allow you to switch to a different model of your choice. That is usually an option when an item is out of stock. Did you check with Lowe's in California, MD?

 

[glhs837]

Hmmm, bought a dishwasher from them here in St Marys a couple of months ago. That unit went out of stock. They upgraded us to the next unit up and ate the cost.

 

[lovinmaryland]

Hmmm, bought a dishwasher from them here in St Marys a couple of months ago. That unit went out of stock. They upgraded us to the next unit up and ate the cost.

Something similar happened w/ my girlfriend. She purchased a new fridge, oven, & microwave vent thingy. The microwave went out of stock and they upgraded her to the next unit ass well.

 

[ICit]

Something similar happened w/ my girlfriend. She purchased a new fridge, oven, & microwave vent thingy. The microwave went out of stock and they upgraded her to the next unit ass well.

 

[itsbob]

This sounds eerily familiar to the Black Friday issues at Best Buy a couple years ago, all the way down to the brand names.

 

[jkeller]

Their reasoning is that the other units weren't on sale on Black Friday. I must admit it was a pretty good deal (about half price off). I'm just ticked that they couldn't tell me on their sale day (which was actually a 2 wk period) that it would take that long. If they did, I would have purchased elsewhere (I'm not that hard up for money). Going from an estimated delivery of 3-10 days to 4 months is ridiculous.

Then the guy had the audacity to say "You should be lucky, some people are waiting till May for theirs."

I've checked other stores availability online and Clinton, MD had the exact one I ordered in stock (but the guy at La Plata said it was wrong). Waldorf, MD (the closest store to me actually) is out of stock. I don't know what to do but wait it out and let this be the last transaction I ever make from Lowe's.

 

[Softballkid]

I'd call California's store, and ask if they have that model in stock, if so, see what they can do.

I have always had good luck with them down here. Even when I have needed out of stock items, they have entered my name into the system, and when more come in, I get a phone call saying they have set aside X amount of said item and I can pick it up anytime..

Also, had an easy time dealing with them over our washer, dryer, cabinets, countertops, sinks...etc... I go to Lowes a lot... And I've always had good luck with them

 

[Crewdawg141]

I'd call California's store, and ask if they have that model in stock, if so, see what they can do.

I have always had good luck with them down here. Even when I have needed out of stock items, they have entered my name into the system, and when more come in, I get a phone call saying they have set aside X amount of said item and I can pick it up anytime..

Also, had an easy time dealing with them over our washer, dryer, cabinets, countertops, sinks...etc... I go to Lowes a lot... And I've always had good luck with them

 

[Lurk]

Every time I have dealt with Lowes when an item was out of stock, the sales person would call the item up on their computer and determine if one of the regional stores had the item in stock. If they did, I had the option of going to that store or having the local store pick it up from the regional store that had it. Sounds like the OP got a He!! of a deal as did countless hundreds of others. This really really good deal depleted the stock of the item and it takes time for the system to replenish.

It also helps to smile when dealing with the Lowes (or other company) salespeople in a case like this. For some reason they want to go out of their way to help you.

 

[NTNG]

I was in South Carolina when the sales circular came out showing the combo mentioned in an earlier post. Same story at that store. The day the circular came out, they were sold out. They only had 20 units at thier store. They called our store in California, and were told they < California> did not have any. They tried to get me to pay for the pair there in SC, and have our local store deliver them when they came in.

I had a hard time not *LOL* at the sales guy...

 

[jkeller]

Thanks Softballkid, but no luck. Looks like Lowe's across the whole nation are out of stock and every store oversold the unit. (They all had carried a few and decieved their customers by saying it would be a week or two before more arrived).

Update: The one listed in stock in Clinton MD is a floormodel and it's damaged, no way am I settling with that.

It also helps to smile when dealing with the Lowes (or other company) salespeople in a case like this. For some reason they want to go out of their way to help you.

Yes, I did do that. The person at customer care on the phone was real apologetic and did all she could to help me (which included calling to get the order from the people above her who enstated the switch part of the bait-and-switch deal). I let the sales rep at the store show me the 'comparable' unit and let him go off about how 'better' it was (and simply said: I'll have to read the reviews before I switch out). I didn't utter a word when he said that idiotic comment: "You should feel lucky that that yours is arriving in February - some are waiting till May."

In conclusion, this will be the last purchase I make from Lowes. A few words of advice to Lowes: if you know you are going to oversell on something that much, just stop the sale before the period ends and don't ever lie to your customers by giving them the wrong info or con them into buying crap.

 

[lovinmaryland]

Thanks Softballkid, but no luck. Looks like Lowe's across the whole nation are out of stock and every store oversold the unit. (They all had carried a few and decieved their customers by saying it would be a week or two before more arrived).

Update: The one listed in stock in Clinton MD is a floormodel and it's damaged, no way am I settling with that.



Yes, I did do that. The person at customer care on the phone was real apologetic and did all she could to help me (which included calling to get the order from the people above her who enstated the switch part of the bait-and-switch deal). I let the sales rep at the store show me the 'comparable' unit and let him go off about how 'better' it was (and simply said: I'll have to read the reviews before I switch out). I didn't utter a word when he said that idiotic comment: "You should feel lucky that that yours is arriving in February - some are waiting till May."

In conclusion, this will be the last purchase I make from Lowes. A few words of advice to Lowes: if you know you are going to oversell on something that much, just stop the sale before the period ends and don't ever lie to your customers by giving them the wrong info or con them into buying crap.

So they arent willing to upgrade to another model?

My girfriend bought a fridge last year from Lowes, after the first month there was an issue w/ it. She had someone come out a total of 10 times over the past year to fix it. Finally fed up becuase they only wanted to keep repairing the same problem she just called every day. I mean every day complaining. After a week or so of this they caved...that is how she got the new range, fridge, and microwave hood thing.

I would just keep badgering them until they caved

 

[sockgirl77]

I have never had a bad experience with Lowe's, neither has anyone in my family. Odd.

 

[jkeller]

Thanks, but I'm not sure if its worth the time.

I've done research, and there really aren't anymore 'upgrades' to the unit I bought. They actually have it in two different colors, which are more expensive, but do not have the "steam cycle" feature which I originally bought the unit for.

Untill then, I'll just borrow my parents' one, lol.

 

[itsbob]

Thanks Softballkid, but no luck. Looks like Lowe's across the whole nation are out of stock and every store oversold the unit. (They all had carried a few and decieved their customers by saying it would be a week or two before more arrived).

Update: The one listed in stock in Clinton MD is a floormodel and it's damaged, no way am I settling with that.



Yes, I did do that. The person at customer care on the phone was real apologetic and did all she could to help me (which included calling to get the order from the people above her who enstated the switch part of the bait-and-switch deal). I let the sales rep at the store show me the 'comparable' unit and let him go off about how 'better' it was (and simply said: I'll have to read the reviews before I switch out). I didn't utter a word when he said that idiotic comment: "You should feel lucky that that yours is arriving in February - some are waiting till May."

In conclusion, this will be the last purchase I make from Lowes. A few words of advice to Lowes: if you know you are going to oversell on something that much, just stop the sale before the period ends and don't ever lie to your customers by giving them the wrong info or con them into buying crap.

You do know Lowes isn't a sentient being IT is incapable of lying, and why an employee at the level you describe would believe lying to you would help in any way, least of all help them personally, is beyond me.