Circuit City Refusing To Honor Advertised Offer For Free Call Of Duty 3?
Reader Adam says:
We looked up the weekly circular for Naperville, IL and sure enough. There it is. No mention of a misprint. We think Circuit City should honor this offer. There's really no reason to believe it was a misprint.
Today, like many anxious gamers, I went to Circuit City (Store # 3111) to pick up the highly anticipated "Call of Duty 4" for the XBox 360. I chose to pick it up at Circuit City as this week's circular ad listed a free copy of the previous game "Call of Duty 3" with purchase. When I went to check out, I was told that it was a misprint and that they refused to honor it. Myself, along with about half a dozen co-workers were rightfully angry that we wasted our lunch hour on this Circuit City bait-and-switch, that has become too common with this outlet lately. I would urge other Consumerists to skip out on Circuit City and try for another retailer (Target has a free $5 gift card).
Adam
Are other people having this problem?
Circuit City Weekly Ad, Page 12 [Circuit City]
This is a test contextual ad for the SHOPPING category. It should appear on all SHOPPING entries, unless the subcategory has its own ad.
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Comments:
A misprint is putting a 9 instead of a 5, or getting the dates wrong, or maybe getting the item descriptions switched for 2 similar products. This is a deliberately typed headline. At least 5 people saw this and signed off on it, including CC staff, before it went to print and got posted online. There is no possible way this is a misprint.
A misprint is an error in printing. Like $10.99 instead of $100.99. Something as specific as this is not a misprint. It may have been bad coordination or communication inside of the company, but it was not a printing accident.
Circuit City should have more respect for its customers.
By their logic, the $59.99 credit card charge for Call of Duty 4 is a "misprint"...because I only wanted to pay $5.99...
It's not a misprint. A fellow gamer from Lansdale, PA just text me that he had success getting the free version of COD3 when purchasing COD4.
Apparently, the store in Naperville is just a bunch of cheapskates that clearly are going above corporate and refusing to honor.
If it was a misprint, why is it STILL advertised on the website (not just on the picture of the flier, but clicking through to the CoD4 page shows that its free).
Also, isn't it considered bait and switch if it causes you to ENTER the store (like, if it was a mislabeled price on an item IN the store, its not fine for the company to turn the offer down) therefore they have to honor it if its a reasonable offer (which, a free game from the same series sounds very reasonable, and not done in err.)
Can you say "class action" boy and girls? If there is even a sniff of a pattern of them doing this the lawyers are gonna be on them like white on rice. When will they ever learn - piss off a customer any they tell 2 million of their closest friends.
Just for clarification (I submitted this story), this happened at the Schaumburg, IL store (#3111) which was closer to my office, not the Naperville, IL store, althought I wouldn't expect better treatment there.
It doesn't appear that my previous comment went through, so to be clear this was the Schaumburg, IL store, not Naperville.
Yah, the web page pretty clearly spells out this deal. Its not misprint. However its likely just a local store trying to get out of the deal. Unfortunately there seems little corporate can or is willing to do to force individual stores to honor their ads.
Right. Misprint.
Sure.
I'd go to a different Circuit City, and if you get the same response I'd dig into Consumerist's archive to see if there's ECS carpet-bombing information.
This is one of the main reasons I just don't bother with CC anymore, its not like I can't get "it" online at the same price or cheaper. Every time I have gone into their stores in the past there has been at least 5 or 6 signs stating supposed "misprints". This was happening week after week so eventually I just stopped going, no other store has 5-6 signs up on the ad rack stating misprints every week..
At least when best buy or another store has a legitmate misprint they do everything in their power to inform the publc, such as pulling it from their website and making a large announcement on the front page of their website, plus putting huge signs up on the doors of the stores, I don't see CC doing any of this stuff to inform customers of misprints in their ad.
At times like this, you really have to wonder, indeed, how stupid does CC actually think their customers are?
its not bait and switch, its just false advertising. Bait and switch is when you say you will get product X for price y but instead you get product Z as a replacement and its typically inferior than X.
If you have problems, you could always call Store #533, as I just went there during lunch and picked up COD3 and COD4 for $59.98
Here's the address and phone number:
Circuit City Sotres, Inc.
5555 Saint Louis Mills Blv.
Hazelwood, MO 63042
(314) 227-5350
For whatever reason, my work computer doesn't seem to want to let me post a comment, so I'll try from my phone. First off, I sent this story, so I apologize for screwing up the terminology. Also, the store is the Schaumburg, IL location, not Naperville. Regardless, this particular store has become notorious lately for not honoring sales ads. I can't speak for any of the other stores.
I don't understand what an individual store gains out of declining this promotion. CC isn't made up of franchises so why would a store manager care?
Circuit City website has a bundle with Cod4 and Cod3 for 59.99:
[www.circuitcity.com]
Not quite a misprint when its clearly setup on their website...
People still shop at Circuit City? Sorry, but after years of restocking fee madness and purging of trained employees, why would anyone even walk through the door? This shouldn't surprise anyone; it's completely in line with their corporate reputation.
@Scazza: @tomok97: #47875830790 is the Cicuit City part number. Heres the website link [www.circuitcity.com]
@tomok97: Because they have to maintain revenue to budget and when everything is added up at the end of the month these transactions will hurt the stores sales because they are counted as a loss.
How could that possibly be a misprint? The letters are HUGE. Someone very high up had to have approved this.
It's not a misprint, it's not false advertising, it's a store that doesn't understand their own promos. They'd have a communication if it was a misprint.
It's online and on the weekly ad across the country. Can't be a misprint.
Make sure you contact Activision and let them know they shouldn't sell product through outlets who falsify promotions on their products. Encourage them to find other outlets or let them know you will consider taking your business to EA or some other game manufacturer.
@warf0x0r: It seems crazy that CC corporate would creat a promotion and then penalize stores for participating. I'm not saying you're wrong, just that it's extremely short sighted. Since I don't play video games the only time I go to a place like this is to buy a TV...which isn't often.
Not again. "Dumbass goes to Circuit City/Best Buy, gets screwed". When will Consumerist implement a preferences mechanism so we don't have to see this same damn story over and over? We get it. CC/BB == Evil.
@mbrutsch: The fact that you think it's old news (it's not, this is a new event) doesn't mean it's not news. Don't like it? Keep scrolling. It's not your website.
@mbrutsch:
It's still relevant for those interested in taking advantage of the promotion. Wouldn't it take less of your time to scroll on by the article than to click on it and spend time posting your complaint? If your time is so valuable, just keep scrolling past this article.
If CC/BB == Evil
CC*BB == EVIL^2?
@warf0x0r: It won't add up as a loss on the P&L because all of the games get written off per corporate, or tracked via a coupon code that gets reconciled at the end under the line that says "promotions" which would have a bump in it that quarter to compensate.
What this store is trying to do is get ahead by reselling the items that were already accounted for, essentially double dipping.
Maybe these people should pick up the phone and call corporate while in the store? I think that would solve problems pretty quickly if this is supposed to be a corporate sponsored event.
@warf0x0r: I highly doubt this is the case. Usually when these types of promotions go on, there's some 'deductions' that corporate absorbs so help offset (or completely cancel out) the losses. Franchises are usually the exception.
I got my copy Today made them get the COD4 from the back and COD3. One manager playfully said he doesn't think they had it. I then mentioned I talked to ezxecutive services earlier to verify availability and asked if I could get his name and the store number. All of a sudden he went to let me check one more time. After I bought my two copies for me and my friend at work the employees bought the rest.
I got my copy of COD4 and 3 after mentioning to a manger how I spoke to executive services for avaialbility and asked him if I could get his name and the store number. After I bought my two copies for me and my friend the employees bought the rest.
Circuit City must be losing it. I went in this weekend for a new HP printer that Fry's had in their ad for $169. Circuit City's price = $269. The refused to match Fry's price because as the sales guy pointed out "they are an outlet that carries only discontinued / open box stuff." I did not have time to fight with him b/c my 2 year old was getting cranky.
So, I went to Best Buy with my Frys ad, they matched it no questions asked and I was in and out in 10 minutes. I used to shop CC, but now BB will be earning my $$$ if I ever need to get anything there.
Those of you who couldn't get the advertised deal from Circuit City, file complaint to Federal Trade Commission here: [rn.ftc.gov]
With enough complaints, the government will step in (like they did to CompUSA) and give dishonest merchants some lessons.
CC stands for Crappy Corporation.
I was able to get my copy of COD3 for free..but it took me 20 minutes of waiting around to get 1 of the 2 available copies...I have no idea what they were going to do for the other 5 people that were waiting behind me. 2 copies of something they are supposed to be giving away for free...and the ad DOES not state that it was "while supplies lasted", that was only for the poster. Poor choice of a promo if you ask me.
You'd think a promo like this would be offered by the producer rather than a retail chain. Where are they getting all these extra copies of CoD 3, which hasn't nearly reached bargain-basement pricing yet?
I don't play video games... so can someone edumacate me... why would you want COD3 if you're already buying COD4? Wouldn't you already have played COD3 out?
Or are you going from COD2->COD4 and taking advantage of getting COD3 for free and planning to take a week off from school/work to conquer two versions in a row?
signed,
CompletelyIgnorantAboutSuchThings
@savvy999: COD3 takes place in World War II like COD1 and COD2 do. COD4 takes place in the modern time.
And none of the game shared any story line except for the era that the game was taking place in.
@tomok97: they don't count it against them. Although the "raw" numbers will show it as a loss, it will be counted as an expected loss and not held against them. If the company is really nice, they wont hold it against the sales people either, when I worked on commission we had "margin protection" during events like this, so any instant savings would be credited back to our numbers when calculated otherwise it looks like we are making no money for the company. The company makes money on this because typically they are getting a kick back from the maker of the game
bb does not price match freebies
This happens at our local Hastings all the time. They send out coupons once a month and there will always be at least one really awesome one and when you get to the store and go to check out, there's a teeny tiny sign saying, "Oh, there was a misprint in our company's coupon flyer this month, it should say 'Buy 6 books and get one free (retail $6.99 or less)', not 'Buy 1 get 1 free ($12.99 or less)'!"
The first time I wasn't upset, but once a month? Definitely bait-and-switch. If you bitch about it, they just say, "Oh, well, you know...Corporate." :shakes head: Which is why I do all my shopping with Amazon.
Yep when you go to their site it says right there. Search for Call of Duty 4, and it is on the products page under Special Offer. Misprint my butt.
"• Free: Call of Duty 3 with purchase"
Regardless what Circuit City may state, consumers should put the pressure on Circuit City stores nationwide with boycotts and reporting this to your local media to try and get as much bad publicity for Circuit City as you can.
Fight fire with fire. This is just another example of a big company that thinks they are above the law and can do whatever they want.
They typed that it was free twice. How is that a misprint?