This Certified Refurbished Dell Laptop Comes With Large Scratches And A Pirated Copy Of Microsoft Office
Ever wonder if "certified refurbished" is just corporate doublespeak for "not entirely broken crap?" Well, at Dell, it is! The refurbished Dell Studio Joseph bought as a gift for his father-in-law arrived with large scratches and a CD-R in the optical drive containing a pirated copy of Microsoft Office. Dell's response? They're willing to take back the laptop and waive the restocking fee, but that's it.
Joseph writes:
I ordered a Dell Studio from Dell (My first mistake, I know). After I placed the order, where there were tons of helpful people eager to take my credit card number, I saw the Dell outlet center with some refurb laptops.I called and cancelled my initial order, asked the lady on the phone (Name escapes me, but I KNOW they can find out who by my click to chat IDs) and asked her to compare, line for line, the two laptops. She assured me they were identical, component for component.
I then asked her about certified reburbs vs scratch and dent, which I did not want.
She says "Cert refurbs are conditioned to factory specification, the cases look just like a new laptop". I pointed her to the description online that hinted at some damage visible, she says "oh they just say that, I have never seen a refurb with any damage on it.
I place the order. It is a gift for my father in law.
I get the order.
It looks like a bear clawed the front of the cover. Someone took a flathead and gouged the bezel in the front. It is not line for line the same laptop, missing features, wrong OS, etc.
Best thing was the "present": a burnt .rar of Office 2007 corporate edition in the cd tray. It had a text file with the Warez site it was downloaded from as a reference. Yes folks, they sent me illegal software from a warez site. If this was refurb'd, where is the QA department? No one noticed a cd in the laptop?
I called corporate using Consumerist guidance, no help. I sent an email to corporate and CC'd Michael@dell.com, Got someone who honestly seemed to want to help me but "had hands tied"
Their compensation for a laptop that I cannot return (I was asking for a tech at least to come out and replace the case, drop off the OS I wanted, I was willing to eat the non-backlit keyboard) was this:
No restocking fee, return the laptop and get assistance ordering another.
I assure you, this was not "certified reburbished" but very much "scratch and severly dented".
I cannot return it as it was a gift to be presented in front of about 20 folks, one of them my future employer. The future is suddenly not so bright.
This worth a letter to BBB?
Thanks a lot Dell. Any advice from consumerist? Seems like Dell is considering this a "case closed".
Joseph doesn't need assistance ordering a new laptop. He needs is the laptop he ordered delivered at the price Dell quoted. They should provide a system of equal or greater value, free of charge. An apology note wouldn't hurt either.
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Comments:
Dude...you got a Dell...
That picture am not office 2007... it are office 2003 :O
@Megladon: Always order from small business or above and you will have a good experience. Everytime I have ever had to support a Dell Home purchase, I have to strong arm their service reps into doing what I want.
I think the fun thing to do here would be to call Microsoft and ask for help installing Office 2007. The only problem there is that they might not believe that it came with the Dell.
Didn't they just provide a system of equal value by accepting return on the laptop and helping him reorder? The laptop was worth whatever he paid for it, which they are refunding and he can reorder. One of the problems with ordering refurbished is if there is a problem with it, they may not have another unit to simply swap for it.
Don't get me wrong. Dell dropped the ball here on the refurbishment process (which honestly is probably farmed out but still their responsibility) but they still did everything that can honestly be expected by expediting the return... A company would have upgraded him and shipped overnight but, honestly, this is Dell. Are we really EXPECTING Dell to go the extra mile for their customers?
When I took my A+ class the instructor told us that the possession of a burned piece of software wasn't a crime. It was illegally obtaining a serial number that made it a crime. So, just playing devil's advocate, if he was correct and there's no serial number on the disk then it's not necessarily pirated. I've downloaded copies of XP in the past when I've reinstalled OS's for people with legitimate CD keys but missing media and my understanding is that's not illegal, since they have the license to use the software already.
@Roclawzi: Report it to Microsoft through the Business Software Alliance - they handle piracy issues for many major software manufacturers:
www.BSA.org/reportpiracy
And the funny thing is, they've been furtively blaming lackluster Vista demand for their astounding 63% drop in profits. Yeah, they're right, it probably doesn't have ANYTHING to do with customer satisfaction issues...
I don't know why Consumerist thinks Dell should give the customer a "system of equal or greater value, free of charge." Sure, it looks like they made a pretty embarrassing mistake, but they offered to replace it so I don't quite understand why he continues to insist to escalate it. Beyond the replacement, which Dell's already offered, and an apology, I don't know what more the customer thinks he's entitled to. Things happen, even weird things like this, and Dell's offered to make good.
I don't quite understand why the customer refuses to exchange it with Dell because the refurb'd laptop was a gift... a gift which he says future career was for some reason depending on. It's a little tacky anyway to offer a refurb'd product as a gift.
Let's be clear here - he *can* return this item. This is not his desired outcome, but to say that it's not possible is misleading.
Obviously he can't gift it in this condition, so how does he expect it to get resolved without returning it?
Damaged products go out all the time - even ones that are meant to have gone through Quality Control. A return/reorder is usually the case there - I think Dell's just about doing the right thing here (they should also pay his return shipping)
@wchamilton: That may be, but the file from the Warez site generally includes a serial or the rar will have a keygen - otherwise it's useless (most people who go to such sites are not looking to replace legit copies of software)
A@coren:
You just beat me to it. If it's from Warez site, it will absolutely contain crack/serial information to run the software.
Then if it's burned, there could be some sort of software distribution laws violated as well.
I ordered a Latitude XT , an MD3000i, and a PowerEdge 2950 from the outlet recently. The tablet was perfect in every way (and less than half the price of a brand new one, and the server arrived with a major CPU fault that showed up after 3 hours of power on. Someone grabbed the MD3000i before my order was able to be completed. All in All, we're talking about $25 grand worth of new hardware, and about 13K on the outlet.
Dell overnighted me a brand new server (and even added a DRAC card that I forgot about) and everything is good.
Dell also sent me an MD3000i from new stock for the same price it would have been on the outlet.
Like others have mentioned, I keep hearing horror stories about Dell and compare them to my experiences with them and just scratch my head. Dell has been exceedingly good to me and our organization.
When a company markets something as being up to new factory model specification, that's what the consumer should receive upon ordering it, regardless of whether or not it's a refurb. ESPECIALLY if a sales representative assures the consumer that the item will be as-new, and in perfect working order.
You can't blame the consumer for being duped, you twit.
Since description of the item said it had visible damage, there isn't much to do from a legal perspective. Sure, the rep said she'd never seen one with significant damage, but that's just her anecdotal experience and not a guarantee.
Dell is offering an even exchange, so I'm not sure what more the OP wants. I guess if it's a time sensitive issue they could offer to cross-ship the replacement.
@Chizzer:
But the OP stated that the website stated it could be damaged. I'm pretty sure that's why it says that on the website.
Nice try though.
@wchamilton: You can download a full version of Office 2007 from Microsoft's website right now. It will just stop working after 60 days if you don't have a valid key.
@coren: From what I can gather, he is going to gift it:
I cannot return it as it was a gift to be presented in front of about 20 folks, one of them my future employer.
If I'm interpreting this correctly, it's more important to have a gift, albeit a crappy and broken one, presented on time than it is to have a much nicer gift arrive a little late. Presenting a used piece of crap will definitely win the in-laws and those "20 other people" over...
Sounds like too much pride to take Dell up on their offer of allowing him to return it, fee free, and helping him get another one. How would it not take more time to have a tech repair it than to return this one and order a new one?
I just don't see exactly what he wants here...
@supercereal: I assumed, maybe incorrectly, that he would not give such a piece of junk as a gift. I certainly wouldn't give it to anyone!
@Mike Kosten: He was assured that it was the same, every feature, and would have no damage. Although the rep was incorrect in saying that he would receive a 100% undamaged unit, a unit with deep scratches and a pirated CD in it is past the 'certified refurbished' category and well into the 'used' category.
Next time you go out and blame the op, I'd suggest reading the article.
This is strange. Every laptop and desktop I've ordered from Dell Outlet has been wonderful, and that seems to be the general consensus on the computer forums as well. My point is, don't let this aggressive article phase you.
Why the OP didnt think of inspecting the laptop before giving it to his father is beyond me. I have bought those cheap ebay refurb dells for my father before and you better believe i made sure it was perfect before I gave it to him. (I had to fix a noisy fan)
I know the Dell sales rep told him its like new, but come on, its a refurb, they call it that for a reason.
Yes, that's the worst "refurb" I've seen. (short of shipping damage) Take their offer asap and stop the bleeding. Consider it a lesson.
Buy a new, sale-priced business model from Dell Small Business. Check the Laptop Deals section. Order, then call to check status and let them know what happened. You should see it in short order. Note the Vostro models are good, but the Latitude models tend to be tougher, which could be important depending on the intended use.
"They're willing to take back the laptop and waive the restocking fee, but that's it."
What else should they be required to do - buy them a Mac?
Yes, it sucks, but you buy a lemon and they take it back - woot!
...And people wonder why Apple owners are "smug".
@Mike Kosten: Have you ever ordered from Dell Outlet? I bet that's a no.
There's a difference between "scratch and dent" and "certified refurb", which according to their website, certified refurb doesn't include "considerable cosmetic blemishes".
Stop being so hostile. Turn off your computer and go outside.
@Megladon: Just keep in mind that Dell sells thousands and thousands of machines a day, and one or two may have a few issues. And unfortunately, sometimes you get that bad tech who (out of thousands) gives you a sour taste. Doesn't always make the company bad, but... doesn't help perception.
Case in point: I just got a brand new E6400 at work the other day, monitor completely shot, blown. We've gotten almost a hundred other laptops, no problems. Things happen.
Dell has a tech scheduled to come out and fix it, no questions asked.
The OP's future isn't looking so bright because there was a problem with a gift he wanted to give his father-in-law?
Way to bring the drama.
I really usually find myself appalled at the company in these stories, but the facts as I see them are this:
1) Website said item may have physical damage
2) CS Rep said she'd never seen a damaged refurb, but what she didn't say was "This refurb you're getting is not damaged".
3) Item arrived damaged (it does look like a bear hit it, I gotta say).
4) Dell is informed, they will take the item back with no restocking fee. I agree with the poster above that they also need to handle return shipping.
So it definitely sucks that the guy's going to be without gift, especially since it sounds like he's going to be in trouble at work without one, but Dell seems to be doing right here.
Now, they definitely have an opportunity to win some goodwill by 2-day/overnighting the guy a comparable model, whether new or refurbed, right away so that he has it in time to give. I have a feeling that if they had done that, we'd be seeing an Above and Beyond story with many of the same details but a much different tone/ending. And that's an opportunity many other companies aside from Dell miss.
Dell can be frustrating at times.
But for the record I've ordered a certified refurb from Dell Outlet before. The first laptop they sent me had a crack in the case and I sent it back, to which they sent me another laptop that was flawless. There is a difference between buying a "scratch and dent" versus "certified refurb". I don't see why they refused the return.. there's a 21 day Dell return policy for Dell Outlet.
I learned this same lesson when I bought a 'refurbished' monitor for my brother years ago. Sorry, bro. =(
If only there were a government organization that could define and enforce some guidelines regarding 'refurbished' merchandise...
@gauden44:
Yeah I've ordered a Dell Mini 9 and an Inspiron 13 from Dell Outlet at kick ass prices. The Mini 9 was literally brand NEW. The Inspiron 13 latop had a very faint small scratch on the LCD, but that was it. This being Outlet I wasn't expecting much, but given the pictures I see in the article it shouldn't be like that.
@Mike Kosten:
Wow, you're a douche bag. I've bought things from Dell Outlet before and everything I've bought looked brand new. Hell, one of the things I bought was coded as 'scratch and dent' and wasn't damaged nearly as bad as this.
If you're going to flame people go into a chat room or something.
@Megladon: I hear horror stories as well, and my parents just bought a new Dell. I told them about some horror stories but they have another Dell laptop, tower, and their last two monitors. They seemed quite happy with all of their Dell stuff so I gave up. As long as they're happy, I guess that's fine with me.
@Mike Kosten: Believe me, I have bought refurbished equipment several times and I've never had a single issue.
@Megladon: guess you lead a charmed life, but that doesn't mean this and other horror stories didn't happen, so thanks for the meaningless post.
@fantomesq: He originally states he placed an order for a non-refurbished laptop, and after seeing they sold the same laptop for cheaper, he decided the cheaper one and cancelled the original order to save money. He was willing to buy a brand new one to begin with, what changed that?
I wonder if there was/is any way he could reorder the brand new laptop, and send the severely mauled one back. Or even just find a small computer store and buy one. I live in a pretty rural area and we have plenty of small computer shops that refurb their own laptop assortments. He said he could salvage the sale if Dell gave him the correct OS disc(s)- Why can't you borrow them from someone and use the Windows serial key that is usually attached to the bottom of the laptop? Buy a super nice laptop cover?? Of course this isn't what he paid for but if he plans to give it as a gift, might as well do SOMETHING to improve it.
I mean, there are options. I agree, they gave him an acceptable resolution, albeit not the one he was seeking.
They should get the police involved, Dell is illegally selling pirated software.
@Mike Kosten: Mike why don't you just leave this website? It is a pro-consumer website, not blame-the-consumer website.
And while you are at it, shut your face, because you are a consumer too, and I'm sure you don't like it when YOU get ripped off and someone then comes and blames you for being stupid, greedy selfish, whatever.
@Matt Phillips: Yes or the biggest nastiest member of the Microsoft anti-piracy legal team visiting Michael Dell's office and serving him :)
The only problem ive had with Dell was after I refurbished my pc. I couldnt get the internet working again on it. I Called for support and after talking to 4 reps, and trying the same method of fixing it 5 times, was told it could only be fixed by the $100 tech they would have to send out. I opted not to use them, and about 20 minutes later i managed to get it working completely on my own, for free. Their support is pretty horrid.
@Con Sumer Zealot: There are times when the consumer is WRONG or to be blamed. This could be an example. He needs to show how the order was placed. Dell has an option in the outlet site called SCRATCH & DENT. If the OP had chosen that option, then by all rights he can receive a laptop like this.
If he can prove it was not Scratch & Dent in the order, then Dell could replace for something of that matter. Unfortunately, he doesn't provide proof of what he specifically ordered. So by all means I will blame the OP until proof is shown he actually ordered certified refurb and not Scratch & Dent.
I keep reading horror storries about dell, and I've had nothing but great experiences with them. I've ordered 2 laptops, 1 pc, and 2 flat screen monitors from them and they all work great. The company i used to work for ordered hundreds of dells, close to 500 a year i'm guessing and also had a very low rate of problems.