Your Mail in Rebate May Be In Jeopardy [[H]]Enthusiast] (Thanks to xskeweredx!)

[Bloomberg]
(Photo: tagurity )

Circuit City, Electronics Retailer, Seeks Bankruptcy [Bloomberg] (Thanks to Ken!)
Circuit City Stores, Inc. to Reorganize Under Chapter 11 [Press Release] (Photo: corsec67)

If an item does not have a price tag, don't buy it. You more than likely won't be getting much of a discount, you may actually be paying more than normal for it. The way Circuit Citys price tag system works is basically all the tags should be pretty much the same in every store.

So if the liquidator wants the price to be higher, they can't print a tag (easily at least). So basically what they do is just not put a tag on it, raise the price, then give you the 10-30% discount. So really the customer is just paying normal or higher prices. They suspect it to be like that for a while depending on how fast they sell through inventory. If they aren't selling through product, then they should start giving real discounts.

If there's a high dollar product you want, I would just keep checking back every day or so because of the limited inventory, until you can get the best price possible.

With "Few Deals To Be Had At Circuit City Liquidation Sales", and a number of the items available online for the same price, savvy dealseekers need to go into the 155 closing Circuit Citys cautiously and armed with price research about the goods they want to buy.

(Photo: Xurble)

Tom says:

We immediately notice that everything is between 10-30% off. Ok, 30% off isn’t that bad, it’s still a business that has some stores open, they still need to try to make some money. Typical stuff like movies and music were 20% off, video games were 10% off and TV’s were about 20% off. Nothing was particularly cheap considering everything was set at almost MSRP with a percentage taken off, making things about the same price they would be on any other normal sale day. The only things we saw that might have been worth it were TV stands. They were nice looking stands with a good amount taken off.

Tom also noticed a bored newspaper photographer waiting for someone to actually buy something.

Maybe it was our fault for expecting more from this “sale”, but I’d rather just order the stuff online for the same price (or cheaper) and have it delivered to my doorstep.


Best part of the whole thing was seeing the local newspaper photographer sitting outside the store waiting for someone to come out with merchandise. He’d been sitting there for at least 20-25 minutes while we were in the store and still didn’t have a single picture of someone walking out with a bag in their hands.

Sad.

Circuit City Liquidation Sale Experience [ACSlater]

"Contrary to consumer perception, you don't typically see tremendous deals" at liquidation sales, said Stephen Baker, a vice president at market researcher The NPD Group.

In fact, some liquidation companies actually raise prices before slapping clearance stickers on the merchandise. Circuit City may not resort to that tactic, but don't assume you're getting a good deal just because the store is closing.

Speaking of Circuit City stores, the WSJ also pointed out that the stores that aren't going under might be empty. As in, nothing to buy.

The "credit noose is tightening," said RBC Capital Markets analyst Scot Ciccarelli, who noted that it's unlikely Circuit City will be able to get the inventory it needs for its remaining stores during the holidays.

The paper also suggested that Circuit City might actually be too broke to file Chapter 11 bankruptcy, and is trying to stay afloat in order to avoid liquidation.

Circuit City Braces for Dismal Holiday [WSJ]

Sean writes:

1) The e-mail I sent to customer service did nothing. They replied that they could do nothing.

2) The store manager called me back the next day to tell me the district manager had given approval to have the store contact the original purchaser, explain the mistake, and ask if they could recharge his card. Once this was completed, they would issue me a gift card for the original amount. She did "apologize for all he craziness" at the store the night of the incident.

3) About a week later I received a call from the district manager asking if everything had been resolved. I said I hadn't heard any updates. He told me that everything had been taken care of (the original purchaser's card had been re-charged) and that my gift card was waiting at the store. I could either pick it up, or they could mail it to me. I asked him to mail it to me.

4) A few days later I received the gift card in the mail. I called the number on the card to check the balance, and it said it couldn't because the card wasn't active. This concerned me, but I thought it could be due to the circumstances it was issued, etc.

5) A few days later, I went to the store to use my gift card. I first stopped at the customer service desk to have them check the balance on the card. They said it wasn't active, and asked if I'd already used it. I said no and that it was a long story, and they went to get the manager. She came out a few moments later (it was the same manager from the night of the original incident) and issued me a new card, which I used immediately.

So, in the end, it all turned out. I was a bit surprised that they didn't offer me anything for the trouble or at least a more sincere apology. But, I guess I should just be happy that they took responsibility and corrected the mistake.

In the future, I'll be much more explicit when making exchanges or returns as to what I want before I hand over the product. And, even though I don't think I should have to, I'll no longer assume the clerk will understand that I'm not the original purchaser if I'm using a gift receipt.

PREVIOUSLY: Circuit City Credits Wrong Card For $130 Return, Sends You Away With Nothing
(Photo: qnr - Gone for a while)

The New York Times says that DisplaySearch, a market research firm, says that so-called "Black Friday" prices "could go as low as $400 for a 32-inch LCD, and $600 for a 42-inch plasma set — about $200 off current prices."

From the NYT:

Many retailers are cutting costs because they expect a lighter selling season. Best Buy announced that it would hire 16,000 to 20,000 seasonal employees, a hefty drop from last year’s 26,000 seasonal hires.

Best Buy’s comparable-store sales in September dropped 2 percent from the year before. “We’ll see less traffic,” Brian Dunn, Best Buy’s president, said. “We’ll grow our share by offering the right solution, product and service. We’re not looking to get every dime out of you. If a customer just wants the lowest price on a TV set, we’ll give it to them with a smile.”

And to increase the likelihood that customers will pull out their wallets, several manufacturers, including Panasonic and Sharp, are working with retailers to offer extended financing with either same-as-cash interest or deferred payment plans.

Some believe that bundling items, like a flat-screen TV with a Blu-ray player or an audio system, will provide that extra value that will push consumers to buy.

Best Buy will offer a bundle “targeted to middle America,” Mr. Dunn said.

Hefty Discounts Could Arrive on Big-Screen TVs, but Buyers May Be Resistant [NYT]
(Photo: Clean Wal-Mart )

Breaking News [Circuit City] (Thanks to Cheviot!) (Photo: adria.richards)

A Consumerist commenter on this post says this story is true, and a few posts in Google Finance forums also attest to the store closing. One post there says the store closings will be effective 12/31/08.

The news wouldn't be entirely unexpected as WSJ reported on Oct 20th that the retailer was considering closing 150 stores. On Friday, Oct 31, CC was warned it get delisted from the New York Stock Exchange because its stock price averaged below $1 for 30 days.

You can already start to see which stores are closing by seeing which ones don't show up in Circuit City's online store locator.

Circuit City is officially fried.

UPDATE: A Consumerist commenter on this post and a message in the Google Finance forums have also said that the store closing are going to happen.

UPDATE 2: Another Circuit City insider writes: "A team of liquidators will be coming in and taking control of the store. They will set prices as they see fit, and price match guarantee, employee discounts, CC circulars, and the new one price guarantee are all out the window. The price you see is the price you will pay, although it ought to be at a bit of a discount. Firedog services as well as car audio installation are gone immediately. Returns and warranties have to be taken to a CC that's not closing. No new stock will be delivered, we just gotta crank away and sell off everything, and when it's sold, we hit the road."

UPDATE 3: A CC employee scanned and sent us this letter he received from CC about the store closings:

UPDATE 4: In classy fashion, Chicago CC employees were told the news at what was billed as a "holiday kickoff" meeting that instead became a "holiday layoff" meeting.

UPDATE 5: Another CC insider reports, "Liquidators will be coming in on Tuesday and the affected stores will be shut down. there is likely not going to be a severance package for us being affected by the layoffs but we were given the option to get a bonus based on how many hours we worked under the liquidation process. We are not allowed to transfer to other locations and have to wait out the liquidation process before we can reapply. So essentially, we will have to take a paycut, a position cut, and more than likely an hours cut if we want to still work for the company.

More importantly I tried to find out what was going to happen to all the warranty computers. Customers will be getting a call from their local firedog techs tomorrow (Monday) about either to pick up their computers and take them to a different location to do warranty work, or for those who have already had their computers sent out for repair be told where they can pick it up. As far as I've been told everything that is out at our repair depots has already been set in motion and will not be shipping back to the stores that are closing. During the liquidation process we will no longer be accepting gift cards, coupons, checks, or circuit city credit cards.

I would tell people to call up their store tomorrow and see where their laptop is being shipped to because obviously that could be a very big hassle for people."

(Photo: heartburn)

Good morning:

Each of you may have been receiving emails from anonymous individuals identifying his/herself as Wilt Chamberlain, Double Agent, Geek Squad, Agent Agent or Magic Johnson. These emails from an anonymous sender(s) are asking you to ‘unite’, directing you to the Communication Workers of America (CWA), directing you to a Forum and soliciting signatures on a petition for legislation called the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA).

http://www.cwa-union.org/
http://tellthem.forumotion.net/
http://www.freechoiceact.org

First, none of the emails are being generated by the company or by a manager.

We have been having meetings with you, asking everyone to voice their opinions and asking everyone to help solve the problems we collectively face in tough economic times. Your input is important. We do not solicit input anonymously.

Each of you was selected because of your professional experience, attitude and skills. Every single member of the Geek Squad should be proud of your personal contribution to the accomplishments of the team. You have each helped establish a brand that millions of people recognize and respect.

Economic times are tough right now.

Modifications are needed to get through this difficult time. This is happening in every company in America. Today, we are in a lot stronger position than most companies.. Economic times fluctuate. Decisions have to be made in both good times and in tough times. We always want your input. We want to hear your voice, your concerns and want to make changes in a respectful manner. We want to continue to work with you directly so that questions can be answered and so that misunderstandings can be addressed without filters. And we also recognize that as a management team we sometimes fail to follow the best processes – never intentionally - but your direct feedback and input helps all of us learn to be better in the future in service of our employee and customer.

One email suggested that Best Buy is afraid of Unions.

We are not afraid – We are concerned.

We are concerned about being able to talk with you directly.

We are concerned about being able to continue to get your feedback, input and suggestions in an open forum.

We are concerned that a union could result in a lack of flexibility to address market conditions, customer desires and your own desires and needs.

To whoever is using the name of the great Wilt Chamberlain.

Over the last thirty years, union membership has dropped from 35% of total workers to just over 7% of the private sector. Did you ever ask yourself why any business loses market share? In one email the CWA is mentioned. To find out more about the CWA, take the time to search around the links at http://unionfacts.com/unions/unionProfile.cfm?id=188

THE EMPLOYEE FREE CHOICE ACT

One anonymous email asks you to sign a petition supporting EFCA.

First, opinions on political issues and candidates are personal issues, and we believe that each individual’s opinion needs to be respected. This is one of the strengths of our company, and a basic tenet of democracy.

We are concerned about the EFCA because it will infringe on an individual’s right to express their opinion in a secret ballot government conducted election.

Under this legislation, employees do not get to vote in a secret ballot election but rather if a union gets 50%+1 of the employees to sign a union authorization card all 100% are considered unionized – without a vote. In fact, 49% + X may not even have a voice in the decision or process. And it is possible that any union authorization cards signed today may be held by a union and count as a ‘yes’ vote if the law changes. People may be stripped of their right to vote “no” after signing a card today.

We are also concerned that employees may lose their voice in the workplace under this legislation. Under current law, a company and union negotiate a contract to completion and then the employees get to vote yes or no on accepting the terms and conditions of the contract. Under this proposed legislation, the company and union are to negotiate for a specified time period and if an agreement is not reached, a federal arbitrator will decide the content of the contract. The employees get no say. That denies employees the right to vote on accepting or rejecting the contract.

We are also, concerned that EFCA may have a negative impact on Best Buy’s business model. Our business model works because we can deal directly with our employees and react quickly to changing business needs. The introduction of a third party into that relationship, may limit our ability to serve our customers in the way that we do now.

We encourage each of you to learn as much as you can about EFCA, and to form your own opinion about whether or not you believe it is something that is in the best interest of our brand and our company.

You can also express your opinion, whatever it may be, to the anonymous email authors.

If you disagree with the anonymous senders, it is your decision and you can show your disagreement in any lawful manner including responding to the emails of the anonymous senders. If you agree with the anonymous senders, it is your decision and you can show your support in any lawful manner.. It is your choice.

Let me say that we are not afraid of unions at Best Buy. We truly believe that union representation is not in the best interests of the company, our customers or our employees. If you have any issues, concerns or ideas please do not hesitate to talk to your immediate supervisor or reach out to me.

In closing, let me say that we are betting the farm on our employees. What we are concerned about is putting something or someone between our employees and their supervisors that eliminates transparency, honesty and our ability to win with our customers by creating a world class experience for each of our employees. Feel free to reach out share your thoughts, ideas or concerns to me at anytime. You can contact me at Christian.Babb@BestBuy.com.

Thank you,

Chris Babb

(Photo: ob1left)

Dear Sir or Madam,

I am writing to convey my displeasure concerning an ongoing, completely unsatisfactory retail experience with Circuit City. Yesterday, October 28, 2008, I purchased a Nikon D90 Digital SLR camera at store number 854 for $1021.49 ($1134.99 -10% coupon) plus Maryland state sales tax. It was sold as new and unopened. Upon unboxing later that evening, I discovered the camera was in fact counterfeit. A lesser model, the D50, had been altered to appear to be a D90. Crude D90 stickers covered the model badging and a false serial plate was placed on the underside. A number of accessories were also missing and the included product information was entirely Spanish. (If needed, I can provide all serial numbers attributed to the box and its contents and photos to support my statements)

I contacted the store via telephone early this morning and explained my findings to the Floor Leader, Charles. He was immediately suspicious of me and first and foremost explained that I should not expect an immediate refund or exchange, and that they needed the camera to "investigate." I visited the store this afternoon to return the camera and review my options with Charles. Charles again stated he would not refund or exchange the counterfeit camera and stated loss prevention was going to investigate, and that I would be contacted in 24-48 hours. He was not open to, nor would he discuss any alternatives. The Manager on duty made no attempt to address the situation. The Floor Leader simply ran back and forth between me and the manager conveying next steps and my options.

I returned to the store later in the afternoon on October 30, 2008 to take pictures of the counterfeit camera for my reference and to obtain a record from the store stating they were in possession of the merchandise. The gentleman I worked with earlier in the morning, Charles, was "on his way out the door" and would not see me. The Manager on duty would not see me either. The CSA Supervisor stated he was the Manager and would help me. The record I obtained from the store to state they are in possession of the counterfeit camera was a handwritten note and initials on the bottom of my receipt. This is simply unbelievable for a major retail chain. I was told "Nikon was tracking the serial numbers." I frankly do not understand why I am being held "hostage" in this matter. The fact that Circuit City has somehow allowed counterfeit/altered products into its supply chain is not the consumers' problem, yet, the consumer is being held at fault for this issue. The store and it's staff have from my perspective, labeled me guilty until proven innocent.

The customer service staff made no effort to apologize for my inconvenience ( I live 30 miles from the store, and I'm facing four to five trips to take care of this) or for the sheer embarrassment of a major specialty retail outlet selling customers counterfeit merchandise. I am deeply disappointed in Circuit City's handling of this situation thus far.

In the end, I sit here writing this account with no faith in the company or it's store employees, no camera, and Circuit City holding approximately $1100 of my funds.

I hope to expedite the handling of this issue and pass along my observations of store personnel and vague policies that continue to damage the reputation of your company.

Respectfully,

Ronald P.

"Great selection" - Maybe what you're looking for is on the shelves, maybe it's not.

"Friendly advice" - Try gum-popping and monotone.

"We'll beat any price from any other store, any membership club, anybody." - We beat ANYONE, except for retailers who are online or farther than 10 miles away.

"We all have one goal: pleasing you" - We all have one goal: spiffs.

"Service is state of the art" - No, but the cigarette sculpture people are help building in the alley out back is pretty amazing.

More reasons why Circuit City is dead.

This is more to vent than anything else, but I had an unforgettable experience at Circuit City the other day. I didn't go there specifically, I just wandered in...

The Price Match
I'd been thinking about getting a new 1TB internal hard drive for movie storage, so I thought that I'd see what they had on offer. What they had on offer was outrageously overpriced, so, after some online browsing from my phone, I decided to see if they would price match. It took the girl about 10 minutes to let me know that they wouldn't price match B&H. She couldn't tell me why, just that they wouldn't. I asked to see their written price match policy. She said that they didn't have any copies on hand despite the huge sign behind her that indicated otherwise. I ended up looking it up online, with my phone, at which point I spoke with a manager. They tried insisting that B&H wasn't a "local" store, until I pointed out that B&H was less than 10 miles away and about 4 stops on the Q train. After about 20 minutes of waiting and talking, they finally gave in - I saved $80.

The Repack
When I got home, I opened the box only to realize that the box contained a used, 800 GB, IDE hard drive, NOT a shiny, new 1TB SATA hard drive. I immediately went back to exchange the drive. The exchange was pretty painless, until...

Drive #2, Manufacturing Defect
I opened the new box while still in the store, to ensure that it wasn't another repack. The model number was correct, but I something was wrong... I realized, much to my amusement, that the entire PCB (printed circuit board - and thus, power/data connections) was missing from the bottom of the drive. Not CC's fault, obviously, but they didn't handle it well...

The Non-Tech-Savvy Tech
Exasperated, I brought the drive back to the front counter to notify the cashier of the defect. Some manager-type nearby, wearing a "FireDog" (their tech support division) t-shirt, jumped in - "that drive do not include connectors! If you have a problem with that, you have to take it up with Western Digital (the manufacturer). We are not going to open another box just because it don't meet your wants. Also, where in the manual do it say that it includes the connectors?"

I was infuriated. "IT'S A SATA DRIVE! Have you ever SEEN an internal hard drive?! How can a SATA drive not include SATA connections?!" Turning, and shouting to the store in general, "GET SOMEONE OVER HERE THAT ACTUALLY BUILDS COMPUTERS!"

Mr. FireDog Manager-Type, "I build computers, sir!"

"Oh really?" Reaching in to the box, I grabbed the red SATA cable included with the drive. "We can agree that this is a SATA cable, right?! Why don't you show me where this SATA cable connects to this SATA drive?"

He actually looked at the thing for about 30 seconds, which is along time to look at something that's hardly bigger than a wallet. He finally went to the shelves to get another box in hopes of showing me an identical drive, missing PCB and all.

Box #3
Upon opening the box, he saw a blue SATA cable with an extra little dongle that Western Digital likes to put on their cables - he thought that it was a completely different type of cable... he hands me the cable and says, "sorry sir, your box was missing this cable, you should be all set now."

I exploded. "THIS IS THE SAME FUCKIN' CABLE! Why don't you show me where THIS cable connects to the drive?!?!" He actually started to reexamine the drive, blue cable in hand... I shouted "look at the other damn drive!!! Look at that - it's got a damn PCB!!! And look - SATA connectors!!! Whodathunkit?!?!"

Head down, he finally gave in, gave me the third and final box, and I was on my way. My 1TB drive only cost me $150... and about 4 hours of my life, about 30 minutes of which consisted of shouting, my heart hammering in rage.

No, I'm not going to be wandering back any time soon.

Retail Nightmares - What's Your Worst? [Brooklynian]

One out-of-court solution the company is studying would likely lead to the closing of at least 150 stores and the elimination of thousands of jobs, said people familiar with the company's plans. This would let the retailer liquidate about $350 million in inventory, which it could use to pay off certain real-estate costs, such as leases on abandoned sites. It would then hope to press existing landlords to renegotiate leases, many of which Circuit City regards as overpriced. Circuit City's investors have homed in on those leases as a threat to the company's health.

Many were negotiated when real-estate prices were booming earlier this decade. Roughly 90% of the leases don't expire until 2014 or later, and about 80 are for vacant locations.

Circuit City's stock has plummeted since July, when Blockbuster Inc. rescinded an offer to buy the company for at least $6 a share. In 4 p.m. New York Stock Exchange composite trading Friday, Circuit City shares closed at 39 cents, down from a 52-week high of $8.72. It hasn't had a profitable quarter in more than a year.

The company has hired the same lawfirm that took Kmart through bankruptcy, but is trying to avoid that option because of (fairly reasonable) concerns that consumers will not trust warranties from a company that is currently bankrupt.

Circuit City Weighs Broad Cuts (subscription) [WSJ]

Sean writes:

I returned a product [yesterday] to the Appleton, WI Circuit City with a gift receipt. The clerk accepted the returned product, but mistakenly credited the original purchaser's credit card (I am not the original purchaser) for the return. After informing me of this, I told her that I did not purchase this product, it was given to me (thus, the gift receipt) and that I intended to return it for store credit so I could purchase a different product. I was told that since the return had been processed and credited to the original purchaser's credit card, nothing could be done. I was advised to contact the original purchaser and try to collect the money myself.

After much debate with the clerk, the supervisor, and the operations manager, I was told there was nothing that could be done, and the only option I had was to go back to the person who bought it, and ask for the money. This is unacceptable.

I entered the store in possession of a product (my property, I was the owner). I gave the product and gift receipt to the clerk to process a return. The clerk accepted my return and gave my money (the monetary value of the product - the original purchase price) to the wrong person (someone other than me). I left the store without my property or the monetary value of the property.

I would like either my property (the original product - a Logitech Harmony remote control) returned to me or store credit (gift card) for the orignal purchase price (approximately $130) of the product.

That's the letter Sean sent to Circuit City's customer service department, although Seans says he has yet to hear back from them. He adds, "What can I do? Isn't this illegal? They accept my returned product and mistakenly give the money to someone else, and then refuse to give me either the product or the money (store credit)? Isn't this theft of some sort? Should I contact the police?"

What do you guys think? Will the police take his report seriously? This certainly sounds like the definition of theft to us.

In the meantime, Sean, you may want to send that same letter to these Circuit City executive email addresses. What happened to you sounds to us like a fireable offense for that supervisor, and you need to make sure your story reaches the people who can see to it that you're compensated.

(Photo: Getty Images)

"One Price Promise assures Circuit City shoppers that they will be treated fairly and equally regardless of how they shop with us," said Jeff Maynard, vice president, marketing at Circuit City Stores, Inc. in a press release. "Customers have been telling us how important this is to them, and we want to give them a strong and competitive value proposition when making purchases."

"We plan to let consumers know about One Price Promise in a big way," added Maynard. "We are launching an aggressive national advertising campaign that includes print, broadcast, Internet and in-store marketing tools, and we believe this message of consistency, simplicity and transparency will resonate strongly with consumers in today's world."

This flies in the face of conventional electronic retailing wisdom — where its considered "ok" (if not legal) for stores to set up special "fake" websites that look like the real ones but feature "in store" prices and the most common policy is to refuse to price match all websites— even their own.

Will this be thing that saves Circuit City?

Circuit City Launches 'One Price Promise' to Assure Consistent, Dependable Pricing in All Sales Channels [Circuit City]

Motley Fool thinks so. They placed Circuit City at the top of a short list of retailers that you could "kiss goodbye."

The new CEO recently hired some independent advisers who will presumably work to save the company from itself, but is it just too late?

Circuit City's shares are currently trading at $0.42. You might want to use up your remaining gift cards... just in case.

First, he tried firing everyone who knew anything about the products that Circuit City sold (about 3,400 experienced salespeople) then, he responded to the inevitable tsunami of blood that followed... (2nd quarter losses of $62.8 million, and 3rd quarter losses of $207.3 million) by unveiling a retention program that would reward each top executive with $1 million.

Meanwhile, Circuit City's human resources department was wading through their own entrails and trying to hire their own fired employees back.

Finally, Blockbuster tried to move in and take over Circuit City — hoping to "differentiate products in both Blockbuster and Circuit City stores by offering exclusive content and content-enabled devices." Whatever that means. After taking a good hard look at Circuit City's books, Blockbuster decided that whatever Circuit City had, they didn't want to catch it, and called the deal off.

It's clear that Circuit City's new CEO, James "Tourniquet" Marcum, has his work cut out for him, but here at Consumerist we're pro-success. In the spirit of a new beginning, we've decided to share your suggestions with Mr. Marcum.

These comments were all written by you, the shopper. If Marcum wants to turn it around, he'd better listen up.

• CC lost their best employees, which in turn meant they lost their best trainers for new employees.

  How would I fix it? Hire arsonists and collect the insurance money. You're going down in flames, you may as well get paid.
  

• Firing competent, experienced staff so they can hire incompetent inexperienced staff at a lower hourly rate is only one step above off-shoring (which is kind of difficult to do if you want your store staffed with live people on-site!). Scumbags, that's what Circuit City's upper management are: Scumbags. And honestly, I'm insulting scumbags by making the comparison.
  
• When spending at least $2,000 on a HDTV or Plasma TV, I don't think that I can trust the expertise of a 17 year old high school dropout to guide me into choosing which one might be best for me.
  
• Fix the damn CD and DVD sections. Seriously, can anyone find one thing they're looking for?... Highlight the gadgets! I hear people like little handheld things these days. Maybe make them easier to find, easier to fondle etc... Blow everyone away with friendly returns/customer service. Unlike Best Buy where they like to accuse you of committing a crime when returning something.
  
• Stop selling Monster Cable! They would sell exponentially more cables if they didn't want $103 for 6' of HDMI cable. If I see a retailer selling Monster Cable, I will usually look for an excuse not to buy something from them.
  
• The only *good* thing about Circuit City customer service is that it's SO bad, they usually just ignore you. And ironically, I count that as a plus, as there's no faster way to turning me off in a store than to be pestered by incompetent customer service. At least when I walk into a Circuit City, I know that the reps are all going to be huddled together in the part of the store farthest away from me, so I'll be left alone to browse at my leisure.
  
• Make the executives work for a month at random Circuit City stores, with no power or authority to make changes. Spend one week at each in the "Customer Service Booth", and require them to provide responses to each and every inquiry.
  

• What do I find wrong with Circuit City?
  They have higher prices than their competitors, and most of the time they don't have what I want. How do you fix that?
  Cheaper prices. Better selection. Aggressively letting people know that they have both.
  

• Reduce the size of the stores and aim for the higher end customers. Make sure everyone selling an item is an expert on that item, or at least on that category. Spend money on wages, benefits and training to attract and retain those people.In other words, become the opposite of what Circuit City is now, because you're not the best at that and you probably never will be.
  
• Integrate the CircuitCity stores with the CircuitCity website, with the goal of making shopping easier and less stressful.
  
• Does anyone get that good feeling that they get in BB when they walk into Circuit City? No. The stores look ancient, the cust. service is just piss poor, there are never any cash registers open at any store.
  
• Most of these kinds of stores put a bunch of cheap ass computers on display, then hire a moron to help customers. Real computer experts only go to CC or Best Buy because they are in a pinch- not because they want to. I could go to Target and get the same stuff they sell at CC, but it is cheaper.
  
• Stop selling the same thing as Best Buy. Switch to high-end computer parts and systems only. At least then you'd have something different... as it is, there is nothing different between Circuit City and Best Buy.
  

• I would love it if I could feel like when I go in and need to ask a question, it's not being answered by someone who just picks up the box and reads what I just read.

Hire people who know what they're doing. Offer a better selection of products that will interest high-end cash-heavy consumers, and staff your store with people who know at least as much as they do. Clean your stores. Hire enough people so that you can have a register open at all times. Concentrate on the products that people actually want to buy, like handheld devices, cameras, consoles, and other gadgets. Mop the floor and tidy up. Don't let your employees huddle in the back of the store. Make shopping through the website easy. Lower the prices on your accessories to compete with Best Buy. Find friendly people and put them to work behind the customer service desk.

Good luck.

Their new CEO, James A. Marcum, who has only been on the job a week, said:
"We realize the performance of this company is unacceptable to all of our stakeholders and that it is imperative that we take the right steps to accelerate our turnaround."

And so, as is our habit, we ask you, the consumer, to tell us what is wrong with Circuit City and how they can fix it. We'll choose the best comments and share them with Mr. Marcum.

What's wrong with Circuit City?!

Circuit City Posts Wider Loss [Washington Post]

We're thinking CC might be on to something in this new economy. Next up, "Sign up for credit today and get a free bag of flour! Bring a friend and get a packet of yeast and a potato!" If you let Firedog delete your unwanted desktop icons you'll probably get a free bowl of soup.

While my story hasn't cost me thousands of dollars, it's brought me a lot of disappointment with the company I used to work for. For two years and three months, I was employee [redacted] at Store [redacted]. I sold computers, service plans, accessories, Geek Squad services and everything else they wanted me to like a good employee. I often defended the company online from people who had complaints and offered advice on what to do, based on my "inside" knowledge, to get these issues handled. So imagine my disappointment in the Geek Squad upon having to use a Performance Service Plan (PSP) on a Samsung monitor I had purchased.

On the morning of August 20th, I discovered my Samsung 204T was not responding to anything I was doing. After determining it was not the computer, based on a second monitor I have, I decided to make use of the PSP I had purchased for the monitor nearly three years prior when I was still working for Best Buy. I brought it to a different store than the one I worked at, and after having a small chat with the Geek Squad employee about it, he determined it would need to be shipped off to the repair facility. That's fine, I was expecting that. I asked him point blank "What are the turn around times like these days?"

"7-10 days" was the response. I commented "Oh, back when I used to work here it was closer to 2-3 weeks. Good to see it's gotten faster."

I figure that this is great, I'm going on vacation anyways and when I get back, the monitor should either be repaired or ready to be exchanged. Geek Squad even sends a tracking number to track the repair status of the monitor.

But nothing changes. Until August 29th, when it says it's arrived at the repair facility. Again, as a former employee I know that the service centers are USA based. Nine day shipping on the continental United States? What? I decide not to question it at the time. Status updates later in the day saying Parts Have Been Ordered. I'm a little disappointed that they're going to fix it instead of giving me a new one, but whatever. On September 4th, the status updates are saying that it's being repaired currently. No update until September 10th, at which point it is changed to "Exchange Assessment." "Product is in the process of approval or has been approved for an exchange. Please contact the Geek Squad Precinct within your Best Buy store for additional information." Great, I can get it exchanged finally!

So I head to the store with the paperwork from the Geek Squad page. Hey, it's the same guy that told me 7-10 days. But I let that slide at first when I show him the paperwork. He looks into the system and can't find any information on exchanging the monitor. He calls over a customer service representative, Rebecca, and the two of them look over the information on my repair. I hear some mumblings about the monitor being "junk out", and knowing what that is, I'm annoyed they're even looking at that since it has nothing to do with the exchange or repair. They also mention to each other about the parts for the monitor not even being available to order. Which makes me wonder where did 4 days of ordering parts and 6 days of repair go to when the parts didn't even exist? But I bite my tongue, hoping they'll just exchange it. At this point, they both inform me that the exchange has not been approved yet. I'm pissed now, and for the most part I keep my cool. The exchange I have with the Geek Squad employee goes like this.

Me: "When I first brought this in, you told me 7 to 10 days."
Him: "Business days"
Me: "That was like three weeks ago!"
Him: "Well there's nothing I can do about the service center being backed up."
Me: "You know, I used to work here. Why would you lie to me about the turn around time? That's bullshit."
Him: "All I can tell you is that this is the second to last step and the turn around for this should be pretty fast."
Me: "Whatever, I'll be back."

At that point, I leave. That was September 10th. At the time of this e-mail, it's September 15th and the system still has not updated.

I'm so disappointed in the service I've received on this monitor. It makes me feel bad that I sold these services for over two years, only to see this is how they were treating customers. One of the core things we were taught was to "Under promise, over deliver." Meaning that if a customer asks how long something is going to take, always go with the high end, and if takes less, great! Happy customer that we did something faster than we stated. If it takes the time we quoted, still happy that we did it on time. To see this core idea violated to this degree, it really cheapens what I did for them.

We recommend sending an EECB (Executive Email Carpet Bomb) to your former bosses. Just because you used to work there doesn't mean that you're not a customer, too. For more information about launching an EECB, click here. Maybe hearing from one of their own will be a wake-up call.

If not, if you used a credit card to pay for the monitor and warranty, you can always contact your credit card company and see if they'll help you get what you paid for.

(Photo: dooleymtv )

Jim at Circuit City's consumer affairs division wrote,

I have some follow-up information on this matter to share with you.

Thanks to your Web posting, we have been able to determine that a few employees at one of our stores incorrectly charged a customer for work that our firedog techs did on the computer that he purchased. The manufacturer notified us that the PC in question did need a repair and we coordinated the repairs with the manufacturer. The customer should NOT have been charged.

We have reached out to the affected customer to apologize to him for any inconvenience and to make sure a refund is provided. We have also taken steps to ensure that our associates are aware of company policies on this issue.

I hope this information is helpful,
Jim

Frankly, we were suspicious that Circuit City was taking advantage of the faulty PC inventory to make a little extra money, so we're happy to see the company step up and correct this oversight so quickly.

A colleague of mine recently purchased a new Acer desktop for his dad from Circuit City in Lancaster, PA. After the checkout process he noticed a $40 charge from Firedog on his receipt. When he questioned the Circuit City employee about the charge, she replied "Firedog had to fix the computer by updating the bios."

He had seen an advertisement in a local newspaper for a desktop that he felt was a good buy. He knew that his dad was still using an aging desktop and thought this system would be perfect for the kind of tasks his dad uses the computer for. So he drove 30 minutes to pick up the system to give his dad later that evening. When he got to Circuit City, he quickly picked it out proceeded to an employee to purchase system. The first thing out of the sales associates mouth were, "You'll need to upgrade the system if you plan on using it for anything beyond surfing the web.".

A little history about my friend, he is the new systems purchaser for the company we work for. He knows about hardware and software and what they are capable of doing. He is NOT an inexperienced buyer when it comes to computers.

So he turned down the video card upgrade, the hard drive upgrade and memory upgrade that the sales associated recommended he would need. Of course all of these upgrades were services that Firedog could perform for a fee. He told the sales associate, "Look, I know what I'm buying and this is all I need.". After convincing the sales associate of this, they finally started the check out process. So he slides his credit card through and signs for the purchase. The sales associate hands him his receipt and he is on his way to his dad's with his new computer. Until, after a quick scan of the receipt, he notices a $40 charge from Firedog. He turns right around and asks the sales associate what the line item was for. The sales associate replies that Firedog needed to setup Windows Vista and flash the bios for the computer to work.

What?

To which he replies, "So you setup Vista, which was working just fine in order to update the bios?". Yes, says the sales associate. Regardless of the fact that Vista booted up just fine with out the update, he was more disturbed with the fact that Circuit City would sell him a computer that they knew didn't work or so they say. Unfortunately, he was short on time and did not press the issue in the store. Later the next day he sent off an email to the Firedog supervisor for the store explaining his disappointment in the nickel and dime charge.

Back to school shoppers beware!!!

Travis, your friend shouldn't stop with the Firedog supervisor of the store. He should contact Circuit City's executive level and let them know that you specially refused any additional "help" from this Firedog associate, only to have him meddle with your purchase without your consent and then charge you for it. They owe your friend a $40 refund.

DHS officials said the newly disclosed policies — which apply to anyone entering the country, including U.S. citizens — are reasonable and necessary to prevent terrorism. Officials said such procedures have long been in place but were disclosed last month because of public interest in the matter.

Civil liberties and business travel groups have pressed the government to disclose its procedures as an increasing number of international travelers have reported that their laptops, cellphones and other digital devices had been taken — for months, in at least one case — and their contents examined.

The policies state that officers may "detain" laptops "for a reasonable period of time" to "review and analyze information." This may take place "absent individualized suspicion."

The policies cover "any device capable of storing information in digital or analog form," including hard drives, flash drives, cellphones, iPods, pagers, beepers, and video and audio tapes. They also cover "all papers and other written documentation," including books, pamphlets and "written materials commonly referred to as 'pocket trash' or 'pocket litter.' "

Reasonable measures must be taken to protect business information and attorney-client privileged material, the policies say, but there is no specific mention of the handling of personal data such as medical and financial records.

Senator Kickass Feingold (D-WI), sponsor of the unrelated Arbitration Fairness Act, plans to introduce legislation to require "reasonable suspicion" for border searches.

Defending the searches, Secretary Chertoff wrote in an Op-Ed that "the most dangerous contraband is often contained in laptop computers or other electronic devices." He added that "searches have uncovered "violent jihadist materials" as well as images of child pornography."

Just imagine what draconian Torquemada-esque searches they'll devise once they realize even more 'dangerous' and 'violent' material lurks within people's minds.

Travelers' Laptops May Be Detained At Border [Washington Post]
(AP Photo/Mike Derer)

Apparently, the bear panicked after setting off an alarm at a nearby restaurant. He smashed through the sliding glass doors of the Circuit City and hung around in the customer waiting area for awhile before exiting the same way he came in.

A surveillance camera captured the bear's shopping trip, and we have to admit, aside from smashing the sliding glass door, it looks exactly like our last shopping trip to Circuit City. Hello? Does anyone work here?

Bear Breaks in to Colo. Springs Circuit City (With Video!) [MyFoxColorado]

• Take the place of an airline boarding pass.
• Contain personal information about the traveler.
• Be able to monitor the whereabouts of each passenger and his/her luggage.
• Shock the wearer on command, completely immobilizing him/her for several minutes.

Lamperd Less Lethal—oddly, that name doesn't make us confident about either the effectiveness or the safety of their products—has an entertaining instructional video on their site that explains why this is such a great idea. It opens with footage of the planes hitting the WTC towers, just in case you've forgotten, then describes how all the current solutions are ineffective—biometrics can't spot "new" terrorists who aren't in the database, Air Marshalls can inflict friendly fire on nearby passengers, etc. But they've got an answer in the EMD Safety Bracelet! Check out these handy graphics if you don't believe them:

Okay, we doctored that last one, but you know there'd be a technical glitch at some point that turns everyone on the manifest into a herky-jerky bag of twitching muscles. Pretzels everywhere! Plastic drink cups flying! You have to admit, it'd be funny to see (so long as your own EMD Safety Bracelet didn't go off at the same time.)

Lamperd Less Lethal insists that this is a great idea, and that passengers won't mind being figuratively collared like slaves out of a bad sci-fi movie:

Wearing an EMD safety bracelet for a few hours during a flight is a small inconvenience to ensure their safe arrival...many if not most passengers would happily opt for the extra security of the EMD safety bracelet.

We'll admit, it would certainly make it easier for flight attendants to take care of drunks, fashion victims, unruly children, and the occasional masturbator. But if DHS wants to take security this far, why not just anesthetize passengers and load us up on gurneys, where we'll remain blissfully unconscious as we're shipped like freight across the globe? It would be more dignified than wearing a stun bracelet.

"Want some torture with your peanuts?" [Washington Times] (Thanks to Capt Janeway!)
EMD Safety Bracelet video [Lamperd Less Lethal]

"This is a quarter of steady progress," CEO Philip J. Schoonover said in a conference call with investors. "We still have a long way to go, but I'm encouraged by what we've been able to accomplish."

Accomplish? Does anyone want to tell Phil that he's supposed to be selling electronics? No. That would be cruel.

Meanwhile, there's been no word on Blockbuster's plan to buy the troubled retailer. Presumably, they're still thinking it over.

Circuit City loss increases; next quarter may be worse [Star-Tribune]
Circuit City Posts a Wider Loss as Sales Fall [NYT]
(Photo: cmorran123 )

I was contacted by Anita Strepka in corporate who told me I was absolutely correct and that the supervisor should not have refused giving me the gift card.

I was then contacted by the local general manager who asked me to explain what happened. After explaining he told me that he would send the card, but that the policy was that you have to wait in the store for at least 24 minutes before qualifying!

I told him, that according to corporate and their website the 24 minutes starts as of the time stamp on the order confirmation email. He disagreed and we ended the call. He then called back 10 minutes later to apologize and said that I was correct and he was wrong... I guess he went to their website.

So what did I learn? Not even the general manager understood a policy that has been in place for 2(?) years, so I guess I shouldn't be surprised that the supervisor didn't either.

The good news? Anita Strepka was awesome and apologized over and over. She said that she was part of the team that started this program, so she was well versed with the policy.I complained on Wednesday 6/4/08 and got my $24 gift card in the mail on Monday 6/9/08... not a bad response time.

Hey, everyone makes mistakes, but it's a good thing Dustin is out there keeping them honest.

A commenter to our Worst Company in America nominations picked Best Buy, his employer of six years, to win it all. His reasons, including the credit card fraud, phony bundling scams, and other schemes they made him do to keep his job he heard rumors about happening at other Best Buys, inside. UPDATE: The original commenter has contacted us to say that these things did not actually happen to him and he was not trained to do them by Best Buy. Rather, he heard about them happening at other Best Buys or read about them in other Consumerist articles, and, in a pique of anger, wrote a long comment that remixed all this information together and framed it as if it happened to him. Consumerist regrets the error, and the commenter has been banned.

1. Watch out for extra charges
"They forcefully signed up ignorant customers for internet contracts and magazine subscriptions without the customers knowledge," writes our insider. "I was trained in the way of how to act like the credit card wasn't recognized the first time through since we needed to scan it once for the contract and later for the purchase, and also to do a little X on the screen for them when they had to sign the contract."

2. They don't like warranty repairs
"If we found one single scratch on the phone, we would tell the customer it was sign of abuse and refuse their warranty . . . I think I saw 1 out of 20 phones handled under the service plan because of that." Eventually Best Buy corporate took over because of the complaints.

3. Tart it up if you're gonna ask for a favor
"You better be attractive if you want the easy road through a policy or friends with somebody. If you don't have much on your side, you won't qualify for a 'case by case' policy procedure."

4. Best Buy loves unnecessary charges and services as much as the next big box store
Remember the story about Staples charging $390 for a basic computer repair? Best Buy can beat that: "I remember when Best Buy first started selling VPR Matrix Computers. The machines came with virtually nothing on them but the operating system, yet we still heavily pushed a system optimization to eliminate background programs and make it work so much better. I think all we did on this particular PC was turn on automatic updates, and install the latest patches... There were no unnecessary programs on boot.

5. Bundles are a ripoff
"You want the 299 advertised core system? We have plenty in stock!!! But it's only available in the package with 10 extra controllers, all 32 games, 15 memory cards, 2 extra hard drive kits, and the Replacement plan! Oh and 10 years of xbox live subscription!"

Our insider didn't offer any advice for escaping these pitfalls, but one obvious solution would be to stop shopping at Best Buy.

(Photo: greggoconnell)

The cool thing about eBay's support system is it will always answer your question; unfortunately, that answer will always be a form letter on how to reset your password, as Timothy discovered when he tried to figure out how to sell his laptop to someone who wasn't a Nigerian scammer. Timothy has learned the awful truth behind today's eBay—something many readers here already know—which is that it's become virtually impossible to sell any sort of medium-to-high end electronics there anymore.

Timothy's email went on for about two weeks, so we've tried to edit it for length.

eBay seems now to be essentially broken. What used to be a 'virtual yard-sale' where one could hunt for - and potentially find - a good deal on a broad variety of eclectic items has now turned (in my opinion at least) into a hybrid mass of scammers and shady garage-retailers, clumped together with a straggling, dying breed of people who used to be excited about eBay, but who are now wishing it would return to what it used to be.

Don't get me wrong, I still use eBay, and have for years. My usage has varied over the years, and I'm by no means a 'power seller' on eBay, but it has always been my first stop when I'm looking to acquire an item which I wouldn't mind buying used. But a recent series of events has left a bitter taste in my mouth, making me wish eBay was what it used to be.

My experience started with a laptop which I wanted to sell - simple enough. I've sold on eBay before. "I'll just throw it up on eBay," I told my wife, "and see how much I can get for it." [ha ha ha ha ha -Ed.] It's a fine Toshiba laptop, 15.4" screen, 1.7Ghz processor. I bought it brand-new, and have treated it well since then. There's nothing wrong with it - I was just looking to upgrade to something newer and thought that I could perhaps get a few hundred dollars to offset some of the cost of buying a new laptop. So I listed the item and waited. I chose the 5-day auction option - I don't know if that really makes any difference or not (I've heard arguments both ways on the topic).

After about two days with no bids I decided to find the laptop in the listings and see how it looked compared to other listed laptops - perhaps I had made some glaring mistake which other laptop-sellers were not making. I checked and saw how long the auction had left, and viewed the 'Laptops and Computers' category (sorted by 'Ending Soonest'), and scrolled down to where my laptop ought to have been - about 6 pages in, since it still had a few days left to go. I could not find it. It appeared that my item was not listing correctly, so I contacted the eBay on-line 'Live Chat' (which, incidentally, seemed to be one of only two venues for their customers to reach them - the other being a 'contact us' form on their website [there do exist a couple of 800/888 corporate numbers, but they provide no means of reaching a human being unless you know their name ahead of time]). The Live Chat representative (pronounced "c-h-a-t-b-o-t") informed me that unless my item was listed as a 'Featured Item' (pronounced "e-x-t-r-a-T-w-e-n-t-y-D-o-l-l-a-r-s") my item would only appear after all of the items which had been listed as featured items.

So I returned to the list of items, and found that - sure enough - the 6th page which I had expected to find my item on was actually only the sixth page of featured items. It was not for another several pages that the list of featured items was finally exhausted, and the 'Time Left' column reset from '5 days' to '< 1 minute'. Once again I had to click through several pages of items which were ending before mine, until finally, around page 20, I saw my item in the queue. Great, I thought, what good is an auction if nobody sees it?
The item ultimately did get a bid, however, and I was excitedly looking at new laptops on-line. I was sorely disappointed the next day when I received the following message from eBay:

Account Security Notice: eBay Listing(s) Removed Dear loneboat (*****@*****.com), The results of the following listing(s) have been cancelled due to bidding activity that took place without the account owner's authorization: [Blah blah blah. -Ed.] eBay Trust & Safety

Yikes, I thought, some poor sap had his eBay password stolen/cracked/phished. Oh well , looks like they've graciously refunded my money. I'll just re-list it.

So I re-listed the item. This time, I lowered the minimum bid and paid for the 'featured item' option (which I thought was a stupid idea, but the only way to get my auction seen by any appreciable audience). This time, the auction ended without incident. I got an email from the bidder telling me that he was glad to have won the auction, and was excited for me to ship it... To Nigeria.

Let it be known here that though I may not be the smartest person in the world, I'm not stupid. His email went on to explain (in poor English) that he was 'on business trip to the Nigeria,' and that he was willing to pay me $1000 through PayPal for the laptop. Shortly thereafter I received an email from 'PayPal' (who is now apparently sending out their customer service emails from gMail), stating that I had received a payment, but that it would not show up in my account until I emailed them back the tracking number for the parcel. Very clever, but once again, I'm not stupid.

This time I contacted the Live Chat system. I explained the whole drama, and was told to go on the website and contact eBay's security team. I did so, and sent them the following email: [Email described the problem and included the buyer's original email along with two spoof emails from "eBay" and "PayPal". -Ed.]

I received the following response:

Dear eBay member, If you need help resetting your eBay password, or you think your account has been used without your permission, please go to the "Securing Your Account and Reporting Account Theft" Help page. Follow the steps on this page to secure your account: http://pages.ebay.com/help/confidence/ isgw-account-theft-reporting.html For further assistance with account security questions, please contact us through Live Help at: http://pages.ebay.com/help/ confidence/ato-livehelp.html Live Help will open in a new window and connect you to an Account Security Live Chat representative. ***Learn More About eBay Safety and Security*** To learn more about account security on eBay, or to report a problem with your account, please visit our Security & Resolution Center at: http://pages.ebay.com/securitycenter/ index.html The Security & Resolution Center can help you do the following: - Learn more about account protection and buying safely. - Access resources for rules, policies, protection programs, and announcements. - See important safety tips and features. - Review law enforcement information. - Access Security & Resolution Center tools, and more. Sincerely, Anna

At this point in writing this article, my emotions regarding this response from eBay are emphatically urging me to pound out several paragraphs worth of rant about how hilariously irrelevant this response is to the message I originally sent - an urge which shall be eternally frustrated, since there is nothing more to say than to simply stare at it aghast and say, 'that has absolutely nothing to do with what I sent to them. Nothing which I mentioned in the original message is even mentioned here.'

So - frustrated - I re-listed the item a third time. I waited. Same story - after waiting a few days the auction was ultimately won, again by somebody who desperately needed it shipped to Nigeria (this time they were sending it to their fiancee who was working for the 'Nigerian Peace Corps.'). 'What's wrong?', I thought, 'how hard is it to sell something on eBay nowadays?'

So I listed the item for a fourth time. This time I added the following disclaimer to the top and bottom of the listing:

Note: I WILL NOT SHIP THIS ITEM TO NIGERIA! This is the fourth time I have listed this laptop on eBay. All three of the earlier auctions were ultimately won by Nigerian scammers trying to get me to use some phony escrow service to ship the item to Nigeria. Each time I got a slew of elaborate (but grammatically poor) spoofed emails explaining to me that payment had been made to my PayPal account but would not show up until I emailed the buyer with a tracking number showing that I had shipped the item. I may not be the smartest crayon in the box, but I'm not stupid either, so I (thankfully) haven't fallen prey. But each time this happens, I lose a few days of selling time, and I really need to get this laptop sold because I need the money for something else. I truly apologize if you actually ARE on a business trip in Nigeria or need it shipped to your cousin or fiancee in Nigeria, but I repeat: I WILL NOT SHIP THIS ITEM TO NIGERIA! I'm just a poor guy trying to sell his laptop on eBay. If anyone reading this has any ideas as to how to keep people in Nigeria from bidding on or winning this item, please send a message to me via my eBay profile! Thanks! :-)

The listing posted, and I waited. A few hours later, I tried to log into my eBay account to check on it, and my username and password would not allow me to log in. I checked my email, and found the following:

Dear [redacted] (*****@*****.com), Your account was accessed by an unauthorized third party to list items without your authorization. At this time we have taken several steps to secure your eBay account. Rest assured that your credit card and banking information is safe on the eBay site, as this information is kept encrypted on a secure server and cannot be viewed by anyone. To regain control of your account, please complete the following steps: 1. Change the password on your personal email account to verify that it is secure and cannot be accessed by anyone other than you. 2. Change the password on your eBay account. Go to the eBay sign-in page, click the "Forgot your password" link, and change your password using the instructions provided. 3. Verify the contact information on your account is correct. Go to My eBay and click the "Personal Information" link under My Account. To better understand how your account was compromised, please take a moment to review the Account Protection tutorial. http://pages.ebay.com/help/tutorial/ accountprotection/js_tutorial.html We're sorry for the inconvenience, and we thank you for your patience and understanding. Sincerely, eBay Customer Support

The only thing I can figure as to why eBay locked my account and removed my listing was that my listing mentioned the word 'Nigeria'. I am positive that my eBay password was not stolen, as I have NEVER revealed my eBay password to anyone (not even my wife knows it; I don't want her to know that I buy her birthday presents off of eBay - can you blame me?).

Having nowhere else to turn, and in no real hurry, since I've lost all hope of actually selling my laptop on eBay, I contacted the security team with the following email:

I'm having a very hard time selling my item on eBay. I have listed the item four times, and each time something has gone wrong. Here are the item numbers, with descriptions of the problems: [detailed list of everything Timothy's tried up to this point. -Ed.] After the last two listings, my account was locked because eBay thought (for some reason never told to me) that the listings were due to a compromised account password - even though the listings were legitimate and posted by myself. I have now had to reset my password to something