Nicholas writes:

Orbitz is amazing for getting your flights fixed if you can get a supervisor on the line. I was on a business trip that involved multiple stops. Naturally one of my flights was canceled early in the trip, which threw off all of the remaining flights.

Orbitz called me about 2 1/2 hours before my flight, let me know and recommended (after putting me on hold to verify with USAir) that I travel from the small regional airport that I was in to the nearest international airport to catch a flight sooner. A $240 cab ride later I find myself at the international airport with all USAir flights canceled, and most of Southwest still flying.

USAir then informed me that because my origin airport was changed they could not get me onto an earlier flight to a different destination airport that was about as close to my destination as the original. (Destination = Utica, NY. Airports = Syracuse/Albany)

They then booked me a flight anyway, but told me I had to immediately book my return flight. I told them I'd call them back once I setup a new meeting. They said I had to book it right then and there. I explained that because I had to cancel one meeting already I didn't know when I could reschedule a new one. Luckily during this argument I got a call from one of the guys I was supposed to meet. I got the meeting scheduled, but lost the [USAir] call.

When I called back they had already taken back the ticket they issued me in the previous phone call and basically said I was SOL.

The Orbitz CSR then put me on a (secret) conference call with USAir where the USAir rep essentially said I should have never been given the ticket in the first place and that it's not his problem. The Orbitz CSR then asked me if I heard what the USAir rep had said, I replied that I wasn't too happy about it, and that I wanted my flights booked immediately. Apparently USAir reps don't like it when customers get to hear them not doing their jobs, judging by all the yelling and threats directed at the Orbitz CSR. I had the rest of my trip booked in 15 mins.

The first level of Orbitz CSRs are morons and absolutely not worth talking to at all. I was a passenger on a trip someone else booked, but every CSR insisted on asking me personal information about the person that booked the trip. No amount of logic could progress the conversation. After losing my temper I achieved a 50/50 ratio of getting a supervisor or getting hung up on.

We're not sure of the lesson here, except that it helps to be told immediately when a leg of your flight is canceled. It also helps to have a feisty customer service supervisor on your side who won't take "No" for an answer, but we're not sure how you ask for that person when you call in.

Completely unrelated to delays, bumpings or overbooking, we had a shockingly traumatic customer service experience with Airtran coming back from our honeymoon yesterday morning that I wanted to share with you.

We were checking three bags at Boston's Logan airport and the woman checking us in said one of our bags was oversized and would incur a $29 oversize bag fee. We were surprised, since we weren't charged a fee for an oversized bag on the first leg of our trip. When we asked her about this, she acted really put out and annoyed and got her supervisor. Her supervisor came over, even more annoyed, and said "If you don't watch it, I'll charge you for that first leg, too." (From a conversation with a customer service person 20 minutes later on the phone, we learned that this is absolutely not authorized under Airtran policy...I'm not sure where that "retroactive extra fee" would have gone).

We protested, and asked for her name and title. She refused to give us her last name and walked away. We asked the woman checking us in for her name—she too refused, and tucked her name badge inside her sweater so we couldn't see it. Fortunately I had already looked and wrote it down. Deciding that our conversation was over, she yelled out "Next!" We didn't leave, and asked again for her name and title because we wanted to complain about her hostility and her threat to charge us retroactively for something that obviously wasn't our fault.

Her response? She yelled "Get the hell out of my god damn face!" in front of about 100 people waiting in line, including many families with small children. We were absolutely shocked, and when I asked her "Did you really just say that to me?" she screamed it again, making threatening gestures and frightening both us and the people around us. Her supervisor watched from about 20 feet away, doing nothing.

When we approached her supervisor to complain, the supervisor's response was "She didn't say that", and her tone insinuated that we had made it up. She added, "There aren't any witnesses." When we pointed to several people who could attest to the fact that a) her employee had indeed exploded in the unprovoked, threatening manner described above, and that b) there were dozens of witnesses, the supervisor responded to the effect of "Don't worry about it. Go to your flight and I'll handle it." Her tone was casual, dismissive and condescending, and I'm fairly certain that no disciplinary action was taken since she had essentially watched the episode unfold before her eyes without doing or saying anything.

I'd like to note, too, that when asked again, this supervisor refused to give us her full name.

We had a plane to catch so all we could do was file a formal complaint on the phone and demand our money back for being subjected to such an emotionally traumatizing experience without cause or provocation. They said the best they could offer us was a $25 travel voucher, since "the airline doesn't compensate for rudeness." When we explained that this incident transcended rudeness to include being physically threatened and lied to about corporate policy, they didn't budge.

Any ideas for what we should do next? As you can imagine, we're furious and want some kind of appropriate resolution—no company should be permitted to treat paying customers like that without repercussions, and we feel like Airtran knows it can get away with this without any consequences.

Sincerely,
Jon

Jon, your best solution is to buy your own airplane. Ha ha, but seriously, we hope you didn't accept that voucher just yet. Check out this soldier's story of how he persisted with his demands until they were finally met—it may give you some idea of how to proceed. Check out our "Fighting Back" post for other tips.

However, if AirTran really doesn't compensate for rude treatment, then the voucher may be all you'll be able to get—in which case we suggest you cross AirTran off your list of desired carriers.

(Photo: Getty)

He called WaMu's customer service to ask where to find a branch that stayed open late and/or to request that his ATM limit be raised just for the day. The WaMu CSR wouldn't transfer him to a supervisor, accused him of making terrorist threats, and lied, claiming that her supervisor was on vacation. Yikes.

Usually I am not one to complain about customer service. I am the kind of guy who understands that everyone has an off day, and I will usually roll with it. This however mad me so mad, I felt the need to share it with Consumerist.

I recently moved from the West Coast to Florida for work. With a new job, and new apartment, I decided to make from BofA to WaMu. One of the best decisions of my life. Or, so I thought. For work, I travel in Europe, a lot. Anywhere from three days to three months. I am pretty good about making sure my landlord has my rent if I am going to be out of the country. On a recent trip, I had to stay a day longer with a client, thus arriving back into the US later then I planned. The next day my rent was due. I tried to get out of my office for a few minutes to run down to the local WaMu branch which is close to my office. Unfortunately I was unable to. I got to WaMu that day at 5:55 PM. WaMu say they close at 6:00 PM. What they mean is that the doors are locked and you cant speak with a teller or Supervisor from 5:45 PM. So, I used the ATM. I was only able to withdraw ½ of my rent. That’s fine, I’ll call up WaMu, and see if there are any open Branches around. If not, then maybe they can increase my daily limit today.

The first person I spoke with said that there no branches open, and the SHE couldn’t increase my limit. So, I politely thanked her, but asked to speak with a Supervisor. When the Supervisor came on the line, she informed that there was nothing she could do. Ok. I explained the situation to her again. Her response was “It is not my problem if you did not plan to pay your bills on time.” I have a pretty quick temper, but I kept my cool. I said I did not feel it was her place to judge how I handle my business with my landlord, and I would like the name of your Supervisor please. She gave me the name of her Supervisor. When I asked to be connected, I was informed that the Supervisor was on vacation.

Now, I didn’t think this person would give me the name of a Supervisor who was on vacation. I was shocked when she said she did. I proceeded to inform her that, this was unacceptable and I would like to speak with a Supervisor. I proceeded to inform her that if she called my office, looking for my Supervisor, I would find one that was there, and not one that was on vacation. At this point I am extremely irritated, steaming mad, but remain collected. Until she informs me that I am making terroristic threats, and she is going to get HER SUPERVISOR on the phone. Needless to say I was stunned. Instead of pleading ignorance, this CSR HAD ACTUALLY LIED TO ME.

When the Supervisor came on the line, I explained what the situation was for my original call. At this point however, I am actually pulled over on the side of the FREEWAY, and explaining to the Supervisor what has transpired from my side. I did not even care that I could not get an increase on my daily limit. I explained as calmly as I possibly could, that this CSR comments were unprofessional, rude, and inappropriate. I again explained that if this Supervisor were to call my office, and ask to speak to MY Supervisor I would make sure she spoke with one, and not be given the information for someone on vacation. I further explained that this was THE WORST experience that I have ever had with WaMu.

Total time spent on phone with WaMu customer service: 97 minutes.
Total frustration experienced: incalculable.

Total time with WaMu from first deposit to this incident: 16 DAYS.

Terroristic threats? What? From the tone of your letter, it sounds as if you might want to switch banks. Bankrate had a great tool for comparing checking accounts with local banks and credit unions.

If you're just looking for an apology, here's some executive customer service contacts for WaMu.

(Photo: stirwise )

My name is Ryan. I am originally from New Jersey, but do to my military assignment made San Diego my home in July of 2006. I have had several problems with Sprint over the past few years, but their customer service was always generally helpful and courteous. While I was attending my job training in Mississippi, they even informed me that my bill was adding up greatly because the plan I was under was not nation-wide. That representative even compensated the ridiculous amount that had built up. Obviously, this is NOT the reason for my email.

I was stationed on board the USS COMSTOCK, which was deployed from September 2006 - May 2007. Before we got underway, I sent a letter, signed by my Commanding Officer, that stated I would be unavailable from September 2006 - March 2007 (the original dates before our deployment was extended) and to cut off my service for this time period. Sprint complied and shut off the service to my phone, although they continued to bill me $30 a month for not even using the phone! When I returned in May, vice March, I turned on my cell phone and the service was restored. I have used my cell phone since May 2007 with a radical phone bill, from $60-150 a month, but the statements reflected time I went over my minutes, so I complied and have been paying my bill.

This month my phone bill came for over $500 and I was stunned, because I have not used the phone any more than I normally do. This caught me completely off guard and I called Customer Service immediately. This was the WORST Customer Service I have ever received (and I've been to the local DMV). The first representative put me on hold several times and informed me that because of the Military hold on my contract, they were charging me 75 cents a minute. I explained to her, and then two more supervisors, that I had been using the phone for over 9 months and never once received notification or any kind of indication of these sudden changes in my billing. They stated that their Military deployment freezes are responsible for MY problem (which they reminded me several times that this was MY problem). I was taken aback by not only their uncooperativeness and lack of empathy for someone in my situation, but also because of the fact that I had sent the letter stating that I would only be on deployment for the afore mentioned six month period Sept 06-Mar 07.

In the TWO (2) hours I spent on the phone, which I will probably be charged 75 cents/minute even though I spent over half the time on hold, I spoke with three Sprint representatives. The first one told me the best that Sprint could offer me was for me to pay my exuberant bill and would give me a whopping 10% off the rest of the bills for the remainder of my contract (which I intend to be done with them when that time comes.) The second representative gave me 1/2 off the disputed amount and suggested I talk to their collections department to set up payment (I am a very low ranking member of the Navy, E-3, and therefore, don't make much money).

The final representative was the WORST stranger I have ever spoken with and treated me like I was a criminal. While speaking with him (He would only tell me that his name was Ryan and his user log-in was 1717, and that he worked out of Salt Lake City, UT) I became very frustrated and informed him that I would inform the media and take legal actions, if necessary, to bring light to this situation and that I could not believe that he had such little humanity to tell someone that spent 9 months away from his family and friends to protect his freedom that this was MY problem and that I was irresponsible for not informing Sprint that I was back from deployment. When I asked how he could be so uncaring he answered that it was my own fault and, "I don't care," is what he said to me. This is when I knew things would be ugly. It is not the matter of the money so much as a supervisor, the supervisor's supervisor, said the words, "I don't care," to a customer who has not only been with their company for nearly 4 years, but a Patriot, who signed a contract for 4 years to defend America and his right to say, "I don't care." I want to send a message, "I DO CARE," and even if my case is not brought to justice, I want to warn others, especially Hero's who have served much longer than myself, that Sprint does not care and to stay clear.

Very Respectfully,
YNSN(SW) Ryan, United States Navy

Before ditching Sprint, try one last time to vacate the charges by calling Consumerist's Sprint Executive Customer Support hotline at: (703) 433-4401.

(Photo: smcgee)

"I am a tech support supervisor for a very well known computer company. (If you must know, this company is notoriously secretive. I think that's a big enough clue.) I felt the need to respond to the "7 Confessions Of A Verizon DSL Tech Support Rep" article you ran with some insights of my own.

I also started near the beginning of a new call center that was supporting three different product lines for said computer company. Customer service was stressed over and over and over again. I've been with the call center for about 5 months, but I've worked in other non-call center positions with the company since 2002. I thought someone needed to shed light on the fact that the seven confessions are not the exception to the rule — they ARE the rule in most cases when it comes to tech support call centers.

This particular call center is all "Tier" (or Level) one support. Within this center, we have Quality Assurance to monitor the agent calls in-house. If necessary, these Tier 1 agents escalate difficult calls to Tier 2 — which can be anywhere in the world. It will almost never be the same person twice.

You're not going to speak to someone's actual supervisor
There is a specific, direct queue line to "Supervisor Requests" for our agents. I don't know why most people think they will actually speak to the support agent's actual supervisor. We're too busy answering technical questions for the agents (regardless of the fact that they have many more resources to find these answers than we do), sitting in worthless status meetings, and reporting to corporate and/or operations about the metrics of our agents. These supervisor requests go to specifically trained Tier 2 agents who spend 90% of their time calming down irritated customers. It is a great perk as a supervisor to know that there are specifically trained agents out there to take the "angry customer" calls so I can actually get work done.

Metrics Rule EVERYTHING
We have very specific goals that we have to enforce as supervisors. 99% of our job (and job security) relies on our ability to keep our statistics within specifications. Handle time is 15 minutes or below at our call center as well, but with a hitch — if it is TOO far below 15 minutes, we also need to be able to reason with our supervisor why we know *for sure* that the agent is not just dropping the calls to keep handle time low. It's a delicate balance, as I'm sure you can imagine. It's the same with after call work — it needs to be below 1.5 minutes.. but if it's TOO low, then we have to be able to answer the questions that arise from that. Moral of the story? Don't over-perform, and don't under-perform and your supervisor will love you — because he/she will not have to answer to his/her supervisor. Quality Assurance AND supervisors are required to monitor calls — supervisors must listen to calls twice per shift (which is nearly impossible). Yes, agents hate this, but wouldn't if they would just do their jobs.

You're on hold so long because agents are ducking their work
To make metrics (and schedule adherence) agents do terrible things, like dropping calls, and something we refer to as AUX-hopping. This means that agents switch between various auxiliary codes (break, after call work, etc.) to not have to take as many calls. What does this mean to the customer in the queue waiting? You now have to wait longer because some nineteen year old punk doesn't feel like taking as many calls as the guy next to him. Now everyone else in all the call centers worldwide for this product have reduced time between calls, and calls in the queue back up even further. It's irritating for everyone involved.

Customer service skills are more important than tech skills, here's why
The tech support agent was correct. In management, we believe it is easier to teach anyone technical support than it is to teach common courtesy. Sure, we could hire only applicants with a bachelor's degree in Computer Science from an Ivy League school, but call centers typically employ college students, retirees, and those with a less-than-stellar academic background. Bottom line is, it doesn't matter how well educated you are; we're going to pay you x amount. "But I have a BS in CS from (enter university here)!" That's fine, you can take the x amount or find another job. Our agents do not use scripts — we give them between two to three weeks of training (depending on the product) and then they take it from there. The bottom line is that "techie" people do not want to work for so little — so we hire people who will and make do with what we have. Even the "techie" agents can be some of the rudest, or most lacking in common sense (ie: don't scream at the customer).

Our QA department does not seem as bad as Verizon's. Mostly, they coach agents on ways to show empathy with the customer, how to obtain information without violating privacy policies, etc. Not one agent here has been let go because they did not use the right "buzzword." I guess that's the difference between call centers who use a script, and those who don't.

Customer Satisfaction Surveys Are GOSPEL
This is the number one way that management can evaluate an agent's performance. While our agents are not required to use a certain phrase, or even mention the customer survey, each customer receives one via email after a case is completed for them. They are rated from "Very Dissatisfied" to "Very Satisfied," and as a manager — nothing makes my job easier than telling my boss that all my agents have "Very Satisfied" on all their surveys. I know it is not the usual to fill out the survey or ask the agent to talk to a supervisor when you have received excellent service, but in our call center — that's our bread and butter. Those surveys help to determine who gets promoted, who gets fired, and who gets special perks (best shifts, days off, etc.).

The Verizon agent was also correct in saying that polite customers, even if upset, are more likely to get helped. Those customers are even more likely to get the above-and-beyond service, so please keep that in mind.

-Anonymous"

RELATED: 7 Confessions Of A Verizon DSL Tech Support Rep

(Photo: hanapbuhay)

AOL lies to their customers and has a policy of refusing to escalate to supervisors:

If you refuse to pay your bill, AOL will threaten to ruin your credit (with AOL):

AOL's abusive relationship with its "members" is not new, but it is surprising how enthusiastically they have embraced the standard lies and deceit peddled by the debt collection industry. According to our tipster, the guide is from 2006, but the tactics and policies remain unchanged.

The only way to fight back against scummy collectors is to know your rights under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.

Read AOL's full collections guide, complete with other despicable practices, here.

PREVIOUSLY: EXCLUSIVE: Old AOL Cancel Script vs. New
AOL Retention Manual Revealed
Quit AOL By Fax, Mail, or Phone

Once unpacked, I proceed to wire everything up and, after all that work, plug the receiver in. Hmm... no red standby light... no fan... no nothing. I try another outlet... great... I got a defective unit. Okay, thats fine, things happen, I'm sure Circuit City's customer service will work things out with me. Not.

I called the customer service number, went through the usual prompts, and was put on hold... for 10min... 20...30...40...50...1hr... someone picks up. Okay, I'm tired of waiting but now I can get this resolved. I explain what has happened, and "I'm sorry... you have to talk to the returns department, please hold". Son of.. no, no, just wait.

10...20...30...1hr...and an hour and a half rolls by and someone picks up. I explain the situation and the fact I've been on hold for over 2hrs cumulative now... they take all my information and..

"I'm sorry sir, but this item is an online-only offer, so it will have to be returned via fed ex express. The charges for this will be $60.43 and there will be a 15% restocking fee; your balance to return the item is $87.42; would you like to use your previous payment method to fund this?" —WHAT!? I'm speechless.... you can't be serious. First... the product CAME LATE and DEFECTIVE. Second... ME pay for the shipping charges? No way. I try and get things resolved... no go. They wont budge. I then request a supervisor and get this response: "I'm sorry sir, but my supervisor is going to tell you the same thing; this is our policy and we cannot change it for you. Your account has been noted." I demand a supervisor a second time. "Sir, a supervisor is not going to change this." Deny me a supervisor once? Wrong. 2 times? Now I'M getting severely upset. I demand a third time. "Sir, I'm sorry but I cannot do that. Your account has been noted, have a good night." Click. What... hung up on!? Now I'm furious.

I call the number again...hold for over an hour again.. I get another rep... and I demand a supervisor immediately... "Sir, what is the issue you are having? I am sure that i can assist you with it and a supervisor will not need to be contacted." What is wrong with this company? Why do they deny supervisors? I request again... deny... again... deny...again...and deny. I finally am outraged and demand a supervisor and FINALLY, they tell me they will transfer me. Hold again... 30min...45...1hr... "Hello, I'm a supervisor what is the issue?" Finally.. I explain... and... "I'm sorry...but this is our policy and we cannot change it". You have got to be kidding me. I request their corporate office and she gives me another 1-800 number. She hangs up, without saying anything more.

By this time, I have spent almost 5hrs on the phone cumulative and it is very late and I am irate to say the least. I head to bed and call corporate tomorrow; surely this has to be a bad luck thing.

Tomorrow comes and I call the corporate office... within holding for 5min someone picks up... amazing... no hold? Maybe this is a good thing. I speak to a lady and plead my case. She apologizes for everything that has happened and agrees to expedite shipping of a new product for me and says she has to verify some information and puts me on hold for about 5minutes. Good,things will get fixed. She comes back on the line... "I'm sorry sir but we cannot ship this product 3-day for you and you will have to pay the shipping to us to return in and we will ship you a new one in 14-21 days." WHAT!?!?! I explain this request is outrageous and question if I am able to do ANYTHING through a store location. She informs me that I, in fact, CAN return it to a store and have a new one shipped to me. Amazing the lack of communication here, isn't it? Good, I say I will do that and the conversation ends.

I call up my local store and ask for a supervisor and get one. I explain the situation that I have been going through and the supervisor understands and I head to the store. I return the item to them and they set up the new shipment... but there is still an issue. Remember how I paid for 3day? They refuse to honor that for this new shipment... by this time I'm so done with this company I just tell them to ship it to me and be done with it. I get the receipt and shipping info and leave.

December 10th comes.. and I have a package? Whats this? 2 days? Amazing. I finally think this process is over... but no, it's not. I open the package and this time, before unwrapping ANYTHING, I plug the receiver in, laughing, thinking there is no way I could possibly get a SECOND one that doesn't work. ... no...red light... no fan... no...nothing. You have to be kidding me. ANOTHER defective unit. I immediately call the store and explain what happened and at this time, I am infuriated. They understand and want to ship ANOTHER one to me.. but by this time this is not going to work. I demand that the supervisor find a comparable product that they can exchange IN STORE TONIGHT for me. She agrees and finds me a Panasonic 5 Disc HTIB with the same features, minus and plus a few. Good, I bring the product in, exchange it, bring the new item home, plug the receiver in and... IT WORKS! We're done!

Now... lets recap... I received two defective products... wasted over 7hrs of my time via phone and driving to locations, was told contrasting information on return policies, and was told I would have to furnish shipping for a defective product? During the phone conversations with their 1-800 #, I had to struggle to understand EVERY rep I had, INCLUDING the supervisors, I assume due to outsourcing. I then FINALLY get the product exchanged and.. IT DOESN'T WORK! I get a comparable product after having to cohort the supervisor into this and finally, I have a working product, 2 weeks of waiting and 7hrs of phone conversations PLUS having to drive to and from a store location TWICE and I wound up with a product that I didn't want but suffices. Now, you're probably wondering why I didn't just get a refund and go elsewhere? $125 of the purchase was on gift cards I bought at a local store for the fuel perks prior to shopping... burned on my part for that. The moral of this story? I will NEVER shop at this company again and I will make sure my family does the same. I have contacted the BBB regarding this but I don't expect to have a reply. Take your business elsewhere... often-times, an ad price you see here can be matched somewhere else that will actually give you something called Customer Service.

(Photo: alaspoorwho)

Ive: I'm calling just to pretty much clarify the PS3's warranty, if there's any clause in the warranty that makes it so that if the PS3 is too dusty that the warranty is void.

CSR: No.

Ive: No?

CSR: No. The only way that it, um, voided is if it was neglected, um, abused, dropped or anything like, modificated like if you opened it up, modification, if you didn't have your receipt, um, any power failures like mother nature or anything like that then that actually does void the warranty. Other than that any defective PS3s or anything like that is still, um, still under the warranty.

Notice how Ive uses Ron Burley's trick to stay out of trouble for recording the call. If Sony wants this to end well, they should reach out to Ive, apologize, and offer to repair his dusty PS3 for free.

PREVIOUSLY: Dust Voids PS3 Warranty
(Photo: lunarworks)

I have kept my 60gb PS3 in Its entertainment center since its purchase. It is known within the PS3 community that the thing is a HUGE dust magnet. I took good care of it, I have about 10 Blu-ray discs (did NOT come free with my PS3), 5 games, 5 controllers, 2 42" Bravia LCD's 1 50" Bravia 3lcd Rear projection TV, A Vaio desktop, Vaio laptop, I've even got a psp and location free TV. One day I turn it on and put in a disc and it doesn't show up, then it wont eject, finally I get it to eject and I try a blu-ray, nothing, CDs, nothing.

I call Customer support who originally tell me that they can do anything because I don't have the original sales receipt, (it was a GIFT!!!), I stayed on the phone for hours explaining to them that I don't have thee receipt as it was a gift from my parents. Finally I got a rep who said that it was strange that earlier reps hadn't let me go through with the exchange as if it was a gift it was policy not to require a receipt. He sent me a box, I boxed up my console and sent it in.

5 days later I have no updates on the PS3, I call in to check on it, The first rep I speak to says that it was received without a receipt, and was delayed but he was going to note that it was a gift and get the replacement sent out to me.

6 hours later I get a call from Neil saying that unfortunately they have opened the case and taken pictures of the inside and outside of the case and that it was too dirty to be eligible for replacement. I paused for a good 8 seconds, because my PS3 had not moved from the entertainment center that it sat in more than 8 months I had wiped it off before sending it out, THE WHOLE POINT of the PS3 Is that it is part of your entertainment center! I Told him that was crazy and that it was a known problem that the PS3 collected mass loads of dust. That their product hasn't even been out for 1 year and he's telling me I'm out of warranty because there is too much dust in it!? I told him that someone needed to double check because I really took care of my PS3 and there was no way it was so dirty that they wouldn't replace it. He said he would and he would find out about getting pictures.

The next day I got a call from the same guy, Saying he couldn't get pictures, and there was no way they could replace the console unless I paid 150$ out-of-warranty replacement fee. I dais I needed to speak to his supervisor and it took him a while but he eventually transferred me to yet another person who just told me from the pictures they saw of the outside of the PS3, the memory ports and the USB ports, that there was dust inside of these ports, and that there was no way they would replace such a dusty console.

I then asked for HER supervisor, who was a very rude woman named Daria Woo Ext # 55682. She basically told me if I wanted the pictures of the PS3 That they were property of SCEA, And that I would have to SUBPOENA the pictures! I told her that this was ridiculous! That in order to take the same pictures that they did I would have to open my case, and void my warranty! I asked her if I could record what she was saying and she immediately snapped a NO, And asked for what purpose, I told her it was so I could educate the entire world on the ethics of the PS3 repair center. She told me my only options were to have the PS3 sent back, pay 150$ for a replacement, or leave it there for 10 days until it gets sent back. I told her to leave it because I was going to write a few emails so that this situation could actually get resolved. She told me any email I wrote or number I called would get me transferred to her department and that she would not help. I asked her exactly what part of the warranty stated that if a unit is too dusty it cannot be replaced.

She told me that it was under "acts of god, customer abuse" section when I had clearly told her that it sat in my entertainment center acting as a blu-ray playing, folding@home computing, media center and that obviously the amount of dust inside the console is caused by a design flaw and not my quite dust-less room.

I don't get it! Sony is including Folding@home with their consoles, The auto-start feature makes it so its running almost all the time, OF COURSE ITS GOING TO BE FILLED WITH DUST! A few reps said that the reason they couldn't replace it was because it looked as if it had about 2 years worth of dust in it rather than 8 months..... The console hasn't even been out a year so obviously that is less than a years worth of dust.

I love the PS3, I'm a Sony fanboy, I have a copy of Heavenly Sword Un-Played because I'm waiting for the replacement to come back, For them to say they wont replace it because it is such a damn dust magnet is absolutely ridiculous. IM NOT paying 150$ for someone to use an air compressor to dust off my PS3 re-test it and send it back. MAYBE Sony should let their customers know that excessive dust voids the warranty, so that people can start selling air filter set's for it, and air-sealed boxes for the PS3 to sit in.

(Photo: lunarworks)

She eventually decided that the reason the claim code was not working was because Amazon had expired it after sending it to me, and there was nothing she could do. It didn't matter that Amazon's web site said that gift certificates sold to people in Massachusetts don't expire. It didn't matter that Massachusetts state law required that the gift certificate remain valid for a minimum of 7 years (or forever if it doesn't clearly state an expiration date, which is what actually applies to this case). It didn't matter that Amazon had never sent the gift certificate to the original intended recipient, it didn't matter that Amazon had told me it was valid right before expiring it, what mattered was that the gift certificate had expired and so there was nothing that could be done.

Back in late 2004, I bought a $75 Amazon.com gift certificate to send as a thank you to a business contact. I found out in 2006 that Amazon never sent the gift certificate to him, and in December they sent me the claim code so I could use it. Except their web site never accepted the claim code, always giving an error message saying that I should "try again in a few minutes."

So a few days ago I started calling Amazon to try to get this resolved. They've already embarrassed me with my business contact, held $75 of my money, and had me feeling like a complete idiot trying and failing to redeem the gift certificate myself on their web site. Over 2 days I reached progressively less helpful representatives.

Rep #1 reasonably quickly verified my account, verified the gift certificate, figured out that the claim code was not working but could not figure out why, and told me that her supervisor would have it fixed in a few hours. That would have been nice.

Rep #2 the next day had trouble finding my account, could not find any information about the gift certificate, and made me repeat everything at least twice. After 30 minutes, she offered to have her supervisor fix the problem or call me back, neither of which happened.

Rep #3 could barely speak English, could not find any information, was unsure what a gift certificate was, and forced me to repeat over 10 times that I wanted to speak to a supervisor.

Rep #4 was the supervisor. She eventually decided that the reason the claim code was not working was because Amazon had expired it after sending it to me, and there was nothing she could do. It didn't matter that Amazon's web site said that gift certificates sold to people in Massachusetts don't expire. It didn't matter that Massachusetts state law required that the gift certificate remain valid for a minimum of 7 years (or forever if it doesn't clearly state an expiration date, which is what actually applies to this case). It didn't matter that Amazon had never sent the gift certificate to the original intended recipient, it didn't matter that Amazon had told me it was valid right before expiring it, what mattered was that the gift certificate had expired and so there was nothing that could be done.

She did decide that I was such a good Amazon customer that she would grant me a $75 good-will credit. It was important that I understand this was a special favor that she was doing, and she told me how sorry she was that I apparently misunderstood both Massachusetts state law and Amazon's stated policies.

So through much persistence, at least I finally got my $75 back. But I'm left with the clear impression that Amazon gift certificates are a Very Bad Idea for everyone except Amazon (who gets to keep the money when they "forget" to send the gift card to the recipient or when they "accidentally" expire a gift card). It would be so easy for Amazon to let customers see whether a gift certificate they sent has been redeemed as part of their account information, but then customers might find out how many of these never find their way to the recipient.