Add “delivering a stove” to the list of things Best Buy is not very good at. Heather bought one from them, then was subjected to various delays and bogus fees, and now has to wait for Best Buy to “trick” its system into giving her a refund for a fee she should never have been charged in the first place. Here is the email she sent CEO of Best Buy, Brian Dunn, explaining the series of events leading up to her decision to never shop at Best Buy again:

Mr. Dunn:

I am (was) a Best Buy customer and I think that you need to understand what kinds of problems are plaguing this company. I have never in my life had such a horrible experience.

– On 4/26, I placed an online order for a stove – order # [redacted] for Whirlpool-AccuBake 30″ Self-Cleaning Freestanding Electric Range-Black-WFE371LVB, a Smart Choice-6′ 40-Amp 3-Prong Universal Range Cord with Spade Terminals-530551054, as well as a delivery charge of $70 – I received a confirmation email for the delivery date of 5/22. I charged this order to my Best Buy card knowing that 18 months interest free was really the best way for me to do this.

– On 5/21, at 4:14pm, I received an email stating my order had been updated to a delivery date of 5/29 – because I would not be home on this day, I called customer service. I was told that the item I had ordered 4 weeks before was not in stock. This made me annoyed because I figured ordering this appliance reserves me the item. Nevertheless, I re-scheduled the delivery to 6/12. I was also told my delivery fee would be waived. (I also sent an email to Best Buy expressing my dissatisfaction and was sent a $50 gift card.)

– On 6/9, I looked at my Best Buy card statement online and saw that I had been charged a $39 late fee (the only items on my card were the items listed above). I thought this was incredibly dumb since I had not yet received the items due to YOUR error. I called Best Buy again and asked for the late charge to be removed. They removed the late charge but ONLY AFTER I paid the minimum payment to the account of $10.

– On 6/10, I checked to make sure the late charge had been removed from my account (it had) and saw that the delivery fee was still on my bill. I called Best Buy yet again to remind them to remove this fee. I spoke with someone who assured me it would be removed after the item was delivered on 6/12. This person also stated that she would call the warehouse to verify that the delivery for 6/12 was still going to happen and said she’d call me back that day, as well as Saturday after the delivery had been made. She never called.

– On 6/11, at around 6pm, I called Best Buy again to find out my delivery window as I had not heard from anyone. I was told that the delivery personnel do not make their calls until later in the evening – between 6 and 8pm. I left my house.

– In the wee hours of 6/12 (2-3am) I returned home and found no message. Not wanting to have people arrive at my home at 8am without my knowledge, I called Best Buy AGAIN. I spoke with 3 different people, none of whom took my name, and was told to call back in the morning when someone could answer my question.

– On 6/12, at 8am, I called the customer service line for online purchases. The person I spoke to told me that there was NO SCHEDULED DELIVERY FOR 6/12. Not able to even believe my ears, I asked why. She told me that this particular stove was no longer available for delivery to my area. She also asked if I had been told this. Um…. NO, I had not. She mentioned that this item used to be available, but now no longer was – and it sounded like, because Best Buy took so long to get this item to me, I lost out on actually getting it!

– At this point, I asked to have the entire order cancelled. She cancelled the stove immediately, and I received email confirmation. I asked about the delivery charge and was told, “oh, you won’t be charged for that”. I also asked about the cord, and was told she needed to call the warehouse to confirm the cancellation of that item and she’d call me back. She never called back.

– Today, 6/14, I received an email confirming “delivery” of those two items (the delivery charge and the range cord) on 5/29. What??????????

Then : I called to have the items removed from my card and was told that because they were “delivered” according to the computer, they would have to schedule a “pickup” to “trick” the computer and remove the items. This won’t happen until 6/26. This is UNACCEPTABLE.

So, now I am going to have to call what I now refer to as the Customer Disservice Line to get this fixed and somehow get my $10 back.

This experience has left me feeling embattled and frustrated. Much of my time was wasted and I still do not have a stove!

I cannot believe this company’s ridiculously inept online ordering system, inventory management, customer service, and communication skills.

A copy of this letter is going to the Better Business Bureau, as well as any online newspaper, blog, and social networking site I can possibly find.

It’s my hope that you will fix these issues for the next customer – but it’s not going to be me.

– Heather

Hey, you got a $50 gift card and aren’t going to do any more business with Best Buy. Sounds like you’re coming out ahead, Heather!

Maybe she should have brought her dinner fixings to Best Buy to make it there, like the guy who ordered a washer/dryer that never showed up so he came to the store to do his dirty laundry there.

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