Best Buy — Local services in Billings

I have always found Best Buy employees to be extremely knowledgeable and helpful. Service is also excellent! To a previous commenter about the service, I doubt she actually read her service agreement which specifically states that Data and software is not covered under the agreement. Black Tie Protection protects the hardware against manufacturer defects, power surges, and dust damage. It also cover accidental IF you pay for it. I know she didn't read the agreement pamphlet that was provided to her since she called it "insurance", which is a fault on her.

Being in the IT field myself for ten years it sounds like the problem she was having was software and operating system related. Those types of problems are not easily fixed and in fact that the Geek Squad waved the service fees for it is pretty nice. My typical charges for software related issues are between $200 - $300. I will try and educate the customer to why it was broken in the first place, but in the end education only goes so far.

Another point is the data backup services they provide. Those services are not 100% guaranteed. If you data is really that valuable then you need to be responsible and back it up yourself. They refunded the service fee for the backup, so I have no idea why she is complaining about that. Lots of things can cause the data to not be recoverable (hard drive not spinning, corrupted files, viruses, etc). The only guarantee you have to you data is to back it up yourself. There are lots of online backups services that will store your data in a remote location and backup your computer automatically so that you don't even have to think about it (Carbonite and Mozy are two I can think of off the top of my head).

I have bought around ten computers, two televisions, eight DVD or surround sound systems, a couple car stereos, and a few appliances from Best Buy. I always get the protection, but have only used it twice (DVD player quit reading discs and the car stereo had pop splashed on it). Both were repaired in a reasonable amount of time and still work to this day.

About the financing they offer, I would probably skip out on that. Best Buy partners with a company called HSBC for their financing and credit cards. HSBC is a horrible company their customer support is completely lacking. I spent the better part of four months trying to pay my bill off, which they refused to do and in the mean time charged me late fees. When I tried to get those fees removed, they refused to do that even after I went as high up in their chain of command as I could. Very frustrated with them, but HSBC is not a Best Buy company. I do not fault Best Buy for HSBC's fraudulent...

Let me tell you about Sean R., or as I like to call him, "Best Buy Guy From Heaven Above". First of all, the sale deals here are absolutely bonkers. I saved like $400 on my purchases, which were strung out through a whole week of Christmas shopping, due to me finding more stuff to blow money on for these ungrateful peasants I call my family. Just kidding. Anyway, each time I came in, it turns out that I have indeed NOT changed as a person and I still hate waiting in line, 41 years into my life. I found what I wanted (headphones). I saw the line (long, with a lady in 90% sure peed her pants). And then? A heavenly light shone down from above, illuminating the entire store with a glow only God Himself could procure. It was then that I saw Sean R. He walked up to me and said, "Do you want me to check you out over here?" Meaning: no line with pee pants lady. No waiting. No standing for ten minutes, wishing I'd just bought the headphones online like a normal adult. Sean processed my purchase, with a friendly smile and a name tag that should just say, "Yeah, I know, I am basically a hero". I came in again later. I bought a subwoofer for another ungrateful peasant in my family. There was Sean R. Heavenly light. Mr. Wonderful. "I can check you out over here". He led me to a solitaire cash register again and it was almost romantic if I wasn't 20 years older than him and in a long term committed relationship, and he having standards which exceed my worth (he's a god, after all). But ladies out there who are single? Date Sean. Fight over him. Because tonight, I came in yet again for a webcam, and there he was. He checked out my purchase at a solitaire cash register, and we laughed and talked and mused about the finer things in life, and he's the type of guy you can take home to your parents and they end up liking him more than they like you. I bought my stuff. I left. But Sean's friendliness and personality that says, "Yes, I play Gears of War, also, and we are awesome" clung into me like a fine fur coat that's organically harvested despite PETA tears. Basically, Sean R. deserves a raise. A promotion. Perhaps a trophy, hand whittled out of wood from Jerusalem....

If you buy a large appliance, watch out. Deliveries are done by a third-party. Delivery dates and four-hour windows are entirely optional and in our case, fictional.

We purchased a refrigerator/ freezer and agreed to a delivery date. The day prior to delivery, we received a text message narrowing down the delivery timetable to a four-hour window. On the scheduled date of delivery, at the end of the window, we made a call to a customer service representative, who told us a a lengthy hold that the delivery 'agent' was running late. "Just wait another hour." It was only after we waited and made another call that we found out the "agent" had gone home sick earlier in the day. Lying to customers is apparently acceptable at Best Buy.

We were then told by a resolutions representative that our case would receive priority attention and someone would call us the next day to resolve the delivery. When that didn't happen, we made another call to make that arrangement. Earliest? One week later. So much for being a priority.

Sadly, the email confirmation for this appointment was in error. The actual appointment is ten days after the original delivery date. How do I know, I called to confirm it and was told to ignore that appointment and that I would not receive a confirmation for the revised delivery date. To cover the contingency that we may have two appointments, we will await word about the four-hour window the day before each delivery.

Confusing its customers is very clearly embedded in the Best Buy culture.

A visit to the store and a chat with the manager yielded nothing more than a "Gee, there's nothing we can do, " with a little dose of "Too bad, so sad to be you."

Best Buy. Good products, yes. That's the only reason we have decided to persevere.

Lousy doesn't touch just how poorly it treats customers. In our case waiting for at least another week with no refrigerator is just part of doing business with Best Buy.

Look for another post to learn how...