The Home Depot — Local services in Crystal River

8/25/2021 Update Spoke with ASM on phone he agreed to help make it right, went into the store and given ASM was busy, spoke with the store manager. He apologized for the issue and made this right. I am updating review given this new information. While I believe the store manager deserves 5 stars for his service today; In my mind (as the whole experience until today was dreadful, corporate has a lot of work to do to improve). For this reason I am not raising it to 5 stars, but because I was treated with respect and my issue taken care of by the store manager- I do believe they deserve raising the stars beyond my initial review.**

I purchased a product that had a bad design so when I attempted to return it, I had misplaced my receipt- I usually use Home Depot credit card, but apparently I didn’t. Long story short, I was offered a store credit (instead of checking other cards), which in my previous experience was no big deal and since I have spent thousands there didn’t give it a thought and accepted it. This is the big mistake I made, by no means should I have allowed the customer service rep to shortcut looking up my receipt and accepting a store credit. I will explain a little later how store credits should be avoided at all costs…

I bought another brand of the same product that I have used with success with. In addition to that I purchased other items, including a multi-tool.

Second mistake: I unknowingly allowed all items to be rung up on same receipt, paid first with the store credit and the remainder (which covered the full cost of the multi-tool before tax) on my Home Depot card.

I went to the store ~2 says after finding out the multi-tool appeared to be used/returned previously. The tool didn’t sound right and I only turned it on for less than 5 min to determine it needed to go back. The customer service representative said no problem and apologized, I was within my return policy. Here’s where it broke down, as the store customer service rep. was entering the details for the return, the system denies it. I was told to go to a website for Retail Equation. I was made out to be a criminal, they mentioned in the site fraud, etc. I asked to talk to store manager and only the ASM was available, he advised nothing could be done to call corporate (which were closed at that time).

I almost never return items, unless defect or product issue, so I immediately thought someone stole my ID so I ordered a report immediately. However, this doesn’t change how I was treated in the store, like a criminal committing fraud. I was absolutely shocked how poorly I was treated and lack of customer service.

So once I finally got ahold of corporate customer care (2 days later) I find out that there was no fraud, I was flagged due to the store credit. Apparently it is Home Depot’s policy that no item may be returned from a receipt that used a Store Credit. Regardless of how much, you can use a $1 Store Credit and purchase $500 additional for a receipt and nothing on that receipt is returnable. (Unless you call corporate and ask for exception after being publicly denied & shamed - they will send a case up for review and let you know of a decision in 3-5 business days.) This is unacceptable!

So in my case, even though the cost of my muiltitool before tax was covered by the amount of my charge to the HD credit card, it was still not-returnable. Based on the information corporate provided, they recommend not combining items buying store credit and credit card…how do customers know this? This is why I should have bought the multi-tool separately, not combining it with the store credit items- that I am keeping.

As of now, I will no longer be bringing my business there! I am not telling anyone to stop shopping at Home Depot- but review my experience and make your own decision. Just be careful, Home Depot’s customer service is not what it used to and they do not care how much you spend…. In the very least save your receipts, never accept store credit and if you do, never buy with other items and buy things you will...

On Friday, February 22, 2019, we stopped at Home Depot in Crystal River, FL, to look at carpet. We stated to Heidi, the carpet specialist, that we lived in an RV and needed to replace the kitchen and bedroom carpets. We explained that we needed some areas to be bound to prevent unraveling. She called the carpet supplier (Chicago?) and explained that we lived in an RV and what our needs entailed. She reported that they could not cut and bind the carpet at their distribution center, but that the binding could be done through the Home Depot in Crystal River. We paid the $35 fee to have someone come to our RV to measure the areas.

On Monday, we both took 1.5 hours off work for measurements to be taken. Dave took careful measurements and inputted that into his computer along with directions regarding which edges needed to be bound and their length. He showed on his schematics exactly what needed to be done. We soon received a quote. Heidi called to check if we had any more questions and if we accepted the quote. I asked if that quote included the cost of binding. I was told they would have that information ready for us when we arrived to pay for the contract the next day.

Tuesday, we drove to Home Depot in Crystal River. After waiting for Michele, another carpet specialist, to finish with customers, we had to wait another twenty minutes for her to make a phone call. We finally explained that we were there to pay for our order for carpet to be installed in our RV but first needed to know how much the binding would be. No one had determined that yet, so she started making phone calls to find out. She called the Chicago main office and the installers several times but she did not receive an answer about who would do the binding and how much it would cost. After another half hour and more phone calls, she turned to us and told us that Home Depot in Crystal River will NOT install carpet in an RV! I told her that Heidi had been told that we lived in an RV immediately after we began explaining what we wanted and that Dave had measured the floors. She said that Heidi was new and just didn’t know. Michele did not say why she didn’t tell us that from the beginning either.

We cannot imagine that no one else in this area where RVs are very common had never requested that Home Depot install new carpet. Their staff was not only unaware of their policy but also was never told that from the several departments and people that they contacted while seeking information for this order. We wasted many hours of time, plus felt huge disappointment after thinking we were soon to enjoy beautiful new carpets.

We find their staff’s lack of knowledge and ineptitude and the store policies totally unacceptable. They appear to not have any idea about products and guidelines. Even their home office did not know that their company stores don’t...

Good evening,

On June 25, 2025, at approximately 4:25 PM, my brother-in-law and I visited your Crystal River Home Depot location to purchase 16 boxes of Virgil Oak flooring.

Upon arriving at the flooring department, we found no associates available to assist us. After waiting roughly five minutes, we asked another employee for help and were told that someone would be right with us. Unfortunately, after an additional 25 minutes of waiting with no follow-up, we were left to load the 16 boxes ourselves.

I am an individual living with cerebral palsy and suffer from 16 herniated discs as well as a stomach hernia. Performing any type of strenuous physical labor is extremely difficult and often painful for me. Despite this, my brother-in-law and I had no choice but to handle and transport the pallets on our own.

At checkout, I was assisted by a cashier named Lacey. I explained the difficulty I had just experienced and asked if anyone could assist us with loading the materials into our vehicle. While she processed my payment, she quickly turned her attention to chatting with coworkers about a newly purchased Toyota Corolla rather than following up on my request.

Eventually, another employee approached and asked if we needed anything. I asked again if assistance was available, and he stated that they were extremely busy and no one could help us. Meanwhile, at least six employees stood nearby, engaged in casual conversation—discussing how hot it was and how they couldn't wait to clock out—rather than helping customers.

The lack of willingness to assist, particularly from able-bodied employees standing idle, was extremely disappointing. This used to be a store known for helpful service, but it has clearly taken a concerning step backward in that regard.

I returned home in significant pain due to the physical demands I was forced to endure during this visit. As someone with a disability, I strongly advise elderly individuals or those with mobility or medical issues to consider shopping at another location—one that will accommodate and respect their needs.

We spent $540 at your store, and left feeling dismissed, frustrated, and frankly, disrespected. This experience has made us seriously reconsider future purchases at Home Depot, and we are now leaning toward taking our business to Lowe’s.

I urge management to take this feedback seriously. The Crystal River location is in urgent need of customer service improvements to ensure a more inclusive, responsive, and respectful experience for all customers. Might even want to consider having a full time manager working the front.

Sincerely, Pissed...