How's THIS for customer service?

3/18/15 | Me, myself, & I

[EinNYC]

I'd like to hear some opinions about this fine example of "customer service" I recently experienced at the hands of LG Electronics. I purchased a non-smart cell phone from a vendor on Amazon. It was advertised as new, and arrived in the original sealed box. After a few months, the phone's camera stopped working. The battery door was stuck and could not be opened. And the shift key was on the fritz, leaving you with entire sentences in upper case at random times. I contacted Amazon, who contacted the vendor. Two times they contacted them and two times there was no reply. Secure in the knowledge that I had plenty of time left on the 1-year warranty, I contacted LG and explained the issues the phone was having. They sent me a return authorization number and a free shipping label to send the phone to their Texas repair facility. After 3 weeks and hearing nothing, I contacted LG and gave them the return authorization number.

"Oh, we're sorry. We only have the battery and the back cover of the battery compartment," the lady said.

"WHAT?????? I sent you the entire phone, wrapped in multiple layers of bubble wrap, in its original box within an outer box!"

"Well, that's all we have of your phone. We will look around."

A week later, I called back and they had found the phone. But would they repair it now? No. They needed a "Proof of Purchase".

I printed out and scanned the invoice one gets when logged into their Amazon account and on the page of an item you purchased. Then I sent it to LG.

"We're sorry. We do not accept this as a proof of purchase."

Excuse me? This is the only invoice Amazon ever provides. I called Amazon and had them call LG to verify I had purchased the phone when I claimed to have.

And now the phone will be fixed? Oh noes. Now LG demands I supply the phone's MEID number.

"But you have the physical phone! It has the MEID number inside the battery case!"

No. We need it from YOU."

I had to call my cell phone service provider. The Tier 1 tech went into this whole dogma-read about how they could not release that number to me. I roared into the phone that he'd better get a supervisor on the phone, pronto. Finally, a supervisor was located and put on the phone. I finally, after much wheedling, got him to give me the MEID number of my phone. Great! NOW I could give this to LG and get my phone fixed.

Oh noes. Now I called LG to find out when I would get my phone back repaired.

"Oh, we cannot repair your phone. Our techs (who lost it and then found it, recall) found that your phone was refurbished/tampered with/had water damage. We can repair it for money, though."

The phone was purchased as new and certainly looked it.

I contacted Amazon and told them this sorry tale. Either their vendor had lied about the new condition of the phone or LG was playing for time until the May 2015 end of the 1-year warranty period. I told LG where to put my phone (hint: the sun never shines there) and filed complaints with the NY Attorney General and the NYS Dept. of Consumer Affairs.

[EinNYC]

I can’t even be sure that the phone they “found” is my phone. Remember, initially LG told me that they only had the batteries and battery cover of my phone. So it could have been someone else’s crummy refurbished phone they found and are claiming is mine.