Tales of Customer UnService

Dispense with introduction, start with the easiest:

ME: (via "contact" link) There isn't anywhere overt to sign in with the app. Where is the login?

THEM: Thank you for contacting us! For information on how to join, please visit http://xxxxx. I’d be happy to send you a one-month no-obligation free trial. If you’re interested, please let me know if you’ll be using it at home or in a classroom, so I can send the correct level to try.

ME: We have joined. I can't figure out how to log into the app on our phone.

THEM: You can download the Free app through the App Store. There's a link on our website. Do you have an Android or Apple tablet? I can send you a direct link to your app store.

ME: I have the app! I do not see where to log in, so we cannot access the whole thing.

THEM: At the top of the main app page (which is green) you should see the "Authorize Device" option. If you do not see that, please send me a screenshot of your app homepage so I can help point you in the right direction.

...And there was a name and phone number with that one. FINALLY! Why couldn't we have just started there?!

That was an easy one. Here are two more.

I love Lenny & Larry's. LOVE their stuff. So as I was ordering on their website, I noticed you can sign up as an ambassador and get 10% when people order from your page. "Why not?" I thought. I wanted to make sure everything was as good as the stuff I'd tried first, though, so I ordered a bit of everything and when it came time to check out, clicked on the "Paypal" link. It ended up clearing out my cart and going back to the home page. When I tried a second time, my new customer discount code wouldn't work as it said it had already been used.

I emailed them and received this:
Thu 9/29, 11:03 AM
Hi Laura, Welcome to the team! Sorry you’re having trouble completing your order. Please click on this link to complete your payment: https://www.lennylarry.com/account/orderxxxxx. It should take you to your My Account page where you can view your order and complete payment. If you have any other questions, please don’t hesitate to ask. Thanks.

I tried that, and the same thing happened. I let them know.

Thu 9/29, 11:21 AM
Hi Laura, We’re looking into this issue right now with our technical team. Will get back to you asap. Thanks for your patience!! Thanks, xxxxx Making the world a better place, one cookie at a time.

Then:

Thu 9/29, 1:17 PM
Hi Laura, Can you confirm that this is what you would like to order: ORDER AND TOTAL. Please confirm and we can try to process this a different way for you. Best, Lenny & Larry’s Team

THEN:

Thu 9/29, 4:41 PM Hi Laura, The issue had to do with not having a Phone Number listed in your account that PayPal needs for verification. Please try to complete your payment once again and you will be directed to input your phone number. Please let us know if you have any other issues. J Thanks, xxxxx Making the world a better place, one cookie at a time.

So I did. Guess what? This time, it didn't even give me an option to pay, only to cancel my order. So I took a screenshot and sent it to them.

Fri 9/30, 2:36 PM Hi Laura, We’ve sent a PayPal request for the total of $xx. Upon payment, we will manually process your order for you to get you your goodies! Thanks, xxxxx Making the world a better place, one cookie at a time.

Well, okay, great. I paid that day.

Then on October 10, I started wondering where my stuff was. I couldn't find a way to contact them that would include the order number except though filing a Paypal dispute. I did and apologized, but asked if they knew the status of my order.

Tue 10/11, 2:37 PM Hi Laura, Sorry for any confusion. We didn’t receive any notice from PayPal that you submitted payment until this morning. We have put in your order (#49242) and you should receive a confirmation email shortly. Enjoy, xxxxx Making the world a better place, one cookie at a time.

OH. MY. GOSH. I was leaving for Dallas two days later, so told her that unless she could have the product to me the next day, I didn't want it shipped until we got back. I told her I'd planned to take it on our road trip and was pretty disappointed, plus there was no way I was going to be able to recommend people buy off of their website given my experience.

But guess what?

Tue 10/11, 4:39 PM Shipment Notification Hello Laura Gatannah, Good news! Your order has been shipped!

Grrr.

Well. We went on vacation and got back and there was nothing from them anywhere (mailbox, office Parcel Pending wall, or at our apartment itself). I looked online and they'd dropped it on our porch the Friday we were gone, so someone had stolen it before we got back on Monday. This is super shady, because we don't have a next-door neighbor, so no one has any business being up on our landing except to be a jerk.

I informed them of this, and they refunded my money, which was pretty stand-up of them. So I guess I'll never try the muffins, as I've never seen them in stores. My closest H-E-B only sells the cookies, but another one fairly nearby also sells the brownies.

I'll tell you this: This stuff is awesome, vegan, gluten free, and will keep you full a long time! But even if this whole thing hadn't happened, I still wouldn't ask you to buy through my site, because the cookies are over $2 a piece online, and they're only $1.50 at H-E-B. I wouldn't buy them online, and you shouldn't, either.

Final one, and the most potentially expensive and frustrating!

My daughter has the Cintiq13HD drawing tablet from Wacom. Pretty much any digital artists we know use Wacom products; they're an industry leader. We'd only had her Cintiq since October 15, 2015, when, on August 11, I emailed Wacom to tell them that there were several pencil-eraser-sized "hot spots" on the screen, and the corner was fading a bit.

From: support@wacom.com
Subject: RE: Your Case #CAS-355923-N8W0Y2 | WACOM
Date: Mon, 15 Aug 2016 20:13:52
Dear Laura,
Thank you for contacting Wacom customer support, I am sorry to hear about your issue, I will do my best to assist you Please email me a picture of the tablet with a blue, red and yellow background Along with the proof of purchase, shipping information and your phone number,
Anthony
Customer Support Team

Well, shipping and the phone number were included in the information I'd sent through their webpage, and, in fact, was below his message in the body of the email he sent, which contained everything I'd already written.

But I did what they said.

Tue 8/16, 12:17 PM
Dear Laura,
Thank you for your reply, I was checking with our repair team and the repair would be out of warranty and the cost would be between $360 and $428 depending in your location, If you want to proceed please provide me with your billing information and your phone number.
Anthony
Customer Support Team

First of all, OMG, YOU HAVE MY PHONE NUMBER. Secondly, the tablet costs $800, so we're looking at half the original cost to repair it?! Thirdly, I am 100% sure my daughter did nothing to damage it (all the same, we bought a lap desk, just in case her using it on her lap could cause any damage, which seems would be more knee-shaped than fingertip-shaped, but whatever). But she needs it for her life, so we agreed to that and I asked what the next step would be.

They emailed me back and asked for: shipping/billing info, verification of model and serial number, and my phone number. ALL OF WHICH THEY ALREADY HAD MULTIPLE TIMES.

But I returned the information. AGAIN. Even though we'd been emailing as quickly as texting, it took several days before I received an RMA number and instructions. I followed those, mailing the tablet Priority Mail with $800 insurance, so it cost more than thirty bucks to send to them.

I watched in horror as the USPS routed this package from Texas to Washington state via Hawaii. Not Wacom's fault. But I was nervous and wanted to make sure the package wasn't damaged or anything. I received shipping notice that it had been received at the "front desk," but didn't get anything from Wacom. I expected something, even automated, to the tune of: "We have received your tablet and will be in contact regarding blah blah blah."

Since I didn't get that, I emailed them.

Laura Gatannah
Fri 8/26, 9:59 PM
Due to the USPS routing the tablet through Hawaii first, you received it Thursday. Can you please let me know the status of the repair, or at least acknowledge that it was received? The only thing I've gotten is the USPS's notification that it was delivered. RMA Zxxxxx3. Thanks. Laura

Mon, Aug 29, 2016 8:39
Dear Laura, Thank you for your reply, Please provide me with the tracking number of the tablet you sent to us. Thank you,
Anthony
Customer Support Team

So I did.

8/29/2016 7:03 AM
Dear Laura,
Thank you for your reply, Checking the delivery date I need to remind you that the repair will take 10-15 days depending on our repair queue. I would recommend you to check again by the end of the week in case the tablet was repaired and released before that time frame you will be notified and you will receive an email with a tracking number. If you need any further assistance, please let me know Have a nice day!
Anthony
Customer Support Team

No duh. I know how long it's supposed to take. All I wanted was a "yep, we got it." But nope, they couldn't even do that.

On September 9, I'd still heard nothing, so I asked for a status update. I didn't think that was unreasonable, even though in the back of my mind, I felt like no one had even cracked open the package and it was just sitting in a corner somewhere.

Fri, Sep 9, 2016 4:07 PM
Dear Laura,
Thank you for your reply, It will take 10-15 days to get the tablet repaired and we are on our second week due to the previous holidays. You should be receiving an email with the shipping information within next week. If you need any further assistance, please let me know Have a nice day!
Anthony
Customer Support Team

In my brain, I throttled him. In real life, I waited until the fifteenth day, and:

Laura Gatannah
Thu 9/15, 7:29 AM
It's been 15 business days now, so I can expect the shipping info today, right? Thanks.

Thu, Sep 15, 2016, 8:19 AM
Dear Laura,
Thank you for your reply, Have you received any updates on this case? Did you receive your shipping information?
Anthony
Customer Support Team

I'm going to be honest with you here. I thought a LOT of cuss words. OF COURSE I HADN'T GOTTEN ANY UPDATES OR SHIPPING INFORMATION. Did he mean ever? Or in the hour since I'd messaged him? Instead, I opted for brevity and just said, "No. I have heard nothing since I sent it in, in terms repair status or shipping."

Later in the day, I sent this:
Since sending this in and learning that you have received it, I have not gotten any notification of anything at all. At the very minimum, it would have been professional to get an automatically-generated "we have received your tablet" email, but that did not happen. No updates, nothing unless I've contacted you, and you have given me no information other than that it's 10-15 days, which I understand. It's been 15 days now, and clearly I have NOT received any shipping information or I would not have contacted you. I believe that my daughter's tablet hasn't been seen by anyone, frankly, and I'm very disappointed by the lack of communication by way of receipt notifications and status updates. I need to know for sure where her tablet is, if the repairs have been made, and when I can expect it back. Thank you for getting this information to me as soon as possible. Laura

From: support@wacom.com
Subject: RE: Your Case
Dear Laura,
Thank you for your reply, You will be emailed as soon as we ship it, from ups with the tracking number Right now we are on the 14th business day. We are a bit behind than normal due to the repair center move and holiday. but within our quote. If you need any further assistance, please let me know Have a nice day!
Anthony
Customer Support Team

Laura Gatannah
Sat 9/17, 1:33 PM
 ...And now you're out of the quote. I would like a detailed update, including the status of the repair and when we can expect the tablet's return. Anything less than this, and I will file a complaint with the BBB. I have read through past cases and it seems that this level of non-communication is pretty much par for the course for Wacom. My daughter draws for hours per day, and it's been over a month now that she has been unable to use her tablet fully. Thank you for understanding and responding. Laura

From: support@wacom.com
Mon, Sep 19, 2016 9:53 AM
Subject: RE: Your Case
Dear Laura,
Thank you for your reply, I apologize for the inconvenience, I wanted to let you know the package is being prepared now and it should ship today or tomorrow.
Anthony
Customer Support Team

Well, the joke was on him, and you want to know why?

Because we'd already received a tablet before we got this email. Problem was, it wasn't a Cintiq13HD. It was a Companion. Now, understand, the Companion is a "nicer" tablet, with more features. It runs Windows and costs about 3 times what D's tablet cost. But it's not hers. It's not what she wanted. She researched and picked the tablet she wanted, and they sent us something that wasn't what we sent them.

The Companion has a processor, so it heats up when in use, like a computer. That did not appeal to her. Plus, the first generaion Companion has a known power supply issue, in that sometimes it just permanently stopped charging, resulting in the same kind of run-around we had with people sending their units in for refurbishment and having these long, drawn-out issues. Also, the power supply was known to overhead. I think they fixed that in the second generation, but, again... not what the customer chose.

I asked for an explanation of what happened.

Mon, Sep 19, 2016, 3:21 PM
Dear Laura,
Thank you for your reply, I apologize for the inconvenience, Could you send me a picture of the tablet you received and the RMA number please?
Anthony
Customer Support Team

No. No, I can't. I responded that the RMA was in the body of the email and she got a Companion. I was done doing busy work so they could put off doing stuff while they waited for me to respond.

Laura Gatannah
Tue 9/20, 3:26 PM
Since it has been 24 hours since our last communication and you have offered no explanation or remedy, I'm going to tell you what needs to happen to make this right. 1) You will send us a fully-functional 13HD. This can be a new unit or refurbished, as long as it looks new and is in perfect working order. 2) You will send me a pre-paid shipping label so that I can return the Companion you sent me. My daughter researched long and hard before purchasing the 13HD, and that's the model she wants. She does not want a Companion. I will not send the Companion in until I receive the 13HD. This all needs to be handled and I need shipping confirmation no later than 9/21/16 by 5:00 PM CDT or I will be filing a complaint with the Better Business Bureau. Please do not respond with an apology or request for more information from me. The ball is in YOUR court, and you need to make this right.
Laura

I gave them two days. Then I filed a report. Within four hours, a guy from their main HQ in Portland was on the phone with me. He apologized profusely, and thanked me for filing the report because he said otherwise, he'd not have known what was going on. He reminded me that the tablet we had was considerably more expensive than the one we sent in, and I assured him that mattered not one iota to my child. He said he'd send me an RMA for the Companion, and they'd send me the Cintiq as soon as they received it.

I explained to him that I had trust issues with them, and I intended to hold the Companion until I received a functional Cintiq. He said he understood, thanked me for not yelling at him, and released the tablet for shipping.

The good news is that we didn't have to pay the $400ish to get it fixed/get a refurbished one. Also, D had only sent in her tablet, but they sent us a full set, which includes a pen worth about $100. So we were $40 ahead, including the shipping we paid, except for the frustration.

We really hope this tablet works forever.