Big Box woes!

 After almost 61 years roaming this planet, I have learned that there are some things I have no control over, regardless of how much they burn my hind end, and the prudent advice from so many is to shrug and let it slide. I admit that I find that easy to do ... sometimes ... but encounter times (FAR too regularly!) where my consternation rises to levels that make shrugging a challenge. One weekend in the recent past, Life presented as one of those times.

It all started out well enough.

I ventured northward to Midland to assist my referee board (BDABO) with the new official training that was being run at the North Simcoe Recreation Centre. This is an annual Jr Girls' basketball tournament organized by our executive, and since I'm the newly named Secretary, I felt it important to lend a hand. The plan is to bring our brand new and inexperienced officials into a common location and pair them up with an experienced official for a morning of one on one advice and input. I was a little more excited than normal to offer some input since two of the 'newbies' were former players, one from SCDSB days, Curtis Shakespeare, and one from GC State days, Ben Dance.

I don't mind sharing that the morning was a glorious affair, highly entertaining, thoroughly satisfying, and an incredibly useful investment of time. The schools that participated featured a host of young ladies who were most eager and enthusiastic, presenting more than enough challenge and ripe with learning opportunities. 

Life felt awfully good on the drive home, but the roller coaster was simply cresting the hill.

Sitting down at my laptop to complete the evaluations that I had to complete, I checked my email and found a reply for the service request I had made to Best Buy about my Shokz ear buds. 

The back story is that I purchased a pair of Shokz Open Fit Ear buds last March to use while cycling because they were bone conduction types, allowing for music while still allowing me to hear the traffic around me. They were 'just what the Dr ordered' until a service request became necessary because the right bud had lost its ability to charge fully, meaning that it had less that half of the battery life of the left one. I had bought the extended protection plan to the tune of $79.99 for 3 years, so I figured that I was well covered by the Shokz warranty combined with the extended plan.

How silly was I?

The email I received from Best Buy included a gift card for the purchase amount plus taxes, and it struck me that even though I could use the value to purchased new ear buds, how would that affect the plan I purchased? I used the Best Buy customer portal to find the contact info and reached a young female who, upon hearing of my query, informed me that the plan was now defunct because they only applied to the old ear buds. Okay, I agreed, I understand what you're saying, so replace them instead of giving me a gift card, so that the plan I paid for would still apply. Barring that, refund some of the plan cost since it was only 4 months into a 36 month plan.

NOPE! Not the way they do things.

I was pissed, but tried to sound calm as I politely asked to be passed along up the 'food chain' to lodge a complaint with someone who had the power to change my frustration. NOPE again! She 'wasn't authorized' to do that, which only stoked the flames, and left the only choice of calling back and going through the whole auto-answer hoops. 

In the end, I'm out $79.99, and I politely but sternly informed the young gentleman I was now communicating with that I was very displeased and wanted a record of the conversation sent to customer service. He reacted exactly the way corporate had trained him and with a sugary-sweet voice, "I completely understand your frustration Stephen, and will ensure that your concerns are directed through the appropriate channels." 

Huh? Does that mean yes?

So, the weekend started out brilliantly, then crashed and burned like the loser of an aerial dog fight, complete with the whining sound effects of a falling jet fighter. All I could do was wait patiently to see if someone decides to follow up. To add insult to injury, the salt in the wound came with another email asking that a customer satisfaction survey be filled out. They got what they deserved, albeit minus the crass language, but I bet they don't keep that one on file!

As a parting shot, be forewarned when dealing with Best Buy, and don't purchase the extended protection plan ... unless you enjoy padding their pockets with a donation!

I know, BIG breath in, hold it, and slowly exhale.