The Television Tuner Story

The last post got me to remember how much leverage a credit card can give you.

Many years ago, I had a TV that had a mechanical tuner. For those of you who are too young to remember that, years ago TV sets had tuners that had moving parts. Mine had seemed to get so badly worn that the TV no longer worked.

I took the TV to a local repair facility about 2 blocks from where I lived and gave them instructions to check out the TV, and let me know how much it would cost to repair it. The man behind the counter quoted me $65.00 to check it out, and said that if I decided to repair the set, the $65.00 would count against the repair. "Fair enough," I told him. I also told him to go ahead with the repair if it was $150.00 or less. I told him that if it was to be more than $150.00, he should call for an OK, as I would probably buy a new TV. I then gave him a credit card to pay for the deposit.

He calls me back later in the afternoon, and tells me that the set needed a new tuner, that they were hard to get, and that (hooray) they were able to find one. And, "Oh, by the way, we already installed the tuner, and the bill is $225.00, including the tax." I was incredulous. I knew the law in the state of California. It was pretty much the same as that governing auto repair, and I was a mechanic. You cannot make a repair costing more than the estimate, without first calling the customer, and getting authorization. He said that was tough, and I should come and pick up my set. I countered with, "Well, I don't have to pay for it, according to state law. I gave you a deposit with a credit card, so I will request that the credit card company stop payment, and, by the way, keep the set as a rather large paperweight to remind you not to do this again. I am going out to buy a new TV." He says to me that the joke is on me, they have already put the credit card payment through. I told him he obviously doesn't know how credit cards work. The credit card company will charge it back to him, and refund the money to me. It doesn't matter that they may have even received the money for the transaction, the credit card company will take it out of a future transaction.

He hung up. He called back about 20 minutes later. He said the boss told him to bill me $150.00 for the repair, and that I could pick up my set. He said he wanted cash for the full amount, and he would refund all the credit card charges. I told him I would accept that, as long as I got the standard warranty, in writing, from them. I went and got my set. It lasted for several more years. I guess they did a good repair, even though they tried to screw me financially.

Moral: Credit cards give you a power that can't be matched by checks or cash. The only ways to get cash or a check back from a merchant who doesn't want to give it back, is violence (not recommended) or to use the legal system. Good luck with that - it can take years before getting into court. Credit cards put the credit card companies in the position of arbitrator, and I hear they side with the customer most of the time. If a merchant won't take your credit card, (or something like PayPal), maybe you should go to another merchant who will. Credit cards and PayPal enforce guarantees, and give the customer lots of power.

It Doesn't Always Work, Part II

A short time back - August 22 of this year to be exact, I posted in this blog that I would be buying a SanDisk 1-gb secure digital card for our Canon A620 camera from an outfit called dz-tech, and that it would be coming by mail. Well, I waited, and waited. It failed to show up. I wrote to dz-tech through pricegrabbers.com, and wondered where it was. It was supposed to arrive by 1st class mail, and usually took 5 days (or less). It was now 4 days overdue. It was, however, insured. I paid enough for the shipping, handling, and mandatory insurance. I didn't mind paying over $9.00 for shipping, since, coupled with the price, it was only $23.90 for the whole thing, cheaper than I could buy the memory card anywhere else. The only caveat here is if I don't receive it at all.

I didn't hear from dz-tech the first time I wrote, so I emailed them again, only this time, I said that I would like them to send out another unit, at no charge, as the original was insured, and would obviously eventually be paid for by the USPS. I also said that if I didn't receive one soon, I would have to cancel payment through PayPal. The next day I got a phone call from dz-tech. They said they would send out another unit, and I guaranteed them that if both of the memory cards finally showed up, I would mail back the second one I received. Well, the one they sent out 2nd, showed up first, and the one they sent out first arrived a few days later. I knew they told the truth, because the postmark verified they had.

I decided to keep both cards, and contacted them and asked if they would accept a PayPal payment for another $23.90 for the second card, rather than mail it back to them. I reasoned that I would have to package the card in another envelope, drive it to the post office, insure it, and mail it back. Then I would have to hope that it arrived or I would be on the other end of the stick. Besides, it is a great price on this card, and two of my pro cameras can utilize this type of card, as well as compact flash cards. It was a win-win deal: they were happy to oblige. They were honest. I was honest. And we both got what we wanted. I was happy to leave positive feedback for them on pricegrabber.com.

Moral: Don't be afraid to contact a company if you think things aren't working, and use credit cards, or PayPal to make payments. These are your leverage to get what you want. They are not payment - they are a promise to allow payment. You'd be surprised what you can do with that leverage.

Ah, Guilt

Make 'em feel guilty. Make 'em feel like they owe ya somethin'.

About 6 months ago, I took our leased EC (European Cruiser) into the dealer for an oil change (service). A normal oil change on our car cost something like $27.00. The service writer showed me a factory bulletin that stated that our model car had a problem with sludging oil (including engine destruction), and to make it harder for that to happen, synthetic oil should be used instead of regular oil. This upped the cost substantially to over $60.00. On the one hand, I didn't want to pay this increase, as this is a leased car, and I intend to hand over the keys once the lease is up. On the other hand, if the engine did sludge up, they might try to deny warranty to repair this. Coupled with the fact that we would be without the car for a while, I finally gave in, and let them change the oil with the synthetic kind.

About 3,000 miles later, we had to take the car back in for another oil change. I got a new service writer, one who I had not seen there before. He gave me an estimate for the oil change of about $27.00. I didn't let on that it was supposed to get the more expensive oil. I went back later in the day, and he apologized to me. He said the car needed the more expensive oil for the oil change, so he took it upon himself to have the more expensive oil used. Now, I know the law in this matter. He had my phone number, and he never called to get my OK. In my state, I don't have to pay more than 10% over the written estimate, unless he calls me to get a verbal OK, and I give it to him. I didn't want to screw him and have him lose his job, but I thought I'd see where it went, so I informed him I didn't have to pay for the increase. He said to me, "Listen, if you pay for it now, I will give you a free oil change next time, with the synthetic oil." This was too good to pass up. I agreed. He gave me one of his business cards and put on the back, "This entitles the holder of this card to one free oil & filter change, using synthetic oil." He then signed it.

I went back last time for an oil change. I asked if that service writer was around. He was no longer with the company, I was informed. I said, "Too bad, I have this card he gave me last time." I presented the card to the present service writer. He accepted it, and put "No Charge" on my work order.

I feel that the service writer possibly knew he would not be there when I returned, so he gave me his card, not knowing that I would indeed receive a free oil change. He didn't care. He wasn't giving away his money. He was covering his butt. I, on the other hand, had nothing to do with his leaving (as no one at the time knew that he was cutting me a deal for the next time), and I benefitted from his mistake.

Moral: Knowing when to keep your mouth shut can sometimes benefit you.

Standing behind a product with Vigor - o

Sometimes a product doesn't live up to its promise. I had a bad case of the weeds. Not just those broad-leaf nuisances that grow in a lawn, but the ones that huge stalks grow from, quicker and higher than your lawn could ever grow. These buggers would have stalks a foot tall with flowers or dandelion balls within 3 to 4 days after cutting them down. Now, admittedly, I am the world's worst lawn maintenance guy. I would tear out the lawn, and cover the ground with green-colored gravel if I could. I rent a property with about 10,000 square-feet of lawn, and even a pesky mole to tunnel under it. If I could only get that pest to eat the weeds only....

Anyway, I go to Home Depot and tell the clerk in the aisle that I need some kind of weed controller. She points to Vigoro Weed and Feed. I really don't want the lawn to grow too well (that means I have to cut it too much), but I want to kill off the weeds, and this stuff is supposed to do it. I buy 2 bags - supposed to be good for 5,000 sq. ft. each. Total with tax costs me over $20.00.

I cut the lawn, and water it, as per instructions on the bag. I use my Father-in-law's push spreader, and as I pass over each weed, give it a little twice-over to cover the weed better. It barely covers the entire lawn.

I then wait for the weeds to die. Two days become three, and then four. A few weeds turn dark. The rest seem to benefit from what I did, and the stalks are starting to grow again. I feel the bags should say Feed The Weeds, instead.

I, being the man of action that I am, decided that I have been had. I find Vigoro's web site. I find the link that says, "contact us." I fill out an email form. The weekend passes. I get an email from a woman who says that if I am dissatisfied, I have to send in the original sales slip, and the UPC bar codes from the bags, plus a letter stating that I am dissatisfied. I have thrown the bags out! I know this is not good. Then I remember: In my backward little town, they pick up the garbage one week and the recyclables the next week. Last pick-up was recyclables. That means the bags are at the bottom of my garbage bin. Sure enough, there they are, covered with rotting food. Frankly Charlotte, I didn't give a damn. I pulled out the bags and cut the odoriferous bar codes out. I emailed the lady at Vigoro, and told her I had all the stuff to send back, but asked if it was possible to send in a copy of the sales receipt. I remembered that there was another item I had to take back to Home Depot, and I needed the receipt. She said that the refund department insists on the original receipt or they won't make a refund.

I had to travel over to Home Depot to return the merchandise, but Home Depot will give you back the original receipt, so I was covered.

I sent the original receipt, the UPC symbols, and a letter stating that I was dissatisfied and wanted a refund of the whole amount, with tax. I waited about four weeks, and an envelope came from Vigoro. They refunded only the money that I spent on the product, sticking me for the tax. The letter in the envelope said they hoped I would still buy their products. Yeah, right. Maybe in my next life.

I then bought Scott's competing product, but more than I thought I needed. I followed the instructions on the bag (pretty much the same as Vigoro's). I stopped and took a handful and sprinkled it on each weed that I could see. Within four days, each weed looked like it had been nuked. I know I have enough lawn food on my lawn to make it green and grow like the dickens. The good thing for me is that we have had a particularly dry summer and the lawn doesn't grow much if you don't water it. I know it will become real green and grow like crazy once the rainy season starts. Hopefully, the first frost will soon follow, and it won't grow much. If only I could invent a lawn that was green, and didn't grow, and didn't have any weeds. I could make a fortune. But for now, I am ecstatic that my lawn is yellow, not very high, and has big brown-black holes where the weeds used to grow.

Moral: If you buy Vigoro Weed and Feed, don't throw out the bags, buy it by itself, so you don't need the receipt to return another item to the store, and be prepared to absorb the sales tax. Or just go out and get the Scott's product to begin with, and save yourself time, aggravation, gasoline, and money.

The Question of Rebates

Did you ever buy something because it had a rebate? I assume many people do. It actually looks like a discount. Do you ever ask yourself why a company would offer a rebate, and just not discount the merchandise? I would guess that is because it is a promise to return money to a customer, as long as the customer will jump through certain hoops. I feel the idea behind it is that most buyers will find it too hard to request their rebate, and will procrastinate away their chance to get it. It works almost as well as a discount, with a lot less impact to the bottom line. Of course, the company has to have a department to deal with the rebate fulfillment, and that costs capital. It also gives the company information on the individual who purchased the item, something they get first-hand from the customer himself/herself. They also sell this information.

I do take them up on rebates. I calendar when I have to respond, and send in all the things they ask for. The good news is that some of the companies are now doing rebates on-line. In this case, you do not have to send in the UPC Bar Code, but sometimes the actual number that is part of the code.

In the last year, I bought several Nikon items from buydig.com. A camera body ($100 rebate), a lens ($100 rebate), and a dedicated flash ($25 rebate). All had rebates to send in by mail. I sent in all the rebate offers. I made copies of everything I sent on my scanner. I received two rebate checks, but not the one for the flash. I contacted buydig.com and they put me in contact with a woman with Nikon. I explained to her that I had already sent in the UPC codes from the box, and that I no longer possessed them. She said they never received them. We went back and forth over the phone, and by email. At one point, I sent her jpegs from the scans of the paperwork, plus the scan of the bar code. I finally received my $25.00 rebate check, and was finally happy.

Yeah, rebates are a pain in the butt. But, by not procrastinating, by sticking to my guns, I got back rebates totalling $225.00 (in this instance). It can add up over a year's time. If you buy something, and you reason to buy it because it looks like it is inexpensive due to a rebate, send that rebate in. Don't tarry. Remember, it is your money they are holding. Don't let 'em keep it. They are counting on your laziness.