Journal for 21 June 2006: Sprint “Service” an Oxymoron?
This evening I walked into a local Sprint store, ready to purchase an expensive phone and sign myself up for two years of $50+ phone bills. Fortunately for me, I arrived just in time to see an existing Sprint customer get some of the most exceedingly poor customer service imaginable. His phone had stopped working for some unknown reason, and he was trying to find out his options.
“So, can I get a replacement?”
“We could give you the same model as your current phone for $58.”
“But it’s still under warranty.”
“Manufacturer warranty. You’d have to send that into Samsung and wait and see if it’s a product defect. That would take at least two weeks.”
“Two weeks!?”
“Or you could buy the same model for $58.”
“You don’t handle the warranties?”
“The manufacturer takes care of that.”
“What am I supposed to do in the meantime?”
“I don’t know. You could buy a new phone.”
“Do you have loaners?”
“No, we don’t do that.”
“So there’s nothing else you’ll do.”
“You didn’t purchase the equipment protection, so there’s nothing else we can do.”
“What would’ve equipment protection covered?”
“Manufacturer defects, cracked screens.”
“Manuf