Posted by Joe, Texas on December 17, 2008:

THE BATTERY FROM HELL EXPERIENCE

Yesterday evening I called Dell to place an order for a laptop battery. When I called I was placed on hold for over 23 minutes. When the rep came on they first of all would not listen to me and put me through the question loop. After going through that I was told I needed a new battery. To order a new battery I had to be transferred to another department. When he transferred me he sent me to a non-working number at which time the message told me that I would have to call back and it hung me up. When I called back and held for another 25 minutes or so then I received a woman. I told her that I needed to order a new battery and she told me that she would take my order. After providing all of the information the lady told me that she was unable to sell a battery in TX and that she would have to transfer me to another rep. I was on hold for 5 minutes waiting for that rep. That rep came on and took my order, processed it and told me because of all my wait that she would email me a copy of the order and that she would insure that it would go out tomorrow 12-17 and be here within 3-5 business days, I felt relieved. 12-17 came and I received no email. I went on line to see my order and I could not even pull it up. My balance on my Dell preferred account was reduced by the $131+ that she told me about last night. Then I called Dell. I was placed on hold and transferred 4 times to a total of 1hour and 40 minutes. I was told that the order was placed on hold because of Dell Preferred, they told me that they did not place a hold on the account. SO after all that I had to call back again. This time I found out that the hold was removed after a 20 minute hold but it will not be shipped until the 22nd to be delivered here by the 28th. I told her that I was promised that it would go out today, she agreed but again refused to OKAY that shipment as promised. I asked to talk with a Supervisor and I was told that none were available and that I would have to call back within 14 minutes. I called back within 20 minutes and after a 23 minute hold period the lady that answered need all ofg my information including my order number before she would even consider transferring me. After I provided the information she informed me that nothing will be done for my problem and that no supervisor was available and that I could continue to call today and maybe sometime a supervisor would be available. She also told me that the supervisor could not call me back because they were an inbound call center only. That is not true because I was told earlier that a supervisor could call me back but it may take 2-3 days. So who is telling the customer, Me, the truth? I still do not have my issued taken care of and the worst part is that they don't even care.

Thanks

Posted by Judith, Washington State on December 18, 2008:

I am currently on hold with Dell (I have been on hold for 40 minutes now), waiting to be transferred to my fourth Dell associate. I paid $49 for technical support that I ended up not using. While waiting on hold for technical support, I figured out the problem myself. I requested a refund for the $49 since I did not use technical support. I was told that the refund would show up within 7-10 business days. This is day 11 (or 12, if I count the first day's 6:30 a.m. conversation with Dell).

I have purchased 6 or 7 Dell computers in the past. We currently have two Dell desktops and 1 Dell laptop. Last month, the hard drive on one of the Dell desktops crashed. I spent many hours on the phone with Dell technicians. I have to say that the two technicians from India that helped me install the new hard drive that I bought from Dell (less expensive than buying a new computer) were very helpful. However, trying to get the new hard drive (sent to the wrong address the first time), was an experience in Dell Hell...many hours on hold, many disconnected calls. Like other writers, I will never buy another Dell product. UPDATE: Dell customer service rep. just told me that the order for my $49 refund had somehow been cancelled--this is why I hadn't received it. He is re-placing the order for the $49 credit and I should have it in 2 weeks. We'll see...

Posted by Peter Hudson, NY on December 19, 2008:

On December 5th, I placed an order for a laptop as a Christmas present for my daughter. At that time the estimated ship time was 12/19/08. On 12/14 I signed back into www.dell.com to check on the status and was surprised to find that my order had been cancelled. After a 35 minute voice mail and call center "hell", I found out that Dell Financial had cancelled the order as they had not verified my identity (even though the day before I had received a letter from Dell Financial offering me congratulations on opening my account and giving me account billing info such as account number and first billing date).

After being told to call Dell Financial by your Customer Service Rep (CSR), I did and they verified my identity and resubmitted my order. Even after the delay, when I asked when the laptop would be shipped I was again told it would be the 19th of December.

Today, the 19th, I logged back onto your website and found that the new estimated ship time was January 23rd 2009, 28 days AFTER Christmas. I called your Customer Service department and got anything BUT Customer Service.

First, after waiting for approx. 10 minutes and having to repeat myself to the automated attendant several times I was able to speak with Prabh, #146238. He did listen patiently as I explained my displeasure but then all he did was read from his script expressing his deepest regrets that due to unforeseen delay in parts that Dell could do nothing but give me a 1/23/09 estimated date but (oh good news) it might be earlier. I asked if earlier he meant by Christmas and he reread his script. I asked him what parts were being waited on and he said there were three. I offered my solution - upgrade those three parts at no cost and send the laptop overnight. He again read the script and then repeatedly used the phrase "to be honest with you" which got not only repetitive but annoying as I surely expect nothing but the truth, ie honesty, when dealing with someone else, and I asked him to stop using that phrase, to stop reading his script, to stop using his Customer Service manual, to think outside of the box and to offer me his solution. Imagine the frustration when he again said that 1/23/09 was the date.

I asked him again to think of a solution and he said he could think "of a thousand or more but I am not authorized to do them". I then asked who was and was told his manager was. I asked to be connected. After being put on hold, Prabh came back and said his manager was speaking with someone else and I said I would wait and to put me back on hold. Prabh said he couldn't do that and I would have to call back in 15 to 30 minutes. Wow, good customer service. Make the customer call back, go thru the prompts again, wait and HOPE that the manager was available.

I went back online and found another "Support" number. I called, went thru the frustration of the prompts and the automated attendant not 'hearing' properly and Ileana (spelling may be wrong and I didn't get her number) picked me up off of hold about five minutes later. She then asked me the same information the automated attendant did (the duplication is annoying from a customer perspective) and then said she would transfer me to someone who could help. But that's what the automated attendant said so why did I get Ilena. No matter, I waited.

Nick, #122727, was the lucky CSR who got this now increasingly aggravated, upset and highly disgruntled and agitated customer. I again went thru my litany and asked if he could offer me a solution. Again, I got the script about delayed parts, shipping dates etc... (but at least no assurances of honesty). I asked to speak to his manager and after a period on hold Kevin, #113855, picked up.

For the fourth time this morning I explained to him the original order of the 5th, the cancellation by Dell and the reinstatement on the 14th, the current unacceptable shipping estimate and asked for his solution. I wasn't surprised that I got "the script" again. (I will say this for your training department - they have everyone on the same page - literally!). I asked for a solution and he couldn't give me one. I offered mine - substitute upgraded parts at no cost, build it and ship it, overnight if necessary, in order to get by Christmas. He apologized that he wasn't authorized to do that as no manual entries/changes were allowed but said I could do it myself by cancelling the order and then replacing it with the upgraded parts. But there were two downsides - one of which he verbalized, one which I did. Kevin explained that Dell is fulfilling orders in the order that they were received and that by cancelling and replacing the order, the new order would be put at the end of the building queue. I relayed my frustration that Dell/Dell Financial had already "lost" me 9 days by cancelling my 12/5 order and reinstating it on 12/14. The other issue was by replacing the order with the three upgraded parts would mean that I would be paying for the upgrades. My solution was for Dell to upgrade for the aggravation I am being put through.

Again, Kevin read from the script so I asked for his Manager/Supervisor. He said he was the manager and that there was no one above him who could help. I then asked for Michael Dell's number as I assumed that Kevin must report directly to him since he had no manager for me to speak to. The speech again about no manager.

I hung up and Googled Dell Complaints and got this link. I sure hope that someone will assist me and offer an acceptable solution. I have ordered four or five Dells in the past and have been a loyal customer. However, this experience has been one of the most frustrating Customer Service experiences of my life.

I look forward to a speedy reply by email to the address on record.

Thank you for your efforts in resolving this issue.

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Considering this site is obviously not related to Dell in any way, apparently isn't monitored by anyone at Dell, and Dell clearly doesn't give a rat's ass about the issues people complain about here, the odds of your getting any sort of reply is approximately nil. -rc

Posted by barbara/kingston,ny 12401 on December 20, 2008:

i purchased a new inspirion 1525 in oct of this year.i was not happy at all with the home vista program.i called dell to see about putting windows xp into the laptop.the gentlemen instructed i would need the drivers and utilites dwonloaded which he did to my desktop,not the laptop.he then said i could purchase the xp which i did for over $200.00.was told that i would be called back once the xp arrived.well no one called so i called the online tech support,this person who spoke broken english,who i kept having to repeat my questiosn to,instructed me to put the xp disc into the desktop,well i was trusting him to know his job.he said as it dwonloaded he would call me back in 45 mins.2 hours later still no call.i had again to call back got someone else and was told that the the xp installed on my laptop wiped out my entire already installed on my desktop out,everything was lost.for 5 hours i was on the phone with dell to the point of tears.
they never told me that it would wipe out everything i had,and the man said the disc should have gone in the laptop not my desktop.i was devastated.i am unable to download anything back into my laptop,it is at this point unusable and i am not savvy enough to somehow work with it.so now i have several thousands of dollars of unusable dell equipment,i am beside myself.
the systems were only for home use and some of my nursing work.i keep getting on line support from people who don't speak good english,i keep getting the run around.
so now i am going to send everything back to dell,all of it,one big box for mr dell to deal with and i will refuse to pay any more money on my acct.
so much for using dell,believing in dell and its products.
barbara c.nickerson

Posted by Mark B. , Arizona on December 20, 2008:

I bought the complete Dell system, a Inspiron E1750,
wireless keyboard & mouse, and laser printer.
And have had TONS of problems with all of it.
I have talked to tech support in India so many times, thay almost know me by my voice. I have had two on-site tech supportpeople to my home to work on the issues.
The last one left because he could not fix my computer
because Dell could not provide him with a driver for my
video card. Many tech people have said they would call
back - ha ha ! and here I am the computer still does
not work right. It is a lemon !!!!!!!!!!!!

Posted by William, Missouri on December 21, 2008:

I purchased a Dell Inspiron 530 on Jan. 14, 2008 and received shipment on Jan. 18, 2008. I have had my share of problems with this computer during the year, however, Dell tech support is not much to brag about. I'm not very well computer literate, but I know more than most of the Dell techs. In Nov. of 2008, I began having more problems with my computer. I contacted tech support (of course, it's in the Phillipines or India) and began the usual all day phone calls in order to get the problem fixed. The tech did a remote connect with my computer and attempted to fix the problems I had. Upon completion of his work, the tech assured me that the problems were fixed. Once he hung up, I worked on my computer a bit and it immediately "froze" up and wouldn't work at all! Now I had to go back through the same process again. Next, I discovered that I had a new problem in addition to the problems I already had. Is this the kind of tech support Dell tells you about when you buy from them? Not quite! I consider Dell to be quite the con artists and use fraudulent tactics to make the sale. Their tech support is next to nothing! Then when you ask to have your case upgraded to the highest level of tech support (while still under warranty), they transfer you to a North American staff that requires you to buy a new warranty with them or they won't help you. What does the warranty I have now mean? Apparantly NOTHING!!!!

When I ask them about my current warranty, they say that it is no longer valid after the 3rd of Jan. 2009. I tell them that I didn't receive my computer until the 18th of Jan. 2008 and my warranty should go until that date. No one at Dell will change that for me, even after admitting that their records show that I received the computer on the 18th of Jan. 2008. I'll will NEVER buy another DELL COMPUTER again!!!! I will let everyone I know and anyone else that wants to listen to me what a rip off Dell is to buy. I am considering contacting the consumer affairs dept. with the Attorney General's office in Missouri to lodge a complaint. As far as I can find out, there is no way to contact the corporate headquarters by phone for any relief in this matter. What a mess. And all I wanted was for my computer to be fixed back to what what it was made to do. That tells me that all Dell wants to do is get your money and then ship out crap! A 14 year old kid can go into a convenience store and steal a candy bar and get 5 years in jail. A corporation such as Dell can screw thousands of customers and not even get a slap on the wrist. Maybe enough of us can get together and form a class action suit or some other way to get their attention. Any suggestions?

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I think a class action suit would be an excellent start. -rc

Posted by ANGELA - LAS VEGAS NV on December 23, 2008:

As a new customer to Dell I purchased a computer thru Dell online. I ordered the computer on 12/02/2008 with an estimated shipping date for 12/11/2008. The shipping date was changed from 12/11/08 to 12/29/08 to 12/20/08 then 12/29/08. I was assured my purchased was shipped on 12/20 and promised to recieve it on 12/23rd. I began calling Dell's customer service department at 3:34pm on the 23rd. I have been hung up on 4 3-4 times, I have been lied to. The service has been terrible absolutely terrilbe and I still don't have my product no will answers any questions each time i request a manager i am hung up on. I ask if it is possible to cancel my order and get a refund if it's not recieved by Christmas. I was advised a refund of my money would take about 31 days to process. This is absolutely ridiculous. I will never purchase another Dell product in my life. The service is absolutely horrible. As I am typing this letter, this is my 10 call to the company and I have yet to have my questions answered and I have yet to speak with a manager which is how I open every call once I am finally greeted.

Posted by Kelli, Texas on December 24, 2008:

I will NEVER purchase a Dell again! I was charged twice, and when Dell recognized their error, they still have not refunded the money. It has been since December 10, 2008 and it appears I will have to go through the attorney general to get the funds back. Today is Christmas eve. Merry Christmas, DELL!

Posted by Abdul USA on December 25, 2008:

THIS IS ALL CRAP, 95% PEOPLE WHO CALL TECH SUPPORT DONT KNOW THE ESCAPE KEY (WHICH IS THE FIRST KEY ON THE KEYBOARD) AND SAY THAT DELL IS HELL, YOU GUYS DONT KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT COMPUTER AND PEOPLE AT TECH SUPPORT TRY TO HELP YOU IN ALL ASPECTS AND STILL YOU GUYS ARE NOT HAPPY, DELL DOES A FAIR BUSINESS AND TRY BEST TO HELP CUSTOMERS, DELL COMPUTERS ARE THE BEST IN THE MARKET AND SUPPORT IS EXCELLENT, MY FRIEND HAS DELL COMPUTER FOR 9 YEARS AND DONT HAVE A SINGLE PROBLEM, I PERSONALLY HAVE A DELL LAPTOP AND ITS WORKING GREAT FOR 4 YEARS NOW, 75% CUSTOMERS WHO CALL DELL ARE STUPID AND HAVE STUPID ISSUES. WHEN YOU PURCHASE A CAR AND IF YOU HAVE ANY PROBLEM AND YOU GO TO A REPAIR SHOP WILL THE MANUFACTURER REPLACE WHOLE CAR OR RESOLVE THE PROBLEM, SAME WAY WHEN U CALL TECH SUPPORT THEY WILL RESOLVE ISSUES AND IF YOU DONT WANT TO TROUBLESHOOT WHAT A PHONE TECH CAN DO? ANOTHER CONCERN,CUSTOMER PUT THEIR DATA ON COMPUTER AGREE I MYSELF GOT VERY IMP DATA ON MY SYSTEM IF SOMETHING HAPPENS TO IT HOW CAN U PUT BLAME ON COMPUTER MANUFACTURER, ITS OWNERS RESPOSIBILITY TO SAVE DATA OR COMPUTER MANUFACTURERER'S ? MOST OF CUSTOMERS DO NOT READ THE CONTACT TERMS AND CONDITION THEY ASSUME THING AND CALL SUPPORT. CUSTOMER PURCHASE 3RD PARTY PRODUCT/SOFTWARES AND EXPECT DELL TO SUPPORT THEM, DELL IS A WONDERFULL COMPANY AND HAS GOT GREAT PRODUCTS AND AWESOME SUPPORT IF YOU HAVE PROBLEMS THAT MEANS THAT THERE IS A PROBLEM FROM YOUR END AS WELL. DELL IS THE BEST !!!!! ABDUL USA

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There's only one thing dumber than people who think that Dell can't do anything right because of their own problems with the equipment or their support: someone who thinks they can't do anything wrong because their computer has worked OK so far. Well, maybe one thing's even dumber than that: screaming it at the top of their lungs (or the text equivalent: ALL CAPS), complete with bad spellings, bad grammar, and idiotic abbreviations like "U" for "you". -rc

Posted by John - Greensboro, NC on December 26, 2008:

I have had the most frustrating day. We received the computer in time for Christmas but Dell sent with wrong operating system. I ordered 64bit Vista Home Premium and I received a 32bit version. I have tried for 5 hours today to resolve this. Now I am trying to get an RMA number and the guy in returns asked why I would want a 64bit Vista as in his words, it has compatibility issues. Well Dell sells 64bit Vista computers so that is a crazy response. I can't believe this. Any chance a qualified Dell Rep will contact me?