"I'm sorry. You bought it 40 days ago. Our return policy is within 30 days."

[Horse with no Name]

Grrrrr....

My daughter and her friend purchased an expensive television from Sears 40 days ago. It was ordered and wasn't delivered until 33 days ago.

The friend bought it in their name...but my daughter was going to make the payments.

Their friendship has ended. This person left and dumped the rent and utilities and lease and everything on my daughter. It was a one year lease. My daughter also purchased a new IPhone for this person who refuses to return it. Now, there is this TV to deal with. My daughter is still willing to make the payments on it. The other party is threatening her...stuff like "I will fuck you up if you ruin my credit"...that kind of stuff. This is a 2-year contract to deal with this shit.

So, I call Sears. I do a lot of business with Sears. I explain the situation to the customer courtesy clerk--apparently there is NOT a manager anywhere in the store.:eyes:
I ask if there is any way that they can return this TV and pay a restocking fee since theoretically it is 33 days since delivery--3 days over the policy.

They would not take it back. They said they didn't care if it was repossessed because nobody would pay for it.

I am of the opinion that sometimes you have to cut a little slack. This TV isn't in any different shape than it was 3 days ago.

Fine. They just lost a very good customer. I will not enter their store again. But it goes to show that corporate Amerikkka does NOT care about consumers. Point taken. Loud and clear.

[zorahopkins]

1. Sears Should Go Out of Business

I have had similar experiences with Sears.

They do not know the meaning of "customer service".

Someone should put them out of business.

[ladywnch]

43. my brother is doing some work as a vendor with Sears and he told

my mother that he doesn't see Sears or KMart (owned by Sears) in business in 3 years. They are drowning.

[Raine]

71. Actually strangely enough it's the other way around

KMart owns Sears. My father worked for Sears till he retired, it was lots different then. They used to have the attitude that the customer was always right, not anymore.

[originalpckelly]

90. Yeah, indeed they did buy out Sears, they only changed their name...

it's still Kmart.

[StarsInHerHair]

99. for the op's daughter:try chargebacks, if her credit card is being used for

the person's iPhone payments. hope it helps

[Modern_Matthew]

2. A zombie ran by a cold-hearted hedge fund manager. What could go wrong?! nt

[Xithras]

3. There's little they can do.

I spent many years writing software for pos (Point of Sale) systems. Most have their return periods hardcoded and can't be easily overridden. Even if the person had agreed to take the return, the register itself would have refused it once the receipt was scanned and the sale date was calculated. It would have determined, on its own, that the return period had expired and blocked the transaction.

Policies like these are made at the corporate office level and are enforced within the stores by the computers. Employees, and even managers, have incredibly little leeway to change them, no matter how much they might like to.

[Curmudgeoness]

21. Ask me if I give a shit where the decision to screw me comes from.

I also know that there is ALWAYS a way to deal with an inanimate object (like the cash register) if you are willing to do so. That is a very convenience excuse, and very flimsy.

[Xithras]

30. Nobody screwed anyone.

The TV was purchased with specific terms as to return periods. The seller lived up to those terms. The buyer wants to change them after the fact. That's not a "screwing".

I've been screwed by Sears before (never ever buy tires from them). This isn't it.

[Curmudgeoness]

35. No, this is not really a screwing. But what I am saying is that

if a store values it's customers, it will not be so unbending. This may not be a good example since it sounds like just a cluster f*&k.

And not just tires, stay away from the auto service center completely. I loved what happened with my father. He got an exhaust system there and got the lifetime guarantee on it. So the muffler goes bad. He takes the car back to have it fixed. He forgets or doesn't tell them about the guarantee he has on the system. They replace the whole exhaust system again. He produces the lifetime guarantee and they were furious with him---said that he should have told them ahead of time and they would not have replaces the whole thing. Hmmmmm. Taking advantage of an old man. Cold.

[Horse with no Name]

36. *I* understand the policy. I do believe they can sway

since it is a matter of a few days.

Not only that--the friend doesn't have a job. Who the hell gives a credit card with a $3k limit to someone who doesn't have a job??? Sears does. That is who.

My daughter is willing to pay for it but we were told the credit isn't transferable.

In the middle of this mess is $3k worth of merchandise.

So, the option is that they could take it back NOW...only 3 days past the warranty date...and have merchandise that can still be sold OR let it default because the cardholder doesn't have a job and lose the money altogether.

Legally, my daughter has no responsibility here. We are just trying to make this mess less messy and she wants to do the right thing.

It seems that Sears made a really bad decision to give this card to this person. My daughter made a really bad decision by making a decision to purchase a high ticket item with a friend.
We are willing to pay a restocking fee which is 15% or $450. That seems a fair trade to me.

I know that Sears isn't LEGALLY required to do anything about this. I know this. I'm not LEGALLY required to shop at Sears either. So, by their own choice, they will end up eating $3k worth of merchandise AND lose my business which is about $2-3k a year.

I tried to appeal to their sensibilities but was unsuccessful.

[BoWanZi]

38. Rationalizing makes sense but in the end, its not Sear's fault that this happened

The friend who got the credit without a job? I would not be surprised if there was a cosigner or some minor fraud involved such as putting down that she has a job when she didn't, that kind of thing.

The friend should be the one going to Sears trying to return this tv, not you anyway.

[Curmudgeoness]

42. I am agreeing with you about the bad behavior of Sears

for being so inflexible on this. And I agree with others who say that the whole situation is a mess not caused by Sears. That doesn't mean that Sears shouldn't work with you. There are always places of business that treat you poorly, and you are smart to walk away from them. It is your only power.

I do hope that your daughter has learned a valuable lesson---we all get into some sort of deal when we are young that teaches us. This is a pretty easy lesson, she is not responsible for purchases that are in her friend's name.

[pitohui]

40. the sears auto center got investigated by the us dept of justice

that's how bad they were in the 1970s and 80s, they are prob. still just as bad but i would be afraid to take an auto anywhere near them after another relative's adventure with them

they are thieves

[Dorian Gray]

91. I just bought tires from them

and your post scares me. LOL. Want to share why????

[NeedleCast]

39. That's just completely incorrect

As a person who worked in restaurants for many years, I can say with certainty that most employees don't have a way to manipulate the computer software. In the example given above (POS computers), no one in our restaurant short of a full manager could "comp" food or drinks. The computer simply doesn't allow it and there is no "work around."

The same holds true for most retail sales computers I'm aware of, especially at major chains.

[Curmudgeoness]

45. But what is the excuse that there are no managers in a store?

Or if there are no "full managers" in the store at that time, why can't the employee just say so and tell you that you will have to speak with So-And-So?

See, it is not "just completely incorrect". There is someone with the power to make a decision to accomodate a customer. I agree that it is not the cashier or clerk. But I will make one thing clear, I have dealt with too many clerks who act like they are the managers and who will not try to find a manager to help you. Whose fault? I don't know. I don't know if the managers are asses who would chew out that employee for not getting rid of the pain in the ass customer.

[Poll_Blind]

62. Interesting point, thanks for the insight. I was vaguely aware that stuff like that...

...might kick in, but that's an interesting perspective as to how things might work "under the hood".

:thumbsup:

PB

[msongs]

4. If the TV is in the friends name your daughter is under no obligation to pay for it. Quit using it

and park it in the corner with a sheet over it and tell Sears to come get their TV out of her apartment if they will not come to terms over it. Keep after Sears and you will probably get a resolution.

BTW if the "friend" is making threats the friend needs to be reported to proper authorities.

[littlewolf]

7. THAT !!!

Threats of violence are no joke ....

[Kali]

10. this

read it

[blunderbuss]

13. that was going to be my point

if the "friend" said that to my daughter the tv would not be on top of my list of things to worry about. otherwise nothing stores do surprises me.

[Contrary1]

16. And don't let Sears intimidate you...

A collection agency called my home and tried to get me to pay a $600. bill on a phone that was in my son's roommates' names. Told me I needed to pay it because my son probably used the phone. After I quit laughing, I wished them well, and hung up.

[BoWanZi]

18. Again, it wasn't Sears that called you, it was probably some sleazy crappy collection agency

Sears isn't the villain in the OP's story nor is it the villain in your story. The villain in your story was the collection agency who now owns the note, Sears probably has nothing to with that note whatsoever anymore.

[Maine-ah]

55. or sell it for that matter and pay it off.

[Night Crawler]

5. Who's name is on the contract?

If it isn't your kids then her option is to go to the cops with the threats. She can park the TV any where she wants.

[highplainsdem]

6. Your daughter should contact local TV stations about this. Many stations do consumer-report stories

and often businesses trying to cheat customers will back down after a little media exposure.

[BoWanZi]

15. Ummm, who is cheating who? I fail to see any cheating by Sears

Yes, they could be more understanding but they weren't the ones that made the decision to buy the tv in one name and have someone else pay for it.

Way to go vilifying a company for the sake of vilifying it even thought the company had nothing to do with the agreement amongst friends.

In the end, it is nothing more than Sears enforcing their stated return policy which the buyers agreed to when they bought the tv. It was the roommate's fault that they are in this mess.

[highplainsdem]

22. Self-delete -- I'd misread the OP. Apologies for the mistake.

[WinkyDink]

23. You misread. The TV was delivered ONE WEEK later (bought 40 days ago, delivered 33 days AGO).

[BoWanZi]

25. Read the original posting better please, the customer got the tv 33 days ago, it was ordered 40 days

ago. They received it 33 days ago, it IS 3 days after the return policy. They ordered it 40 days ago. Sears is still not the villain in this story.

The people that bought the tv and made the "gentlemans" agreement are the people responsible for this mess, not sears.

Please don't blame Sears when they did nothing wrong except enforced the agreed upon return policy.

[highplainsdem]

31. Thanks. I did misread it -- I'd been skimming fast and thought the 33 days was mentioned because it

was the reason the TV was past the 30-day return limit.

[Wickerman]

8. Messed up

I once bought some pretty expensive stereo equipment from a local audio shop. 8 months later I had a financial mess that amounted to short term cash flow and looking for cash I asked them if they could help me sell the equipment.

They said they'd rather not do that, but would give me half the value for it. When I wanted it back, they would take the same money for it. They said they'd keep it for as long as I needed them to, as long as I stayed in touch. In the meantime, the equipment sat in their back room. When I got back on track I paid them back and took home my item. They have a loyal customer to this day who will refer anyone there at any time.

Sears? Never, ever, again. Most any big box store? Never, ever, again unless I have no choice.

My creed is, if you have a local guy, use them. Nine times out of ten they will save you money even if their initial price might be a few dollars higher. Your money stays local and employs locals. I know everyone doesn't have that option, but if you can swing it, it gives more bang for your buck in the local economy AND you get people who tend to actually care about you.

[MedicalAdmin]

27. ALWAYS buy local.

Always. Heck most times a local company is ordering their stuff from the same distributors... I've never had a problem getting great deals locally... better service ... good for the local economy (did you know that any big box purchase is transfered out of the local economy in less than 12 hours and never touches the ground in your town again?) ... there is no downside and a lot of upsides to shopping local.

[grasswire]

9. are you on twitter?

I would start tweeting about Sears lousy customer service on twitter. On Tuesday nights there is a customer service chat on twitter and a lot of corporate types watch that chat. IIRC there may even be someone from Sears who participates.

Some companies (Kroger for one) watch twitter in order to defuse mad customers ASAP.

Worth a try. #custserv

[tammywammy]

11. No offense, but this is why you shouldn't buy in your name and hope a friend actually pays for it

I used to watch People's Court and this is what most of those cases are about.

It might be better if your daughter can see about getting a new roommate ASAP or see if the apartment complex will let them break the lease if your daughter moves into a smaller apt in the same complex.

As far as the tv/iPhone your daughter should continue to pay for the tv and maybe take off $50/month toward the iPhone. She should put it in writing and send notice of it via certified mail.

[Horse with no Name]

17. Oh Girl--I was mortified when I found out about this

I am even against her making the payments on it. I think she should just go park it at this person's parents house and be done with it.

She is moving back home. Hard lessons learned.

[tammywammy]

19. Leaving it with the girl's parents isn't a bad idea.

They can surely figure it out.

And tell your daughter to watch People's Court, she'll learn what not to do. :)

[Night Crawler]

12. And another thought

If your daughters name isn't on a contact Sears may not even be able to deal with her, and they have already sold the contract to a finance co.
Check that info, no contract no foul.

Go to the cops.

[Kennah]

14. About the iPhone

So did your daughter use her credit to get the iPhone? Or did she just make the initial payment?

If your daughter's credit wasn't used to establish the iPhone account, then that's on the friend. If the friend doesn't pay on the contract, then that's between the friend and the creditor.

Regarding the threats, I would definitely file a police report. Odds are that nothing will ever come of it, but you just never know who's a whack job. It's possible that the friend's faux bravado would fall away if a police detective paid them a visit and explained the statutes regarding threats of violence, fraud, etc.

[LoZoccolo]

20. THESE ARE THE BREAKS!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5KMrPDiw8PQ

[WinkyDink]

24. The TV has been in your daughter's possession for 33 days? What does "bought in THEIR name" mean?

Dual credit cards? There's something missing from the details here. And too many extraneous ones for Sears to care about.
Except for the fact that 33 doesn't = 30.

"This TV isn't in any different shape than it was 3 days ago." Well, by definition, it is; it is three days older than the Return Policy allows.

[truebrit71]

26. Report the threats to the police, and if your daughter's name isn't on the phone or the tv..

..just tell her to walk away..

Unfortunately if your daughter put her name on those items she's obligated to pay, but if her former friend won't return the iphone I'd suggest she reports it as being lost to the phone company..

Per their policy Sears is under no obligation to take the telly back, but be patient and get to the right person I think you might be able to come to some sort of arrangement...

[MedicalAdmin]

28. re: the iphone.

Some police department actually like the find a phone function because they can track stolen goods in real time and nail someone. It's an easy collar. If she owns the phone then apple customer service will help.

Nail the roommate. Report to the cops any threats. Document like crazy and if her name isn't on the contract than leave the TV in the alley and give the asshole a call to come pick it up. You should make that call and not your daughter. Don't get mad - get even.

[LynneSin]

53. I would also call AT&T/Verizon and disable the phone

About 2 days ago I swore my iphone was toast. AT&T customer support was extremely helpful with giving me my options and even sent me a replacement SIM card in the mail (which I don't need - found the phone). I was ready to disable the phone but they suggested waiting until Monday just incase I do find it over the weekend. Since I had called them Thursday and reported it possibly missing I wouldn't be responsible for any charges made against the account.

THing is, unless the girl paid full price for the iphone she will be stuck with the monthly payments. But what you can do is get the replacement SIM card and then buy a cheap phone from Ebay or one of many refurb phone sites then you can still get something for the monthly payments. If she doesn't need the phone, maybe a parent or sibling could use one.

[MedicalAdmin]

86. Very good points.

But I still think that if it her phone ( I.e. Her name on contract and she is paying for it) then the ex roomie gives it back or is charged with theft. Plus of course threatening.

Again if the TV is in her name then keep trying with sears and if it's in his give him time to pick it up ( send a registered letter) and then you are free to sell it or donate it to a homeless shelter or battered shelter or whatever.

Sound like the guys a loon.

[sharp_stick]

29. Tell your daughter to quit paying for it

tell Sears and the ex-friend where to come and get it if they want it.. If the ex-friend shows up first proceed to explain what happens to a knee cap if it happens to run into a baseball bat and then explain to them that the next time they threaten your daughter they may figure it out in person.

It's not Sears problem, it shouldn't be your problem. The problem is the ex-friend that says shit like "I will fuck you up if..." I'd be "talking" to this ex-friend myself if it was my daughter but if you can't I'd be talking with the cops.

[BoWanZi]

32. Sears is not the bad guy in this story in a nutshell, they are just being used as a scapegoat

[Common Sense Party]

66. Yup.

Bad choices lead to bad consequences.

[Nye Bevan]

33. Can't really blame Sears here.

For electronics, which get cheaper and better all the time, 30 days is a pretty generous policy. If they waived it for every complicated sob story, too many people would take advantage. Sure, they could have made an exception here and would have deserved huge props, but you can't really expect that.

[LynneSin]

51. That's true - but if you call Sears customer service you might have better luck

I agree that 30 days is plenty of time but if the TV took 33 days to deliever - day #1 should start the day you receive the TV. I think if you call Sears Customer service and yell enough you might get someone to buy it.

If someone doesn't want it then I'd see if you can sell it on Craigs List or something.

[Nye Bevan]

52. Day 1 *did* start the day she received the TV.

Some others in this thread had the same misunderstanding.

[Common Sense Party]

67. The TV didn't take 33 days to deliver. Sounds like it took 7.

"wasn't delivered until 33 days ago."

They bought it 40 days ago.

It was delivered 33 days ago.

Either way, it's past 30 days that they have had the TV.

[tammywammy]

68. They ordered it 44 days ago and it was delivered 33 days ago. n/t

[Pithlet]

34. I say screw the friend. Drop the TV off and let the friend deal with it.

It's not Sears' problem.

[CBGLuthier]

37. My mother returned a massage table to Sears after a year of use

But she always did have a knack for letting people know not to fuck with her. That and the ten grand a year she puts on Dicover. :-)

Note: Spelling was an accident but I liked the result.

[pitohui]

41. well it goes to prove that you don't save money having a roommate

it just don't end well, two people who can't manage money well enough to have their own place decide that they'll share their lack of money management skills and become roommates to "save" on rent so they can then buy a $3K teevee and an iphone

some really poor decision making here from all concerned

sears has managers in the store but when you are trying to return something you didn't buy, then i don't see why the heck they are going to say, cool, yeah, we'll take back this teevee from you that YOU didn't buy...it's just too weird, can't you see that?

i'm confident if you were the buyer of the teevee, sure, they'd cut you some slack over three freaking days!

i'm great at getting returns/refunds but i can't go and do it for somebody else, the person who signed the contract and bought the item has to take care of business

as for your daughter, if her name is nowhere on the contract, she should not be paying for the item, however, nor would i keep the item in my house, since the other person if they are really that evil will report the item as stolen (i assume that's what they mean by "i'm gonna fuck you up") -- can you call the assistant d.a. or do you know a lawyer to find out how to protect your daughter (and also how to protect yourself, if this teevee is in YOUR house)

[Horse with no Name]

54. Well my daughter could afford her own place

BUT this friend has been tagging along for the ride for about a year. Even lived with me until I said no more. That is why my daughter--in her good nature--decided to get a place. The friend promised to get a job. Then she didn't. My daughter ended up footing the bill.

My daughter paid cash for her IPhone...and one for her friend as well.

She makes enough money--the friend is just woefully lacking in that department and basically sponging off of her.

It irritates the fire out of me and has for some time. Personally, I would just leave it up to her to handle the mess--but my daughter isn't like that.

Now, I am calling on behalf of the situation. I will not be able to handle the transaction. As of this minute, the TV is sitting in the house that they are moving out of. It won't come into my house without some type of written agreement if that is what they decide to do. Personally I would rather she just wash her hands of it.

[ladywnch]

44. this is a logical 180 turn from what they used to do. I remember a time

when they took back a 2 YEAR OLD dining room suite........the owner had redecorated and it no longer worked in the room.......Sears took it back and gave her store credit.....often without receipts.

Believe me, I 'm not defending them......just pointing out that their poor business practices of the last 30 years have now brought them to a position of taking back next to nothing.

[Curmudgeoness]

60. I remember those times too.

Used to be that Sears was the absolute best store for returns. No questions, no hassles. If you were not satisfied for any reason, they would refund your money. That business model has gone the way of the leisure suit.

[BuelahWitch]

74. Doesn't KMart own them now?

That's probably why the good customer service came to an end...

[Raine]

76. Yes, KMart own Sears now.

My father worked at Sears, it changed awhole lot.

[Curmudgeoness]

78. I thought they bought KMart. But it could be the other way around.

But that is not the reason. Sears was having a reputation problem before whatever that merger was. They had left customer service behind.

[REACTIVATED IN CT]

46. Don't buy refrigerators from them either.

A co-worker recently spent over $2000 for a fridge and the water dispenser keeps shooting water out every 25 minutes. Three repair visits later (3 days missing work and using up paid leave time) and now they are giving her a new one. Me, I'd be asking for my money back and going to another store - preferably a locally owned one.

[Liberal_in_LA]

47. Don't bash me for this - tell your daughter to stop entering into these type of agreements

have her watch a few episodes of Judge Judy and the other TV court shows.

[treestar]

58. +1

Never cosign for someone's car loan, either. People so often seem to think they should be able to get out of what they signed on for!

Never loan money to love interests. Just because now you think you will love them to the end of time . . ..

[tammywammy]

72. Oh, and never get them a cell phone in your name hoping they'll pay each month

Lots of cases on those shows about cell phones people got for a friend/boyfriend/girlfriend and then the "friend" never paid the bill each month. Only loan money you're willing to never get back.

[Horse with no Name]

77. Yes. This is the other deal.

We have had Sprint for many years. Consistent crappy service, an abnormal call drop rate and poor customer service led us to leave. I went to Verizon. We would save over $100 collectively per month by putting everyone on the same plan. So, the idea was to combine 4 plans into 1 because the more lines you have, the bigger the discounted rate.

She called from the Verizon store. They wouldn't let me authorize over the phone and I wasn't able to drop everything and go. She and her friend went gaga over the IPhones. She wouldn't wait for me to get there and instead, her friend decided she wanted a plan. When she found out there was a discount for additional lines, my daughter went ahead and got on her line. My daughter purchased the phones on a 2-year agreement.

I spoke with Verizon. They will transfer that line to my account from hers, but her friend has to call and release the line. She is refusing to do it. Instead, she wants my daughter to pay the $200 termination fee?? The end result is the same...the line will be shut down and she won't be responsible for it if I agree to take it over.

At this point--my daughter paid the rent, the deposits, bought the IPhones, paid the down payment on the TV and basically financed this bum for the last year. She doesn't have a car so she drives my daughters car all of the time. A couple of weeks ago, my daughter called me to come pick her up from work--she was leaving to make the store deposit at the end of the night and this "friend" dropped off her car after she had used it all day. It was out of gas. I had to take her to the bank--which is pretty much against their company policy but the only thing we could do--go get a gas can, go to the gas station and go back and put gas in her car. She is pretty worthless and has USED my daughter to a degree that I don't understand WHY she would let someone do that to her.

At this point, IF the phone isn't transferred tonight--her friend will be responsible for the line. I called her mother and told her the same.
I am almost to the point of just letting them handle the TV. They are like negotiating with terrorists and I have about reached my limit. She can do whatever she wishes with the TV.

I put down on paper the amount of money that my daughter is "out" in this friendship. The amount of the TV pales in comparison. I think after I showed that to my daughter, she realizes that this was a very one-sided friendship and is willing to just walk away with her losses, but better yet, let her friend walk away with hers.

We'll see.

[tammywammy]

79. What a mess!

And what a vindictive mean person this 'friend' is. I feel for your daughter. One she lost a friend, and even when you're being used it's still a bit sad. And two because I remember when I did stupid shit and needed my parents to help me out, and that's tough too.

I like your idea of taking the tv to the girl's parents.

[Liberal_in_LA]

80. please please let this "friendship" be over and your daughter have learned a lesson

[Horse with no Name]

94. I said that a year ago when it was evident what was going

I think this time she realizes it. I hope.

[MedicalAdmin]

89. You can't be used without your permission.

Which it sounds like your daughter gave willingly. The question I have is why does your daughter feel she needs to buy friendship. If she doesnt then why is she tolerating this kind of ongoing shit?

Something is off there.

[Liberal_in_LA]

81. Yep. These cases are a staple of the judge judy type shows

[tammywammy]

82. When I worked afternoons/evenings I always watched People's Court

I also liked Judge Alex and Judge Mathis. I can't stand Judge Judy. I was a profession connoisseur of the television judge shows. lol

[Liberal_in_LA]

83. There is another woman judge who SCREAMS a lot. Don't like the screaming

[Occulus]

85. That's Judge Milian, wife to the guy on "The Dog Whisperer", IIRC n/t

[tammywammy]

95. They aren't married to each other.

Marilyn Milan is married to Judge John Schlesinger, and Caesar Millan is married to Ilusión Millan according to each's Wikipedia.

[treestar]

103. Exactly

[LynneSin]

97. If I had a nickel for all the stupid shit I shouldn't have done with I was a kid - I'd be a rich

sometimes experience is the best teacher.

[Initech]

48. Buy Newegg. They have the best return policy of any electronics company.

[StarburstClock]

49. Mistake No. 1, "ordered it". Mistake No. 2, "from Sears".

I'd outline/write down the dates everything occurred and send it to the state Attorney General Office where the Sears is located. Sears isn't the only lying and criminal company out there, there are loads of them. The AG office may not be able to do anything about it but, if numerous complaints pile up there at least you added yours to a list that looks horrible for Sears.

[Maine-ah]

57. the thing is, is that Sears is not obligated

the contract said 30 days. She was 3 days past when the whole thing went down. It's a contract. They have no obligation to take it back because of the daughter's poor decision. And, it's on her former roommate anyway. She's the one who put it on her card, even though the agreement was the daughter was supposed to make the payments.

[Common Sense Party]

69. Wrong.

Mistake #1: Ordering it without being able to pay for it, in full.
Mistake #2: Buying it WITH a friend, with some sort of nebulous verbal agreement, with the fanciful expectation that they would remain friends forever.
Mistake #3: Keeping the TV 3 days past the free-look period.
Mistake #4: Thinking that the store is obligated to accept used merchandise past the very generous 30-day return period.

Nowhere in that list do I see Sears doing anything wrong.

[LynneSin]

50. If the friend does not return the iphone (and take the TV) report the iphone lost and cancel it

Here's what I learned the other day when I thought my Iphone was missing. I really thought my phone was gone forever and I have 3 months until my next contract. AT&T (if that's who you got it thru) will give you a replacement SIM card for free - that's the guts of any cell phone. And if you got the iphone at a severe discount because of the phone plan you picked (Iphones run about $500 stand alone and starting at $99 if you get a plan) you will be stuck paying the monthly payments on the cell phone.

But you can have the phone disable AND you can purchase full price another phone to use on the plan. If you don't feel like shelling out $599+ for another iphone you can find some cheap cell phones, including blackberrys, on ebay and a few other websites that sell refurb phones. Then she can use the phone or if she has one - maybe a family member needs a cell phone and could use it. BUT DO NOT LET THE EX-FRIEND have use of the cell phone. You could find yourself in some serious billing depending on the plan you got with the phone.

BTW, AT&T service was really helpful.

As for sears - call them directly. If it took 33 days for the TV to be delivered they should allow you to return it. If you yell loud enough you can get them to cave.

And whatever you do - if that ex-friend makes another threat you need to report it to the police.

[onethatcares]

56. screw sears. I'll tell you my story

1973 I'm stationed in Alaska and I own a 1963 ford station wagon that needed tires, I had a sears credit card with a 200.00 limit. tires were 150.00 for all of them and an alignment to boot. Well, they checked my credit by calling the store in Pennsylvania where my home of record was and found out that my mother in law was paying my account ( with money we sent her every month), they declined an increase in credit and I think I borrowed enough to get some used tires elsewhere to get me by.

I haven't bought anything from them since, and I hate to walk through their stores when going somewhere else in the mall.

[crazyjoe]

59. your daughter learns a very good lesson about buying expensive

items with "friends". I assume she is over 18, and when she signs her name to something, she can't ask mommy to go take care of it for her because she changed her mind.

[Horse with no Name]

61. She didn't sign for anything

She made a verbal agreement with her friend. She is trying to honor it. The other party is being extremely unreasonable and demanding. I only intervened to try to help find a solution that would #1 protect my daughter from an under-the-table paying friend for item deal that will only end up screwing her and #2 to try to make the whole deal just go away.

She is very responsible. She didn't run to me. She didn't change her mind. Again, we can and probably will just end up dumping it on the friend as her problem. She doesn't seem to want a reasonable solution to this.

[Obamanaut]

64. If she didn't sign anything, she doesn't owe anything. Someone once

told me verbal agreements are not worth the paper they are printed on.

Watch tv on the new set until it is repossessed, and learn from this. Don't get into financial 'agreements' with 'friends' because often they become former friends due that very same financial arrangement. Relatives, same rule.

[Tx4obama]

63. Keep calling back until you reach a manager. n/t

[Common Sense Party]

65. I suppose it would be obnoxious of me to point out how completely STUPID

it is to buy a frickin' television set ON CREDIT. You've gotta be kidding me. A TV is NOT a necessity. Why go into major hock and pay all that interest on some expensive mind-numbing boob tube? You can watch the little crappy screen and kill as many brain cells. Parents need to do a better job teaching their kids about debt, credit, personal responsibility, priorities, etc. And don't get me started about co-signing, going into deals with friends, etc.

That said, yes, if I were the manager of the Sears, I'd be willing to accommodate a little, but they're under no obligation to do so. You need to get in touch with an actual manager--or the district manager, if possible--and do some sucking up.

[Horse with no Name]

70. I know, right?

I have very little debt and certainly wouldn't go into debt for a TV either. Mine are cash and carry.

There is apparently some type of manager meeting and he was out today.

Good idea about the District Manager.

Her friend was trying to get her life together and build her credit. They thought this was the way to do it. :eyes:

My daughter accommodated her since she has a credit card and a car payment already. She doesn't screw people and doesn't understand a world in which others do. She never thought her friend would do this to her--especially after she basically supported her for the last year. Another valuable lesson learned.

I was able to get the landlord to drop the lease and she only has to pay one more month in rent and he will let her out of that.

The deposits on the utilities will take care of themselves.

It is worse and messier than a divorce.

[tammywammy]

73. That's great about the landlord

Once this gets settled, your daughter has learned an important lesson. *hugs*

[LynneSin]

96. To be fair, most Sears stores have a policy that if you pay it off in 12-18 months it's interest fre

That's how I got my last TV set. I knew I could pay it off in 4 months and it was a really killer sale. So I bought the TV and made it a point that it was paid off well before the 12 month free interest program.

Sears runs them all the time for their credit holders. But if you don't pay it off in time you'll send up stuck with a shitload of interest for the full amount.

[Raine]

75. You said you "called" Sears, go in and talk to them

and be very very nice. I found that being nice works best and you can always escalate up. The thing is you are in the wrong, the policy is 30 days and it's past that. Sears is not to blame for the mess between your daughter and her ex-friend.

[GaYellowDawg]

84. Here's what you do.

Have your daughter call her former friend and tell her that she's not paying for the TV. Period. Then hang up on her. When the former friend calls back, don't answer - let the former friend leave a threat on voice mail. Take the voice mail to the police. When the police take charge, tell them that your daughter's iPhone is in the other person's possession; e.g., stolen. There will still be the issues of the lease, rent, and utilities, but that can be eased by subletting to another friend. Your daughter will also end up with an extra iPhone, but at least the asshole won't have it - and the authorities will take care of the threats. Seriously, this piece of shit has threatened your daughter. It's time to be absolutely ruthless.

[raccoon]

87. Try sending a certified letter to someone such as the district manager, maybe

even to the main office, detailing the whole business.

Sometimes a certified letter (return receipt) gets their attention.

[Egalitariat]

88. How is your relationship with Sears? What if it was the other way around?

Let's say Sears falls on hard times and wants a little compassion from you by asking you to pay more for its items, even though your policy is to "buy local" if the value is there.

Do you have the kind of relationship with Sears where you'll bend your policy to help them out? Or were you hoping this would be a one-way street?

[Horse with no Name]

101. Actually--I have a choice between Sears and Walmart

pretty much.

I will generally pay more at Sears to keep from shopping at Walmart--so yes, I do pay more.

[Stevenmarc]

92. Have you not watched one episode of Peoples Court

Putting your name on contracts and getting screwed is a recurring theme.

You can't blame Sears for your daughters lack of judgement, expensive lesson hopefully learned.

[lynne]

93. Sorry but I can't fault Sears on this -

- and even you admit that its outside the return date. The product isn't defective, the reason for the return is that a friendship ended and the TV is no longer needed/desired. The return policy is normally on the receipt and generally in the finance agreement, which makes it part of the sales contract.

It's unfortunate and sounds like your daughter made some youthful decisions that weren't in her best interest. I'd just chalk this one up to a "learning experience" for her and sell the TV for the payoff amount and be done with it.

[flvegan]

98. Your daughter doesn't appear to be contractually obligated to pay Sears anything.

So who cares? Likely Sears won't even repossess it, rather going after the guarantor on the purchase agreement. Tell your daughter to enjoy the tv and cancel the iPhone.

[JI7]

100. hopefully your daughter has learned never to do this, i don't even do it for family

based on some of the posts i have read it seems like the friend should never have bought the television in the first place. especially one that is so expensive.

and she shouldn't get an iphone either. get a prepaid one at the lowest cost.

your daughter should never help anyone with these things. we aren't talking about food or other needs.

hopefully your daughter has learned from this. and if it is true she hasn't signed anything and doesn't need to pay for it than she shouldn't.

[JVS]

102. Ok. So tell the other person that if they continue to make rent and utility payments...

that the TV payments will continue to be made.

What's the balance remaining on the TV, maybe you can sell it and pay it up.

[TNLib]

104. I'd call back again and ask to speak with a manager

Most clerks don't have the authority to be flexible, you really need to speak with a manager. I don's shop at Sears mainly because I think they suck and you can get better service, quality and prices elsewhere. For Electronics I love Costcos and do the occasional Amazon business.