[mscareall]

Ok I am the System Admin for a Fortune 100 company, who in this location alone has a HUGE budget for computer equipment. We buy a lot of HP printers from CDW, we have a great relationship with them, we buy everything with PO’s.

Well, we bought a HP 5550, it was shipped next day, as always, I received it, and hooked it up to our Assistant GM computer. Setup drivers, print test page. And here we go. It would only print like the first 4 lines of the page. So I reinstalled drivers, no go. Removed printer, added printer, downloaded drivers from internet, installed, uninstalled, wasted about 4 hours doing this.

I was about to call CDW (which I really wish I would have done to begin with), but remembered that we were trying to replace a Fluke network tester and having issues with Fluke. So I called HP.

Ok if you haven’t called their Tech Support, you should just for fun. It is a voice automated thing that totally sucks, so after having to go through the same menu a million times, I started just pressing buttons on the phone, and somehow have to start the process all over again. Finally I figured out the phone thing, and got a person some mid-eastern guy, who then directs to another mid-eastern guy, who’s accent was so bad you thought you were talking to a computer.

We spent 3 hours installing, uninstalling, etc that I had already wasted my day on. I told him in the beginning that I was a support person, and that I basically KNEW what I was talking about. I got absolutely nowhere with him, but I did get a word document to print out so I let it go. Needless to say, I had to call back the next day.

Day 2….

I called and spoke to a lady, gave her my case number, etc. For the next 2 hours, I went through all of the BS about installing, uninstalling, downloading, etc. AT the end of the BS she said well it looks like you have a broken printer. Ok , now this printer is only 3 days old, but yet you would think that it wouldn’t be this much hassle for a $100 printer.

So the lady get’s all of my info and says that they will email me in the morning.

Day 3…

I received an email from HP stating that I needed to call them to get all of my info again and to get proof of purchase.

So I called AGAIN, and the next moron I talk to wants to go through the trouble shooting AGAIN, I flatly refused and proceed to give him my info and asked where to send my POP.

He put me on hold to get me with someone else. This lady takes my info, and then tells me to fax a copy of my credit card receipt or store receipt. I explained to her we don’t have credit card receipt, or store receipts, we only have PO’s, and a half an hour discussion with her supervisor, they decided that the PO and email confirmation from CDW would be sufficient, and they gave me a number to fax it to.

Day 4…

I got another email from HP saying that I needed to send in my proof of purchase, at this point, I am no longer nice about it.

I call them up, and said that I faxed them a copy. Well surprise surprise, the fax machine doesn’t work, so I scanned a copy of the PO, and attached that with a copy of the purchase conformation and emailed it to them.

Day 5…

I checked my email first thing, and saw the dreaded email, “we cannot accept this form of proof of purchase, please email your receipt from the store or credit card receipt.

So back on the phone I went, 30 minutes plus on hold, I got yet another non-helpful person, she once again went through the procedures with me, I reassured her that we only purchase through PO’s, and do not have any receipts. So she set up a shipping invoice for me, and then asked for a credit card number. URGH!!!!! We do not have credit card numbers PERIOD!!!!! So after an HOUR on hold while she talked to her supervisor and God only knows whom else, she said that she needed a PO number just in case we don’t ship back the defective unit. So I gave her a PO number, not that she would know what to do with it in case we don’t ship the POS back to them.

She then asked for me to email them the purchase confirmation and copy of original PO.

Here we go again. Now every time I talk to anyone for support I always document it and keep it on file, just in case, well now my folder is full of denied request emails and such, but I know that this is going to continue for the rest of my life!!!

Day 5 Afternoon…

New email…. What do you think it was??? Yes it was a denial email, saying our proof of purchase wasn’t good enough. [Insert screaming here]

I had my boss call them this time, I don’t like to say it but it does help if a man calls (ok there I said it)

He went straight for a supervisor, skip all of the other people, well he demanded to know how on earth a person, let alone a HUGE company, was suppose to get anywhere with them (I must say the automated voice thing screwed him up also) Finally he explained to the non-American mid-eastern person that companies do not use credit cards to purchase items, they had a different process in purchasing. Finally it sunk in and the man went through all of the BS I already sent to them.

So my boss emailed them the info. HAHAHAHA!!!!

Day 6…

Guess what another denial. Now stuff will hit the fans. This is now day 6, and MANY MANY hours later, we have gotten absolutely nowhere.

He called back this time not so nice. The “day” supervisor got all of the information, looked at it (taking over an hour) and said that they would send out a replacement unit that afternoon, but it will take 7 business days to get here. Now wait a minute, we got the printer the day after we got it. I installed the printer that afternoon and spent at least 15 hours on the phone with them, if they would have taken care of this to begin with it wouldn’t be a problem, but to make me wait an additional 7 days, that is total BS!!!!

So my boss started arguing with them how little they have helped out and how crappy their customer support is, they said well if you want next day it would cost you $10. I don’t think so, needless to say, they paid for shipping to and from, and it was sent next day.

After dealing with HP, Dell doesn’t seem so bad!!!!

[Lurker1]

Yes you probably should have called CDW. They sold you the printer and would be more interested in keeping a satified customer. You could have told them they sent you a bad printer and that you were returning it.

You really can't blame the overseas companys. Hp has given them instructions on what to do and they need to follow the instrunctions. Just remember that you are probably dealing with people that have never seen your printer and are paid below minimun wage. Maybe you could write HP a letter letting them know how good their overseas support service is.