Daddy Dee Posted August 29, 2009 Share Posted August 29, 2009 It's so weird. Family takes in 5 year old computer to have CD drive replaced under extended warranty. Geek Squad somehow racks up $1500 bill and holds the family's data hostage for payment. Of course, it goes without saying that backing up data before carrying the computer off to BB is wise, but that's not the point here. Does GS do unauthorized work on computers? Especially outrageous is the expected payment of unauthorized repairs relative to the value of the machine, which would be about $0 except for the value of the data. http://consumerist.com/5347451/couple-says-best-buy-is-holding-data-hostage-for-1500 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators dtel Posted August 29, 2009 Moderators Share Posted August 29, 2009 That just sounds crazy, i think or hope BB Will be stuck in the end, the extra work was not authorized by the customer. I hope these people come out ahead on this, that's just wrong, it's just another big company trying to push an individual around. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toddvj Posted August 30, 2009 Share Posted August 30, 2009 Not that I advocate using geek squad for anything-- I would strongly advise against it, I can't help but think there is more to this story. Like maybe the customer did authorize extra work, but didn't realize how much it was going to cost? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daddy Dee Posted August 30, 2009 Author Share Posted August 30, 2009 Yeh.One does wonder if there is more to the story. As reported, they have got a slam dunk case in small claims court. That's where they should go. I'd suspect there's a fair chance the Geek Squad wouldn't even show up to answer the complaint. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ace168516 Posted August 31, 2009 Share Posted August 31, 2009 I can think of several scenarios that would make this believable, most of them to fault of best buy. Damaged board while installing cd drive...making up the hard drive story to cover the cost of repairs so they are not liable. Stupid technicians ordered hard drive instead of cd-rom. Making up this story since they thought customers would not approve the $1500 and they had already disposed of the drive. Maybe dropped the laptop and inventing story to buy replacement parts so the store does not take a loss...and my favorite, installed cd drive and thought they could screw the customer out of money on a hard drive replacement too...then they found out the customer needed the data and are reeling trying to not look rediculous. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Saturn5 Posted August 31, 2009 Share Posted August 31, 2009 Auto repair shops used to do that. There should be enough case history there to draw a parallel and put Best Buy on the hook, unless they have a signed estimate approving the work. I'd be going straight for a lawyer. Oh, and NEVER, EVER take your PC to Geek Squad unless you want all of your data copied and distributed. They will look through your files to see if you have any software they want, pics, music, movies, etc. If you have sensitive data, either learn to work on the PC yourself, or keep it on a separate drive so you can drop them off a PC with just the OS drive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ace168516 Posted August 31, 2009 Share Posted August 31, 2009 Ya, as a former Tech Supervisor there, I can attest to some of the crap I can imagine going on there if you have a bad manager or employee. I ran a real tight ship at my store, and I paid for it. It does not matter how much money you make for them, you are disposable because there is always someone who does not have morals that will step right into your place. Granted, I am kinda bitter...I made almost 8K more a year there, even before they bought the "Geek Squad" name from that little company in Minnesota. Still trying to catch up...I had 12 technicians back in '02...all 12 of them gone...most of them very successful in other areas now. I am sure there are many small shops that hose people as well...I don't always approve of decisions made in our business on behalf of money and trying to get by, but I can sleep at night and go to work every day knowing we are not out trying to get more money out of people...we may charge a bit more than some places...probably not as much as Best Buy though, but most techs in retail stores do not have over 10 years of experience and I will tell you that paying a bit more up front for better work is much better on a cost basis in the long run. I will not sell someone a new computer if it is not right for them and the computer department is under budget for the month....I will also not over charge someone for service because money is tight for the month. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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