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OP here. I emailed again November 20th, November 23 at 9:00 am, and November 23 again twelve hours later. I still have had no response whatsoever since the November 8th email promising the refund within 7-10 days of when my item was received. According to my reckoning, today marks the end of that period, as the item was received November 10th. So, I'm taking Chris' advice, and I've filed a chargeback!
This story surprises me. Hammacher has one of the best guarantees in the business, and I have always found their customer service beyond reproach. It's an open secret, for example, that if you buy one of their windproof umbrellas, you essentially have an umbrella for life (provided you don't lose it). If the wind wrecks the frame or fabric, you bring it in, and they will replace it on the spot, no questions asked. Similarly, one of their flameless candles suffered an unfortunate close encounter with my cleaning lady, and I contacted them, asking if I could buy a replacement. They sent me one free of charge, no problem. I'm sure they will do right by this customer if she persists.
The problem is the \"if she persists.\" She shouldn't have to, and at this point she has gone above and beyond.
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Same is true for Totes, but you have to mail it back. Also Saks has that policy with their brellies. The key is not to lose it.
It's surprising to me, too (the OP) - but the number of times I have persisted is starting to seem excessive. Not including the email I just sent them with a link to this story, I have sent 7 emails/website form submissions in the last 2 weeks since the item was shown as delivered, asking them to confirm that they have received it and that my refund is being processed, and requesting a refund of my postal signature fee.
They would really have to go above and beyond at this point for me to ever be willing to order from them again...
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Now I'm picturing your cleaning lady barreling through your home, arms akimbo.
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Google-ing Hammacher Schlemmer in several ways (news, finance, reviews) turns up a whole lot of no substantive information and a lot of razzle-dazzle fluff. Their Wikipedia entry is also not reliable.
I seem to recall that Hammacher Schlemmer actually went out of business a few years back (like SharperImage) and someone bought its name to continue to sell \"innovations\" of dubious worth.
IMO, reviews that are good seem to be of questionable authenticity and there are a fair number of bad reviews that seem more genuine.
Hammacher Schlemmer does not seem to be what it once was.
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Now that IS an interesting address - I've passed that building a lot, and it is the same building as the Bradford Exchange (the people who make plates and other collectibles). And sure enough - the HS site confirms that they are owned by Bradford. http://www.hammacher.com/Editorial/BradfordInternationalSites?promo=bottom_nav
You learn something new every day here...
Oddly enough, there is absolutely no word about this on the Bradford Group site, but man that is one ugly web of weird companies...
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Companies sometimes own buildings but don't occupy all the floors. They rent the unoccupied floors to other companies. Maybe this is the case? Is there any signage on the doors or the building indicating that in addition to Bradford Exchange, there is another company inside?
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If I remember correctly, there's a whole compound for Bradford there. Apparently they also have a number of other addresses so that customers can't figure out that the subcompany is one of theirs.
If HS allowed people to return their products after they realized how crappy they are they would never have any final sales.
My experience is their stuff is just as bad as the Sharper Image items I used to return all the time.
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Just seeing if things are still working.
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The OP is being kind of impatient.
According to her post, Hammacher received her item on November 10 and stated it would take 7-10 business days to process her refund.
The tenth business day was... yesterday.
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I agree. While there's no excuse for not responding to her original emails, she *barely* let enough time go by after they received her package. And today, she posts that she emailed them three times between yesterday and today?
I'm not saying that she shouldn't have emailed them, just that stalking them is kind of going overboard.
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In ordinary circumstances, I'd agree. But this is a company that's already failed to perform as promised, and she's sensibly treating them as screwups who can't simply be asked.
Floraposte: I can't agree. It seems like this reader has just gone way overboard in multiple contacts with HS. They tell her 7-10 business days to receive a credit. But then two days after she receives delivery confirmation she's contacting them again. For what? So they can tell her the geographic coordinates of where her package is? I can't prove it, but something about the multiple contacts and returning an item at nearly the cost of the item... I don't think we're getting the whole story. It doesn't sound right. This sounds like a seriously high maintenance individual with a self-fulfilling prophecy of a customer service problem. IMHO.
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So, where's her refund? Or, should she wait longer? How long? Can H-S answer that? Or, maybe she should wait 2-3 days after their estimate. Or maybe 7-10. Or, maybe give a realistic time frame up front?
I have actually found HS to be pretty good with returns. Bought a pressure washer from them as it had a bunch of accessories that others didn't offer and I knew about their lifetime warranty. After three years, it broke, I got a label from them and for $7 return shipping (the thing weighed 30 pounds), they sent me a brand new one, no questions asked. Not bad!
Chris,
My name is Fred Berns. I am the General Manager of Hammacher Schlemmer. I am shocked and embarrased to learn of your experience. We pride ourselves on our superior level of customer service and our unconditional guarantee, which we have backed up for 161 years now. (No, we never went out of business. We're still going strong.) As we work hard to answer most emails within one hour, I am concerned that we may have a technical issue (such as a spam filter) that is impacting delivery.
Please contact me directly and I will personally see to it that you are taken care. Your experience is not representative of what Hammacher is all about, and I would appreciate the opportunity to make it right. I can be reached at fberns@hammacher.com or 847-581-8914 (yes, this is my personal contact information).
P.S. To clear up a few comments, as we are privately owned, there may not be much background information about our company on the web. Our corporate offices are in the same building as The Bradford Exchange, but we are not owned by them.
@FredBerns, you need to get someone, who is computer literate and knows your company, to fix the Wikipedia entry about HS: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hammacher_Schlemmer
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Oh *hell* no he doesn't. That'll just make it even worse.
The article needs a neutral party. Not someone who has a conflict of interest such as that.
I find it hilarious you didn't even bother to check the article to figure out which name to fill in your apology template. Chris Walters just wrote up the article; it's Tanya you should be apologizing to.
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I find it hilarious that a representative of this company has acknowledged that his company has screwed up and has provided personal information so that he can take care of this issue and you STILL found something minuscule to complain about.
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I think that's a minor error, if you're not a regular reader, this can be a common mistake. The intent is there to make it right and I see the value in that.
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I think that is a small mistake that can be forgiven, considering that everyone is still trying to get used to a re-designed site.
It does make good corporate sense that Hammacher Schlemmer is watching the boards to help disgruntled customers and get an overall feel for what people think about their corporate image and products.
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My house has been on the mailing list for their catalogue for ever it seems... I always look forward to seeing what innovative, odd, quirky, bizarre, and outrageous items they find.
However, I must admit I am very rarely tempted to buy their stuff... until now... Seeing the post from Fred Berns is very good PR...
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Well Fred, It appears you need some turnover in your customer service department.
I would start with the person who refused to sign for the item, then everyone else that talked to this customer but did not offer a solution.
According to the WSJ there are 6 people out there who would take any one of these jobs, so know is a good time to make some changes.
I'm surprised by this also. I've never shopped there but about 7 years ago I received a pair of Bose Quiet Comfort Headphones as a X-Mas gift. The headphones had a pretty standard warranty but HS made it a life time one. Every year like clockwork, no matter how careful I am, a plastic part on the arm of the headphones crack. I've sent the pair back 6-7 times for full replacement with no problems. That being said I'm not sending from Canada.
The product itself sounds like a scam. No wonder they're giving her the run-around on the return. Chargeback!