Company information:
RCA Thomson
United States
rca.com
Hello, this letter is to let you all about a recent encounter I have with a major corporation, RCA. As some of you know I recently purchased a digital television and I decided to choose RCA, thinking, as many of you probably have, this is a trusted name brand and company. This letter is to warn all of you that appearance are not what they seem.
I purchased the RCA SDTV, Model number: 20F524T in April 2008. In August, this television developed a problem. It started to turn itself on and off, all on its own. And I’m not talking occasionally, this television does this every nine seconds. This is no exaggeration, I counted it. It’s so bad I have to leave the set unplugged otherwise it would do this all day and night.
I decided to do some research on the internet to see if anyone else has encountered this problem and what they did to remedy it. I found out that many other RCA customers with this model, have had this problem or similar, meaning the television turns off.
No one seemed to have a solution so I looked up the RCA company on the internet, sent them an email, explaining my problem and they sent me a reply that I needed to call into their customer service department, they provided me with the times this service is available and the number to call.
I did so, it was awful. Their automated system was so confusing I had to listen to it several times. I finally choose the troubleshooting option and surprise, this is the wrong option. What you’ll hear is another automated response telling you to download the owners manual online. When I tried to go back, the auto response was that this was an inappropriate choice and hung up on me. I tried again, same result. So I sent them another email, the company replied with another email telling me to call into their call center and be careful of the choices I make.
So I did, this time choosing a different menu option and I spoke with a CSR. She asked me if I had checked to make sure the unit was plugged in all the way, if I had tried doing a hard restart, meaning unplug it while it was on, I wanted to say that it never stays on long enough to let me try, but I never got an opportunity. I was given a case number, told I would have to fax in a copy of the bill of sale and wait three days after the fax was sent for a retention specialist to call me.
I did all this, I spoke with the “specialist” three business days after the fax arrived and she told me that my warranty had expired, since it’s been more then 90 days. I was then told I would have to give them an additional $79, plus tax and they would send another one out. I pointed out that I’ve had this unit for less then six months, I asked why I would have to spend an additional $80 plus dollars on another RCA product? I just can’t believe they’d expect consumers to spend an additional $80 above retail. I asked that she speak to her supervisor about this and she told me it would not make a difference who she spoke to, or who I spoke with, they would not waive this fee. She reiterated that the company has a 90 day policy that they adhere to no matter what.
Does this make sense to anyone? It isn’t making sense to me. I just can’t believe RCA won’t stand behind their equipment and that they would attempt to collect additional money for them.
After speaking with the specialist I sent the company another email outlining my frustration and disgust over this company’s policy and this was what I received back in reply:
Thomson Email Thank you for your inquiry concerning the design and quality of your product. Consumer satisfaction is very important to us and we continually strive to provide the best consumer electronics products available. We regret you are not pleased with your product. We invest substantial resources in market research to develop products that meet consumer needs and expectations. We are continually finding ways to improve reliability, designs, product quality, and professional service. Your comments are appreciated, and we thank you for taking your valuable time to contact us.
I think this automated form letter was a nice touch, proving that this company does not listen or care about the consumer. Please let this letter serve as a warning, do not buy any RCA product. The money you spend won’t be worth it. In the mean time I now have a two hundred plus paper weight.
