Samsung review: Black friday ad fraud $999 for pair ( 12 comments)

My husband and I are experiencing the same situation.

We were recently informed that Sear is offering its ‘Samsung’ customers a choice of either a GE or Frigidaire front load washer/dryer set for the same price as the Samsung set. Sounds like the right thing for Sears to do, right? Well, my husband and I took a trip to Sears this afternoon to take a look at these other models and we both strong feel that we have been bamboozled. These two available sets are inferior to the Samsung set in quality and value.

This is the old bait and switch and it has left a terrible tast in our mouth for Sear. If they want to keep their customers, Sears would offer the upgraded Samsung models at the Black Friday sale price.

Same issue here in Raleigh NC

After searching the internet. I read, a few days before Black Friday, Sears offered the same machines for 899 during a Friends and Family Sale. During that sale, Sears was already sold out. http://www.fatwallet.com/forums/hot-deals/875702?lastpage=1

Also, many folks report that Lowes allowed a price match on Black Friday. If we had only known in an advance..

not cool.

I have the same problem. Today, two different Sears told me that the Samsungs are probably not going to deliver. Sears is offering the lower quality GE and Frigidaire which I do not want. My local Sears store tells me their hands are tied because Sears corporate created the problem and have offered a solution so they can’t override corporate. I called corporate today and await a call back. I have asked them to apply $1474.00 (cost of the GE unit) toward the purchase of a set of my choice. Wish I would have bought them from Lowes, my local store has 3 sets in stock.

Same here, but I ordered on line. When the doors opened at 5:00 am I was about 15th in line for appliances, 2 people ahead of me were told they were out and no orders would be taken. I hurried home and ordered the exact same on line and received a confirmation, then received an email a few days later advising that me that they were out. They offered me 5% off another pair. I challenged and then they quit responding to me. My local store was no help. I will be curious to find out if anyone gets assistance.

Same here, Iordered the set by phone with their customer service. My freind did also. He received an e-mail back the next day saying his order was cancelled, due to (out of stock). He lukily went to Lowes and bought the same same pair at the same price. After telling me this I called customer service. The assured me my order was still valid, and I was one of the liky ones, but delivery would be 15 January. Well I decided to verify my delivery today 1 Jan and on-line shows no order. I call customer service and they tell me. Oh it was cancelled 11 Dec. Of course I am still waiting a reply because the supervisor said they would call corporate. But it looks like they will offer the cheap GE. This is unbelievable.

(Toledo, Ohio area) My husband and I also stood in line for those November black friday prices and were assured that if we were just willing to wait until January 14 that they would be able to fullfill the order. We purchased the dryer kit, the service plan and the delivery. I was told it would be delayed billing. The billing was on my December charge. We waited patiently. Well this week were were called on Sunday, January 11 to remind us of our delivery and to be sure someone over the age of 18 would be home. When I asked for a window of time, I was told they would not be able to give me that until Tuesday evening the night before the delivery. SO, I arrange to be off from work the whole day. ( I lost about $275 in wages.) On Tuesday afternoon, I spoke with a lady who cofirmed that we would be home and that they would call me again by 9 pm that night to give me a two hour window for the delivery. This morning (January 14) I was called and told that the washer and dryer were not in stock and that there would be no delivery today. According to this morning's phone call, they would next be available by February 18. I was furious. They knew before setting up the bogus delivery time that they did not have this in stock. I lost wages! I went to my local Sears story where I purchased the pair and the staff were apologetic and seemed to have no idea of what they should do. I am supposed to get a call from the local manager tomorrow. Now I am home reading this and I guess it looks as if Sears will not be able to honor this sale. This is a huge company and they could have worked with suppliers. Oh well, I PREDICT THEY BE THE NEXT TO FALL IN THIS ECONOMY IF THIS IS THE WAY THEY OPERATE. It will be just too bad for all the honest workers.

I ordered this set on Black Friday and received it on 2/12/09. Sears sold these at such a great price that they sold way more sets than anticipated. Unfortunately Samsung could not meet the demand of volume of orders from Sears. We as a customer had a choice to wait for the great deal or pay more from another store. No other company out there could compete with this price. It's just a matter of economics and or patience. I chose patience and am very happy that I received the great Samsung set. You have to remember that no other store could offer such a great deal: It was up to you to have patience to wait for it.

I ordered this set on Black Friday from a local Lowe's store. After couple failse deliveies and couple calls to store manager, I received a blue color set for the same price on 1/23/09. Sounds Lowe's is a better place to shop. I'm very happy with the set so far.

Similar experience for me. My early web order (hours before stores opened on black friday morning) was canceled due to lack of inventory. After speaking with multiple people at sears, I understand that they use the term "inventory" loosely when referring to their inventory system. It is more of a "ehhhhhhh...is there the slightest possibility that the computer feels like this might be in stock somewhere around the globe?" system. They have no idea what they have at what time, and watching them predict when the next units will arrive is an exercise in futility. After they moved the delivery date six (YES, 6) times over a period of four (YES, 4) months, I was absolutely certain that this product was just going to quietly vanish and no longer be carried by sears. After all, their official policy states that orders only have to be honored for a product with the "exact item number"...It seems to me that those who wait will fall victim to this policy and come up empty handed.

I called approximately 25 times and spoke with multiple managers (10?). I told most of them flat out that I knew that this unit was never coming back in stock, and they knew it as well. I tried repeatedly to find a solution with a equivalent product. Some told me that there were absolutely no substitutions, and others told me that the substitutions had already been used up (wait, excuse me? But I was just told...eh, nevermind.) I even considered recording the conversations and starting a blog for my own mental health.

But then I finally found someone who decided they wanted me to go away (God bless his heart). After reviewing my novella of a customer support ticket, he took pity on me and upgraded me to the Samsung 328 line for the washer AND dryer. I just got them today (03/02/09) and I can't tell you how good it feels to never have to call sears again. The units are wonderful, and I'm glad to have finally received them. Unfortunately, I will not be able to forget the hoops I had to jump through and the personal effort required on my part to have to get them. Call me ungrateful, but after spending at least 6 to 8 hours on the phone with their inept support staff, it is amazing that I can even say the word "sears" without soiling my pants in anger.

I decided to order the stacking kit after the fact, and not surprisingly the stacking kit was not in stock. Sears gave me an estimated delivery date of 03/18/09 andasked If I wanted to order. I laughed pretty hard and told them that I've played "guess the date" with their inventory system enough to know that the house wins. I went right over to best buy and placed my order.

You may feel like a jerk on the phone, but keep asking for managers and don't accept their platitudes or their promises of future inventory. Tell them you know the limitations of their inventory system. Tell them you know that this product will never be in stock again, and tell them that you want this resolved so you don't have to keep calling and bugging them. After all, when the manager agreed to upgrade me to the next best Samsung model as a substitute, his reason seemed to hinge on the fact that I was, in his words, "persistent". Good luck!

I recently purchased a Samsung washer and dryer from Kitchen Tradition. I noticed that it had the BBB symbol on it, so I trusted the vendor. After purchasing the product, I spoke with their customer service representative "Miriam" several times to alleviate a few doubts that I had with this new company. I inquired about return policy and rebate offers. She stated that I should inspect the items upon delivery, and if they are damaged, "refuse the order." I asked her if I was supposed to make the delivery men open the box to inspect the items. She replied that I am to inspect the washer and dryer when the delivery men come to install the washer and dryer. That would be my opportunity to inspect for any damages. I gladly responded with "Ooooooh ok, I gotcha." When the delivery worker arrived August 24, 2009, he stated that his job was to simply "drop the item off by curbside." That is exactly what he did. I was expecting delivery into my residence and installation. I called Miriam immediately and inquired about my current situation. She denied having ever told me about installation upon delivery. She stated that they don't even offer that service. I declared that I remembered very distinctly speaking with her about the issue and that she undoubtedly mentioned that they would install my purchased products and allow me to inspect the items. I live on the 2nd floor of an apartment complex, and I had to wait one hour before a friend came to help me carry the items upstairs. It was a HUGE inconvenience. I expected installation and didn't receive such service. This is my first time purchasing a washer and dryer, and it was a horrible experience. Now, I have to figure out a way to get these installed. Hopefully, an appliance store will install them for a decent price. I gave Kitchen Tradition the benefit of the doubt and have been left unhappy.

I was 6th in line at a Sears on black friday. When they opened the doors they did not hand out tickets like they said they would. I was the first to get to the washer/dryer department and the sales clercks were already running credit cards. it is my belief that nationwide. SEARS EMPLOYEES were allowed to purchase the front loaders for family and friends. I have reported this to the Federal Trade Commission and encourage others to as well. This is classic bait and switch and Sears has gotten in trouble numerous times in the past. GO TO the FTC website and file a complaint against SEARS, They deserve it.

You should have gone to Hhgregg.