Home Depot and Sandy Fischler Long Beach California
On June 13, 2006, I stopped in at my local Home Depot (HD) in Lakewood, CA (where I have done thousands of dollars worth of past business, and have a long order history in their system) to set up installation for a Whole House Fan. Installation is advertised at Home Depot for $375.00 for install of the fan, electrical connection and wall switch installation included.
The very helpful gentleman at the front counter (I'll get his name when I make my next trip back) picked up the phone and called Installation Services himself to help me get things set up. After being on hold for far too long, he finally got through only to be told by Installation Services that there was no installation of Whole House Fans.
Multiple transfers later, someone tells him there is Installation of Whole House Fans. Another phone transfer tells us there is not. Finally, my wonderful HD staffer goes to his manager and explains the problem. The manager, named Rohan, informs us that the Whole House Fan installation is actually not a part of Installation Services and is a deal cut with a local installer.
Point #1: Management fails to communicate details on installation programs to staff. So, the manager writes up my installation order himself and all seems well. A week goes by and I did not hear from the installer to set up the appointment.
On June 18, 2006 I called Home Depot to find out what was causing the delay. I was put on hold for 10 minutes and forgotten about. I called back again, and finally got someone to pull up the order. Based upon what I was told, it seems the installation order was never faxed to the contractor. The desk person rectified this problem while I was on the line.
Point #2: There was no follow up with the contractor to complete the transaction. The next day, June 19, 2006, I get a voice mail message from Special Services at Home Depot telling me that there is a $50 "measuring fee" that has to be paid for them to come out to my home and inspect to make sure they can do the job. There was never any mention of a "measuring fee" on the in-store signage, the services flyer or by the manager when he input my service order.
I call Home Depot back, and was put on hold for a long time. Finally I hung up in frustration. I then called back a second and then third time. Finally, I spoke to someone who pulls up my order and can't do anything about it except notify the manager.
More time goes by. I go back to Home Depot again on Friday, June 21 to speak to the manager directly. He is not there, and another very helpful young man types in a note about the situation for the manager to deal with.
More days go by and I'm getting more and more displeased. On June 25, 2006 I go back to HD again, to try and find out what is going on. I discovered that phone calls are clearly useless. The manager is again not there, and not going to be for days. The poor guy at Special Services desk finally does the right thing and calls another manager to okay the waive of the $50 "measuring fee", and the order is once again faxed to the contractor for completion.
The guys from United Turbine finally show up to measure for the Whole House Fan on July 8th. They spend maybe 10 minutes looking up in the attic and pronounce the job a "piece of cake." They then tell me to check back with Home Depot on Tuesday July 11th to coordinate the final okay to schedule the install.
When the inspectors for United Turbine were at my house measuring for the job, they told me the company was "very busy right now, it will be a couple of weeks before we get out here." I wasn't happy to hear about this, but there wasn't much I could do about it.
I stop by HD on the appointed day, and they call over to the offices of United Turbine, but it turns out they still haven't input the measurements to give me a QUOTE for the installation. I remind them (HD) that I have already paid for my installation and they seem confused. The guy making the appointments tells me he will get back to me within the next day with the quote.
My bait-and-switch-o-meter is going off like crazy, but I decide to continue to play this out. More days go by. No word from HD or the installer. It has now been four weeks since I paid for the installation and started this process and I still have no Whole House Fan during one of the most brutal heat waves Southern California has seen in years.
On or about July 25, 2006, I went back to Home Depot again to complain about having not heard from United Turbine to schedule the install. The employee at the Special Services desk called United Turbine with me standing there to ask when they were going to complete my install that had been ordered back on June 13.
United Turbine tells the Home Depot staffer that they are "really busy, it will be a couple of weeks." I pitch a major fit, and all the employee of Home Depot can do is give a 10% discount coupon for my next shopping trip, authorized by the manager Rohan.
Today is August 21, 2006 and, SURPRISE, I still have not gotten my fan installed, and I have not heard a peep from United Turbine. I am cancelling the order this week, after having filed Better Business Bureau (BBB) complaints against both Home Depot and United Turbine.
I am no longer a Home Depot shopper. Home Depot corporate called me to check up on my BBB claim. They were not at all helpful and canceled my installation order without making any attempt to keep my business and make things right.
As you can imagine, I am so disgusted that I now drive seven miles out of my way to shop at Lowe's, where I've spent $800 since I swore off Home Depot in July. Home Depot's loss will be Lowe's gain.
For the record, I used to be Home Depot's biggest fan. I even owned stock in the company. I sold my stock last May after a horrible experience with the Home Depot online division (which I won't go into since your focus is on their Home Installation services) and the behavior of Nardelli and his board at the annual shareholders meeting last May.
