TWiki . Edumacation . OrchardSupplyHardware	TWiki . { Main | Edumacation | TWiki | Test }
	Edumacation . { Home | Users | Changes | Search | Go }

• They made a mistake. They advertised an item for $1.00 as part of a "dollar day" sale. But at the local Orchard Supply, there were two different UPC codes used on this item. One of the UPC codes was ppriced in the computer at $1.99 and the other had the correct $1.00 price.
• I purchased two of the items; one happened to have the $1.00 UPC code and the other the $1.99 UPC code.
• I didn't discover the overcharge until I got home. I returned to the store (just about a mile away) and they offered a refund of the difference.
• I wasn't satisfied with this. They had been negligent and I had been inconvenienced. A common retail practice in these circumstances is to refund in full the amount charged (subject to certain limits), and this seemed appropriate under the circumstances.
• Orchard Supply Hardware does not have such a policy, and store personnel refused my request for a full refund (i.e. receiving the overcharged item for free). I requested and received a comment card describing my dissatisfaction with the lack of such a policy, and returned it to a clerk.
• That was about 3 weeks ago. I haven't heard from them since.

So to summarize:

1. They made a mistake in pricing. That happens sometimes.
2. They lack an appropriate policy for handling such situations. (What makes giving the customer a free item the appropriate policy? Just because other stores do?)
3. They didn't respond to my complaint. (It's possible that the clerk never turned the card in. Whose fault is that?)

So two out of three of these are possibly accidental. One is willful, but some would argue whether my expectations are not overreaching. Of course, they spend a lot more than a buck to get customers to shop in their store on a regular basis, so to risk losing a customer over a dollar doesn't seem like the right way to go. To boot, they now have this sucky web page about them.

And the web page stays. Their explanation, rebuttal, and/or resolution of the matter is welcome, but the page stays here, for all to see. I would be happy if this caused them to decide to change the policy on items that are priced incorrectly in the computer.

He apologized for the delay in responding to my multiple reports of this problem, as well as for the fact that the store personnel did not resolve the problem to my satisfaction.

When he asked what I wanted Orchard Supply to do, I replied that I wanted them to change the policy so that customers received some compensation when Orchard Supply negligently overcharges them.

He indicated that had he been there, he would have given me the product advertised for $1.00 for free, but he did not think it was plausible that Orchard Supply would change the policy. He offered me a gift card for $20 as compensation.

Changing the policy is the only right thing to do. Every customer has a reasonable expectation that they will be charged no more than the advertised or posted price. When there is an isolated overcharge that affects only that particular transaction, refunding the amount of overcharge is a reasoable estimate of the damages involved.

On the other hand, when the nature of the error is that many customers were overcharged, this does not begin to make up for the many customers overcharged.

As a customer, it's not my job to audit the cash register receipt. Any store that suggests otherwise owes its customers wages for the time they've spent checking the receipt.

A refund that's proportional to the amount involved (but which is greater than the actual amount of the overcharge) is appropriate. I got 20 times the amount of the overcharge, and the total cost, in terms of the time of the store personnel involved, is substantially more than that.

It's unreasonable to expect that many peope will stop buying at Orchard Supply because someone, somewhere, got overcharged and didn't get the item for free. But if enough people who get overcharged complain about their policy, and if those complaints result in paying 20 times the amount involved instead of just twice the amount involved, this will make it more economical for Orchard Supply to change the policy and do the right thing.

So that's the lesson. Whether it's Orchard Supply or some other retailer, and you catch them systematically overcharging for an item, don't settle for a refund of only the amount of the overcharge. If their policy doesn't provide a more liberal refund than that, make an issue of it. Eventually they'll realize their policy is wrong not just for their customers, but for themselves as well.

This post was mailed to the Wikimaster.

Please note that identifying information has been omitted at the Wikimaster's discretion.

Topic OrchardSupplyHardware . { Edit | Ref-By | Attach | Diffs | r1.3 | > | r1.2 | > | r1.1 }

You must register before editing pages or using other extended features on this TWiki system.

Revision r1.3 - 28 Nov 2006 - 03:21 by EliMantel  Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2000-2005 by the contributing authors. All material on this collaboration tool is the property of the contributing authors. Collect email addresses here. Ideas, requests, problems regarding TWiki? Send feedback.