I would say that most of the time I do the right thing.
And when I happen to not...I can pretty much get out of anything.
Well, not this time.
Last year around 'the wedding' (which I have come to describe as a very traumatic time in my life) I wasn't in my right mind. I had an extremely warped sense of what I 'needed' 'wanted' 'could afford' etc.
You have to understand that on a regular basis I had to make DECISIONS that cost more money than I had ever spent in my whole life. ON A DAILY BASIS.
Money became a weird, strange, oh so wrong, non-object.
So I bought some sandals online at
Piperlime. You know, because I 'needed' them to match potential outfits surrounding the time of the wedding and honeymoon.
These sandals cost $170 dollars, they were made in Italy.
I know, it's a lot, right?
Of course, they didn't fit.
The normal response and action would have been to return them right away. But you have to understand that I was sooooo consumed that normal responses were not an option. To make you feel better, it has taken me six months to figure out the results from the trauma of having a wedding. Don't worry about me though. I have a life coach.
Anyway. The other day, in a fit of getting stuff done that I have been putting off for months, I dug out these sandals and found some packing tape and Jake and I drove over to UPS. You see, they actually make it really easy to return something. They give you a return label and all you have to do is drop it off at a UPS. And there just happens to be a UPS about 5 blocks away from our house. But that is not the point though.
Also, there was another pair of shoes that I was returning. But they were only $34 dollars and quite the deal. Of course, they didn't fit as well.
Okay, so where are we? Oh yeah, at UPS. Of course I had looked up Piperlime's return policy and it was a 60 day return. Grrrrr.
I was not happy but I returned them anyway. Within a few days I got an e-mail from customer service saying they had received the $34 dollar shoes and were crediting my account. Great!
A few days later I get this, "Recently we notified you that we processed a Return or Exchange for Order ####. The shoes were returned more than 60 days from the
return by date posted on your invoice. However, as a one-time courtesy, we returned them."
Okay....thanks, but what about my $170 sandals????
So I wrote them an e-mail -- saying something about how my tardy return was unintentional and how I assumed incorrectly that their return policy was similar to other online shoes stores like
Zappos and
Shoes.com --- which have a 365 day return policy! I am a loyal customer and card member....blah blah blah.
Yeah, that didn't work, because I got this is response, "Thank you for the message to Piperlime. We apologize, however, order #### is past our 60 day return period. As a result, it is not returnable nor exchangeable. Again, we are sorry for any disappointment this may cause you. We are sending the shoes back to you."
WHAT?! I don't WANT THE SHOES SENT BACK TO ME!
I reply to this e-mail within minutes and let it be known that I am extremely disappointed and that I hope they would reconsider. I also say, "Why were my other shoes returned then? I sent both of these packages back on the same day, both of which were past your return policy. To me, as a customer, it is very unnerving that you "reconsidered" with the $34 dollar shoes but not the $170 shoes! This is a HUGE discrepancy! If at all possible -- switch your choice for your "one-time courtesy" and credit the $170 shoes --- send me back the $34 shoes instead. Please!!!!"
I woke up this morning to this reply, "Thank you for your reply. We are sorry for the disappointment caused by our previous response, and 60 day return policy. We are constantly evaluating and re-evaluating our business, and feedback like yours is a
vital part of that process. Thanks again for taking the time to share your thoughts with us.
We appreciate your business, and hope you will continue to shop with us.
We have a wonderful selection of merchandise just waiting to be added to
your wardrobe."
Are you fucking kidding me????
So I respond saying this, "Are you a real person replying to my messages?! "We have a wonderful selection of merchandise just waiting to be added to your wardrobe..."
Why are you saying this to me?Did anyone read my e-mails?
You can call me if you want to respond any further --- my phone number is ####. Only
then will I believe that a real person is actually reading my e-mails."
I haven't heard anything back yet.
**Update**
Most recent response from Piperlime, "Thank you for your recent email. Please accept our apologies for any confusion regarding our return policy. Once received, our returns are processed in the order that they are received. In this case, the return
from order #### was received and processed prior to order ####. To remain fair and consistent with all of our customers, we are unable to make any exceptions to our policy. Again, we apologize for any inconvenience this may cause."
HOW INCONVENIENT for me. Thank you Piperlime. FOR NOTHING.
I haven't mentioned this but all of these emails I have received have been from different 'Customer Service Representatives' --- first Brett, then Shelly, and now Amanda! And I keep addressing my emails to whomever just sent me a reply....but then a new person responds! Nobody cares about me.
***Update***
Dear Amanda, Shelly, and Brett and any new 'Customer Service Consultant or Customer Loyalty Representative' who is about to read this,
Sure, I accept your apologies.
But I am still upset about your return policy discrepancies. Because let's face it, $170 is a lot of money to spend on shoes I am NEVER going to wear because they do not fit.
With that said, thank you for some good blogging material - http://anneschitchat.blogspot.com/
Sincerely, Anne
****Update****
"Someone" from Piperlime just called me. I want to puke. She just wanted to make sure that I 'understood' the return policy and that the one 'exception' was given to the first package that arrived. I don't even think she read ALL my e-mails --- she probably just got passed down my number and a one liner that said, "Customer confused about return policy."
Oh, I understand.
I understand that I made a mistake and Piperlime SUCKS.
*****Update*****
Received another e-mail, this time from Dana, "Thank you for your e-mail. We regret to hear of your dissatisfaction with our return policy, and we do apologize for the inconvenience and frustration this matter has caused. Hearing about your disappointment is an incentive for us to continue looking at ways to improve the
service we offer. Let us assure you the details of your complaint will be included in our next service review meeting.
We appreciate the time you have taken to share your concerns with us and
hope you will give us another opportunity to serve you in the future."
Of course, I reply:
Dana --- or whomever will read this;
Thank you for all the replies to my emails.
If at all possible, during your next service review meeting, print off my blog post to share with everyone (http://anneschitchat.blogspot.com/2009/02/i-hate-robotic-customer-service.html). I would appreciate that very much. It tells the story from my perspective (as a real person and customer) but of course reflects your companies responses --- which, I do admit are very professional and appropriate (except for the line of: "We have a wonderful selection of merchandise just waiting to be added to your wardrobe." Obviously, this is not something to include in an email response about a complaint).
Regardless, I appreciate this situation. But know that Piperlime is NOT an online shoe store I will visit in the future. I will take my business to Zappos or Shoes.com or just go to The Mall of America.
Sincerely, Anne
******Upadate*******
I am done now.
*******Update********
Guess what arrived today???
