It pays to be persistent with your complaints
When I write about helping customers get reimbursed, I’m trying to let you know that you can contact the same companies and make similar requests.
Here are two stories of people getting redress from large retailers with a media boost after being stonewalled on their own.
Dean Scott paid $250 for two tickets to a July 26 concert at Toronto’s Budweiser Stage. It was billed as Rob Zombie and Marilyn Manson, Twins of Evil.
Concertgoers found out only after they arrived that Marilyn Manson had an unforeseen illness and would not perform.
“Rob Zombie will perform an extended set at 9:15 p.m.,” the Budweiser Stage tweeted. “If you would like a refund, please head to the front gates to have your ticket scanned out prior to 9:15 p.m. Please note: Partial refunds will not be issued.”
Scott and his girlfriend left the venue and had their tickets scanned, but the $250 cost lingered on his credit card statement for two more months.
“We have received your refund request and, regretfully, the refund has been denied,” he was told by a Ticketmaster Fan Support agent on Sept. 22.
“Any tickets scanned at the event are not eligible for a refund as per the venue’s discretion. We sincerely apologize for the inconvenience.”
This seemed unfair. Featured musicians may call in sick, but customers should not suffer when told a full refund was available.
Patti-Anne Tarlton, Ticketmaster Canada’s chief operating officer, has helped Star readers before. Within a day, Scott received a call from Live Nation, an affiliated company that runs the concert venues, offering to return his money.
Was this a one-off event because the Ticketmaster COO asked for a refund? Or can others get a refund if they missed out?
“(Scott) followed the instructions and did scan on his way out of the building. He should have received a refund without your having to intervene,” Tarlton said.
“The circumstance is rare and, therefore, the execution of the refunds is a manual process.
“Unfortunately, his account was missed in error. I’m pleased it worked out for him and I am following up for more certainty that we did not miss any other accounts by mistake.”
I asked Tarlton about the likelihood of refunds when a featured performer fails to show up. Here’s a summary of her comments.
Policies are set by the presenters of live events, generally with an eye to setting expectations of ticket buyers ahead of time. Presenters may announce a lineup as “subject to change.”
With concerts, there’s often a distinction made between co-headliners and headliners with support acts. It’s more likely you will be offered a refund or exchange with coheadliners (such as Twins of Evil) than with a support act that is changed after the initial sale.
As a service provider for live event presenters, Ticketmaster follows their directives. But in some circumstances, it gives feedback or recommendations on a course of action when it foresees a customer service challenge resulting from those directives.
“We will also use our discretion to manage individual, or extenuating, circumstances brought to us by ticket buyers,” Tarlton said. “Our ongoing challenge is to flawlessly scale the personal touch.”
In another common dilemma, you buy a household product that fails a couple of years afterward. Neither the retailer nor the manufacturer will stand behind it.
Richard Gareau bought a $120 San Marino ceiling fan with lights at Home Depot in July 2016. The motor broke down last month, but the lights still worked.
The Home Depot store did not take back the product and told him to file a claim with the manufacturer.
“We called G.P. Warranty Service Center, the name on our warranty card,” Gareau said. “The U.S.-based female agent does a quick phone diagnostic and tells us that the unit has a bad capacitor.
“She offers to send us the part but (1) Shipping will cost us $75, and (2) she can’t give us a delivery date, and (3) we have to install it ourselves.”
He then called the Home Depot’s customer service line but could not move his case forward.
Paul Berto, a Home Depot Canada spokesperson, has helped Star readers before. He directed Gareau’s complaint to a customer care and education specialist.
First, the bad news. The manufacturer said a capacitor failure did not come under the lifetime warranty or the twoyear parts warranty.
“Given our commitment in working with our customers to resolve all concerns,” the HD specialist said, “we are offering you two options.”
They were: (1) reimbursement for the replacement part’s cost, including shipping; or (2) a Home Depot gift card for half the current price of a new San Marino ceiling fan, rounded up to the closest dollar and valued at no more than $70.
Gareau opted for the gift card; HD sent him an electronic one within 24 hours.
My advice: Fight back when a large company turns down your request to be reimbursed for products and services that do not perform as advertised or as you expect.
Break free from the company’s call centre — usually staffed by outsourced employees — and try to reach an escalation team with the discretion to adapt policies to meet your needs.