Samsung has both my phones and my money

Q

I purchased two new Samsung Note 8 devices last September and decided to return them. Samsung authorized their return the same month, and I sent the phones back, along with several promotional items.

Samsung returned the phones to me but kept my promotional items. The company claimed that my phones had not been preauthorized for return. I called Samsung, and a representative told me they could see that this was an error.

The representative explained that they were switching software in the warehouse and that the company should have accepted my return.

Samsung apologized for the mistake and issued a new return shipping label. I returned the items again in December. Samsung now has the returned promotional items and my phones, but I am still out $2,032. I have attempted to escalate this matter to a supervisor on at least three different occasions, all of whom agree that I should have my money back by now. Can you help?

— Andrew O’Neill, Atascadero

A

If Samsung promised you a refund, you should have received it. The company can’t keep your phones and your money.

Samsung typically takes about a month to process a refund, but by the time you asked me for help, it had been almost six months. It looked like, in addition to erroneously rejecting your phones in September, the company’s software had simply decided to keep your money. I’d say the warehouse program is working a little too well for Samsung. First it takes your return, then it keeps your money.

Great for Samsung — not so great for customers like you.

Problem is, the 30-day refund isn’t contained in any documents or required by federal law. It’s a promise made informally by Samsung on some of its internal message boards.

If you paid for your phone with a credit card, you could dispute the charge. This one would have been a slam-dunk. The Fair Credit Billing Act protects you from items you didn’t receive. The Samsung Note 8 units were no longer in your possession. If you had kept the return receipt from your delivery service, I believe your credit card company would have forced the return of your $2,032.

Also, you kept a meticulous paper trail. You made notes from every conversation, saved every interaction with Samsung, and recorded every promise it made. I’m so proud of you! Without this information, you might have lost your money and your phones.

But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Before you go for the nuclear option of disputing the charge with your credit card company, try contacting a manager at Samsung. I list the contact information of Samsung’s top executives on my consumer-advocacy website: elliott.org/company-contacts/ samsung/.

I contacted Samsung on your behalf. After some back and forth, the company sent you a full refund, as promised. Samsung added a $200 promotional credit by way of an apology. A representative also said that the company is “reviewing” its policies. I’m not sure which policies it’s reviewing, but I hope it will consider some improvements to its refund policies.