Just FYI, Home Depot has horrible, horrible customer service too. Below is a letter that I wrote to them regarding my experience with a gift card.
Home Depot
2455 Paces
Ferry Road
Atlanta,
GA 30339
To Customer Service,
I would like
to register an official complaint regarding your company policy regarding gift
cards and my customer service experience document #5164726.
On June 18th
of this year, I purchased a gift card for $500 so my contractor could purchase
supplies. He lost the card, so I went to
my local Home Depot in Petaluma (#1382) on June 23rd to report the loss. I spoke with a manager who took me to a
workstation and found the record of the sale of the gift card and verified that
it had not been used since the latest receipt which I provided showing a balance
of $105 plus some change. She told me
that the gift card would be cancelled and that a replacement gift card would be
sent to me by mail. She took my card
with my contact information and kept my receipt. I regret that I did not get her name.
On July 11th,
I still had not received my replacement gift card, so I called the store and
spoke with another manager. He told me
that he was not familiar with the transaction, and that he would contact me by
the next afternoon at the latest. Again,
I neglected to get his name, and I never heard back from him.
On July 21st,
I still had not heard back, so I called the store one more time. I left my name and phone number with an
associate, and was called back later by Darlene. I was then told that she had no record of my
report. At this point, my project has
been delayed for almost a month, and I just wanted to get my credit card
refunded so I could purchase the supplies to finish my project. Darlene told me that I would need to contact
Customer Care to request that.
I called
Customer Care and spoke with a representative who called Darlene and spoke with
her while keeping me on hold for over ten minutes. I provided my information again, and was told
that they would have to contact me back.
I asked for a resolution that day since I had already been waiting for
almost a month.
Over three
hours later, I called the store back and asked for Darlene. I was put on hold, and I waited for ten
minutes on hold before giving up and calling Customer Care again. When I called Customer Care, I was put on
hold again. Five minutes later, I was
transferred back to the main menu, then cut off. I called back again. I was again put on hold for about five
minutes, then the agent I spoke with told me that the Home Depot gift cards are
just like cash. If they are lost, they
are not replaced. At this point I requested to speak with a
supervisor. I was transferred to Tracy.
She informed me that it is store policy
to not refund a gift card, ever, even if you have proof of purchase and proof
that the gift card has not been used since it was reported lost. I was offered a “one time customer service
special credit” for $105, but my customer service experience has been so bad,
that I no longer wish to shop at your stores.
I am lucky enough to have an OSH and a Lowe’s nearby, so I don’t have
to. I would like to have the remaining
amount on the lost gift card credited back to my credit card, and this is my
last hope to get my money back.
I understand
that mistakes happen. The first manager may have been misinformed, but my
consequent five contacts were all handled just as badly. As it is, I have spent a month waiting for a
replacement gift card that was never coming, and as a consequence my home
project has been delayed. It has been
delayed even more now that over 20% of my materials budget is gone.
Thank you
for your time,
