Dell Computers / Customer Service, Collections

I am located in Media PA.

My husband passed away on 1/5/2007. Sometime during 2006 he had purchased a laptop computer from Dell. On 1/19/2007, I was sorting through all of our bills and received a phone call from Dell from a man with a foreign accent. The man did not give his name or greet me in any way - as soon as I answered he just said "What is the best time to speak to George A"? (George A is my husband.) I asked who was calling and he indicated he was calling from Dell. I told him my husband had just passed away. He offered no condolences, sympathies, apologies for bothering me during this difficult time, etc. He immediately asked if I was the executor of the estate. I told him I was George's wife, and he again repeated his question asking if I was the executor of the estate. I told him I didn't know what my "exact title" was legally and asked him why he was calling. He said there was a past due balance of $15.00. I had just sorted through all of the bills, and I guess my husband did not pay his December 2006 bill - I checked through my pile of bills to be paid and the Dell January 2007 bill indicated a past due amount of $15.00 and a current minimum payment amount of $30.00.

I told the man that I did have the bill and I would be sending a check in the mail that day. He told me he was going to "do me a favor and let me pay the bill right now over the phone". I told him I did not have time to do that, and that he would receive his check as soon as the US Post Office picked up my outgoing mail and delivered it to him. He reluctantly agreed to this. He then told me "There will be another bill sent in mid-February for another $15.00. Will you guarantee that you will pay that one on time?" I told him I would make every effort to pay it on time.

I could not believe that this man was harassing me 2 weeks after my husband's death for $15.00!!! Will Dell go bankrupt if they do not receive these monthly $15.00 payments??!! The entire remaining balance was less than $400 - not thousands.

The last straw was when he told me he had one more question for me. I asked what that was. He said, "What was the reason for the missed payment?" I could not believe my ears and asked him to repeat his question. He again said "What was the reason for the missed $15.00 payment last month?" I told him my husband was sick and had been battling cancer for the past 2+ years, and that he died this month - did he need/require another reason beside that? He said that was sufficient (!!) and again reminded me to pay the next $15.00 on time before hanging up.

I can tell you that I have told this story to many, many people. I will never purchase anything from Dell again, and others were also so shocked and offended by this phone call that they said they will never purchase anything from Dell again either.

Please contact me if you need further/additional information.

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