Dell - Dimension 8250 - paid for next day on site warranty - repair didn't happen the next day

# 4 for July 14, 2003

Complaints.com received the following on July 13, 2003:

From:

RE: Dell - Dimension 8250 - paid for next day on site warranty - repair didn't happen the next day

Here's why I'm writing. I purchased a new Dell Dimension 8250 a few months ago and opted to add the Next Day On-Site extended service plan. Since I operate a home based business, this gave me some peace of mind that should problems arise, I'd be offline no more than 24 hours. Two days ago my system shut itself down, and on reboot showed an alert that there was a "Previous Fan Failure" after which it immediately shut itself down again. A subsequent call to Dell Tech Support confirmed the problem. An onsite service call was scheduled for the following day. I was told that upon receipt of the replacement part, a tech would contact me to perform the installation. After waiting all day for the tech to call, I answered the phone and received an automated message from Dell stating that the replacement part was on back order and should ship within 3 to 5 business days - meaning I would not be able to do business for 3 to 5 days (assuming it arrives whithin that time frame). I called Dell to find out why I was not informed on the day that service was scheduled of the back order situation and was transfered seven times! From tech support to business services to home support to customer care back to tech support, etc. I was disconnected on several occasions, and no one would say anything other than "if the automated message says that it would be 3 to 5 days, then that is how long it will take." Most were very rude or completely uninterested in my problem. As previously stated, my system is only a few months old and Dell has released just one newer model - the Dimension 8300. I've learned that both models use the same cooling fans but instead of shipping a part from the "new production" facility so that I can get my business back online, they insist that I wait until the "replacement part" inventory is restocked. I've been relatively pleased with your company and its products in the past, so this experience really surprised me. You should know that I probably won't buy products from your company again. Also, I plan to tell my friends and customers about this negative experience. I know that Dell's business model is based around building systems to order so they can keep costs down by not carrying excessive inventory. However by not carrying adequate inventory, they pass the cost on to their customers. I would like to see them use some of their own processing power to better manage their replacement part inventory, have a "live" polite tech call personally to inform customers of problems, and transfer parts between production and replacement facilities. I would also very much like a refund of my the money I spent on the "Next Day On-Site" warranty that I purchased since it obviously did not fulfill its claim - Had the part been sent from the production line I could have been back online the next day!