Beware: A Rant About Target

[boomeyers]

Hey everyone! I had a rant going on in my blog and it has gotten such a tremendous response from both sides, that I thought I would post it here in the forums!
Here is my original rant:

MERELY A RANT - READ ONLY IF YOU HAVE THE TIME!!This is an email I sent out to 42 friends. Hope they are still friends!

As a long time shopper of Target, they have finally driven me out of their stores. The over the top return policies have squashed any form of customer service. It is impossible to buy a gift there, knowing the recipient is forced to keep the item if they don't like it, unless you enclose the gift receipt and even then, chances are risky. Some flexibility should be given in certain cases, but this is not allowed. NO EXCEPTIONS. About the only thing Target is good for is buying consumables, that you probably will never have to return, like food or laundry detergent. I'll take my business to Walmart.

If you shop at Target, I am sure you are aware of their return policy stated on their receipt. I realize they need to protect themselves, but in doing so, the term "customer service" has become obsolete. I also realize, it is not the employees fault that they must follow these over-the-top insane RULES.

EXAMPLES (SOME ARE ON THE BACK OF THE RECEIPT, SOME ARE NOT. THEY CAN NOT PROVIDE A COPY OF THE FULL RETURN POLICY, NEITHER CAN TARGET. COM)

*It does indeed state ON the receipt that a receipt is necessary for a return -however if I lose my receipt (I am human), then I wouldn't be able to read that rule! Also, I am no longer eligible for a return - no exceptions.
*Okay, lets cut us a break. If your return is a gift and it is under $10 (tax included in amount!!!! No 9.99 items!!!) they will let you make a return for a gift card. But only TWICE per YEAR! No exceptions.

*If you have a receipt, but kept the item over 90 days (NO early Christmas shopping kids!), then too bad. No return - no exceptions.

*If you purchased something and return it within the 90 days, but it has since gone on clearance, you will receive the clearance price even if your receipt states you paid full price. They state it is holiday and seasonal items. Guess what- clothing and shoes are considered seasonal! No exceptions.

*If you choose to exchange an item, it must be exchanged for something from the same department only. Guess what, calendars are books, not stationary. Sorry, must follow by their set guidelines - no exceptions.

You may be addicted, or maybe you feel as I do, but at least you will be a little more informed. BEWARE TO THE TARGET SHOPPER!!!


If you are interested in reading some of the comments I received from this original post, here is the link: http://boomeyers.savingadvice.com/20...-target_15086/

[sweeps]

I've always said Target is overrated. I've had similar experiences. Even if they do take back the merchandise/gift, they make you feel like a criminal when you do. Walmart always takes things, no questions asked.

Walmart has its own problems, but in terms of price and ease of returns, they win hands down IMHO.

[tinapbeana]

Originally Posted by Sweepsplayer

I've always said Target is overrated. I've had similar experiences. Even if they do take back the merchandise/gift, they make you feel like a criminal when you do. Walmart always takes things, no questions asked.

actually, speaking from personal experience this is not true. walmart can be a pain in the @#*$&!@ when it comes to taking stuff back.

[disneysteve]

Originally Posted by boomeyers

*If you have a receipt, but kept the item over 90 days (NO early Christmas shopping kids!), then too bad. No return - no exceptions.

I'm curious. What do you think is a reasonable time limit on returns? I think stores have the right to cut it off sometime. 90 days seems pretty reasonable to me.

[vsjhoc]

I return stuff maybe twice a year. What are the main reasons you return?

1. The clothing didn't fit.
2. I didn't like it when I got home.
3. I felt guilty that I spent the money.
4. I found it somewhere else for less.
5. I found something I liked better somewhere else.
6. It didn't match my clothing/decor the way I thought it would.
7. I decided I really didn't need it.
8. I wanted to exchange it for something else that I didn't buy the first time.
9. I received it as a gift and I didn't like/want it.
10.I gave it as a gift and the recipient didn't like/want it.

[Gruntina]

I could be wrong but why is only Target singled out? I believe there are many stores with worse return policy.

I could not return a dress at Nordstrom because the formal dress departement updated their lines with new tags after I brought the dress. They said that since the dress is with the old tags, it is not returnable. How would I know the tag would be updated prior to purchase?

90 days with receipts seems pretty reasonable to me. I was taught that I must keep all my receipts with my purchase from any stores I go to if I wanted to return an item.

I recently bought a small Kitchenaid food processor at Kohls.
I used it one time and it seemed to work fine.Then I tried to remove the bowl and blade & they would not come off. I tried and tried and concluded it must be defective.
I could barely wash the parts that I needed to remove because I didn't want to put the base in water.
I washed it as best I could and brought it back to Kohls.
I had no problem getting a refund.
Thumbs up to Kohls for great customer service!

[boefixepa]

I don't like target...not even on my radar. If someone is registared there I cring, and give them cash! I've rarely go there, but one time I went with a friend and a new bride in tears at the return counter because they would not let her exchange her wedding gifts!

It's the same reason I don't shop a Burlington Coat Factory, and guess what after YEARS of their stupid return policy they FINALLY have changed it. How do I know? It was on COMMERCIALS! That is what they are doing to get customers back into their store. They are advertising that they CHANGED their policy!

Wal-mart has rules too, but I've never had a problem getting in-store credit good for anything! Good enough for me if I wasn't smart enough to hold on to the receipt!

Target been on my black list for a while, so no problem here. I just can't get that young couple, with the bride in tears, out of my mind!

[Gruntina]

Originally Posted by allyourworth

I recently bought a small Kitchenaid food processor at Kohls.
I used it one time and it seemed to work fine.Then I tried to remove the bowl and blade & they would not come off. I tried and tried and concluded it must be defective.
I could barely wash the parts that I needed to remove because I didn't want to put the base in water.
I washed it as best I could and brought it back to Kohls.
I had no problem getting a refund.
Thumbs up to Kohls for great customer service!

Did you have the receipt when you returned the item?

[poundwise]

I think Target is fine. They have a more strict return policy than Wal-Mart but, then again, who doesn't? A receipt and a time-frame of 90 days both are legitimate requirements IMO.

I don't generally shop at Target but am not opposed to doing so.

[mom-from-missouri]

I went to Target 1 time and will never go again. Deorderant was $3.89--same size, same brand that is $2.88 at walmart, and $2 and Dollar General. everything on my list was higher than what I am used to paying. But, I had a gift card and was using it. I tried to get a prescription filled for my daughter using our insurance at the Target pharmacy. It was the same medication she has been on for years, but a different strenght. They charged me full price, said that strenght was not covered. She had to have it, so I paid for it and called the insurance when I got home. The insurance told me it was covered (I had to submit to them and be reimbursed) and that they showed no electonic record of Target having run my insurance card, but they could see that I had used it at the dr office earlier that day. I went back to Target, and asked what the deal was. The same woman who waited on me before and told me it wasnt covered, told me I had never given her an insurance card earlier! I told the pharmist about it and the customer service desk on my way out the door. I didn't get an i'm sorry or anything out of them.

[project15]

I've returned many things to Target without problems. The only problem I had was returning some champaign flutes after 90 days. We didn't think they would accept them, but we tried anyways and failed. Oh well. Target stores in general are cleaner than wal-mart which is why i prefer target over walmart, im not normally concerned about their return policies.

[boomeyers]

Originally Posted by disneysteve

I'm curious. What do you think is a reasonable time limit on returns? I think stores have the right to cut it off sometime. 90 days seems pretty reasonable to me.

Why not 6 months for non seasonal items?
What if it breaks after 91 days? Am I stuck sending it back to the manufacturer?
Yes, Gruntina, I try to keep all receipts, and this particular day I just happened to GRAB THE WRONG ONE on a $9.99 item. Is it worth driving back home on my $2.50 gas to switch to the correct receipt? (Which is exactly what I did!) I TOLD her I had the correct one at home, it was just an accident that I grabbed the wrong one. Could they cut me a break? NO! And when I came back 20 minutes later with the correct one, she says "Oh, you found it? That was quick." I knew exactly WHERE it was, I ACCIDENTALLY GRABBED THE WRONG ONE! Not that it was there fault, but why treat me like a criminal? Why was I penalized for my daughter receiving a wrong sized dupclicate shirt for her birthday and did'nt have a gift receipt?

[poundwise]

I'm sorry. I just don't see what there is to be so upset about.

Of course they don't have a six month return policy. I don't know of anyone who does such a thing.

And you admit that you grabbed the wrong receipt for your return. If anything, you should be mad at yourself for the extra trip.

Mind you, I am not chiding you, nor is any of that an excuse for poor treatment; it just seems that your rant is a bit excessive.

[boomeyers]

They are stealing MY hard earned money, NOT the other way around.

[disneysteve]

Originally Posted by boomeyers

Why not 6 months for non seasonal items?

I suspect part of the problem is a lot more things are "seasonal" than you may think. Maybe not seasonal in the traditional sense, but clothing fashions change quickly, electronics become obsolete, hit videos and CDs move to the bargain bin, houseware items get upgraded, packaging changes, etc. Do an experiment. Go to your local Target and make a list of 15 or 20 assorted items throughout the store in different departments. Then go back to the same store in 6 months and see how many of those exact items are still being sold and for the same price. I bet you'll find many of those items are long gone.

[sakigt]

I love Target, even if they screw up once in a while. And I dont think a 90 day return policy is one. I also agree with the seasonal things. I wouldnt want to buy back Christmas decorations in March either

Its blatant acts of rude customer service that gets me. Waiting 15 people deep in line for Walmart is the pita for me. Maybe its because their return policy is so lax.

[abowers]

Walmart is a pain to return things to.
I worked at a shelter for teens for a year, a non profit agency, and we had a walmart gift card to use (so the higher ups could track spending) - so we bought all of our household items from there.

Just in a couple months we had two separate problems --
One, the radios for the kids rooms were all bought at the same time, and they all crapped out at the same time. Something like a fuse blew inside. We were allowed to return them, but one of the staff members had to provide his own personal drivers license, and they only allow 2 returns per year.

A couple months later, the microwave for the kitchen crapped out. The plastic on the door of the microwave peeled away. (Didn't seem too safe...) so that was returned as well. But the same staff member that returned the radios happened to be working when the microwave crapped out. So again he had to give his license, therefore using up his two returns for the year. I think they also made him go back to the shelter and find the box for the microwave because they wouldn't accept it any other way, even though we had the receipt and had just bought it a couple weeks before.


On the other hand, I've only had to return one item to Target-- an exchange. It was a blender that I was given as a birthday present, the top didn't fit very well because it was mis-shapen. I didn't have the receipt, I was allowed to go in and swap blenders for the same model. I was satisfied with that experience at Target.

I don't generally return items unless they are defective, so I haven't had problems at these stores.

[abowers]

Also, if you're buying something like an appliance, there should be some kind of manufacturer warranty going beyond the 90 day return period the store has.

[shengmei]

For me, I always buy clearance....which is never returnable, so I never even bother to compare return policies.

Wal-Mart's return policies are very nice, but I am a freshman biology instructor this year and I see many of my students having bikes from them. Most of them have the inner tubes of the tires blown before the 3-month deadline. They must have received a batch defective bikes with faulty inner tubes.

For me I tend to think that the return policy does not matter as long as the merchandise itself is good. Wal-mart may have good policy, but I cringe when I think about the possibility of a bike tire inner tube going out while someone is biking at an intersection. For me, manufacturing lower quality stuff just so you can have a more lenient return policy is way too risky for me. The safety issues alone are not worth it.