So, whatya gotta do to get a new laptop repaired?

But on August 17, 2000 (6 days of use) the new machine croaked. It wouldn't boot and just hung at the Toshiba splash screen. Oh well. These things happen. But I decided to try and get it repaired rather than replace it through the vendor. Was that ever a mistake. I should have seen the warning signs when it took more than a week just to get an empty box sent to me.

I finally received a replacement machine on October 6, 2000. That's seven weeks from my initial call until resolution. Remember this was a new computer, not one I'd had for a year. I began asking for a replacement when it became clear that the repair was going to take over 30 days. At the time I received the replacement, the original machine was still on hold pending backordered parts.

It's possible that Toshiba was facing a large batch of defective parts (it's happened to them before). It's also possible that Toshiba is simply paying the cost of their popularity, and trying to keep up with demand led to some quality problems. Both in components and services. But replacement machines cost them profit and they're reluctant to do it, even when it is clearly warranted. It's sort of like that scene in The Rainmaker where the insurance company adjustor says that it is the company policy on all initial contacts to "Deny all claims".

Let's meet our cast of characters!

• Customer Service (and Tech Support) is really just a call center run by Sykes, probably located where they can get away with paying very low wages. They have no information. They just keep you distracted by letting you put in for a callback, escalate your case, or talk to a supervisor. Every individual I spoke to there was unfailingly polite and completely unhelpful. These guys are amazingly well-trained. Must be daily beatings to keep them in line. The job of this group is to act as a 1st line of defense (Toshiba calls them 1st-level). Their edict is to find a way to say "no" to as many callers as possible, and keep you away from Toshiba's own Customer Relations department.
  
  
• The Service Depot, who was supposed to do the repair, is apparently a company called Sequel in Memphis, TN now owned by Solectron. Despite repeated requests made through Customer Serivce, they never contacted me, and apparently didn't say all that much to Toshiba either. They apparently had trouble determining when the parts to repair my machine would be available. This from a company that calls itself "The world premier supply-chain facilitator".
  
  
• Customer Relations is part of Toshiba America, and is the place with actual power to affect change. Which is exactly why mere customers are kept away from them. There appears to be only a handful of people in this department. Once my machine had been in the Service Depot longer than it was on my desk, I began requesting replacement, and that meant appealing to Customer Relations. Although I put in several requests for them to call me, I finally had to sneak around the system and call them directly. They got mad, put me off, and then finally promised a replacement. A promise which took a long time to execute.

What's the lesson here?

If you're a Toshiba customer, be persistent. I believe I was making a resonable request, and I just kept making it, as politely and frequently as I could. Call Customer Service and demand to be passed up the line. The first guy to answer the phone isn't allowed to pick his nose without permission. Being vocal also helps. I'm fairly certain that this site had a lot to do with the eventual resolution. Toshiba isn't stupid and even this backwater site is bad PR they don't want. Not after that other incident.

If you're from Toshiba and reading this, please be honest and open with your customers. I don't like hearing bad news, but given a choice I'll take bad news over delaying tactics any day. I really wish Customer Relations had just leveled with me and said, "Look, we're up to our ears here. It's gonna be a couple of weeks." I think they knew, or should have known this to be true from the outset. I'd have still been unhappy, but far less so than I am now after being lied to, insulted, and ignored. Whether that was intentional or simply because the system is just that broken, it's a great disservice to customers. Not to mention a waste of my time and your profit. That call center contract ends November 2002, right? Consider firing Sykes and hiring more Customer Relations people, or at least change their strategy. I'd rather wait longer in a queue than have to tell my story five times before getting to someone with the authority to take action.

It's pretty clear to me where exactly customers rate with Customer Relations. I won't be buying a Toshiba again until I see some evidence that the system has improved.

You can check my log for all the gory details.


- Oct 8, 2000