Lessons Learned

Here are a few things I hope I remember the next time I purchase a computer.

• Make sure you immediately bring up any problem/issue you have with your new computer within the inital return period (usually 21 to 30 days). Dell will be more likely to quickly help you if you have the option of returning the computer for a refund if your not satisfied.
• Stick to your guns. Don't take no for an answer. I was really frustrated about my experience. I felt helpless, because I was speaking to people who didn't seem to care about me, their customer. They seemed to be sticking to a script they were told to repeat, kind of like those David Spade commercials for Capital One where the employees were only allowed to say "No".
• The chat support was nice. It allowed me to compose my thoughts and make good points which were hard to ignore. Also, with the record of the conversations, it would be easy to post on the Internet for others to reference.
• Make sure you skip Dells Financial services (at least don't use it unless the you get a discount on something for using it, ask for 5%-10% off the system, is doesn't hurt to ask, then make sure you pay it off immediately), and use your premium credit card if you have one. Your credit card company will often extend your warranties, and cover some accidental damage.
• Get ready to raise the stakes. I had made a list of contacts to complain too. The State Attorney General, Consumer Reports, all my local TV news stations consumer reporters, my local newspapers, the Better Business Bureau, Dell executive leadership, cnet.com, pcworld.com, pcmag.com, notebookreview.com, other popular tech websites.
• Maybe in the future I'll buy a computer from a bricks and mortar store. That way I'll get to work face to face with people, and build a personal relationship with them. Dell has those kiosks in the mall, but I'm thinking more of the local computer shop (Are there any left? In Seattle I've heard good things about Quindunc). Also, if you want to make a scene, it's easier to do it face to face in someone's place of business, as opposed to over the phone.

Here are links to a few sites that have hints for dealing with tech support:
How-to Handle Dell Technical Support

Resolution Expert Center experience

I actually got an email from Dell Resolution Expert Center on Sunday, July 1. Almost 24 hours sooner than they said!

I was emailed by Ron, UI:0166285 in the REC (Resolution Expert Center) Web escalations group. He asked for copies of my emails with dell, which I told him I had none but the Chat email, since the rest was on the phone. He also wanted to know when the deadline was to get back to the warranty department. I gave him that information (July 4th). I didn't hear back from him for the rest of the day.

On Monday at work, I emailed Ron to see if he had gotten my emails and what the status of my problem was. My wife, Lisa needed the computer back soon because some she needed some files off of it for school by the following week.

Two hours later I received this message:

Wayne,
I got your email and have received a notice from the Depot stating that after they reevaluated the system, no spill damage was found and that both the motherboard and LCD are being replaced.
I will be happy to answer any questions you might have.
If you would reply to this email without changing the subject line, I will receive it.

Thank you for contacting Dell
Ronald L. Powell

Great! After almost a week of frustration, Dell is finally stepping up and fixing my laptop. Way to go! What a great company. I can't wait to invest my next paycheck in some tasty Dell stock.

Other Avenues

Since it was going to be a few days until I heard back from Dell, my mother (such a wise lady), suggested that I call my credit card company and dispute the charges for the computer.

I spoke with Citi cards, and they said that they would cover up to $500 of accidental damage in the first 90 days from purchase. Great, I was in the first 90-days, but I didn't do the damage, Dell did. Citi cards didn't care. I would have to submit a claim with them and they would probably cover it. They would send me some paperwork, and I could submit it if my Dell didn't step up and fix the problem.

Not only did I get mileage for my purchase, but they would pay to fix my computer, sweet!

Deep in Dell Hell (6/29/2007)

On 6/29/2007 I didn't receive a call at 11:00 from Joseph, so at 11:45 called him and left a message. I also called and emailed Ernie.

At this point, nothing was working for me. I was getting the classic run around, being passed from Dell employee to Dell employee (see others with similar Dell experiences) and no one was seeing my point, which is:

I didn't spill anything on my computer. The problems that I am having were there from the day I received the computer in the mail from Dell, and that the original owner returned the notebook because of the display, and that any water damage occurred before I took possession of the computer. THEREFORE, Dell should fix any damage to the computer they sold me at their expense.

By this time I had done a lot of research on Dell, Dell Customer Service, how to work with customer service, Others who had issues with Dell Customer Service, etc, etc, etc. One thing I had read was that using Dell's Chat support feature was a good idea, because you had a record of the conversation.
I got on Dells Chat website and had a conversation with "RTS Marleshia K." See text at bottom of this post. (Sorry, you have to scroll way down the page to see the chat record that was emailed to me by Dell, I don't know how to fix this).
The part of the chat that made it worth while was when Marleshia stated ""Being that a spill occurred on the system, before you got it. And if you don't have CompleteCare on the system, it's not covered."
I responded, "I don't understand. A spill occurred on the system before I got it, BUT you are requiring me to pay to have it fixed? I think Dell had better re-think that position."
I was forwarded to the "Resolution Expert Center" and would be contacted by email on Monday, 7/2/2007 at 11:46 AM. I finally felt like I was getting somewhere.

During my chat, Joseph called me back, again he said I had to pay to get my laptop fixed. I told him to send me pictures (I have never gotten any pictures).

This is an automated email sent from Dell Chat. The following information is a log of your session. Please save the log for your records. Your session ID for this incident is 1207407x.
Time	Details
06/29/2007 02:17:06PM	Session Started with Agent (RTS Marleshia K)
06/29/2007 02:17:17PM	Agent (RTS Marleshia K): "Thank you for patiently waiting. You have reached Dell Hardware Warranty Chat Support. My name is Marleisha and I will be assisting you today. In order for me to help you, can you provide details about the issue you’re having?"
06/29/2007 02:19:22PM	Wayne xxx: "I sent my laptop into Dell to have the display replaced under warranty. I recieved a call stating there was water damage to the systemboard and it wasn't covered under warranty. I have never spilled any liquid on my laptop. The laptop was ordered off t"
	he Dell Outlet and was previously owned. I suspect that the previous owner may have caused the damage to the laptop.
06/29/2007 02:20:16PM	Agent (RTS Marleshia K): "Wayne is this a new issue, or have you contacted Dell on this issue before? (If you have contacted us before on this issue, please provide the case number)."
06/29/2007 02:20:50PM	Wayne xxx: "Case #: 16781525x"
06/29/2007 02:23:08PM	Agent (RTS Marleshia K): "Wayne, I will try my best to resolve this issue for you. Before we get started, can I have you to verify the company name or name of the owner of the system? Also to ensure we are working with the correct system, are you chatting about the LATD820 l"
	isted on your account?
06/29/2007 02:24:00PM	Wayne xxx: "My name is Wayne xxx, I work for xxx in xxx, WA"
06/29/2007 02:24:07PM	Wayne xxx: "It is the Latitude D820"
06/29/2007 02:25:43PM	Agent (RTS Marleshia K): "If you would like me to, I can give you the information to our Customer Care Department and they should be able to assist you with this issue further. Would you like that information?"
06/29/2007 02:27:34PM	Wayne xxx: "What are they going to do for me, connect me back to the warranty department? All the out of warranty department want's to do is send me pictures of the water damage. I want this dispute resolved, I do not want to keep getting pawned off by Dell service"
	. I want to speak with someone who can make decisions.
06/29/2007 02:28:39PM	Agent (RTS Marleshia K): "Being that a spill occurred on the system, before you got it. And if you don't have CompleteCare on the system, it's not covered."
06/29/2007 02:30:03PM	Wayne xxx: "I don't understand. A spill occured on the system before I got it, BUT you are requireing me to pay to have it fixed? I think Dell had better re-think that position."
06/29/2007 02:30:27PM	Agent (RTS Marleshia K): "Would you allow me 3 minutes to research this issue for you, Wayne?"
06/29/2007 02:30:44PM	Wayne xxx: "Sure."
06/29/2007 02:30:50PM	Agent (RTS Marleshia K): "Thanks very much."
06/29/2007 02:32:00PM	Agent (RTS Marleshia K): "Thanks for holding, Wayne."
06/29/2007 02:33:19PM	Agent (RTS Marleshia K): "I'm going to transfer this issue to our Resolution Expert Center. I will send them the information about the issue your having, then they will send an email about it."
06/29/2007 02:33:24PM	Agent (RTS Marleshia K): "Is that okay?"
06/29/2007 02:33:49PM	Wayne xxx: "When will I get an email from your Resolution Expert Center?"
06/29/2007 02:33:58PM	Agent (RTS Marleshia K): "It's our highest level of Technical Support."
06/29/2007 02:34:18PM	Wayne xxx: "Will I speak to them today?"
06/29/2007 02:34:22PM	Agent (RTS Marleshia K): "Please hold, and I'll have that information for you."
06/29/2007 02:34:33PM	Wayne xxx: "My phone number is xxx-xxx-xxx"
06/29/2007 02:43:30PM	Agent (RTS Marleshia K): "Thanks for waiting, Wayne."
06/29/2007 02:45:33PM	Wayne xxx: "Your welcome"
06/29/2007 02:46:58PM	Agent (RTS Marleshia K): "They should be contacting you within the next day or so."
06/29/2007 02:47:40PM	Wayne xxx: "Tommorow is Saturday, will they contact me on saturday? Or will I spend the weekend upset about this issue?"
06/29/2007 02:48:23PM	Agent (RTS Marleshia K): "They are going to contact you on 7/2/2007 11:46 AM"
06/29/2007 02:48:37PM	Agent (RTS Marleshia K): "Through email."
06/29/2007 02:50:14PM	Wayne xxx: "Well, I was plannig on going backpacking Sunday-Tuesday, but not anymore. Marleshia, Thankyou for your help."
06/29/2007 02:50:39PM	Agent (RTS Marleshia K): "I really hope this issue gets resolved for you, Wayne."
06/29/2007 02:50:52PM	Agent (RTS Marleshia K): "Please use these numbers for future questions on this issue: Case #16826642x"
06/29/2007 02:50:59PM	Agent (RTS Marleshia K): "If you need further assistance with this case, you may contact us via [Chat]: www.dell.com/chatsupport or [Email]: us_acs_team_1@dell.com (include your Case# and Service Tag) [Subject]: Team 317 Email Dell Inc. Case#16826642x"
06/29/2007 02:51:03PM	Agent (RTS Marleshia K): "For future reference, a copy of this chat will be sent to the email you provided as you entered the chat."
06/29/2007 02:51:15PM	Agent (RTS Marleshia K): "Wayne, are you having any other hardware issues with your computer that I can help you with?"
06/29/2007 02:51:20PM	Agent (RTS Marleshia K): "I am constantly striving to improve my service. If there is anything I can do to help improve your experience, please don't hesitate to let me know by contacting my manager via email at us_acs_team_1@dell.com."
06/29/2007 02:52:00PM	Wayne xxx: "No other issues, I was happy with my laptop until this experience."
06/29/2007 02:52:10PM	Agent (RTS Marleshia K): "Thank you for using Dell Hardware Warranty Chat Support. Have a great day!"
06/29/2007 02:52:54PM	Session Ended
If you require further assistance, please visit us at support.dell.com

Call from Dell (6/28/2007)

Well, I get another automated call from Dell, with the same message as the day before, there is water damage, it is not covered, would I like to talk to someone. I hang up and Call Ernie R. I get his voice mail. I leave him a message and request he call me back.

I called Dell warranty back and waited on hold to speak to anyone. I spoke with someone who was very hard to understand he didn't give me his name (the phone line was bad). Then I was put on hold and transferred to customer service where I talked to Rebecca. She said she would speak to her supervisor who told her to contact the warranty support folks and let them know it was a refurbished computer and I didn't spill anything on the laptop.
Alex at warrant support said they wouldn't fix my laptop. He wanted to send me pictures of my motherboard with signs of the water damage. I told him I didn't spill anything on the mother board and didn't care to see any photos and I wanted to speak to his supervisor.
Robb who is Alex's supervisor said that I had to pay. That they wouldn't do anything for me. That Dell never sells anything that is damaged. (then why do they have so much stuff in the Dell Outlet?) He said that I had to pay to get it fixed or they would send it back unrepaired. After 5 minutes of being run-around by Robb who just wanted to send me pictures of the water damage (which I didn't do, so I don't care to see the photos) I asked to speak to someone who could help me.

Robb connected me to Joseph at warranty parts replacement. He is sending an email to the warranty folks telling them what I already told them.
He said he would call back the next day at 11:00. I asked was that 11:00 my time or his? He took a minute, had to figure out what timezone he was in and told me it would be 11:00 Pacific time. Well great, I can't wait to see what you have to say.

Call from Dell (6/27/2007)

Two days after sending my D820 off to Dell I get an automated call from Dell. It states that they have found that there is water damage to the mother board, and that it is not covered by my warranty, and I have to pay them $400+ to get it fixed. Would I like to talk to someone?

Hell yes I want to talk to someone! I sent in to have the display replaced under warranty, and now they are telling me that there is water damage and that I need to pay them to fix a problem I have had since I first received the computer from Dell?

I get connected to Ernie R. at Dell Out-of-Warranty. I tell him that I have never spilled any liquid on the laptop. My wife is the only other user of this computer and she has never spilled liquid on the laptop. Based on the fact that we have not spilled anything on the laptop, and that the display issues were existing from the time we originally purchased the product, any damage to the motherboard occurred before we received the notebook computer. Since the previous owner had complaints about the display, it is apparent that this was a pre-existing issue with the notebook computer Dell sold me.

Ernie tells me that he is taking ownership of this issue and that he will send it back to the technician and have it re-evaluated. They can even take pictures of the damage to show me. I tell Ernie that I don't care if there is any water damage, that since I didn't do it, I would not pay for any damage. Ernie tells me that it is "impossible" that Dell would have sent me a computer with water damage. (again see Aaron Clow's post)

Ernie says that sometimes the re-evaluation would show no damage and I would be fine. But that was all he could do for me. So, I said thanks for you help and waited (steaming mad) for a call from Dell the next day.

Call to Dell Support (6/24/07)

Lisa wanted the computer docking problems fixed, I had searched the web and found nothing exactly similar. See "Forestial Says" comment

So, I called up Dell's tech support. It was a Sunday afternoon, and I got through to a nice fellow up in a tech support office in Canada (it's nice to have North American tech support). After an hour of running the diagnostic tests and re-installing the video drivers, he decides that both problems (the D/Port and color issue) are caused by a faulty display. So, I am to send it back to Dell the next morning and they will replace the display under warranty. DHL was at my office the next morning and it was on its way. The support fellow (who's name I didn't write down) said it would take 3-5 business days, so I should have it back by Friday 6/29/07.

Another interesting thing I learned during this call, was that the previous owner of my computer had returned it because he "wanted to get another notebook computer with a better display." The tech support guy had confused me with the previous owner, and asked me if I had wanted to return it before. Interesting info, the display had probably been messed up when the original owner had it and Dell hadn't picked up on the issue before they sold it to me at the Dell Outlet. This isn't the first time Dell's crack technicians have missed damaged systems that were then sold on Dell Outlet. See "liquid on keyboard"

Well, no worries, I'd have a new display in a few short days.