Customer Service Hell with HP (Hewlett Packard): "Otherwise, we will forward this case to our higher authority and do the needful."

My recent most relaxing experience with HP customer support.




[Tuesday, June 26, 2012 11:21 AM] -- Norbert Wu says:
I would greatly prefer that all this be handled by email. I am at our summer house and my cell phone does not work out here. It's extremely frustrating. Email and chat will work fine. Even text messaging to my cell will work. Phone calls will not work.

[Tuesday, June 26, 2012 11:24 AM] -- AVIK P says:
Norbert, I can understand your concern but Phone is the only contact channel for any hardware parts replacement usually, the Dispatch team will send a voice mail as a follow-up.

[Tuesday, June 26, 2012 11:24 AM] -- Norbert Wu says:
That's unacceptable. I cannot get phone calls where I am. I can get emails and text messages. I cannot get voice phone calls.

[Tuesday, June 26, 2012 11:24 AM] -- AVIK P says:
Please give me a any other alternative valid call-back number (if you have any) and a preferable time

[Tuesday, June 26, 2012 11:25 AM] -- Norbert Wu says:
I have no way to get phone calls!!!! I can possibly call someone back if they send an email but most of the time this results in phone tag because I cannot reach someone directly when I call in using VoIP.

[Tuesday, June 26, 2012 11:26 AM] -- AVIK P says:
Well, if you allow me then I can take this computer in for complete hardware diagnostic check and the entire repair process
would take approximately 7-9 business days (including shipping). Is that okay with you?
[Tuesday, June 26, 2012 11:28 AM] -- Norbert Wu says:
That's fine. I am extremely hard-of-hearing and I am shocked that HP does not have methods in place to work with the disabled. I do hope that HP realizes what an inconvenience this is and will expedite the repair. I am familiar with shipping practices and hope HP can send me prepaid shipping labels by email as most good companies do these days.

[Tuesday, June 26, 2012 11:29 AM] -- AVIK P says:
Please accept my sincere apology for any inconvenience but Your business is important to us and you are our most valuable customer. Please do not worry, we will take this issue up on priority and ensure that you receive a quality service from us.


But later he emails: (note the "Note: Please do not reply to this email at the bottom of his email.")

-------- Original Message --------

Subject:     E-mail follow up from HP total care (Chat Support)
Date:     Tue, 26 Jun 2012 23:44:51 +0000 (UTC)
From:     LAPTOP_SUPPORT_EN@MAIL.SUPPORT.HP.C

To:    

Dear Norbert ,

Hewlett-Packard is pleased to provide the following documentation via
e-mail.

I have tried sever times to create an order for this computer but my
system is telling me that the following details are invalid. We
apologize for the inconvenience.

Product number : A9G89AV
Serial number: CND221RDVC
Product details : HP ENVY Sleekbook CTO 4t-1000 Notebook
Service ticket number : 8060112427

I'm requesting you to check the BIOS of your computer and get back to us
with the valid product + serial number of this computer once again, so
that we will proceed with the next step immediately. Otherwise, we need
to forward this case to our higher authority, so that this issue will be
taken care of.

In order to get the BIOS screen, you need to restart the computer ->
Restart it and at the same time keep tapping on the F10 key until and
unless the bios screen will appear on the display.

When the BIOS screen will appear, check the main screen of BIOS and you
will get the exact product and serial number of your computer there on
the display.

If you face any problem, please get back to us with the results and we
will be glad to assist you further.

You can contact us by visiting the following Website.

http://welcome.hp.com/country/us/en/contact/chat_1.html

We are available 24hrs a day, 7 days a week to serve you.

Note: Please do not reply to this email.

Thank you for contacting HP,

Avik

Your Customer Care Representative



In another email, he wrote:
Otherwise, we will forward this case to our higher authority and do the needful.




-------- Original Message --------
Subject:     E-mail follow up from HP total care (Chat Support)
Date:     Tue, 26 Jun 2012 20:22:06 +0000 (UTC)
From:     LAPTOP_SUPPORT_EN@MAIL.SUPPORT.HP.C

To:    x

Dear Norbert ,

Hewlett-Packard is pleased to provide the following documentation via
e-mail.

I tried to create an order for the following product:

Product number : A9G89AV
Serial number: xxx
Product details : HP ENVY Sleekbook CTO 4t-1000 Notebook
Service ticket number : xx

but unable to proceed with that because of technical problem...My system
was capturing the above data as an invalid model and serial number.

I'm requesting you to check the BIOS of your computer and get back to us
with the vaild product and serial number of this computer, so that we
can try to create this order once again. Otherwise, we will forward this
case to our higher authority and do the needful.

Thank you for contacting HP,

Avik

Your Customer Care Representative



********
To my readers of this blog who have come this far:

Oh, and by the way, I've attached a photo of the bottom of my laptop, showing the model number of:
Product number : A9G61AV

I've also attached the invoice and BIOS screen showing the laptop has a different model number of:
Product number : A9G89AV

Is it really my fault that HP has f***ed-up records?  Do their customers need to suffer for this and waste time explaining this situation to their "support" guys in India or Pakistan, or Kazakhstan?  Does HP realize that the model number in the BIOS is DIFFERENT from the model number printed on the bottom of the laptop?


Update 7-24-12:

I finally received the repaired laptop on July 17, 2012.  I first alerted HP of the problem on June 26, 2012.  I received the brand new laptop on June 4, 2012.  In two months, I've only had use of the laptop for about 30 days.  

Here's a summary.  

I bought a laptop from HP (HP Envy Sleekbook 4t1000).  The laptop warned me of “imminent drive failure” after three weeks of use.  The hard drive began making clicking noises also.  I contacted HP’s customer service through their chat service.   The chat person ended up telling me that I had not given them a correct model number and serial number, and to check my BIOS for the correct numbers.  I did so, gave them to him (they were the same model numbers on the invoice and what I gave him initially).  He kept repeating that he could not help me since I did not have the correct model number and serial number. 

 

I ended up having to deal with a case manager in the escalation department (who contacted me after the chat person could not help), and the process has been infinitely frustrating and convoluted. HP continued to state that I supplied the wrong serial number and model number for the laptop that I bought from then just a month ago. It turns out that the model number on their invoice and in their BIOS is different from the model number on the bottom of the laptop.  

The laptop is finally at HP for repair after two weeks of discussion; I've sent the same proof of purchase, photos of the serial number and model number, photos of the warning screens, and description of the problem over a dozen times. We'll see if this story has a happy ending.  I  have a feeling that these HP laptops contain an inherent design flaw where the hard drive is overheating.  

Finally, finally!  When will companies learn that most of us out here cannot and do not answer our phones, and they need to have two-way communications with their customers via email?  If I contact a company to either buy a product or with a problem, more often than not, the company has a random person communicate with me, but I am never able to reach that person, or anyone else at the company, directly – either by email or phone.  Often a customer service manager trying to solve the problem will call me up and leave a message – but I am completely unable to reach that person again when I call back!  Agents from the company will email me and ask for more information – but then the email will state: DO NOT REPLY TO THIS EMAIL!!! 

HP’s lack of understanding of the issues of the disabled (I am hearing-disabled) was incredibly frustrating. 

 I am extremely disappointed with HP's response to this matter.  They requested the same information from me several times.  I spent more than 20 hours on chats, emails, and on the phone with four different people.  A process that would take 30 minutes to resolve with a good company like Apple or Amazon has taken 20 hours of my life with HP.  I had to re-start my explanation of the problem with four different people who kept transferring me to other people.

I was perhaps most disappointed by HP’s social media person, who responded to a review I posted on Amazon about the product – but who ultimately proved to be a do-nothing person that just bumped me up the ladder to another person (perhaps, I was never contacted by this “upper level”).  It seems that HP is not committed to having their social media people solve problems.  Instead, the social media (executive customer relations) people seem to reply to things like Amazon reviews solely so that the general public sees their replies and thinks that HP is on the ball.  It’s not the case, and it is deceptive on HP’s part.

It’s obvious that HP makes poor-quality products, and it is further obvious that HP’s customer service doesn’t have a clue.  When this happens, the customer suffers and has to endure endless waits, incompetence, and insanely inefficient handling of his problem. Customers should not have to tolerate spending hours on the phone and on email or chat with a company that has terrible customer service. 

Buyer beware; HP Envy Sleekbook 4t1000 laptops may have issues with the hard drive overheating.