For decades, my wife and I kept extended warranties on our appliances such as our refrigerators and washers. Whenever we booked a repair from the company that we purchased the appliance from, they always asked which time slot I wanted: either 8:00 to 12:00 or 1:00 to 5:00. No matter which time slot I chose, it seemed that I was the last stop in the time slot I chose, so I’d wait over three hours for them arrive.

We had a new refrigerator that needed a third repair within the first year we purchased it, so it qualified for the lemon law, and we were entitled to a new appliance at no cost. Per procedures, they sent a technician for this repair, and after looking at my fridge, he ordered parts for this repair to be sent to our address.

In the meantime, we received our brand-new replacement fridge, so the service representative called and asked if they could pick up the parts for the repair that had already been delivered to our home.

Me: “Sure. On Friday, I will be home for thirty minutes between 8:00 and 12:00, and for thirty minutes between 1:00 and 5:00. So, what time period would you like?”

The line went silent, and then she hung up. They never picked up the parts, ever.

A customer walks into the repair store and drops off his phone for repair of a cracked screen. He leaves his friend’s phone number to call when it’s ready, signs the work order, and leaves.

About an hour later, the tech calls the phone number provided and leaves a voicemail that the repair is ready for pick-up. At this point, it appears to be a regular transaction.

The customer walks back in after three hours, drunk and mad as h***.

Customer: “Why wasn’t I called on my phone?!”

Tech: *Calm as anything* “We left a message on your friend’s phone because you left your phone for repair.”

The customer looks through his missed messages now that the screen works and declares:

Customer: “Someone has been texting my girlfriend!”

Tech: “We have strict policies against that.”

Then, it gets bizarre. The customer slams his phone down on the counter, smashing the screen, and then rips the phone in two, all the while speaking Russian. This phone is glass, plastic, and metal — pretty tough to break into two pieces.

Customer: “There’s going to be an investigation.”

Our tech pulls a total boss move. He calmly says:

Tech: “You still have to pay for that, and we can have our own investigation.”

He points to the security cameras. Our tech is not a big guy but has nerves of steel. The customer pulls out a credit card, and he processes the transaction. The customer is holding both halves of the phone in one hand.

After the customer leaves, this very nice lady who is waiting for her repair and is trembling asks:

Other Customer: “Should we call the police?”

Tech: “What for? He paid for his repair.”

I work in an electronics repair shop. A guy drops off his TV for repair, and when he comes back to pick it up, he’s angry about the cost.

Customer: “You girls must be wrong about that! Where’s your manager?”

Me: “I’m afraid the manager has stepped out for a bit, but the repair cost was explained to you at the beginning and—”

Of course, he doesn’t like this and interrupts me, starting a rant that seems to go on for quite a while. There’s an older lady (in her sixties) who works here, too. She steps up to take her turn getting yelled at. She politely listens while he screams at her.

Customer: “If that’s how much you think you can charge, you can shove that TV up your a**!”

Coworker: *With a straight face* “I’m afraid it won’t fit as I already have a stove and refrigerator up there. How would you like to pay for your bill?”

We “girls” just lost it.

This caused him to storm out, threatening to come back later when a “man” was around. He jumped into his truck and squealed out of the parking lot.

As he turned right, he hit a pole the gas company had permanently fixed to the sidewalk to keep vehicles from driving over the metal access doors. This pole hit the middle of the door and dug in. Because the guy was so furious, he had smashed down the gas pedal, and that pole creased his truck from the middle of the passenger door all the way to the tailgate.

He came back in to scream how we owed him repair money for his truck and was even angrier to find out that pole had nothing to do with our business and he’d have to explain the circumstances to the gas company and hope they would pay.

Eighteen months ago, I bought a new tablet from [Massive Online Retailer]. It worked absolutely fine until one day when the screen started flickering. I hadn’t dropped it or anything; in fact, I had taken obsessively good care of it. It just randomly started fritzing out.

I contacted support for the company that made the tablet, and they told me that they don’t do repairs only replacements, and as it was over a year old, this would cost me 350 euros.

I tried taking it to a repair store anyway.

Me: “[Tablet Company] says they will only replace it, but is there anything you can do?”

Awesome Repair Dude: “Where did you buy it, and how long ago?”

Me: “Eighteen months ago from [Retailer].”

Awesome Repair Dude: “Under German consumer law, it is guaranteed for two years. We can administer that for you at a cost of 29 euros.”

While I could have handled it myself, having someone else deal with it was well worth the cost to me, so I forked it over.

Two days later, I had a brand-new replacement tablet.

The moral of the story: check what local laws apply rather than just believing the manufacturer!

Related:
It Pays To Know The Law

I work in a watch repair shop. A guy arrives with a very expensive imported watch.

Me: “I’m not supposed to touch imported watches.”

Customer: “It’s just the strap.”

Me: “Even if it’s just the strap.”

Customer: “Can you at least take a look at it?”

Me: “Place it on the counter and I will have a look.”

He tries to hand it to me directly.

Me: “No, place it on the counter yourself, please.”

He hesitates but then places it on the counter. I take out my magnifying tool and take a closer look, being careful not to touch it.

Me: “The strap looks like an easy fix, but did you know that your mechanism itself has stopped?”

Customer: “Oh… huh, really? I… uh… didn’t know.”

Me: “You might want to get that looked at.”

The customer just nods, grabs his watch, and leaves as my manager steps over.

Manager: “Was that another ‘I broke my watch so I’ll make some poor watch repair guy touch it and accuse him of breaking it’ guy?”

Me: “That was indeed another ‘I broke my watch so I’ll make some poor watch repair guy touch it and accuse him of breaking it’ guy.”

Manager: “And did you touch his watch?”

Me: “I did not.”

Manager: “Good man.”

It’s not too uncommon for some “customers” to get us to handle an already-broken watch, tell us the issue is just with the strap or something simple, and the moment we touch it and hand it back, accuse us of breaking it. Not in our store!