1 reviews | Active since Jan 2017
Ninebot nightmare
<p>bought a ninebot segway device for 9999.00 this morning, went home and put it together, linked it via Bluetooth and did tutorial it requires before you can ride it which is for safety purposes. At end of tutorial it asks you to pick it up using the specified handle which on first lift broke off! Called apple who sent me to istore menlyn who did not even open the box, told me policy is to send it to service centre regardless of fact that i just bought it. no refund, no return or swap offered... just me without a device, with a CC bill for 10k and no further notice as to what next as no one knows what now or who's fault this is implying the device could have been damaged by me without me having even had the chance to ride it once!! very shocked and dissapointed with apple South Africa as a whole. </p>
Okay so it now Tuesday morning and I bought my brand new ninebot mini pro from Istore on Sunday Morning and returned it within 3 hours due to a broken piece on the system which was not of my doing AT ALL. I have just got the following:
Dear Customer
We would like to inform you that your unit has moved into an In Progress Status. Time for this status may vary due to weekends and dependent on repair volumes being experienced.
Average turn around time is two to three working days. We will however keep you updated when the status changes.
Really awesome of Apple to understand that a customer does not expect their brand new, expensive item to be sitting in the repairs department straight after purchase ??? Wow how customer service standards have plumetted since my first purchase in a tiny store in sandton city 20 years ago. Very sad and trully maddening.
Okay so it now Tuesday morning and I bought my brand new ninebot mini pro from Istore on Sunday Morning and returned it within 3 hours due to a broken piece on the system which was not of my doing AT ALL. I have just got the following:
Dear Customer
We would like to inform you that your unit has moved into an In Progress Status. Time for this status may vary due to weekends and dependent on repair volumes being experienced.
Average turn around time is two to three working days. We will however keep you updated when the status changes.
Really awesome of Apple to understand that a customer does not expect their brand new, expensive item to be sitting in the repairs department straight after purchase ??? Wow how customer service standards have plumetted since my first purchase in a tiny store in sandton city 20 years ago. Very sad and trully maddening.
The latest on the above: Nothing in terms of what has been done. Shall I assume it has been fixed?
I suppose I will have to wait some more as you can see below, the email is very vague... It has been the most frustrating experience.
You buy a device to spend time following your kids around the neighbourhood and to share the holidays with them in the way they identify with.
Upon getting home, you notice the device YOU HAVE JUST PURCHSED has a broken part. You return it within hours to an apple store where they DO HAVE STOCK to give you a replacement device but instead, they choose to rather frustrate the new purchaser instead and greedily hang onto their stock. (I bought it at Woodlands and Returned it to Menlyn per the support centres advice as Menlyn had stock and "these things are not supposed to break said the advisor.")
Get to Menlyn where advised by their manager that they will, as per their strict policy, be sending it in to see as he can not advise me why it broke. "inference - you must have done something).
I was also told by him that the apple support personnel would send me to Menlyn as he is the biggest store in Pretoria and not due to stock availability. Also quite a bit about "look at the face" to his staff members which would imply my face I assume. Not sure why my face would be relevant as this is only the 2nd time I have had to bring a problem to apple in 20 years as a customer. (1st was a sphero for my son which did not work via bluetooth connection which was immediately swapped out by the manager for a new device - no mess no fuss as they say)
(The second, this ninebot after already having purchased 2 other ninebots for my kids this december - one from myistore and one from Woodlands). The holidays are almost over and the use for the device is now to be relegated to weekends only and who knows what state the device is in now? This is all you get.
A refusal to do the right thing and exchange the faulty device, thus ending the consumers frustration at having made a purchase at istore that was not perfect to begin with within hours of its purchase.
(Steve Jobs was all about the consumer experience) Then, frustrate the buyer with references to their having misused the device in some way (my kids have been riding theirs with no problems at all so just by the inference this transportation device that they are selling is only supposed to last a few hours?) and make references to "her face" the entire time.
Then further frustrate the customer by having her leave the store in tears and empty handed after spending a large portion of money just a few hours earlier.
Then having days go by as apple do what they do, whilst ignoring you the consumer and going about their business, sending you what I think they think are updates but as you can see... not really... just huge avoidance.
In my opinion, as the owner of a shopping centre in Johannesburg and helping our customers out every single day, I believe the correct approach would and should have been
"We are sorry, we don't know why this happened, we can clearly see from the device being completely unscathed and from also reading its onboard computer that it has not been driven. We will replace the device and take the matter up with the suppliers and We look forward to your future business, have a nice day."
Frustration and dissapointment immediately dealt with and a happy customer leaves the store on the same day of purchase. Nope, not apple menlyn.
Will let you all know how long it takes to get further info. No managers etc have made any contact what so ever.
Dear Customer
I would herby like to inform you that below unit is being shipped back to the iStore with our courier company, TRAGAR. The unit will be dispatched today and should arrive within the next 2 working days.
The iStore will inform you once the unit arrives.
The latest on the above: Nothing in terms of what has been done. Shall I assume it has been fixed?
I suppose I will have to wait some more as you can see below, the email is very vague... It has been the most frustrating experience.
You buy a device to spend time following your kids around the neighbourhood and to share the holidays with them in the way they identify with.
Upon getting home, you notice the device YOU HAVE JUST PURCHSED has a broken part. You return it within hours to an apple store where they DO HAVE STOCK to give you a replacement device but instead, they choose to rather frustrate the new purchaser instead and greedily hang onto their stock. (I bought it at Woodlands and Returned it to Menlyn per the support centres advice as Menlyn had stock and "these things are not supposed to break said the advisor.")
Get to Menlyn where advised by their manager that they will, as per their strict policy, be sending it in to see as he can not advise me why it broke. "inference - you must have done something).
I was also told by him that the apple support personnel would send me to Menlyn as he is the biggest store in Pretoria and not due to stock availability. Also quite a bit about "look at the face" to his staff members which would imply my face I assume. Not sure why my face would be relevant as this is only the 2nd time I have had to bring a problem to apple in 20 years as a customer. (1st was a sphero for my son which did not work via bluetooth connection which was immediately swapped out by the manager for a new device - no mess no fuss as they say)
(The second, this ninebot after already having purchased 2 other ninebots for my kids this december - one from myistore and one from Woodlands). The holidays are almost over and the use for the device is now to be relegated to weekends only and who knows what state the device is in now? This is all you get.
A refusal to do the right thing and exchange the faulty device, thus ending the consumers frustration at having made a purchase at istore that was not perfect to begin with within hours of its purchase.
(Steve Jobs was all about the consumer experience) Then, frustrate the buyer with references to their having misused the device in some way (my kids have been riding theirs with no problems at all so just by the inference this transportation device that they are selling is only supposed to last a few hours?) and make references to "her face" the entire time.
Then further frustrate the customer by having her leave the store in tears and empty handed after spending a large portion of money just a few hours earlier.
Then having days go by as apple do what they do, whilst ignoring you the consumer and going about their business, sending you what I think they think are updates but as you can see... not really... just huge avoidance.
In my opinion, as the owner of a shopping centre in Johannesburg and helping our customers out every single day, I believe the correct approach would and should have been
"We are sorry, we don't know why this happened, we can clearly see from the device being completely unscathed and from also reading its onboard computer that it has not been driven. We will replace the device and take the matter up with the suppliers and We look forward to your future business, have a nice day."
Frustration and dissapointment immediately dealt with and a happy customer leaves the store on the same day of purchase. Nope, not apple menlyn.
Will let you all know how long it takes to get further info. No managers etc have made any contact what so ever.
Dear Customer
I would herby like to inform you that below unit is being shipped back to the iStore with our courier company, TRAGAR. The unit will be dispatched today and should arrive within the next 2 working days.
The iStore will inform you once the unit arrives.
Okay, Received the device this morning from Menlyn. asked for it to be put together and checked as they advised they replaced the faulty handle. Finally activated it for the first time and my daughter tested it and have been on it a few times today and it seems okay. Lets see how we go.
No more Apple SA for me unless it is service related to products I currently own. There are better retailers out there with nicer return policies on brand new products.
Okay, Received the device this morning from Menlyn. asked for it to be put together and checked as they advised they replaced the faulty handle. Finally activated it for the first time and my daughter tested it and have been on it a few times today and it seems okay. Lets see how we go.
No more Apple SA for me unless it is service related to products I currently own. There are better retailers out there with nicer return policies on brand new products.