Jennifer Gaetjens got a great deal on a refrigerator at Home Depot using a coupon combined with a sale. But a few days later, the company told her that it had no record of her purchase. Now Home Depot won’t schedule the delivery of her new appliance until she pays an additional $700. What’s going on here?
Question
My husband bought an LG Electronics stainless steel refrigerator on sale at Home Depot. After trying to buy the appliance online, we had to go to the store to finish the transaction. The computers were down at the time, but we got a receipt from Home Depot that included the tax and delivery charges. We also had a coupon for 18 months interest-free.
I called Home Depot to check on the order and confirm a delivery date, but a representative informed me that our order had been lost. We needed to return to the store to buy the refrigerator again. My husband went to the Home Depot. But this time, they denied him the original discount. Home Depot wanted him to pay an extra $700 for the refrigerator before it would be scheduled for delivery. The store manager was instructed by corporate not to honor our receipt. We want and need a refrigerator. Can you help us? — Jennifer Gaetjens, Pennsauken, N.J.
Answer
I’m sorry you’re without a refrigerator and that Home Depot wants to charge you an extra $700 to schedule delivery. If its computers were down on the day you tried to place your order, Home Depot should fix this problem for you without charging extra.
It appears Home Depot tried to run your credit card before it scheduled delivery. But it looks like your bank declined the purchase. A representative should have contacted you at that point to ask for a different card and complete the order. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen.
Home Depot’s initial response wasn’t terrible. I’ve seen much worse.
The company offered you a 10 percent discount on the new refrigerator. But that still fell short of the great bargain you thought you would get. Why would Home Depot decline your card? You said your card had a zero balance with a $2,500 credit limit. The charge should have sailed through. Maybe it didn’t because of Home Depot’s computer issues. (Related: I want Home Depot to take back this broken washing machine!)
The good news: Home Depot has scheduled your refrigerator for delivery at the original price!
If you run into something like this again, you can always reach out to an executive at Home Depot. The Elliott Advocacy research team publishes the names, numbers and email addresses of the Home Depot customer service and executive teams in our database. (Here’s how to contact the CEO directly.)
I contacted Home Depot on your behalf. It made arrangements for you to buy your refrigerator at the original discounted price. And it honored your interest-free coupon.
