Nancy Zimmerman: a canadian money coach (not a financial planner!)

Usually I post something fun on Fridays. This is a bit different — a support for a really cool friend of mine, Stephanie who is having no fun at all with Telus.   I’m no “Olson on your side” but this story is abysmal.  Here she goes:

Steph’s Telus Boycott

11:05am Today
I have worked in customer service for many years and find it paramount to the retention of business that will allow a company to develop and flourish. Unfortunately, many organizations have become such large monopolies that they are able to disregard this important facet of business because they are in the financial position of being able to not rely on the individual consumer. I have learned recently that Telus is one such company, and this is my story of why I am boycotting them.

August, 2007:

I set up Telus internet and home phone at my old apartment. I do not want a contract as I know we are moving in December and I will be bundling all my services together elsewhere. I speak to a very nice gentleman who persuades me to stay at Telus. He offers me a free computer if I sign up for high speed internet for 3 years. As I do not need another desktop computer, I decline. I mention that I am currently looking at purchasing a laptop for work/school. He says that the deal would still be a good way to go because I can pay $300 to upgrade to a laptop. Well, I need internet anyway and $300 is a good deal for a laptop so I say that I will consider it. I am told: It is a top-of-the-line computer, runs Windows Vista, comes with Internet Explorer, the MS Office Package, all the memory I could ever need. Just a great machine, great deal. So I agree. I am instructed to go online to redeem my computer. Turns out, the computer is actually $399. Still, a good deal for a laptop so that’s okay. As I am going through the redeeming process, it offers me a memory upgrade that it says it “Highly Recommends” so I pay extra for that. Give my credit card details to pay for it and off we go.

September 2007

I receive my new computer. And my memory. Separately. I call Telus and am told that the memory has to be installed but that I am not to do it myself as if I open the cover, it will void my warranty. I must take it to a Lenovo certified dealer, of which there are few. In the meantime, I start up the computer. 15 minutes later, it turns on. It takes me several hours to open up the programs and look around the computer. It runs so slowly that it takes the better part of an hour just to open all the “start up programs” that Vista has. I keep trying to use it but it takes so long to do anything, I call Lenovo. I am told to get the memory installed and given a few settings to change to make it run faster. I change the settings, there is no difference. Spend my Saturday tracking a Lenovo dealer down, take in the computer, pay to have the memory put in and head home.

October through December, 2007

Continue to fight with computer as even though the extra 1 GB of memory I have had installed seems to make no difference to getting the computer to run. Now Internet Explorer has stopped working so I cannot get online. Also, the MS Office Package I was told about turns out to be a “free trial” and I will have to pay to keep it permanently. I continue to try the trouble shooting tips to get the computer to run.

January, 2008

We have moved into our new apartment and have our internet set up there. Once again, I contact Telus about the laptop. I inquire about the “free trial” of MS Office when I was told this was part of the package deal. I am told I must have just been given wrong information. There is nothing they can do. I also ask what to do about the computer because it is running so slowly that I can’t use it at all. I’m told to call Lenovo. Lenovo tells me that they can try to help me, but only if I pay for service.

February, 2008

I write a complaint letter to Telus regarding the computer through their website. I state clearly in the letter that I would like someone to call me back to discuss what is going on with the computer.

March, 2008

Having not heard back from Telus, I contact them by telephone. I get through to an agent after a long wait and explain the situation. I mention that I have already written in about this, and am told that they don’t really respond to feedback written in through the website. I go through the whole story again and am told, once again, that I should talk to Lenovo. I mention that I have already spent enough money and don’t intend to pay to ask questions to Lenovo. I am told by Telus that Lenovo will not charge me. I am told that he knows there are problems with these computers, but he doesn’t know how to help.

I contact Lenovo. Three times. I finally get an agent that seems to know what he is talking about. He says he is based in Atlanta and doesn’t know anything about Telus specifically, but that just he personally gets 10-20 calls PER DAY about this machine and the promotion. He says that I won’t be charged for service, but that Telus was also wrong in telling me that I am not allowed to put the memory in myself, so I wasted money there. He goes through some trouble shooting with me, but I say I have tried it all before and it is so slow that when I move the mouse I have to wait 5 minutes before it even moves on the screen. It is a useless paperweight. He finally says that he will level with me and says that Telus bought a load of these machines totally stripped down and they are not good machines. He said that they run windows Vista, but don’t hold enough memory to actually operate Vista so it will never operate properly. He said that I can downgrade to Windows XP, but that I will have to go out and purchase it. More money to spend. He also says that he will send me recovery CDs to see if that will help, but doesn’t think it will do very much. He said that my only real option is to downgrade to XP and keep increasing the memory as much as I can but that it will never run quickly, it’s just not a good machine. He says if it was him, he might just wash his hands of it.

April, 2008

I contact Telus again. I tell them about my conversation with Lenovo and that I want to send the computer back and get my money back. I am told that Lenovo shouldn’t have “sold out” Telus like that and they will be in contact with Lenovo. I don’t know how this is a resolution to my problem. For at least the tenth time, I explain all the problems with the computer. I am told I will be transferred to a manager. After 18 minutes on hold, I go to a manager. I