Feel so let down by a major store I trusted.

[Landladyissues]

In December last I thought the time had come to buy a new laptop. There is a major High Street Department store I trust, in Oxford Street. I have a shoulder impingement so can't carry, and am getting on a bit, added to which I don't know much about computers so I waited until my daughter could come with me to help choose. The ASUS laptop I chose wasn't in stock but needed to be picked up from my local associated supermarket. And I picked it up on January 2nd. My daughter set it up a few days later. It seemed fine. But I noticed that the hinge guard popped out if the screen was beyond a certain angle. In fact, when I looked at the laptop from the side, it looks as though the hinge isn't properly in line. I told daughter and she said it should be under warranty. I had a virus that hit me for 6 in February and I planned to take it back to Oxford Street hoping to exchange it, possibly for a sturdier model. But couldn't do this alone. Eventually, last week, after weekends of daughter not being available, I called the store and was told it was out of warranty - the warranty only lasted a month. I was kept an hour on the phone as the adviser kept asking me to hold as he spoke with his manager. As a 'concession' he agreed to take the laptop away for repair - but that I would have to save everything on it and he had no idea how long I'd be without a laptop. I spoke with some friends who know laptops and they said that they felt the laptop was sub-standard. But I can't really fight my corner and I can't last without a laptop. I complained but got nowhere. The laptop works so I suppose I'd just better live with it. But next time with electrical appliances, I'll use Curry's!!

Am my expectations unreasonable.

@Landladyissues you still have time to claim if your situation gets better as you have reported the issue within 6 months and there will be a record of that, even if you go outside of the 1 year warranty.

TY78910 - thanks so much for this advice. I might just be able to. This morning the laptop screen didn't come on - I restarted and the third reboot it came to life. I was panic stricken - realised that all my bank accounts are on-line. Something else I use the computer for that I had forgotten about - just taken for granted!! But managing for even a week would be such a pain!!

It seems likely that sooner or later this laptop is going to need to be fixed.

Do you have a smart phone as that would cope with online banking and emails.

Hi Little Bear Pad - I don't have a personal smart phone - I have one for work but can't use it for banking or personal emails - it's really just for work contact. But I wondered how everyone else coped without their laptop. I'm sure you're right - that sooner or later this thing is going to need to be fixed. Or I cut my losses and buy a replacement from Curry's. Definitely not going to buy from JL again!!

Update - on Easter Saturday (April 19th) my daughter came with me to take my laptop into the store where I ordered it and asked able a repair. The nice chap looked it over - and agreed the damage. He explained that, as it was a bank holiday it wouldn't be sent for repair until Tuesday. I asked how long I'd be without it - could be a month but usually under 3 weeks. OK. I can just about manage. But as one of you guys advised me - if I didn't take it back other things might go wrong. On 6th May I had a message - "You repair... is now at our workshop". Now at their workshop - where had it been until then - I thought. It was repaired eventually but before they returned it they told me that the slider for the camera cover was broken. I said I didn't use this and I was desperate to get my laptop back. So I was told it would be returned on Wednesday last. I arranged to work from home that day. It didn't turn up. I was told it would come on Thursday - so I cancelled an eye appointment and waited in. It didn't turn up. After spending endless time messaging JL, getting cut off on What's Ap, on hold trying to find out where the laptop was, I was told it I had to sign for it and it would be delivered that day - Friday. I hung about for as long as I could. Eventually I found a box on my doorstep - delivery driver not knocked or asked for signature. So from April 19th to 30th May I had no access to internet banking, no personal emails, no access to documents or files. Internet banking was a particular pain as to get mini statements I have to go to a branch - and the local branch of my bank is 10 miles away - and I had to do it weekly at least. I've rearranged my eye test.
I was told by a friend I would have been wiser to cut my losses and buy a laptop replacement - but not at JL. Didn't they once have a reputation for customer care? It's been nothing but stress!!!

Sounds like you had a parasocial relationship with a store and found out they're just a business.

Parasocial - I had to look it up but I agree - they've always been in business - but I felt like the business model they adopted in days not so long ago, was customer focussed - and based on my total misunderstanding of the relationship, I feel let down.

You have been treated really badly. On a side note, I am confused how you had no access to "internet banking, no personal emails, no access to documents or files." could you not access all of these on your mobile phone?

OP doesn’t sound as though she’s organised all that stuff on her phone - given the nature and tone of her story. Talk about faux naivete. JL have been woeful here.

Did you pay for it on a credit card? I'd use the cover you have on that if so and ring your CC company and tell them teh product is faulty and needs to be refunded. I had an issue with a Dell laptop, they were being idiots about it and wouldn't take it back, did the refund with the credit card and then lo and behold they will suddenly take it back. Even though it has been repaired I would still do this - repaired but now another fault, delivered faulty, not fit for purpose.

Re access to records through my mobile phone - I don't have a smart phone. Incidentally, I don't have a credit card either! I am 68 and yes, pretty vulnerable in this technological and credit savvy age. I suspect that 99% of the readership could and would have handled this much better. Does this make it my fault? Well probably it does. At least I have a daughter who can help - but she works full time and doesn't live with me.

I would say it was faulty and nothing to do with the warranty

A lot of older people don't use a phone for banking and stuff like that, my NDN is 68 and uses his laptop for everything, his smartphone is not capable of using some apps as it is too old, it probably wouldn't be secure enough to access online banking, he was telling me this the other day as he was having difficulty doing something but his phone was ok for texts and calls which was what he used it for. I don't think this is uncommon.

@Landladyissues defibutely not your fault. That poster is being ridiculous!

Thanks so much for understanding! Yes, the fault was agreed, but I didn't mention it until after a month of delivery. I accept that this is my fault. It's mostly because I wait until daughter can help - and she's so busy. She's not my minder - though it feels increasingly that I need to turn to her.

I wouldn’t do banking on my phone either. I don’t feel comfortable, it just doesn’t feel totally secure to me, and I’d struggle because my eyesight isn’t brilliant.

However, @Landladyissues , I would suggest you look into getting a credit card for major purchases as it affords a certain degree of additional consumer protection when things go wrong.

Personally I also find my smart phone very useful for emailing, messaging, WhatsApping, taking and sending photos, as well as certain apps - public transport planning, weather forecasts, traffic conditions, trip planning, BBC Sounds, counting my steps….. the list is endless…

edited to add : I also have a tablet which is useful for emailing and reading newspapers and the like - and YouTube. It would also come in handy if I ever have to be without my laptop as I could still do my banking on it.

What is stopping you from getting a smart phone? Is it related to eye problems or dexterity issues, or money?

If none of the above, why not give it a try? You might be surprised at how easy it is and it sounds like it could make quite a big difference to your day to day life.

Wow that’s dreadful customer service. I am in the market for a new laptop and that’s where I would have gone to get one. Thank you for the warning to use another vendor.

Totally agree.

There are various lists of emails of CEOs online, eg…

https://www.ceoemail.com/

Op can I recommend you make it a project to:

• get a smart phone
• upskill on technology

68 is not that old! My mother is 72 and has been happily using smartphones, tablets etc for the last 15 years. She was in no way "tech savvy" and did not work in a job requiring it at all but recognised how necessary it was becoming. You are terribly reliant on your daughter.

Most of your issue here wasn't really the store customer service, it was that you:

• have no smartphone so are utterly dependent on one laptop (not typical and not the store's fault)
• chose to shop at a store you can't easily get to (not the store's fault)
• rely on your daughter being available to help (not the store's fault).

Whole their service could have been better you've made life very hard for yourself.

I agree that JL are not as good as they used to be.

However, I would just say that a friend of mine got a lot of help with her quite old laptop when it started to play up. She took it into the store and they were very patient, spending a fair amount of time sorting the issue to her and explaining what she needed to do if it happened again.

like with many customer service related issues it very often depends on who one ends up dealing with, I.e. individuals rather than companies.

Hi there - about eyesight - mine is deteriorating - one of the things I had to cancel waiting in for the return of my laptop was an eye test - only delayed a week but I don't know how people manage with detail. It's probably why I didn't realise the hinge was wonky for short while - but also in Jan/Feb I had the worse virus I can ever remember having but that's a side issue. I'd be really worried about the security for banking. In terms of customer service, maybe it isn't that JL was so much worse than anyone else - it is just that I expected them to be better. Who is the current chairman of John Lewis. If I were to write to them it would be only to explain my issue and as someone above mentioned, I could have made my life easier if I'd shopped locally. In terms of upskilling on technology - I returned to the workplace at 40, my youngest going off to Primary School and returned to a completely different work place - computers! Calculators!! I took a couple of courses on Excel and Word - but am always catching up from behind.

A laptop is no more and no less secure than a smartphone with regard to banking. With facial recognition / Touch ID and other biometrics they can be more secure.

Give it a go OP

Come on, you’re a perfectly intelligent woman. Why do you think a smart phone is any less secure than a laptop for online banking? Do you genuinely think that the banks would knowingly take such a risk? If anything, phones are more secure due to facial recognition.

And phones have accessibility settings that make the text bigger and easier to read for those with eye problems.

An old smartphone is very insecure as is an old laptop as they don't get security updates, many older people use old smartphones that don't allow banking apps. I am older and have an iPhone 15 Pro Max but don't use it for banking as it is too small, I use my iPad or iMac which have face/fingerprint recognition. The phone is just used to convey stuff to my other devices. I couldn't imagine having to use my phone for everything, it would be very irritating