Customer Service

Or not.


As this is the season of Christmas cheer, peace on earth, and goodwill toward men, I thought I'd publicly air my frustrations in trying to return a piece of defective software to my local Target store.

Here's the e-mail I sent to their customer service department just a few minutes ago.

On Wednesday, 27 December 2006, my son purchase a computer game, Cabela's Outdoor Adventures (SKU 20102842, receipt redacted). I installed the game, and when he tried to play it the video would not display. I then spent a considerable amount of time verifying that all the video, sound, and monitor drivers on his computer were up-to-date, and tried again, with the same result. I then contacted the manufacturer's technical support for assistance. They had no idea why the game would not work. We verified the computer it was installed on met all the system requirements before purchasing.



I attempted to return the game today to the store where it was purchased and secure an in-store credit but was told all I could do would be to exchange it for the same item. I understand the reasons for this policy in general, but in this particular case it makes very little sense. Why would installing the same files on the same computer make any difference in the final result? When I pursued the question about getting a credit with a supervisor I was told that you would be unable to return this item because "it would be a copyright violation."

In my work I deal with Federal and foreign copyrights a great deal. This argument is frequently presented by those who are ignorant of what copyright law actually entails. Not allowing someone to return a defective piece of software and crying "copyright violation" makes as much sense not allowing someone to return a book with a page missing because they had already read the other pages, and claiming it would violate copyright.

As the policy is to only allow exchange of the same item, what would your store do if they did not have the same item to exchange? In that case, I'm guessing you would issue an in-store credit.

It's entirely possible that this game will work on some other computer, but for reasons unknown, it does not work on my son's. Apparently your corporate policy requires me to suffer the loss of $21.29 because your employees do not understand copyright law.

In order to correct this issue, I would like one of two things. Either to be allowed to return the item and receive a store credit for $21.29; or send me gift card, check, or money order for $21.29 and I'll keep the game. I'd rather return it and let you resell it to someone who may be able to enjoy it.

Thanks for your help. I look forward to hearing from you promptly with a positive reply.

Jeff Svare, AG

I hope this story has a happy ending.