# My Rogers iPhone Nightmare



## harrisjr (Aug 29, 2007)

Well it all started when I bought my shiny new 16 GB iPhone on Sunday afternoon. When I got home, I noticed a few dead pixels on bottom left hand side of the screen. They look like little groups of dust. I paid top dollar for this phone so I want it to be in perfect condition.....call me picky.

My first instinct was to return to the store that I purchased it from. The next day I returned to the store, waited for 30 minutes and was told to call Apple support. So I return home, call Apple support immediately and after being on the phone with them for 60 minutes, was told that the Rogers store is supposed to replace defective iPhones, no questions asked under their DOA or "Buyer's Remorse" 30 day policy.

Here's where it gets good......

So first thing this morning I visit the store......

When I visit the store, I tell the sales rep that I have a defective screen on my iPhone. Within seconds, 2 other sales people swarm us. One of them saying, "You have to call Apple", the other saying, "This is the first one we’ve had returned!!" After one of the sales reps takes a look at the dead pixels, he says to me, "You want to return it because of that?!?!" I was so disgusted at this point, I didn't even respond to him.

So, moving along.....within the massive stack of papers I signed, there was a sheet that says if I am unhappy with the phone or if there are any defects, I could return the phone for a full refund or replacement within 30 days as long as there is no more than 30 minutes of use on the phone (there is less than 5). I quote this to the store manager and he quickly says, "This doesn't apply to the iPhone." So I reiterate to him that I have *signed* something that says I can get a replacement and this all seems pretty clear. He then tells me to leave my phone with him and he will take care of it. He didn't want me to go back and forth anymore and “understands" my frustration.

After repeated attempts to contact him throughout the day, I finally get a hold of him some 5 hours after I dropped my phone off. He tells me there is nothing he can do for me and gives me the Rogers 800 number to call. He tells me if I call them they will send me a new phone. At this point, I am so disgusted with the store's service; I'd prefer not to deal with them anymore. So I go back and pick up my iPhone. I actually cringed when I walked through the front door of that place.

So, I call the 800 number just like the store manager told me to. Surprisingly, the wait time is only 10 minutes this time and not the 40-plus that it normally is. I talk to a Rogers rep. She says to visit the store and they "should" exchange it for me but each store has their own exchange policy. I tell her that I’ve already tried that and I don't want to set foot in that store again. She apologizes and once again I've hit a dead end. Looking back maybe I should have asked for a manager but I doubt that would have gotten me very far.

So my only option at this point is to call Apple for repair service. They will send me a box and I’ll get a new iPhone in about a week. Pretty frustrating considering I want to use the phone now. So a word to the wise....if anyone is buying a Rogers phone in Fredericton, New Brunswick....buyer beware.


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## HowEver (Jan 11, 2005)

Call 1 (866) 897-3008.

Explain what has happened.

Let us know how it goes.


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## uPhone (Jun 29, 2008)

harrisjr said:


> Well it all started when I bought my shiny new 16 GB iPhone on Sunday afternoon. When I got home, I noticed a few dead pixels on bottom left hand side of the screen. They look like little groups of dust. I paid top dollar for this phone so I want it to be in perfect condition.....call me picky.
> 
> My first instinct was to return to the store that I purchased it from. The next day I returned to the store, waited for 30 minutes and was told to call Apple support. So I return home, call Apple support immediately and after being on the phone with them for 60 minutes, was told that the Rogers store is supposed to replace defective iPhones, no questions asked under their DOA or "Buyer's Remorse" 30 day policy.
> 
> ...


What a horrible buying experience. I'm glad that this didn't happen on Friday, when you would have had to wait 10 hours even if you were one of the first in line. I think you _just might _have exploded had this happened on Friday. :lmao: 

I hope you get your new iPhone ASAP. By the way, dead pixels, that's a big deal. That's for sure grounds for a replacement.


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## krug1313 (Apr 27, 2007)

My phones screen kept flickering off and on. Called Apple and they said bring it back to the store. Brought it back and thank goodness the delivery guy walked in minutes after I did. He had a few more iphones so they swapped it out for a new one. I was pretty happy.


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## HAL 9000 (Jun 30, 2008)

I would call Rogers head office and file a complaint explained how rudely you were treated and want a full refund.


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## Kosh (May 27, 2002)

Man, that's terrible service. I can understand your frustration. Hopefully one of the suggestions above will get you somewhere.


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## jabberjamie (Jun 12, 2008)

HAL 9000 said:


> I would call Rogers head office and file a complaint explained how rudely you were treated and want a full refund.


That actually sounds like a good idea.

It seems like you were more than reasonable, yet got jerked around, which is unfortunately often the case. Have you noticed that those people who can pitch a fit or make a scene often get what they want before others. Squeaky wheel gets the oil?

One tactic I use occasionally in matters like this is to, while not being rude, is to not let the subject drop either. And, despite what I'm being told (such as they can't help me) just keep their attention with the issue for as long as you can, repeating the problem in as many ways as you can think of and explaining the situation in as much detail as possible, over and over and over. As long as you can stand yourself for. Asking questions can help prolong matters, but you have to be sure not to get sidetracked and always come back to repeating the primary issue.

I've done this for as long as an hour and I'll admit, being polite but knowing you're not going to just shut up and move on is an artform, and gives dickheads like me a certain amount of pleasure, especially when you see the other person start to get uncomfortable. Often, people will give you what you want just to get rid of you, or at the very least finally hand you over to the manager or somebody who can do something. Ha. People can't really get too upset just because you are persistent as long as you are articulate, polite, assertive yet not aggressive.


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## kloan (Feb 22, 2002)

This is why Apple should be selling the iPhones in the Apple Stores!!

You wouldn't get this kind of disgusting service from them.


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## SoyMac (Apr 16, 2005)

jabberjamie said:


> ... People can't really get too upset just because you are persistent as long as you are articulate, polite, assertive yet not aggressive.


Excellent advice. :clap: 
I too can attest to the effectiveness of this method.
And a smile and a joke every once in a while doesn't hurt during the process.


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## Jet_Star (May 20, 2005)

That is very unfortunate that they kept giving you the run around.
It seems that they have no idea of what the proper procedures are.

From what I was told about the warranty, is that Rogers acts as the handler for all issues with the phone within the 1 year warranty period. So you have to bring the phone back to them instead of Apple.

I would definitely call Rogers' head office or customer support.
My gf and I waited over 5 hrs to get our phones on friday. What ended up happening is that for her she had to activate a new account, thereby losing her current phone # which she did not want to do. As well as getting charged the $35 activation fee. Anyways, the Rogers rep told us to call and complain to get the 35 bucks credited back. So today she called and they have told her that she will get the 35 bucks credited to her account as well as get her old phone # back as if a HUP was performed.


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## RunTheWorldOnMac (Apr 23, 2006)

Rogers call center told me to NEVER buy a phone from a store, they are independant dealers and aways care about having stock; an exchange depletes stock and they hav to go through a long process to get a return replaced. I know becase I went through it for weeks...The call centers don't care and have no issues sending u a new one...


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## psxp (May 23, 2006)

OMG! Sorry to hear about your missfortune

gee, if I was treated like that, I would walk down the road to the Rogers HQ (I'm in Toronto) and ask to speak to someone in Corporate in charge of policys etc. 

"does not apply to the iphone" - my @rse!! 

You def. got the run around with them... I'm going to check my phone when it arrives for perfection as well (I ordered on the phone) and as the above posted mentioned, the independant dealers can be pricks.


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## Unforgiving (Nov 5, 2007)

sorry to hear your getting the run around HarrisJr, just out of couriousity iam from frederiction also , got my phone from the regent mall location fortunatly i havent had any problems yet lol , iam gonna wager a guess you got yours from the huges location on prospect in that stripmall that cleves is in ?

i called them on saturday the girl had a very rude tone is one of the reasons i went to the mall instead , i hope it works out for you , if rogers does send you a new one i work for the courier company that delivers rogers units they send out and they are quite prompt , usually its overnite service ups express :clap:


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## fjnmusic (Oct 29, 2006)

harrisjr said:


> Well it all started when I bought my shiny new 16 GB iPhone on Sunday afternoon. When I got home, I noticed a few dead pixels on bottom left hand side of the screen. They look like little groups of dust. I paid top dollar for this phone so I want it to be in perfect condition.....call me picky.
> 
> My first instinct was to return to the store that I purchased it from. The next day I returned to the store, waited for 30 minutes and was told to call Apple support. So I return home, call Apple support immediately and after being on the phone with them for 60 minutes, was told that the Rogers store is supposed to replace defective iPhones, no questions asked under their DOA or "Buyer's Remorse" 30 day policy.
> 
> ...


And unfortunately this is where Rogers as a company is different from Apple as a company. The sixteen year old clerks know virtually nothing about customer service, nor do their managers. You need a full refund NOW. We did it once at a London Drugs with a new iMac that tipped and the LCD screen cracked, likely when it hit the keyboard. There was much tension first, especially since all of our files had been transferred to the new machine already. We had to be very firm (my wife is even more tenacious than I am), but we got a full refund and LD ended up eating the loss. We then went to WestWorld and picked up the newest model and haven't had any problems since. 

However,_* I definitely recommend the round swivel base*_ (made by Griffin, I think) for anyone who has an Intel all-in-one iMac. Toppling is no fun.


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## harrisjr (Aug 29, 2007)

Unforgiving said:


> sorry to hear your getting the run around HarrisJr, just out of couriousity iam from frederiction also , got my phone from the regent mall location fortunatly i havent had any problems yet lol , iam gonna wager a guess you got yours from the huges location on prospect in that stripmall that cleves is in ?
> 
> i called them on saturday the girl had a very rude tone is one of the reasons i went to the mall instead , i hope it works out for you , if rogers does send you a new one i work for the courier company that delivers rogers units they send out and they are quite prompt , usually its overnite service ups express :clap:


Believe it or not, I got mine at the mall kiosk as well. :lmao:


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## HowEver (Jan 11, 2005)

So what happened when you called the number in post #2?


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## harrisjr (Aug 29, 2007)

harrisjr said:


> Well it all started when I bought my shiny new 16 GB iPhone on Sunday afternoon. When I got home, I noticed a few dead pixels on bottom left hand side of the screen. They look like little groups of dust. I paid top dollar for this phone so I want it to be in perfect condition.....call me picky.
> 
> My first instinct was to return to the store that I purchased it from. The next day I returned to the store, waited for 30 minutes and was told to call Apple support. So I return home, call Apple support immediately and after being on the phone with them for 60 minutes, was told that the Rogers store is supposed to replace defective iPhones, no questions asked under their DOA or "Buyer's Remorse" 30 day policy.
> 
> ...


For anyone that cares, here's part 2.

As HowEver suggested, I called the 1 (866) 897-3008 number. I got a representative named Sonia. After I gave her the 5 minute story, she blabbered on for a couple minutes pretty much telling me there is nothing she could do and that she could only handle account cancellations. She also tried to call the store for clarification but of course there was no answer. She then suggested I speak to wireless a technical support agent since they can deem my iPhone defective and take "other" action.

Sonia transfers me over to technical support. A gentleman with a HEAVY indian accent tells me that I have the WRONG technical support department (I could barely understand him). So he transfers me to the correct technical support person.

The next person I spoke with was Katie. I always like to give credit where it's due and she was amazing. She is located at their Moncton call centre. I felt obligated to go into my 5 minute spiel but she stopped me as soon as I said my iPhone was defective. She said, "Well I'll just send you a brand new iPhone! Most times it's there next day so you may have it tomorrow, but latest will be Thursday." She took down all my shipping information and we were done. She also confirmed for me that until Apple works out it's Canadian service agreement that Rogers is supposed to handle all repair/defect issues at least in the first 30 days of ownership. She was by far the most competent person from Rogers I have spoken to thus far. I left a message on Katie's manager's voice mail praising her great service and I was on my way.

So lesson learned, if you have hardware issues with your iPhone. Make sure to call Rogers Technical Support. As long as the person isn't a complete moron, they should be able to hook you up.

Now let's just hope I get the phone as promised within the next day or 2.

Stay tuned for the conclusion! Whoooooooooo!


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## Unforgiving (Nov 5, 2007)

ack !! mall keoisk also doh i hope mine dosent break ! , keep us up to date !
need to have ammo in case i have to take mine back for any reason hehe


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## webterractive (Jun 13, 2008)

*Jesus Phone Returned*

When I returned my iPhone because of being misled by Rogers they people at Cellcom took some time because in one of the words of the staff "we actually weren't prepared for this" meaning Rogers and their reps believe that these phones won't be returned. Boy were they wrong.


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## Unforgiving (Nov 5, 2007)

hopefully it works out )


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## HowEver (Jan 11, 2005)

The ones who help you are always "competent," the ones who don't are always something else.

Glad you're problem was fixed. It's usually just a matter of speaking with the right person, and most days that's at the number provided.

But for now, it's technical support.


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## lindmar (Nov 13, 2003)

Are iphones covered under apple's 1 year warranty and can we buy applecare yet?


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## adam1185 (Feb 16, 2005)

webterractive said:


> When I returned my iPhone because of being misled by Rogers they people at Cellcom took some time because in one of the words of the staff "we actually weren't prepared for this" meaning Rogers and their reps believe that these phones won't be returned. Boy were they wrong.


Just curious, how were you misled by Rogers? Did they sucker you into an expensive plan?


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## Jet_Star (May 20, 2005)

lindmar said:


> Are iphones covered under apple's 1 year warranty and can we buy applecare yet?


I asked one of the sales guys at the Eaton Centre store about Apple Care, he said they have no info yet on that regard. He told me if there is something wrong with the phone to bring it in to the Apple store. But the Rogers rep whom I bought the phone from told me that Rogers does the warranty within the first year, so you are to bring it in to them instead of Apple. Personally I'd rather bring it in to the Apple store.


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## harrisjr (Aug 29, 2007)

HowEver said:


> The ones who help you are always "competent," the ones who don't are always something else.
> 
> Glad you're problem was fixed. It's usually just a matter of speaking with the right person, and most days that's at the number provided.
> 
> But for now, it's technical support.


Agreed. However Rogers personnel should know who I need to speak to in any given situation. iPhone or not. Unfortunately in this case I had to waste over 4 hours of my time running around and/or on the phone.

Thanks for providing the number. Much appreciated.


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## fjnmusic (Oct 29, 2006)

Jet_Star said:


> I asked one of the sales guys at the Eaton Centre store about Apple Care, he said they have no info yet on that regard. He told me if there is something wrong with the phone to bring it in to the Apple store. But the Rogers rep whom I bought the phone from told me that Rogers does the warranty within the first year, so you are to bring it in to them instead of Apple. Personally I'd rather bring it in to the Apple store.


I haven't bought one yet, but from reading the forums, it seems like they're aren't two people yet who have got the same plan for the same price and paid the same amount for the phone. I think Rogers was in way over their heads on this.


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## kkapoor (Jan 17, 2006)

harrisjr said:


> For anyone that cares, here's part 2.
> 
> ..... A gentleman with a HEAVY indian accent tells me that I have the WRONG technical support department ......


Sorry to hear about your difficult experience with Rogers CS. This is what you get when you live in a country with a bunch of government protected industries. Lack of of accountability and poor service are the mainstays of oligopolies and monopolies.

However, I find that that the fact you were transferred to the wrong department initially is probably not the fault of the Indian CSA at the other end, who is contracted (probably in India) by Rogers.

At least HE transferred you to the correct department. 

Welcome to a globalized world. I advise you to read the book, "The World is Flat"

Better yet watch the MIT lecture on iTunes of the same title: 

Thomas L. Friedman - The World is Flat


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## harrisjr (Aug 29, 2007)

Well I recieved my phone as promised 2 days later. Works great. Pretty good considering I spoke to Rogers at around 7pm the day they plaved the order. So it was closer to 1.5 days.

Have a great weekend all.


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