Unsolved
This post is more than 5 years old
11 Posts
1
18449
Alienware 17 and Price Match from retailer
I am coming here for any support the community/liasons can offer as I am really disappointed and upset.
On Friday (31/7) I spoke with a sales agent regarding a Price Match as I had found my dream Alienware for a good price on one of the approved retailers. He verified, confirmed with his manager, discussed specs with me in case I wanted to add something and then created a quote for me that was sent to my email. (I have the log with all this discussion and details of the agent and the quote).
I right away accessed the quote and placed the order. In my excitement I used my international AMEX (as I get points on it) not thinking it might be an issue. Alas it was and on Monday I saw that the order was cancelled (mind you no communication/call/email from Dell... only my obsessive checking showed me that it was cancelled).
I called to ask why, the first person (customer service) didnt know and they directed me to order management. He asked right away if I had used an international card, I confirmed and he asked me to place the order again using a US card).
I did and was happy to see that on Tuesday the order had moved to 'in production'.
My hopes were dashed when my obssessive checking showed me that now on Wednesday the order has been marked cancelled again. I called and after going through 5-6 agents (customer service, then order management, then finance, then customer care and lastly sales) and spending 2-3 hours I have an answer.
Apparently (and according to the sales supervisor I spoke to) the offer I got was too low and as they are not allowed to go below 1400 USD + tax (even though I have it in black and white in the received quote) it cannot be honored!!!! He insisted that the discount department (not sure if thats what he said) is the one cancelling it and that even if I was to re-put the order once more, it would be cancelled again!!!
Since when is an actual quoted offer from a Dell agent and with supervisor approval deemed 'too low'. SInce when is the price match guarantee only a guarantee if its a convenient offer?
I really trust Dell and that is why I came to Dell to place the order (and get a very nice and helpful agent his commission) instead of buying from the retailer and I am not basically screwed. The retailer has gone out of stock on the item (makes sense with such an offer) and I am here with no order, no laptop and just miserable.
Thank you in advance for any suggestions/advice/intervention.
ejn63
9 Legend
9 Legend
•
87.5K Posts
0
August 6th, 2015 06:00
There is nothing you can do with that order. The base price on the Alienware 17 is $1499. If that's the price you want, you can order exactly what you want from the Dell website and it should go through just fine.
More likely, whatever reseller you were looking at was selling an older version of the system for a lower price - which Dell sales caught and couldn't match.
ejn63
9 Legend
9 Legend
•
87.5K Posts
0
August 6th, 2015 07:00
Since you realize that -- and given that it was your use of an un-authorized payment method that caused the order to be canceled, that's pretty much the end of it.
You should also know that there are restrictions on purchasing computers in the US for export overseas, if that's something you were considering (it may be given the international credit card payment). You should take the time to understand those before you buy - you can easily end up with an unsupported system if you choose to export the purchase from the US.
PPerrakis
11 Posts
0
August 6th, 2015 07:00
You are correct that normally Price Match does not work for Out of Stock items. But when I placed the order (Friday 31/7) the item WAS in stock at that price. Dell cant say 'this item may never go out of stock or we cancel the order' right?
Again, if I had placed an order for 100 laptops trying to damage Dell or to take advantage of an error (i.e. if the dell website said the Alienware cost 149.9$ instead 1499$) then I would not expect them to honor it. But saying that after the quote was given and the order was placed they decided 'its too cheap' is super lame and a bad business practice. Some times you bite the bullet and this isnt even the case as it was a genuine purchase.
ejn63
9 Legend
9 Legend
•
87.5K Posts
0
August 6th, 2015 07:00
This is not uncommon in the retail industry (check the "in stock" clause on most of the price match policies at Best Buy, etc.), and though you're free to do that, it's highly unlikely they'll assist, as there's no valid complaint here.
PPerrakis
11 Posts
0
August 6th, 2015 07:00
Thank you for your response but actually the whole point of the Price Match is not match the price of other retailers.
The offer from the retailer was legit and was verified by the Dell sales agent (and he subsequently had to get approval from his manager which he got). The machine was not older, it was a 2015 Alienware 17 with exactly the same specs as the current Alienware 17 that is indeed set at 1499 by Dell. The retailer IS IN the list of retailers for whom Dell Price Matches and the offer was not a 'daily deal' or 'fire sale' or 'limited time offer' (again verified by the agent as well).
The fact that after the fact (when the retailer is now out of stock) they dont want to honor it, damages not only the image I have of Dell (and others) but also means that the whole Price Match is a publicity stunt that doesnt work when someone actually tries to use it.
At the end of the day, all I can do is ask for help here (in case a liason can maybe help/advice) and then refer this to the ***.
PPerrakis
11 Posts
0
August 6th, 2015 07:00
Thank you for your response and taking the time but actually the whole point of the Price Match is not match the price of other retailers.
The offer from the retailer was legit and was verified by the Dell sales agent (and he subsequently had to get approval from his manager which he got). The machine was not older, it was a 2015 Alienware 17 with exactly the same specs as the current Alienware 17 that is indeed set at 1499 by Dell. The retailer IS IN the list of retailers for whom Dell Price Matches and the offer was not a 'daily deal' or 'fire sale' or 'limited time offer' (again verified by the agent as well).
The fact that after the fact (when the retailer is now out of stock) they dont want to honor it, damages not only the image I have of Dell (and others) but also means that the whole Price Match is a publicity stunt that doesnt work when someone actually tries to use it.
At the end of the day, all I can do is ask for help here (in case a liason can maybe help/advice) and then refer this to the B . B . B .