Joined: 10 Aug 2008
Posts: 269
| Posted: Sun Sep 07, 2008 1:38 pm Post subject: The New MRA Rip-off? | |
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Years ago, I bought a portable CD player at Best Buy and got their extended replacement plan. A year or so later, the danged thing quit working so I found my receipt and took it and the broken player to Best Buy. "Oh no," I was told, "you don't bring that back to us. You have to call an 800 number and then mail it in and they'll give you a gift card for what you paid for the player. "
Then I went to work for Sears. MRA? It breaks, bring it in and we'll replace it with the same thing or something equivalent if we don't have the original any more. Buy it on sale, you still get a new tool. What a deal! Gotta love it. Now I read that Sears is going the Best Buy route. We won't replace the item, just give you a gift card for the purchase price. So you come in and buy a drill that's on sale right now for $100 and get the MRA, the drill dies in a year and a half so you want it replaced but all you get is $100. The drill now costs $130 so you're out another $30. What a rip off. |
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Joined: 08 Jul 2003
Posts: 5005
| Posted: Sun Sep 07, 2008 10:50 pm Post subject: commercial use | |
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Unless you use the item commercially or abuse it the replacement agreement isn't worth it.And that's probably one of the reasons they are eliminating the old one.Too many cacs and associates never bothered to call abuse or commercial use on the RA.I'd bet around 50% of the returns in hardware over the last decade have been commercial use returns.I'm sure similar things happend in HE especially on something like cordless phones where power surges can fry a rechargeable battery.
In this case this makes it easier for Sears to get out of these things when they close stores AND makes it easier to sell Sears merchandise in other stores ie a Craftsman drill in Kmart.No more of you'll have to take to a Sears then. And this gift card can show up as income later on inflating sales off of what should be a replacement.Like the example if they want the same or similar drill they'll have to shell out difference to get what they want.These new RAs will put Sears in the tool rental business among others. |
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Joined: 22 Jul 2008
Posts: 204
Location: HELL
| Posted: Mon Sep 08, 2008 1:20 am Post subject: | |
 I paid 39.99 for PA on camera. It broke, now I have to call, order a box, wrap, mail off and talk to techs on the phone who tell me to turn my camera on, then off then leave me on hold for 10 minutes to turn on camera again? I will never ever buy another camera from Sears. I cancelled my P A and I would like to put my broken camera somewhere very special. SEARS SUCKS!!!!!! 
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Joined: 10 Aug 2008
Posts: 269
| Posted: Mon Sep 08, 2008 2:59 am Post subject: | |
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We're not talking about PAs, we're discussing MRAs and the changes on the horizon. Please stay on topic.
However, since you brought it up, my PA on my mower paid off in spades. |
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Joined: 15 Mar 2008
Posts: 320
Location: stuffed in the back room of a kmart
| Posted: Mon Sep 08, 2008 3:41 am Post subject: | |||
ah your one of the lucky ones |
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Joined: 28 Apr 2005
Posts: 1718
| Posted: Mon Sep 08, 2008 5:18 pm Post subject: Re: The New MRA Rip-off? | |||
No doubt customers were trying to get some actual value on their MRA's, and this cut into Sears profit margin. They needed to make it lot harder for the customer to "cheat". Of course it's likely to make it a lot harder for salespeople to sell, but you can bet they won't be decreasing expectations. |
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Joined: 26 Jan 2007
Posts: 292
| Posted: Mon Sep 08, 2008 7:47 pm Post subject: | |
| the RA was the only insurance type thing in the store with any kind of value. Relatively of course. | |
Joined: 28 Apr 2005
Posts: 1718
| Posted: Mon Sep 08, 2008 10:24 pm Post subject: | |||
Yep that's why they have to change the program. Sears is in business to MAKE MONEY not to give value to the PIA self serving customers... 
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Joined: 08 Jul 2003
Posts: 5005
| Posted: Tue Sep 09, 2008 2:23 am Post subject: use it or loose it | |
| "HOW dare the customer actually remember they have an RA and will actually use it.How dare they!!!" | |
Joined: 22 Jul 2008
Posts: 204
Location: HELL
| Posted: Tue Sep 09, 2008 2:32 am Post subject: | |
 Oh my GOSH, get out of my head.  They are treated like criminals!
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