how do I complain about sony's appalling after sales service?

[timbosmart]

My laptop's graphic card failed. Sony don’t post an email address on their web site, and none of their tame dealers will deal with my particular problem.

Sony have the audacity to charge 35p per minute for a phone call to their help line. I called them two days ago. At the end of that call the Japanese woman I spoke to the wanted me to do a satisfaction survey. I refused because a) the matter had not been completed, and b) I was going to pay 35p per minute for the privilege after their product had failed. F’ing Cheek!

The woman promised a courier would arrive the next day to pick up the laptop and that I would receive a call within two hours to sort out details. Nether happened.

Yesterday I called them a second time and they promised they would txt me to make arrangements for a courier pickup today. They failed to contact me so I don’t know whether to expect a courier or not.

It is now 5 am on the third day. They did not contact me yesterday, and I am now so angry that I am losing sleep.

I will call them again today. IF they don’t fail again, that will have been three calls at 35 p per minute. I am not holding my breath that this third call will succeed either.

Perhaps it is their policy to make their customers make so many calls that they pay for the free repair that Sony then carry out...

Or shall I start legal proceedings in the small claims court?

Message was edited by: timbosmart

So just I called them, and was told that the courier should be between 11 & 12 coming today, even though they failed to contact me again, and that I should not have been calling their premium line phone No, and that both times I called before, I should have been given a direct landline No in case I needed to pursue this claim. The number, for your interest is 01925260090. They failed on that count too. Now I need to wait until lunch time....... Message was edited by: timbosmart

[Blencogo]

If there is no email address available to you, I assume your Vaio is no longer under warranty.

Were you given a case number by Vaio Support?  If you give me that case number along with your Vaio model, I will try to escalate your case.

You can, of course, take whatever next steps you feel appropriate, but I think I would phone the premium number and ask for a supervisor to call you back urgently.

[Blencogo]

I am very pleased that something has actually happened now but, sadly, I am unable to answer all your questions.

This is a user forum and Vaio support do not participate here.  Like most of the 'Experts' who try to help other users, I am not employed by Sony.  However, it is possible for us to escalate individual problems such as yours to Sony.

I'll see if we can get some answers for you.

[timbosmart]

Thank you for seeming to be a competent human being for the first time since I raised this case.

FYI the VAIO is under extended warrantee on account of the failure of its graphics card.

The DPD courier just took my laptop. He did not call to tell me when he was coming; I had to find that our from your extortionate help line. He did not give me a black label or sign it, as explicitly specified by your email; he gave me a white one with black writing that he did not sign. I pointed these facts out to him at the time. He said he was just covering for someone.

Why had he not been properly briefed on the procedure?

Why was he using the wrong label?

Was your email wrong or was I just robbed? I videoed the episode, just in case.

Assuming all now goes correctly, when shall I expect the laptop to be returned? Will I have any say in the delivery date, or will I simply have it dictated to me, as the  terse Japanese sounding woman on your help desk

did when she originally told me when it would be picked up?

My Sony case ID is (5749255).

Pleaser provide an email address for your customer survey. I dint see why I should pay 35p per minute to do one on the phone, do you?

[timbosmart]

Thank you Blencogo, for clarifying your position. I am grateful for your help. I am appalled however that Sony do not deign to reply themselves. If you are an expert but not employed by Sony, what are you? You must be getting something out of this to have written over 10,000 posts! Do you feed back to them a regular summary perhaps, of customer responses to their service and attitude?

[Glyn-pc]

Horrific!!

i was thinking about buying another vaio, not so sure now!!!

Glyn..

[Blencogo]

Hi timbosmart,

timbosmart wrote:

Thank you Blencogo, for clarifying your position. I am grateful for your help. I am appalled however that Sony do not deign to reply themselves. If you are an expert but not employed by Sony, what are you? You must be getting something out of this to have written over 10,000 posts! Do you feed back to them a regular summary perhaps, of customer responses to their service and attitude?

No such luck!  I am just a Vaio user like you who came here for help about 6

years ago and who looks in here most days to help other users if I can.

As I said, this is a user forum primarily for users to help each other and chat on topics of mutual interest.  There are other channels for official Sony Support and those should be used for a dialogue with Sony.

In addition we do have contacts within Sony and can escalate cases where things have gone wrong - as they inevitably do - and to flag any repetitive problems as an early warning system.  In addition we do have moderation rights to control abuse or spam.

Ocasionally, there are problems but, to be frank, most manufacturers have as many or more and, hopefully we can play a small part in rectifying some user problems.

[timbosmart]

Hi Blencogo,

Thank you for your support and for being a source of comfort to frustrated people like me. Can you direct me to the official Sony Support channel that you mentioned? Alternatively, If i write a summery of Sony's inadequacies on this occasion, would you be able to escalate it?

Many thanks

Tim

[timbosmart]

Hi Glyn,

I do tend to let these things wind me up I must admit. Is there a perfect corporation though? It all seems a lottery to me.

Good luck. If its any help I just purchased a Toshiba which (so far) is fabulous!

Tim

[Blencogo]

Hi Tim,

If you go to this webpage

http://sonycic.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/1014

You will see the Basingtoke address at the bottom of the page for Sony UK Customer Relations - I would write there.  There is also a contact telephone number.  They will not be dealing with your repair - I would continue to deal with Vaio Link on that - but they are the place for you to write.

Have you heard anything yet about your Vaio?