Newegg RMA Technicians Are Breaking My Returns

dolorousdave

Limp Gawd
Joined
Apr 27, 2012
Messages
219
UPDATE 6/5/2012

Just wanted to update this first post for any coming into this discussion right now. After copying this original post into my review at ResellerRatings.com and on the Newegg Facebook page, I was contacted by a "Public Image" representative at Newegg who offered me a full refund on both motherboards. As of 6/1/2012, I have received both refunds, and my Newegg account suspension was lifted once I canceled the Paypal disputes. While this doesn't make the shady practices allegedly occurring at Newegg any better, it at least resolves my specific issue. I will no longer be shopping at Newegg.com as a result of this entire situation, and feel lucky that I got out of this mess with my money. What a demoralizing experience.


I realize the post subject may be inflammatory to some, but I swear that this is what is happening. Some background:

First, on April 15th, I received an Asus P8Z68-V/Gen3 board that would work great until installed a GTX580 of any type. Tried three different 580s, no video. A 560ti, 7970 and numerous other smaller cards would all work great. Took the board out, checked to be sure there was no damage to the CPU socket, carefully placed the plastic socket cover back on and started the "RMA for replacement" process with Newegg.

Long story short, they denied the RMA stated "customer-caused damage to CPU pins". I received the board back and literally 1/4 of the pins in the CPU socket were completely smashed. No way in the world that I caused this damage.

While waiting on the first RMA, on April 25th, I ordered an ASRock P67 EXTREME4 GEN3 motherboard to replace the Asus board, thinking I'd put the Asus board in another build when it was returned. Received the ASRock board and while the packaging was nice, I wasn't pleased with the board quality. Again, started the RMA process, and didn't even remove the plastic CPU socket cover on this one.

Just received notification today that my ASRock board RMA has been denied due to "Customer-caused damage to CPU pins". ARE YOU KIDDING ME? THIS BOARD WAS NEVER EVEN IN MY COMPUTER, NEWEGG.

All I can think is that the techs over there are intentionally damaging returned motherboards to avoid paying out the refund. I've literally begged their customer service reps to give me an avenue to pursue this with their management. I've pulled my hair out. I've started PayPal disputes on both transactions...but have a feeling that will go absolutely nowhere.

I realize that I'm just kind of yelling into the wind here, but I had to vent somewhere. I've used Newegg for a long time, and built computers for even longer...and I know good and damn well when I've done something stupid and bent pins. This is definitely not one (or two) of those times.

My mind is absolutely blown.
 
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...but this time video your packing process. And take pics.

Then wait.

Then send a note with the evidence, looking for satisfaction. They'll get the hint.

BB
 
I received the board back and literally 1/4 of the pins in the CPU socket were completely smashed. No way in the world that I caused this damage.

Did you ship it back with the plastic cover protecting the pins?
 
I have read at least 5 complaints along these same lines over at NewEgg's Facebook page in the last few weeks, so I don't think you're crazy. If PayPal doesn't rule in your favor can you do a CC chargeback?
 
I have read at least 5 complaints along these same lines over at NewEgg's Facebook page in the last few weeks, so I don't think you're crazy. At this point would a credit card chargeback on both orders be an option?

Well, I've got PayPal disputes open for both transactions--wishing now I had paid with my credit card as a chargeback would be way less painful.
 
Ninja edit on my last post, sorry about that. I didn't notice the mention of PayPal. Anyway, shaming them on Facebook might get them to contact you about it (with the added benefit of maybe driving a few motherboard purchases to Amazon). I've questioned NewEgg's ethics ever since they sent me a PSU that had been repackaged with a previous NewEgg RMA sticker will affixed to the packaging. Only placed two orders with them since that incident and only because I couldn't get the items anywhere else at the time.

ANOTHER NINJA EDIT: I wonder if Kyle could try and bust this with a small investigation? I loved when they went after NewEgg for those fake Intel CPUs...
 
This is why I've stopped using Newegg and use Amazon exclusively for PC purchases. Sorry for your horrible experience with Newegg. Please don't give them any further business and please, others, take heed. Newegg's CS is AWFUL.
 
This is exactly why I pay for everything with a credit card. Sounds like some funny business is going on at newegg and not surprisingly I haven't shopped there in a long time.
 
I've never had a problem with newegg but I have had lots of problems with amazon with getting other peoples rma's. One time they (amazon, not a reseller but directly from amazon) just put someone's rma'ed box inside a new box and sent it to me. It still had their shipping label, and return label on the box on the inside and the item was open and defective. I have received 4 or 5 items from amazon that were obviously opened and returned because they were defective/missing parts and they sent them to me...

So its not like any retailer is free from this.
 
ANOTHER NINJA EDIT: I wonder if Kyle could try and bust this with a small investigation? I loved when they went after NewEgg for those fake Intel CPUs...

That was completely a mistake on Neweggs part. Do you really think they were trying to sell people "pretend" CPU's and get away with it? :rolleyes:

Now this whole pin bending thins, IMHO, would be a good candidate for some sort of investigation. I will for sure be photographing all of my stuff before sending it anywhere for RMA from now on.
 
That was completely a mistake on Neweggs part. Do you really think they were trying to sell people "pretend" CPU's and get away with it? :rolleyes:

It wasn't even really newegg's fault but the distributor that newegg used if I remember correctly?
 
That was completely a mistake on Neweggs part. Do you really think they were trying to sell people "pretend" CPU's and get away with it? :rolleyes:

Now this whole pin bending thins, IMHO, would be a good candidate for some sort of investigation. I will for sure be photographing all of my stuff before sending it anywhere for RMA from now on.

Yes it was a mistake, I know that. But the article was sufficiently entertaining nonetheless ;).
 
Wow I would be livid. Can you file a BBB complaint against them? I would post reviews all over that site telling people about it. I only buy my shit from micro center now so I can open it right then and there to avoid this kind of shit.
 
Wow I would be livid. Can you file a BBB complaint against them? I would post reviews all over that site telling people about it. I only buy my shit from micro center now so I can open it right then and there to avoid this kind of shit.

The problem is that I can't prove they did it. It's like I told the CS rep today, they hold all the cards in this situation and there's absolutely nothing I can do. It's the worst kind of screw-over because they have absolute power in these situations.

The only thing I can do is spread the word and absolutely, positively refuse to buy from them anymore.
 
Well, I've got PayPal disputes open for both transactions--wishing now I had paid with my credit card as a chargeback would be way less painful.

If you do that, can't NewEgg take you to court? I once contemplated doing a CC chargeback and my credit card company (mastercard) told me that they can do it but the other side might open up a civil suit. Even if you won, is preparing evidence and going to court worth your time?
 
I would link the posts of others reporting the same issues on the PayPal case.
 
Well, I reposted this on the Newegg Facebook page and they just responded with "Hello David, we apologize for any inconvenience we have caused. Please send us an inquiry to [email protected] with your sales order number and we will gladly look into this issue for you."

Anyone want to place odds on them actually resolving this to my satisfaction? Or do you think they'll just wait an appropriate amount of time before deleting my post?
 
Threaten to dispute the charge on your credit card if they don't issue a valid RMA within 48 hours. Then do it.
 
Threaten to dispute the charge on your credit card if they don't issue a valid RMA within 48 hours. Then do it.

As I mentioned in my previous post, I can't dispute a card transaction because I used PayPal. I've got two disputes open with them on this, but the first has been open since May 2nd with no movement yet.
 
Wow I would be livid. Can you file a BBB complaint against them? I would post reviews all over that site telling people about it. I only buy my shit from micro center now so I can open it right then and there to avoid this kind of shit.

BBB will only take note of the complaint. They aren't some sort of government entity that can force NE to do anything about the situation.
 
BBB will only take note of the complaint. They aren't some sort of government entity that can force NE to do anything about the situation.

And BBB will only take note of the complaint after you pay them money to do so.
 
That Facebook reply is nothing more than an opening CS reply from a low level rep. It wouldn't hurt to follow up -- it can't get any worse than it is already.
 
I suspect that some CS person or tech is messing up the testing on these and blaming it on the customer.

Think about your average RMA PC tech - he tries to test a board and mashes the pins, destroying a $200 motherboard. Easiest way out is "uh, it was already like that when it got here!"

I've read a lot of issues with the pins on the new boards and it actually made me think twice about going to LGA2011 - it sounds like whether there is a defect or a vendor mistake or whatever - the customer is always at fault and takes the loss.

It's really a product design issue at the heart of it.
 
I just honestly keep hoping that someone over there with a lick of sense will look at these and say, "wait a minute, this isn't right".

And let's be honest here, back in the days when the pins were on the CPU, it was really easy to seat one incorrectly and bend the pins. It would take some really obvious buffoonery to bend the socket pins on these new designs--you'd almost have to drop something on the open socket and grind it around for the pins to go every which way.

The design is still horrid but it's worlds better than it used to be and (you would think) much harder to blame this kind of damage on the customer.
 
LOL to the response to NewEgg's response on FB. I'll be very interested in knowing if NewEgg moderates your complaint away now. Looks like I was right in my estimate on the number of complaints filed in the last few weeks.

NewEgg, do you care to comment on the pattern of complaints where customers are being denied RMAs for the same reason? I have seen a handful of stories JUST like this one in the last few weeks. Prospective customers deserve to know if this is a trend we can expect from the RMA department in the future.

In the month of May ALONE the SAME type of complaints have been raised by not only David but by Latney Hoagland, Paul Kordana, Bryan McBurney, Eric Tinseth, and Mathew Volkenant. That is six complaints in three weeks just on Facebook.

There does seem to be a pattern alright. Six complaints, all similar, in just May alone.
 
I just honestly keep hoping that someone over there with a lick of sense will look at these and say, "wait a minute, this isn't right".

And let's be honest here, back in the days when the pins were on the CPU, it was really easy to seat one incorrectly and bend the pins. It would take some really obvious buffoonery to bend the socket pins on these new designs--you'd almost have to drop something on the open socket and grind it around for the pins to go every which way.

The design is still horrid but it's worlds better than it used to be and (you would think) much harder to blame this kind of damage on the customer.

Although, it is significantly easier to straighten out CPU pins than motherboard socket pins, unless you just broke the pin completely off the CPU, which would take considerable force in my experience. I once tried to put in an AMD CPU the wrong way, two pins ended up going in the same hole. Straightened it out with a mechanical pencil, and it was good to go.
 
I've compiled some of the similar complaints on that page from the last month:

Latney Hoagland
So Newegg has gone down the road of claiming that things are damaged so they don't have to process RMA's now good to know. I guess it is time to write them off for my needs if your going to force me to go to the maker of the product to get RMA work done then I might as well open a acct with wholesalers and cut out retailers in one fell swoop.
Hey Newegg.com thanks for nothing, me and my money will go somewhere else. And for the record Newegg.com I've spent over 25k with you since 2002 and you just lost my business over a $240 Motherboard RMA good job!

Bryan McBurney
Very Disappointed with Neweggs RMA!!! I recently purchased a Intel DX79SI Motherboard and it came in defective. The memory and USB 3.0 did not work. Called for a RMA and they sent the new board, 32 days later after they received their board back they charge my account and said it was damaged!!! Duh that's why I sent it back it came to me in that shape. I have purchased thousands of dollars of parts from them in the past but if this is the way they treat their customers then I have purchased my last part from them!!!!! It sucks and is wrong. Big rip off! I could send anything back and they say oh well it was damaged.

Eric Tinseth
NewEgg needs to take a look at their return policy.
I spent close to $2,000 with them to build a system for a client... Never worked...many BSoDs. After much troubleshooting, determined it was a bad stick of RAM. Three of the contacts were damaged. I opened an RMA and specifically mentioned the damage to the rep on the phone. Was told it would be no problem. Sent back and they denied the RMA. Told me that they do not accept damaged RMA. It arrived damaged!!
I've been working in IT for 20 years and have built many systems and take all of the precautions (ESD, etc.).
Purchased more memory in the meantime to make client happy but now I'm out $ because NewEgg will not honor the sale they made to me.
Very disappointed. Going to go back to Fry's Electronics. They've never accused me of fraud.

Mathew Volkenant
I am writing this review on the customer service I received in regards to this product. I am quite furious with NewEgg. This CPU was defective upon receiving it along with my motherboard. So I requested a RMA. After 2 weeks they had received the product and inspected it. NewEgg refused to grant me a RMA for the CPU. They said upon receiving the product it was severely damage and they were shipping it back to me denying my claim. So I called them up to inquire. I was on the phone for over a hour. NewEgg refused to do anything about it. They continually stated that I needed to contact the manufacturer. They told me that because the pins were broken they could not accept the product back. They told me that it was lose in the package when it was received. I know for a fact that it was not broken prior to leaving. I had it packed in all the original casing. Nothing was broken prior to it leaving my house and being shipped out.

I find it pretty sad how a company could pride themselves of customer service and then not live up to their expectations. To take it a step further, the message I received from NewEgg in my email, was another slap in the face. They accused me of improperly installing the CPU. How can you not only deny a claim, but then have the audacity to make such a statement. They said "might be due to improper installation". The fact that you even state that is very disrespectful. I spent over a hour on the phone with NewEgg and they said the same sentence at least 25 times. You must contact the manufacturer, we are unable to do anything. And that is not the worse part. Through my conversation with the manager, I got the sense that If I lied about how the product came to me. They probably would have been able to replace the part with broken pins. And the manager I spoke to hinted to that numerous times. I am an honest man, and I would never do something like that. It is morally unacceptable.

Ben Reardon
Don't buy from newegg, Go tigerdirect or microcenter. They said I damaged a motherboard that I returned when I hadn't opened the damn box even. Now I'm out $300 and stuck with a LGA2011 socket mobo I have no processor for.
 
Ouch. I will definitely keep this in mind and will purchase more parts elsewhere.
 
After my last motherboard RMA experience with NewEgg this thread is basically the last straw for me too. I seriously hope this complaint is addressed or I'll be moving NewEgg's share of my orders (~10%, down from 95% in 2010 because of my own RMA hells) to Amazon whenever I can.

More complaints @ Reseller Ratings for you, also in the last month. May or may not be overlapping with NewEgg's FB posts...

nyam on 5/16 said:
"You can easily find people complaining about RMA issue with Newegg. But story is pretty much the same.
When you receive defective item, of cource you request RMA, but Newegg will tell you that it was damaged and can't replace it.
They knew in the first place that item was not fully functional. To keep your money all they have to do is damage it intentionally and send it back to you and keep the money.
I thought damage occurred on that defective motherboard during shipment. But after finding more people have exact same story, they do the damage. Some people described damage that impossible unless someone throw to the wall. That kind of damage.

Another problem is that I purchased Intel motherboard from Newegg in April of 2012 and called Intel about the warranty. They told me it is out of warranty in 2009.
They sold me defective junk and lied about the warranty.
I have kept all emails and chat script with Newegg and Intel.
until someone stop them, they keep doing this to the people."

MSV123 on 5/3 said:
"I am writing this review on the customer service I received in regards to this product. I am quite furious with NewEgg. This CPU was defective upon receiving it along with my motherboard. So I requested a RMA. After 2 weeks they had received the product and inspected it. NewEgg refused to grant me a RMA for the CPU. They said upon receiving the product it was severely damage and they were shipping it back to me denying my claim. So I called them up to inquire. I was on the phone for over a hour. NewEgg refused to do anything about it. They continually stated that I needed to contact the manufacturer. They told me that because the pins were broken they could not accept the product back. They told me that it was lose in the package when it was received. I know for a fact that it was not broken prior to leaving. I had it packed in all the original casing. Nothing was broken prior to it leaving my house and being shipped out.


I find it pretty sad how a company could pride themselves of customer service and then not live up to their expectations. To take it a step further, the message I received from NewEgg in my email, was another slap in the face. They accused me of improperly installing the CPU. How can you not only deny a claim, but then have the audacity to make such a statement. They said "might be due to improper installation". The fact that you even state that is very disrespectful. I spent over a hour on the phone with NewEgg and they said the same sentence at least 25 times. You must contact the manufacturer, we are unable to do anything. And that is not the worse part. Through my conversation with the manager, I got the sense that if I lied about how the product came to me. They probably would have been able to replace the part with broken pins. And the manager I spoke to hinted to that numerous times. I am an honest man, and I would never do something like that. It is morally unacceptable. "
 
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Thanks for mentioning ResellerRatings--I've posted this issue there as well. Might as well let other folks know about the horrible treatment I and others have received regarding this specific motherboard issue.
 
Aaaaand, just got a call from Mark @ Newegg stating they had seen my review on ResellerRatings.com and would like some additional information. He said he'd do some further investigation and give me a call back in about 20 minutes.
 
If you don't mind my suggesting this -- try to get everything in writing and encourage Mark to contact you via email. That way you have proof if the manure hits the air moving device. I would also encourage you to NOT delete your comments at RR or FB should this be resolved, and do not accept any terms that involve you having to remove those comments.

BTW, I still don't see your comments over at RR...
 
If you don't mind my suggesting this -- try to get everything in writing and encourage Mark to contact you via email. That way you have proof if the manure hits the air moving device. I would also encourage you to NOT delete your comments at RR or FB should this be resolved, and do not accept any terms that involve you having to remove those comments.

BTW, I still don't see your comments over at RR...

They're probably still in the moderation process. He said he saw them over at RR. I'm definitely not going to retract my comments--I've already decided I'll offer to edit them with the updated information if the situation is resolved to my satisfaction.
 
I think 'append' might be more accurate than 'edit'. ;)

Seems like RR has a mechanism that alerts companies to bad reviews before they even become public? Interesting.
 
I think 'append' might be more accurate than 'edit'. ;)

Seems like RR has a mechanism that alerts companies to bad reviews before they even become public? Interesting.

I wonder if there's a "this has been resolved" button they can press that makes them disappear? And yes, append is definitely the more appropriate word.
 
I've never had problems with Newegg personally but if this were I would be livid as well. I would file claims where I need to. BBB, credit card company, paypal you name it. I hope it works out for you.
 
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