This is not a Rooms To Go bash page. This page was created to educate consumers and to prevent them from having the same headache,stress and unpleasant experiences that I had with this company. Yes, the "No Pay until 2001" is VERY appealing. I mean , that's why went! We had no money, but needed furniture so bad..lol. However, please take the time to read this. If afterwards you feel as if you wasted your time, I apologize, but then again, you might thank me. :)
After reading, please take 10 seconds to answer a question on my Quizzlet. Thanks.

Of all the companies I have dealt with, this place is by far the worst in Corporate Customer Service. The main Customer Service Department people were nice enough to talk to, but when I had to go over their heads to the people more in charge, that's where the unpleasantness began. This time-consuming and stressful series of episodes, was so unreal, that I thought I would share it with the as many people as I could, that were willing to take the time and read.

I am not the only one with a page like this, or an experience like this. Please visit the links at the bottom of the page too. I don't think it's coincidence that SOO many people have a complaint. I have met more people in real life that have had the same type of problems and disservice.

I am also aware that there are many of you that have had nothing but good experiences with this company. I am glad to hear that. Maybe, somewhere, the managers of thier store actually care about the consumer. I wish I would have had your luck.

I am not here to tell you what to do. Shop there, don't shop there. This is just MY experience, and hopefully, people can learn from it. I did.

This is a long story,and I do apologize, but I feel it's worth the time. If I can save you some money and a bad experience, I have done some good. :)

So sit back and get comfortable.
Actually, what I have done here is post a copy of the letter that I sent to the President of the company, Jeffrey Seaman. I NEVER heard back from him. Instead I dealt with his "people", the most inconsiderate people I have ever dealt with. If anything, I hope you read this and learn something or be nice enough to spread the word. Word of mouth is a powerful tool and the internet is the perfect place to use it.Not everything I did or said is posted. Suffice it to say, many conversations were heated and colorful.

Thanks in advance for taking the time to read.

On September 1, 1997, we went to the Rooms To Go at 4315 East Independence Blvd in Charlotte, NC. We purchased a leather couch, chair, ottoman (with a 1-year warranty) and a discontinued display chair with no warranty. Within this purchase was the added price of having the leather bonded, to protect it against spills and the like. We also purchased a coffee table and two end tables. Due to a store promotion, the purchase price of \\$2499.97 was deferred until January 1999. In two weeks time (RTG delivers in days, not weeks! isn't that what the commercials say?) the furniture finally came, without the tables. They were on order and would be delivered at a later date. Upon delivery, the leather chair had a rough spot and the delivery men made a note of it, and took the chair back. We called Customer Service to let them know of this and an exchange was ordered.

The replacement chair arrived on September 29, 1997. Also, the delivery "timetable" was between 4 and 8pm. They arrived 30 minutes late. Being inconvenienced by the tardiness, we called Customer Service and told them this. They credited \\$50.00 to the Visa charge per our request.

When this chair arrived, it had not been protected with the leather- bonding product, so we had to make another service call. The service tech came and sprayed it at our home a week later.
NOTE: A family member, who had ordered the same tables as us, had received them in bad condition, and had forewarned us. We gave Rooms To Go the benefit of the doubt and waited to see if ours would be delivered in the same or different condition. When the tables arrived weeks later, they were dented, scratched, putty-filled and pieces were loose. We called Customer Service AGAIN and had them come remove the tables and issue a credit of \\$305.99 to our account. The pick up took another 10 days.a

By now we were very disturbed with Rooms To Go. After this experience, we called Sandra, the sales representative who had assisted us with our purchase and told her we were now worried about the condition of our furniture. We informed her that we wanted to return it, because now we had a fear of using it because of the apparent poor quality. She insisted that we keep it. She said, "You have a warranty on it, keep it and see what happens." This was within our month to return it. Well, with apprehension, we waited and now this is where we are.

A month ago, after having the couch, ottoman and chair in our house for 6 months, we discovered some problems. The chair's zipper on the back cushion was broken and unable to be zipped closed. The couch has a broken rear spring, that is poking through the backside and the head cushion has ripped apart at the seams. So, once again, a call to Customer Service. They scheduled a repairman to come to the house and look at the damage. He told us he could not repair them and that Customer Service would contact us.

When Customer Service called, days later, we voiced our concerns about our dissatisfaction and requested that we receive a refund on the furniture. We were told that this was not possible, we had to repair it. Customer Service also informed us that they had already set up for repairs.*How nice of them.* After asking how long repairs would take, we were informed of 20 days, taking all the furniture. This is and was unacceptable. Where are our families supposed to sit? For one, they did not ask us if repairs were the option that we wanted. Nor did they have (loaner) furniture to sit on while ours are being repaired.

We asked if we could exchange it, after being made aware that our current furniture was now discontinued, Customer Service said they did not know, and that the approval had only been for repairs. So, we called the Rooms To Go showroom and spoke to a sales representative to see if an exchange was possible. "Yes." he said. So on April 18,1998, against our better judgement, we went to the showroom to see if there was anything we liked.

The only reason we went to look for an exchange was because Rooms To Go Customer Service had said that was one of only two options available to us. The other is to have the repair done. (On furniture we no longer want). In fact they are basically telling us we HAVE to choose between the options. We are being forced into a decision.

So on April 20,1998 we called the corporate office. Jeffrey Seaman, the President of the corporation was conveniently not available. We asked to speak to Nicole Bennett. Instead we spoke to Crystal Rickard. After reaching no solution, she had Lisa Sockwell return our call. Ms. Sockwell told us we have no choice but to choose their options. When I told her we went to reselect and did not see anything, she had the nerve to suggest that we wait 30 days for a new shipment and go look again. Once again making us do something we do not wish to do. Apparently, our satisfaction is not their concern. Ms. Sockwell tells us that because we signed the contract they cannot refund. Well by the end of the conversation, which by now had become heated, she yells at me that she is making a note on our account of "NO REFUND ALLOWED".

Needless to say we are very FED UP and ANGRY. It seems that we were talking to a series of walls at Rooms To Go Customer Service and to the people in the Corporate offices. They have been no help now in making us happy and making us choose on furniture we are unhappy with or a store chain we are now very distressed with, is wrong and bad business policy. They would not compromise themselves in the same or any condition, why should we?

Now I know that it seems Customer Service accommodated us on every issue we had, but we feel that is because no money was involved. The past credits were permitted because contract rules stipulated that if any furniture is delivered in bad condition, a credit is feasible. Now that we are asking to void the contract, they are not as accommodating. Well, we signed that contract in good faith. Our expectations of the company and the quality of furniture were not met. WE ARE NOT SATISFIED. All we ask of Rooms To Go is to take back the furniture and void the contract of \\$1887.99. (Total of leather furniture only). We were willing to let them keep the tax money on this total approx., (\\$113.28) but after this ordeal, we withdraw the offer and want this amounted REFUNDED.

UPDATES

April 21,1998, after being told by 2 customer service reps that once repairs were completed and we were still not satisfied, that they believed we would qualify for a credit. Seeing NO OTHER option, we reluctantly agreed to schedule for repairs to be done. The pick up will be May 7th, once again, weeks later. This way, we feel that BOTH of the only options allowed to us have been met and if we are still not satisfied, that a credit should be obligatory. We will have to wait and see.

April 21,1998. Received a form letter from Lisa Sockwell that stated: and I quote, "Mrs Jones, Rooms to Go would like to apologize for the frustrations and inconveniences that you had felt in your dealings with our company. This information allows us to serve our customers as we continue to grow. Be assured Rooms to Go will take all precautions and steps necessary to ensure this does not happen again. It is our policy and goal to satisfy all of our customers. We are proud of our excellent service and you should expect it at all times.

Please know that Rooms To Go cares about our customers before and after the sale. Providing quality service to you is the most important thing to us. I hope we will be able to serve your furniture needs in the future.

If you have any questions please contact me." Lisa Sockwell Presidential Assistant

(note) This was a FORM letter, there is no way she meant any of this after the way she dealt with me on the phone. Basically I feel she just followed protocol..send a letter to all unhappy customers, in the hopes of making things right.

May 15,1998. RTG Customer Service called and said that our sofa AND chair had been repaired and was ready. What's interesting about this is that they only have our sofa. So when we called to set up a delivery of the sofa and pick up of the chair, we were told the earliest they could get here is May 29th. Fourteen more days! This is absurd! We were told 7-10 days for each piece. Now we are going into weeks, just for the one! We have placed a call to Lisa Sockwell and told her of this. We continue to be dissatisfied with Rooms To Go.

May 19, 1998: We have yet to receive a return call from Ms. Sockwell, left another message asking her to call back.

May 21, 1998: Still no reply, placed another call to Ms. Sockwell.

May 22, 1998: Placed ANOTHER call to Ms. Sockwell and said that we were going to refuse delivery of the couch. I said this in order to get some kind of response from her. It worked.
The purpose of the call was to see if delivery could be any sooner. Later THAT day, Lynn Marie Carpenter returned my call and after telling her the situation, she placed a call to the Repair Shop. The delivery date would stay the same. This could have been avoided had our calls been returned sooner.

May 28,1998: Customer Service called to set a delivery time. She was not even sure of what was going on. I explained to her that it was a pick up AND a delivery. She agreed and made a note and time was set for 8am to 12pm.

May 29,1998: The couch was delivered but the manifest did not list the chair for pick up. So we called Customer Service to let them know that we would not accept the couch unless the chair was taken. We refuse to be inconvenienced again for 3-4 weeks for the chair like we had been with the couch. Dispatch and customer service finally provided pick up numbers for the chair.
So the couch finally comes off the truck and through my front door. It does not even get unwrapped. Immediately I see that the couch is damaged! The bottom was blackened and the leather was scuffed severe enough to reveal the grain and remove the coloring. It did not have this when it left my house. Needless to say, we once again, sent the couch back and did not send the chair. We need something to sit on.

Now, we have looked for an exchange with no results. Against our better judgement, we had it repaired, only be unhappy with the outcome of that. I do not wish to put the chair in for repair and go through the same ordeal.

As you can see, we have spoken to almost every one in your office with the exception of you. We understand that you are a busy man, but we request, that any further dealings with Rooms To Go, would be through you.
NOTE: This never happened.

Mr. Seaman, all we ask of you is to void the contract. Does satisfying one little customer have to be so hard? Dealing with Rooms To Go has been an exhausting and laborious strain on our family and us.

Thank you for you time, and hope to have a response soon.

Mr. and Mrs. XXXXX

Hopefully you understand why I did this. This kind of Customer Service and Quality of Furniture is unacceptable. I wanted others to avoid the headaches I went through. Even if I prevent one person from walking through the doors of a Rooms To Go store, I have succeeded.

I can not stress enough how important it is to research the company you are considering doing business with. Call your local BBB and check out the history. You can also visit the BBB online, at Better Business Bureau and look for any company. Thanks

Please take a moment for the online poll, it's painless I promise.
Thanks

If you would like to spread the word, please take a logo for your webpages.
Please link it back to http://say-no.8m.com

Well it was bound to happen. While surfing the web, I came across other disgruntled consumers. Please visit the links below to read more bad experiences.

Consumer Affairs
Webbox
The Official RTG Hate Page