Of course things couldn't be that easy! TomTom's CSR lied to me and in actuality the TomTom unit CAN NOT be replaced at no-charge.
The issue is getting more problematic as you'll see below. This is a letter I wrote to TomTom after they seemingly closed my issue and marked it "solved" after waisting my time and not delivering on promises.
Garmin looks like my next stop ...
To Whom it May Concern,
I spoke to several representatives over the past week that were not only unhelpful, but also wasted my time.
I spoke to one representative regarding my damaged TomTom unit and he was very helpful. Despite my unit being damaged due to the suction-cup malfunctioning the helpful representative indicated that TomTom would offer me a new TomTom ONE at a discount ($150) if I sent my damaged unit to TomTom first. I told the helpful representative I wasn't sure if I wanted to proceed and he assured me that I could call back at anytime.
I quickly called back a mere two days later and was welcomed by a seemingly helpful representative, which unfortunately placed me on hold for an astonishing 11 minutes before even asking why I was calling. She instead wasted 11 minutes reviewing the notes on my account rather than just addressing or asking why I was calling. After wasting 11 minutes the representative once again asked me to hold without asking me why I was calling. I stopped her and told her not to place me on hold and informed her she should have asked what my problem was first. She agreed and I let her know that I would like to return my damaged TomTom ONE in-order to purchase a discounted TomTom ONE for $150.
After my request, I was placed on-hold for an additional 10 minutes while she verified my request and confirmed the department to which I needed to be transfered. As a seasoned customer service representative myself, it appears employees are doing something else other than their jobs because such a simple request does not take more than a few minutes to fulfill, much less 20+ minutes I wasted with this CSR.
Finally she let me know I needed to speak to some particular department which would process my request. I thanked her and I was sent to the appropriate department.
Of course I couldn't have been sent to the right department, however. After holding for an additional 8 minutes, the CSR finally received my call and I was informed that I was transfered to the wrong department. To make matters worse, the department I needed to speak to was closed for the day. So here I am, nearly 45 minutes of my day wasted when the people I needed to speak to were unavailable for the duration of my call (Oh, did I mention she was specifically told by a Manager named Susan this department was closed? We'll get there soon).
I finally escalated the call to a Senior CSR, acting Manager, or something to that affect. The Manager was very friendly and was familiar with what needed to be done to complete my request (she also confirmed speaking to this unhelpful CSR and she told me she spoke to her moments ago and informed her the department I need was closed!). Her name was Susan as you'll see from the notes on my account and she assured me several times she would conference call herself, me, and the department I needed to speak to at 12:00pm so I wouldn't have another repeat 45 minute waste-of-a-phone-call.
Of course, not to my surprise, the Manager, CSR, Senior CSR, returns department, and anyone else necessary to fulfill my simple request have not called to this day. To my surprise I get an automated e-mail stating my issue is "solved" because I guess TomTom expects it's the customers responsibility to call and keep TomTom CSR's and other phone staff on the tips of their toes.
The operating inefficiency of TomTom is a disgrace and that's probably an under statement. Companies like Garmin do an excellent job handling requests and resolving customer complaints without requiring the customer to call back time-and-time again to get an issue resolved.
Hopefully this e-mail will not fall on deaf ears as all the additional requests of mine have. Perhaps this is an opportunity for TomTom to show me how much they really value their customers, but I won't be holding my breath.
Regards,
Your sincerely unsatisfied customer
xxxxx xxxxxx
xxx-xxx-xxxx