vB Easy Archive - Deep dissatisfaction with Nokia USA repair

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Deep dissatisfaction with Nokia USA repair
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Posted by: mec31

I finally took the plunge and purchased an E70-2. When it died after 4 days (!), I opted to return it to Nokia for repair rather than return it to the retailer. I figured that way I could get it fixed, insure it had the latest firmware, etc.

Today marks _one month_ after it was checked into Nokia's repair system. To make matters worse, its status has been "awaiting replacement" since March 7!

Needless to say, I consider this level of service appalling. It seems to be a clear message that US customers aren't a priority for Nokia. One would think that a purchaser of an unsubsidized premium Nokia device would be accorded better service. I was half expecting an advance replacement. After all, carriers do that (Cingular does, anyway) and you're basically a captive of the carrier. An unsubsidized purchaser has options and you would think Nokia would recognize that.

Does anyone have any inside contacts at Nokia, similar to the 'office of the president' type of thing you see here for the carriers? I sent a (paper) letter to Nokia USA, and basically received content-free boilerplate in return. Perhaps a letter to Finland might get some response.

Posted by: riel

Wow mec31 I'm really sorry to hear that.. Like you said, I too would expect better from Nokia. One month? That is extremely disappointing.

Have you tried calling in and asking for the highest person up? Speak to them directly and tell them your situation.

Posted by: mec31

That's part of the problem. The repairs are performed by a turnkey subcontractor. All interaction with them is accomplished by phone. While you do get live agents, they are rigidly held to a script and do not deviate at all. You can escalate, but you have just escalated within the subcontractor. They have no contact at all with Nokia.

Posted by: neb1211

Which repair facility did you send your phone to?

Posted by: Argento

Contact Nokiausa headquarters. That would be your best option.

Posted by: pauldg

Quote:

Originally Posted by mec31

It seems to be a clear message that US customers aren't a priority for Nokia.

looks like some1 never got that memo lol j/k (not really)

I remember sending phones to Nokia's repair center in MN (Etonix, i believe) before XBM and they were never that fast, nor that thorough. 4-6weeks was an average, but it often took longer

Posted by: Rcadden

Same here with my 6170 a long time ago. a month and a half later.

Darla Mack has posted on this several times, and I have a firm belief that as soon as Carriers stop offering XBM (since they shouldn't be, anyways) then the manufacturers will have to step up and own up to their products.

Until then, you're pretty much at their mercy. This is why I don't see the point everyone freaks out that they don't have a US warranty with their imported Nokias. It's not worth much, anyways, why pay more for it? In the future, buy from (and use) retailers that offer their own warranty replacement, where they send you a new device and then they deal with Nokia themselves.

Posted by: SimpleKindaMan

I've been dealing with cell phone repairs from several manufacturers for over five years. Nokia is BY FAR the worst I have seen in regards to length of time it takes to repair their handsets. I've seen them take up to 4 months to return phones. The good thing, though, is that they're all fixed by Americans. No outsourcing. And Nokia always does great repair work, or they'll replace it if they can't diagnose it. They always try to repair it first, though, unlike LG or Kyocera who promptly send out replacment units.

Posted by: Rcadden

Quote:

Originally Posted by SimpleKindaMan

They always try to repair it first, though, unlike LG or Kyocera who promptly send out replacment units.

IMO, though, specifically for cellphones, they SHOULD send out a replacement immediately. One of the few things I like about Cingular is their XBM service. You call them up, they send you a replacement, and in the box is a label for you to send your broken device back to them. There's never a point at which you're completely without a device. And the whole matter is handled with next-day service. That's how it should be with a device that people depend on.

Posted by: drewyehboi

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rcadden

This system is very easy to take avantage of, and I think the manufacturers aren't willing to take the risk.

Posted by: Rcadden

Quote:

Originally Posted by drewyehboi

This system is very easy to take avantage of, and I think the manufacturers aren't willing to take the risk.

I don't think so. Here's the deal:

You call Nokia, say hey, my phone's messed up and it's still under warranty. They ask for the IMEI, which they check in Nokia's already-existing database that determines warranty eligibility. It checks out, they get your credit card info and send you out a phone. On the call, you authorize them to charge your credit card for the retail value of the device (given to you over the phone)

Basically them saying, we've checked to make sure that your device is within the warranty period, but if you send us something you dunked in water or drove over, we're going to charge you for the one we send you.

Posted by: SimpleKindaMan

Quote:

Originally Posted by drewyehboi

This system is very easy to take avantage of, and I think the manufacturers aren't willing to take the risk.

They, of course, check the phone for damages before sending out a replacement.

Posted by: mec31

Here are some answers to questions posed:

--The repair facility used by Nokia USA is Teleplan in Chanhassen, MN

--I did send a snail mail to Nokia USA in Texas. I received useless boilerplate from "Oscar" telling me that I could get my phone repaired by going to nokiausa.com. The response was useless, and reflected the fact that my letter had not even been read.

This lack of any real support at all for a North American unsubsidized purchaser of a premium device is stunning. Why does Nokia even pretend to serve this market?

Posted by: Dr Tran

One month? I sent my N90 back in for repair 2 months ago!

I'm lucky my dad didn't like his N73 and gave it to me. He went back to his 6682 because he couldn't read the tiny fonts on the N73.

Posted by: Argento

Quote:

Originally Posted by mec31

Here are some answers to questions posed:

--The repair facility used by Nokia USA is Teleplan in Chanhassen, MN

--I did send a snail mail to Nokia USA in Texas. I received useless boilerplate from "Oscar" telling me that I could get my phone repaired by going to nokiausa.com. The response was useless, and reflected the fact that my letter had not even been read.

This lack of any real support at all for a North American unsubsidized purchaser of a premium device is stunning. Why does Nokia even pretend to serve this market?

There are about 2 repair centers Nokia uses. Chanhassen, Palco in Alabama and your best option is to speak to NokiaUSA texas over the phone. Your letter probably was read but legal issues factor in to every response.

Posted by: mec31

Argento, do you have any specific information in this area?

The reason I ask is that I have spoken with Nokia USA in Texas many times. All of the interactions have been highly scripted on their side, and none of them has resulted in any action. The progression so far has been this:

--until the 'estimated turnaround time' has been reached, they basically read and re-read their script.
--once your phone has passed this magic date, you are able to 'escalate'. In my case, this means transfer to another person who reads from a different script. This person had no power of any kind. In my questioning, I was able to determine that they did not work for Nokia, and they were physically located in Miami. I don't know where the first level people were located.

If there are contact people at Nokia USA that operate outside of this 'procedure', I haven't found them, and I seriously doubt they are available by escalation of a call to the published number. Do you have any other contacts?

Thanks for any information!

As another poster noted, one would think that Nokia support for purchasers of premium devices should at least receive service similar to Cingular XBM. After all, Nokia has got to realize that during this interminable period of limbo, the user is probably using a non-Nokia product as backup. One would think they have an interest in keeping a Nokia product in the customer's hand.

Posted by: mec31

Wow, this just keeps getting stranger and stranger. When I called in today, I apparently jumped through a hoop for a higher level of escalation. This one is called 'ERT', which might stand for something like 'Executive Resolution Team' (they said the name, I just forget what it was).

Their bottom line was "We have no idea when we will have any more E70-2 units. You can either continue to wait or I can refund your purchase price, minus adjustments for usage."

Wow. I guess I should be grateful for that, but I would actually prefer a working E70. Perhaps I should take the hint and get the refund.

It almost seems like Nokia was testing the waters in north america and released what amounts to a prototype.

Very strange.

Posted by: Darkknight7749

Actually....there has been a gradual phase out of repairs by Nokia in the US. Phones are for the most part returned to a Logistics Services provider where they are sorted.
Depending on the levl of repair requirements, the phones could (very likely) be shipped to a repair facility in Mexico, close to the Texas border........

Posted by: Dr Tran

Bah.
They're sending me a check because they couldn't find ANY replacements.
They would have sent me something new but the stores are sold out. Huh?
If I went to the store in Chicago or New York, I'm sure I would find an s60 phone for sale.

I'm convinced Nokia is an umbrella corporation and all the sub-companies dont know how to talk to each other.

Posted by: mec31

Yes, I brought up the corporate flagship stores to the 'Executive Replacement Team'. I could have been speaking Swahili for all the good that did me.

Nokia has set up a completely inadequate 'repair' procedure, and staffed it with people who have absolutely no latitude to make something right. Not only is there no customer focus, there is terrible customer abuse. It is the most mystifying and troubling experience I have ever had with a 'name' corporation.

Posted by: dingobiatch

Okay, so just so you know my story with my E70-2.

Sent it in for repair because the joystick stopped working.
Called numerous times over two months, they kept saying it was waiting for parts. Finally, after I really *****ed them out (keep in mind, this is TWO MONTHS later), they say "Okay, so this is the deal. We don't have the parts, and we don't have a replacement phone either. We can send you a check though. But if it has been 30-days past the purchase of the phone, the check amount will be less than retail price of the phone."

They ended up giving me $400 (I paid $450...). I don't know why I didnt fight it more, I was just sick of it. Now I have an n73.

Posted by: mec31

When did you go through the process?

This supports my suspicion that Nokia released what amounts to a prototype in the E70-2, and has no intention (or capability) of supporting it. This is not to say it's not a great phone when it works, but lack of any support is a deal breaker.

Posted by: mec31

I've taken another step along the path toward what Nokia considers resolution. I have requested a refund. ERT tells me that they should send along a check in 4-6 weeks. I wonder if there is anyone out there that has had a positive repair experience for an E- or N- series phone (or dare I say any Nokia)?

Posted by: mec31

My oddyssey on this matter has ended. Here are two points I would like to make:

--I was made relatively whole (disregarding my downtime), as Nokia sent a check for 100% of the purchase price, minus shipping. Seems cheap of them, but there is another point. I only received 100% because I had used the phone for fewer than 30 days. Beyond that point, Nokia would only have made a pro-rated refund. So, entirely at their own choice, Nokia reserves the right to make prorated cash refunds instead of making repairs. This is during the warranty period. Breathtaking. It seriously calls into question the strategy of buying unbranded handsets, at least from Nokia. So the choice seems to be this: 1. Take a branded handset and live with the branding compromises, but have the advantage of Cingular XBM for one year, 2. Roll the dice with an unbranded phone.

--Since the last time I looked (about a week ago), the E70 has been removed from availability from both nokiausa.com and letstalk.com. That is strange as I spoke with the folks at Letstalk, who told me they had several hundred E70s in stock. Perhaps my earlier suspicion was true, namely that the E70-2 amounted to a prototype released to the market that Nokia had no intention of supporting, at least in North America.

However you slice it, the whole episode depicts Nokia's shocking disregard for individual customers in North America. Nokia appears to have issues with both the carriers (witness the dearth of S60 handsets offered by NA carriers, not to mention the saga of the N75 on Cingular) and also with individual customers (the experience detailed in this thread).

Posted by: cg219

Yea your episode is making me wonder about purchasing the phone now. Hmmmm, I might just go with my previous choice and just get the K790a (SE). Im not liking this whole ordeal and 450 is something to play with.

I have spoke with a rep over at the Nokia Store in NYC a couple weeks ago. I was all excited and telling my girlfriend that this is the phone Im getting and stuff and blah blah blah. I was going to get it in 2 weeks. THen the Rep tells me, " Lemme tell you this, You should hurry up with that purchase if you really want it. We only have 10 left in the store and after those are sold, we arent getting any more" . I asked her if they are discontinued or something. SHe said no, Nokia just isnt sending them anymore. Preatty freaking suspicious to me. I shoulda kept on going with it, she probably would have spilled the beans. But I was getting hungry lol

Posted by: Dr Tran

Quote:

Originally Posted by mec31

2. Roll the dice with an unbranded phone.

On the bright side, most Nokia phones are rock solid and you'll have to roll snake eyes to get a dud.

Posted by: k20dc5

instead of repair, you should of went with the nokia exchange program, i called in about a fault 8801, did so paper work and nokia sent me the new phone via fedex overnight shipping....very satisfied with their CS

Posted by: mec31

How did you access that service?

Under 'Support' on nokiausa.com, you first have to go through a troubleshooting section, but the next stop after that is contact 'Nokia Care Contact Center'. And those were the folks that kicked off my nokia repair odyssey.

Posted by: Adi23

Hmm well all I can say is that ive dealt with Nokia USA three times and have always gotten back my phones SUPER fast. Which is not to discount any of the discouraging things being said about them by other posters.

mec31, maybe you need to try the 'run-down' approach email them, call them, write them and express your dissatisfaction.

Posted by: mec31

I did all of that. I sent three snail mail letters, two to Nokia USA and one to the CEO in Finland. I received one response, from the Response Center in Florida. It was a content-free piece of boilerplate, signed by a 'first names only' rep. The Response Center was a pretty poor organization. Every contact with them was unsatisfying in that they were clearly reading from scripts, and had no latitude of any kind (even to reveal anyone's name). I think they knew their service was poor, and their procedures were optimized to make the best of things.

I suppose it's also possible that levels of service are different for different product lines. It could be that for a low volume product, there really is no service available.

I'm still interested to learn about the exchange program. There was no mention of it when I went through the system, and I can find no trace of it on the nokiausa website.

Posted by: Sylverlee

Quote:

Originally Posted by k20dc5

instead of repair, you should of went with the nokia exchange program, i called in about a fault 8801, did so paper work and nokia sent me the new phone via fedex overnight shipping....very satisfied with their CS

I'd be very interested in knowing how you got in on this "exchange program", is there a link on their website or anything?

Posted by: Sylverlee

Are you still here K20DC5?

Posted by: Argento

The exchange program only applies to the 8801

Posted by: Sylverlee

How do you get in on this exchange program? I emailed Nokia support and they said they never heard of anything like that..

Posted by: cg219

Maybe that person just made up the story