More Trouble Canceling HP Orders

I wrote a post a couple months ago about how difficult it was to cancel an order I had JUST made for an HP computer, and how when I complained on the phone to the HP salesperson, his justification was that it was "industry standard," which really pushed my buttons -- as the logic is "I am going to treat my customers badly just because everyone does."

It seems that their systems remains the same. I got a note from Michael Wellman from Washington, titled "HP Hocus Pocus." Here is Michael's note:

Dear Bob,

 I am going through almost the exact thing you have suffered at the hands of HP.  Right down to my complaint about not having a way to cancel the order on line.

I placed my order on Dec 17 and I tried to cancel several times beginning on the 19^th.  I finally talked to “Mark” at HP Home on Thursday Dec 21.  He said he would “try” to cancel the order, and HP would contact me within 48 hours.  Today, Dec 25, I got an email that the order had shipped from Shanghai, China. I have also been a loyal HP Customer for over 30 years, and feel the entire system is designed so that you cannot cancel an order.  And in this case, the order was not supposed to ship until Jan 12, 2007 anyway.  Do you suppose they put a rush on it to prevent it from getting canceled?

I am not sure what is going on at HP, but I find this discouraging because I have been to loyal to HP for a long time and think it is a great company. And one of the reasons they have passed Dell, I am told, is that they have better customer service.  I would like an explanation from HP, and more than anything else, I would like them to fix it. I worked for years with former HP executive Corey Billington, who was a supply chain guru within HP, and at least if they still have the same level of talent and loyalty to HP, I am confident that they can figure out how to fix this problem -- if they want.

Michael, thanks for letting me post your email. Let's see if we can get an answer -- and better yet -- some changes from HP!.

Comments

[wholesale electronics]

the frist thing i want to say, i want to leave my frist comment here.I don't know if the blog owner would see it or not.i must say i like this blog very much. i read every post the author write.in fast, I like the author much more than the post.
thanks.
so,my e site http://www.super-e-world.com/ offen refer it.

[cheap computers]

I got a real life experience trying to cancel an order which HP double-charged me for.

[Cheap Computers]

HP has decreased the level of their customer service but it is now far better then Dell at this level too......That's why I always suggest to use HP......
http://www.electrocomputerwarehouse.com

[Paul]

So I have a story for you. I ordered a computer off the hp website. I decided to cancel it after four hours. Called in to cancel the order and was told they "maybe" can cancel but they didn't know. I asked to speak with a supervisor. He told me the exact same thing. This conversation lasted about an hour and a half. I then called the HP corporate office number and talked to an executive customer care rep and he told me the same thing. Yup, hp maybe great.

[Bri]

Hi, I just ordered an HP tx2500z 4 hours ago and 2 hours after I ordered it, I wanted to cancel the order. My mom called the company and argued with a sales person for over 30 min and he said that we will get notified in 24-48 hours of our order was canceled. Well my mom's billing cycle ends tomorrow so we need it to be canceled TODAY. So she called back and talked to a different person and they offered us a $100 off the laptop but they still won't let us cancel today! Keep in mind that this is merely TWO hours after we ordered! I hate HP!

[charlotte]

Hi i have a problem with course i took on thinking it will get me a job at the end of it. It has been advertised on the television aswell, ring a bell yet,its Computeach. Well one problem i have with it is that you cant cancle it.But yet they want a total paymount of £7,150.20.This is over 5years.Out this i only recived a folder which i could have bought a book similar to this at £35. It only as questions about in and out of a computer.Sorry to say but when i asked about this to guy who looks like a sales person, he said you we start you of on a foundation level to get you started.But when i look at some of the questions, it looks at aiming at alot higer person with a degree.

[Tony]

Hi

I did not know this is how bad is. I got a real life experience trying to cancel an order which HP double-charged me for.

I ordered an Notebook Recovery Disc. The browser hung for almost 10 minutes. Then I closed it and re-open another browser to re-order (replace the order).

I have included what I got from HP order status website.

» LKH985-01
Model number: 438958-001
Serial number: CNF6250F1N
Entry Date: 10/20/2007
Ship Date: 10/22/2007
Receive Date:

» LKJ008-01
Model number: 438958-001
Serial number: CNF6250F1N
Entry Date: 10/20/2007
Ship Date: 10/22/2007
Receive Date:

[Bob Sutton]

Nisus,

Thanks for adding your story, although, alas, I am not sure Dell is any better. Note also that someone from HP called and left me emails, because he wanted to talk to me about concerns raised on this blog. I suggested that he write a comment here on response, and I never heard back from him. HP is doing better in many ways, I hope they are listening to their customers too.

[Nisus]

5/23/07
Hi:
There are other things wrong. I have an HP. I went to google something, my screen was filled with an ad telling me to buy their HP anti-spyware brand right now, and there was no way to back out. I called the company, and was told that the programs I have do not protect me properly. I told the tech that I do not want their spyware protection, I don't need it, and if I did, I don't want theirs, and I don't want their ad on my machine. He started off telling me to hit Ctrl/Alt/Del, which I do not like doing, and should not have to. He ended up telling me that since I did not have their anti-spyware, it was not their problem. I got rid of their ad on my own. I then went to google and typed in "HP assholes," and got 210,000 hits.
If I ever buy HP anything again, I should be shot.

[Bob Sutton]

Jeff,

I agree with your hunch about the MRP system. But it is also interesting how often "industry standard" means that "we make it really easy to take your money, and make it really hard for you to get it back."

[jeff angus]

I think it's a tactical error (akin to "too much passion") to invest cred in the company that now calls itself HP. It isn't even remotely the company that won the loyalty/respect of so many.

Management is radically different. Staff is quite different. Mission is entirely different. Businesses are mutated some. Logo is the same.

It's just not the same company, and therefore it merits only the credibility/affection/respect it engenders in its current incarnation.

I got treated respectably by them just a couple of months back. At 11.25 months of a 12 month warranty, the screen on my Compaq laptop failed. They let you know right up front if they decide it' owner's fault, you'll pay a trillion dollars, but if a manufacturing flaw, they will do it for free. They have zero direct financial incentive to be straight about it. They acknowledged it was a manufacturing flaw.

SO they ARE capable of making customer-favring decisions.

Given that, I'll toss you an educated *guess* as to why their custoservice blows chunks on cancelling an order: their order/MRP system. I see this all the time: software that's complex to change and that the publisher discourages changes to dictates human/organizational behaviors, including self-destructive ones. The people who work in repairs are craftsfolk who play by Queensbury Rules and the MRP system forces the individuals who are in a position to cancel an order to feed its id.

[Bob Sutton]

John,

Thanks, in my case I started trying to cancel the HP order within minutes of doing it, and it took days and many hours on hold before they stopped it. I don't know about Michael's experience, but it took me a long long time to figure out how to cancel the order and I realized it was impossible online.

Thanks,

Bob

[[email protected]]

At Dell, customer care and sales people can cancel orders at any time before shipment. But in all candor, Bob, sometimes an order is shipped before the cancellation request can be processed. I have no way of knowing whether that's behind the situation you've referenced but hopefully Michael can get a definitive answer and a resolution.

[bob sutton]

Thanks for the comments. I am glad that Dell is improving the customer service. If you see this, I wonder, would it be possible to cancel an order like the one above -- which Michael and I found imposisble to do at HP?

[Prashant Morgaonkar]

HP - A great company ??
These are the same people who use chips in their printers to falsely indicate that the cartridge is empty.

[[email protected]]

Hi Bob,

I just came upon your reference to Dell's customer service and thought you'd like to know that we're working on a lot of fronts to regain the leadership we've ceded in this area -- including monitoring blogs. It has turned out to be an effective additional way for us to identify and resolve customer issues.

BTW, I'm glad I checked out your bio because your upcoming book looks like it'll be a great read.

Thanks for letting me drop by.