Anyone who has ever bought anything from eBay or Craigslist knows to beware of scams trying to rip off those hard-earned dollars. I’ve even known people who video record themselves opening packages, to chronicle the delivery condition of shipped items. (Not sure if it would actually help in a dispute, but it makes them feel better.)
Of course, you’d never need to do this with purchases from big box retailers, right? Well, depends on who you ask. When one Ypsilanti, Michigan woman opened her shiny, shrink-wrapped package of iPad goodness from Walmart, she discovered… an actual pile of paper pads inside the box. (Seems someone has a sense of humor, no?) Thing is, this wasn’t even a shipped item. The tablet was actually bought on-location at a brick-and-mortar store. When the Michigan mom tried to return the product, no one bought her story — not the store manager, who rebuffed her attempt at a refund, nor the cops, who dubbed the scenario “not credible.” The would-be iPad owner even approached Apple, who also turned her away.
But wouldn’t you know, according to a Michigan Fox TV affiliate, this wasn’t the first time this has happened. Another woman in a nearby town bought an iPad from Walmart, and found legal pads sitting in that box too. So with that in mind, Walmart had no choice but to reassess the Ypsilanti woman’s complaint and give her money back.
Was it a scam? Were these women in cahoots? Or is there an iPad fulfillment employee with a snarky sense of humor somewhere in the supply chain? There’s no way to know. But let it be a warning anyway: If you buy expensive devices, even from a major retailer, open that sucker up pronto and make sure it’s the real deal. (You may even want to do it at the point of purchase.)
Have you ever gotten a nasty — or unbelievably “uncredible,” but totally legitimate — surprise from a tech purchase?
[via The Consumerist]
Customers say they got notepads, not iPads: MyFoxDETROIT.com
