Shopping around the holiday season can be stressful. Not only is one at risk of items selling out, but often, they also must prepare for busy stores, longer-than-usual wait and delivery times, and a host of other issues that can come with end-of-the-year shopping.
Thankfully, some stores reduce the stress of this time by offering generous return policies or price match policies.
However, actually using these policies may not be as easy as one expects, as recently discovered by a user on TikTok.
Why wouldn’t Best Buy honor this price match?
In a video with over 19,000 views, TikTok user Bruce (@watchmytiktocs) recounts what he says is his “worst experience in my 20-plus years of being a Best Buy shopper.”
According to Bruce, he purchased a $3,299 100-inch Hisense UHD QLED TV from Best Buy in October. Along with some other accessories, the total for his purchase came out to around $4,670.
One of the reasons Bruce was comfortable spending this money, he says, is because of the deal a Best Buy worker offered him at the time of purchase, provided that he became a member.
“The salesperson at Best Buy told me, ‘if you become a Best Buy member, which is $50 annually, we will price match any local or authorized dealer as long as it’s not from Black Friday to Cyber Monday,’” he explains. “‘If there’s a lower price between Black Friday and Cyber Monday, we will go ahead and honor the price, but only if it’s a Best Buy price, so no one else qualifies.’”
Luckily for Bruce, he noticed that, after Black Friday and Cyber Monday, Amazon began offering the exact same television at a lower price.
“This television set, which is being sold through the Hisense store on Amazon, being shipped by Amazon and fulfilled by Amazon as well as sold by Amazon, is for $2,599.99,” he states. “This meets their terms and conditions for price matching because it’s an authorized dealer and it’s…being shipped by Amazon.”
Confident that the price match policy would work in his favor, Bruce headed back to the Glendora, California Best Buy to request a price match. His request was immediately denied.
“[A store manager named] Rachel, without even looking at anything…just looked at me and she said, ‘I’m not going to price match it,’” Bruce recalls. “I’m like, ‘Why not?’ She’s like, ‘Well, it’s beyond our threshold.’ I think that was the term she used.”
“I’m like, ‘What do you mean by that?’ She’s like, ‘We’re gonna lose money if we price match, and I’m not gonna price match them,’” Bruce continues.
Stunned, Bruce called customer service, who also told him that this price match would not be honored. Their stated reason was that the Amazon listing was “on sale,” a claim that Bruce found confusing given that Amazon, like many other retailers around that time of year including Best Buy, had many items on sale.
“As a business owner myself, I understand no business wants to lose money, but when you have these policies in place…you should do it,” Bruce shares. “It’s just common sense…especially when you’ve been shopping with the company for over 20 years now.”
Bruce concludes by saying that he’s reached out to other Best Buy workers up and down the corporate ladder and has not found a resolution.
What is Best Buy’s price match policy for members?
According to Best Buy’s website, the company’s Price Match Guarantee allows members to price match their purchases with a list of “Qualified Competitors.” Amazon is on this list.
However, there are some exceptions to this rule. For example, the website states that “special daily or hourly sales” are not eligible for price matching, and The Verge notes that “Best Buy also doesn’t price match discounts that are only available as part of a competing retailer’s membership or loyalty rewards program, which disqualifies member-only events like Amazon Prime Day.”
It’s possible that the discount by Bruce was one of these daily or hourly sales, as the TV is currently on sale via Amazon for $3,199.33.
@watchmytiktocs #bestbuy #hisense #amazon #television #tv #customer #service #bestbuystories #geeksquad #100 #bad #badservice #shopping #walmart #badcustomerservice #greenscreen ♬ original sound – Bruce
Commenters share their thoughts
In the comments section, users expressed their disappointment in both Best Buy and Bruce’s particular situation.
“Your 1st mistake was going to @Best Buy their customer service and actual knowledge about their products is comical,” wrote a user. “They will go out of business because their prices suck.”
“I had a similar bad experience at Best Buy with a Lap Top. Never again,” added another.
“I will never buy an electronic there again,” echoed a third.
The Daily Dot reached out to Best Buy via email and Bruce via TikTok comment.
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