A little while back I posted on my lousy customer service experience with my XBox 360. In that post, I included a rough timeline of the events and facts that took place. I actually got my console back yesterday, but not before some other interesting dialog with more customer service reps. Here is a full, final list of everything that took place:
- XBox 360 console breaks
- I promptly receive a shipping box from XBox in about 3 days
- I send my console in and UPS states it is delivered on 9/12/2007
- I check the status of my repair online at service.xbox.com and note that it has arrived at the service center
- I check the service site again and notice that the serial number of my console under repair has changed.
- I call customer service to find out why the serial number has changed. I am told that my console may have been "swapped" with a repaired/new one, but they aren't allowed to tell me for sure. I am also told that my console, or a working/repaired one, will arrive at my house on 9/20/2007 or 9/21/2007.
- According to service.xbox.com, I no longer have any XBox devices registered with my Live ID. I'm sorry, did I just lose my Xbox 360?
- The 20th and 21st pass. I receive an email on 9/23/2007 saying that my console has arrived at the repair center.
- On 9/23, I call customer service to find out why I was just notified that the device arrived at the repair center, when in fact it was delivered on 9/12/2007. I also ask about why I was told that I would receive it by 9/21/2007 and it hasn't arrived.
- On 9/23, I am told that my console will arrive within three business days. I am given a UPS tracking number to track the shipment.
- I check the tracking number on UPS.com, and it is the old tracking number from the original shipping box that was sent to my house prior to 9/12.
- I call customer service back on 9/23 and tell them that I was given the incorrect tracking number for my shipment. I am told that my console has not been shipped and that it is still at the repair center. There is no tracking number. The rep does not know when my console will be shipped. I wanted to ask about why service.xbox.com says that I no longer have any devices, but what's the use?
- On 9/24/2007, I go to the service site and my console shows up as "Device Shipped to Customer". A tracking number is shown along with a carrier name of "WATT". My console is finally going to arrive!
- On 9/25/2007, I check back on the service site and my console is no longer listed: "No registered devices". The tracking number has disappeared. Assuming the carrier "WATT" is "Watkins" (which is now FedEx), I try the tracking number on FedEx.com, but it doesn't work.
- I call support on 9/25, and they say that my console has not been repaired and it is still "under evaluation". The console will be shipped up to three weeks from the receiving date, which was 9/12/2007. They say to call back at the beginning of next week (after the 3 week period) if I want more information.
- On 9/26/2007, I receive a call from UPS saying a package will arrive tomorrow.
- On 9/27/2007, an XBox 360 console is delivered to me (not my original one, which was expected.
Explain this to me: since my package was not shipped to me with a "next day" service, how did it jump from an "under evaluation" status on 9/25/2007 to being ready to be delivered to my house on 9/26/2007? I find it hard to believe that customer service couldn't have known that my repair was either shipped or ready to be shipped on 9/25 - one day before UPS notifies me that it will be delivered. It took more than three days to ship the console to the repair center - you'd think it'd take more than 1 day to send it back without "next day" service.
XBox repair customer service wreaks of incompetence. As I've stated before, either the reps don't have the capacity to do their jobs, they have been trained poorly, or they have invalid data to provide to the customer. If any or all of those things are true, then Microsoft needs to stop attempting to provide visibility into their repair process until they fix something.