YOU GO WOMEN U HAVE THE RIGHT TO DO IT I WOULD BE MAD AS HELL IF MY COMP WAS STOLEN WHILE GIVEN TO A TRUSTED STORE WITH IRREPLACEBLE STUFF IN IT . WISH U ALL THE LUCK BEST BUY RIP PEOPLE OFF ALL THE TIME NOW IS TIME FOR THEM TO CONFESS.

what happend to beng honest where are all the honest people gone are there any left? so it sounds bad worded this way so we will say it that way now it doesnt sound so much like a lie and the consumer gets the shaft tho shalt not tell a lie dear jesus we need you to come down and teach these kinda people that a lie is a lie no matter how you word it it still a lie

My brother and his daughter were killed by a defective product. His wife had to listen to her daughter scream as she died. They lost everything and only got $3mil.
$54mil seems to mock those who suffered true losses.

GOOD GOING GIRL, DO YOUR THANG! THESE BIG COMPANIES THINK THEY CAN PUSH PEAPLE AROUND AND LIE TO THEM. ALL IT TAKES IS THE RIGHT PEAPLE TO KNOW WHAT THESE COMPANIES ARE DOING TO THE CONSUMERS FOR THINGS TO GET DONE.BEST BUY ACTS LIKE YOUR THE PROBLEM FOR CALLING AND COMPLAINING (SHAME ON YOU) BEST BUY. I HOPE YOU STICK IT TO THEM, AND LET THEM KNOW THAT CONSUMERS ARE TIRED OF GETTING TREATED LIKE THERE MONEY SPENT AND TIME ISN'T WORTH A LITTLE GD RESPEST.

From the standpoint of customer service, she could'vebeen treated better. But it's her own foolish fault for having so much sensitive stuff on her laptop and not backed up onto DVD. Best Buy is not responsible for her stupidity there.

To Michael Liebmann May 6 question on what happened to this lawsuit--

Case was dismissed back in February, no settlement, plaintiff sanctioned for two hours of defendant's attorney's fee (but no other sanction) according to --
http://blog.nam.org/archives/2008/04/54_million_laws.php

whatever happened to this lawsuit?

I would still like to talk to you in person about BestBuy. I don't know if you received my last message, but I had a very similar situation with BB and I'd like to discuss this with you. Perhaps you could advise me on next step procedures? Please contact me.
Very frustrated,
Cathy

Raelyn, you ROCK!!! Stand up for yourself. If everyone did, customer treatment would definitely improve.

what they should do to settle this is give her money to get a new pc (her choice, but lets say up to 5k) then 1k - 2k for the mistake of losing/lying about it, then lawyer and court costs, plus a good credit monitoring service for say 3-7+ years (figure $20-$40, per month totaling 3500ish max) for a grand total of 10kish for her and then lawyer fees... seem reasonable for a big company plus they did cause the issue in the first place. the only downfall would be the dang bloodsucker lawyer would most likely cost more then the 10k they would give her!

I have been a customer service manager for third party maintenance of computers since 1969. As the years have gone by I have seen the quality of service drop tremendously. The main reason is due to a lack of commitment to responsibility and just plain pride in your work. The technicians care about only getting it out the door. $54M is a lot to be sued for but if the arrogance of Best Buy is worth that amount to Best Buy than so let it be. As a manager it would be better to give an apology and make it right with the customer. Then get proper training for his employees’ the training and pay incentives to be the best service around. This is a time proven methodology that works and saves time, money and customers.

Our boycott of Best Buy has spanned over a decade now! And, for a good part of that decade, my husband (who works on computers) refused to work on a computer for anyone that shopped at Best Buy.

Just prior to our boycott, we purchased memory from Best Buy. Got it home and attempted to install it; only to find out that the contents was not the same as the label on the box. We immediately returned to the store and asked for an exchange. They refused, so we asked for a refund. They further refused stating that we must have removed the original contents and replaced it with something else.

Over the past decade we have purchased thousands of dollars worth of electronics, computer, etc., but not at BEST BUY! I guess that’s what happens when you call your customers liars and thieves.

I have always thought that it was only a matter of time before Best Buy lost all its customers; Miss Campbell’s problem only reassures my thoughts.

I would love to see her win the suit, but the ultimate irony would be for whoever ended up with her personal information to withdraw the $54M from her account after she wins.

People go on ebay and bestbuy sells returned laptops. I have purchased many laptops that where returned by customers of best buy. They are sold broken for repair . the thing is they leave the hard drives inside the laptop with all the customers information on it. I repair laptops on the side and i couldnt belive it. Most people think when the laptop dies the hard drive is dead too.. Wrong. Bestbuy should be removing and destroying these hard drives.. Feel sorry for the customers that return a laptop then have all their info on the hard drive..

Well done on her part. Best Buy is a corporate monster who has no regards towards customer satisfaction...just their own which can be bought with a few pennies put into their pockets.

$54 million is excessive, but it was well executed on her part. Such an exorbitant amount right their will help bring the media hounds down though it won't be paid to her, and bring out to light what Best Buy is really like, torching their consumer numbers.

54 Million just seems like alot but when you compare it to the prices that bestbuy charges for repairs it's nothing. I run a local repair business down in Lexington,KY and have been here for about 5 months. I wish i could charge as much as Geek squad does but i don't. i think for $45/hour and a one hour minimum is reasonable. I shop at best buy alot but i refuse to talk to any of thier sales represntatives. I had to buy RAM from best buy one day for my own personal laptop and they told me i had no idea how to install RAM. Well seeing how i've been working on computers since i was like 13 i knew how they just wanted my money and i said i'd do it myself. Best buy geek squad don't even have the right people to work for them. All tech companies should require at least an A+ certification. I checked and even asked the geek squad down here if all of thier employees were certified. Surprisingly less then 25% of them were. Well that was the end of that i said until you get some better employees to work for you don't even try to sell me services i don't want to use.

Best Buy must make it a policy of telling their employees to lie when backed into a corner. During Christmas return season, I received a DVD set that I already had. There was no indication as to where it had been purchased, and I didn't want to embarrass the gift giver who had been very excited about this particular gift. So I brought it to Best Buy. Since I didnt want to wait in the long exchange line only to find that they couldn't take the item, I brought the DVD to customer service. They said they didn't carry the item in store, but that since it was listed in their database, they could accept the return, and quoted me the value. I selected some other items to buy, and ultimately would end up spending another 40 or so dollars. So I waited for about 45 minutes in the exchange line with my 3 year old, who was on his best behavior since one of the DVDs I was buying was a new cartoon for him. BUT when I got to the counter, the story changed. Now they couldn't take the item. Managers get involved, and start treating me like I'm an idiot for thinking I could return an item they don't carry in the store - my reply was that that was WHY I had asked BEFORE getting into the line. They couldn't seem to get their minds around the idea that I wasn't mad about their return policy, but about having been told contradictory information. In the midst of this, the first clerk who had given me the erroneous information was pulled over and proceeded to lie to my face about what he had said. I threw the DVDs I was going to purchase on the counter and left, all the while informing everyone within earshot not to trust anyone that works here. All while my 3 year old was crying because he now wasn't going to get the DVD he had been so patiently waiting for.

Upside: I went to Target. They didn't carry the DVD. They took it anyway, and for more money than Best Buy had quoted me. And they had the DVD my son wanted in stock.

No, the woman with the laptop probably won't get $54 million. But even 1% of that would be 540,000. And that would not be an unreasonable amount to cover her frustration and the duplicity with which I absolutely believe Best Buy treated her.

Good for her. Consumers need to make a stand when it comes to protection of privacy and their personal items. I really hope Raelyn is successful in her quest to find justice for the negligence and unacceptable customer service she received.

Here is some advice when it comes to taking a computer in for service, from an IT professional:

First, BACK UP YOUR DATA! Let me say this again because so many seem to miss this simple step: BACK UP YOUR DATA!. This will not prevent identity theft, but you must have two copies of your data on two devices, preferably in different locations. This way, if the computer is stolen, lost or the drive gets erased, you still have a copy of your valuable information. You can always reinstall your OS and programs, but you can't recreate photos and important documents.

Second, if your machine is in for hardware repair such as the power switch that does not require your drive be accessed, have the technician remove the drive from your computer and let you take it home with you. Be sure they place it in an anti-static bag and treat your drive like it's make of fragile glass. You can have them reinstall it when you go to pick up your machine.

Finally, wherever you take your machine should give you a time frame for repair. Some of the smaller computer shops can offer great service, but always be careful when making a choice.

And again, Back up your data. If you haven't, do it today. Use writable CDs or DVDs, or an external hard drive. Do it. Today. Create a schedule and stick to it.

These are the risks you take in a technical world. If you don't want your personal information out, keep it off your computers. Or encrypt the data. PGP is a good way to keep your stuff secure. Particularly you tax return.

She has a case! She'll get something out of this. For Best Buy, they once made me signed up for their music service Rhasody Music when I purchased an item there. They said it was free, but a month later I discovered my credit card was charged for their service (I didn't use the service at all). So, I had to cancel thru their service/scheme when I received the bill for (I think about $10/month). Initially, the employee didn't explain to me that it would charge me if I didn't cancel with them in time...bad mis-information on their part, to sell this crap to people. They took me for a ride...

I support Ms. Campbell's search for redress in court. Most Americans wish that "customer service" hasn't come to stand for "screw the customer."

I have to say though, that I've had an overall successful shopping experience at my local Best Buy.

I've purchased a lot of from them over the years. I have only returned one item - not due to malfunction, but because I couldn't figure out how to install it. And the service guy agreed that most returns had been due to the difficulty of hooking it up. They refunded the full price with no arguments.

I've had to have service on two items at their service center. The line was long and slow and I felt sorry for the service guys who seemed pretty overburdened. We all know that many electrical devices are poorly designed for non-techy users and these guys hear it all.

But they were able to provide me the information I needed to get my items working. Luckily I've never had to leave anything for them to repair.

Given the record of run-around and lies Ms. Campbell had to put up with, she sure deserved more than BB offered. Clever of her to make her lawsuit amount one she knew would get media attention. It is so sad that consumers are forced to these extremes. It's obvious that the rules and incentives for such poor service must come down from the top or the store managers would at least offer full compensation. It's as if corporate management simply doesn't care about losing customers!

The poster who mentioned removing the hard drive before sending for repair made a excellent point.

Finally, I will say that more of us need to spend a little money and buy back up systems. For most folk an inexpensive flash drive is all they need.

To Jani:

You paid an extra $200 for them to calibrate your tv??
You were too gullible to fall for their scrupulous sales tactics... You don't need a burn-in time to do calibrations... there are multitudes of tech forums on the web that list a variety of calibration settings depending on where your tv is being placed in your home. The tech junkies do it all and publish their findings. Heck I could have done it for free if I lived close enough. Its about sharing info. Hope you learn your lesson and that you do indeed get the service you paid for.

Check the Best Buy financials they acctually make more money annually by selling the extended warrenties than they do by selling products!!

I have also been tag by "Hell Buy" where apparently someone switched products on a box and I was the unlucky person to have picked up that box (I was trying to buy a netgear router and all I got in the box was a linksys router with no antenna) of course they never took responsibility for it and the BBB made no effect to them. of course I had no way of proving them otherwise. Another succesful sell for "Hell Buy"

Take them all the way, make them pay I know you wont get $54 mil but I hope you get enough for your troubles.
Is the district attorney going after them for not notifying you your information was lost?

ALSO, TO ALL THE MORONS STATING THE DATA SHOULD HAVE BEEN BACKED UP. WETHER IT WAS OR NOT WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE? SHE WOULD HAVE A BACKUP BUT HER PERSONAL INFORMATION IS STILL IN SOMEONE ELSES HANDS!!!!.

Best Buy SUCKS!!!

This is a joke.
I agree that she should be entitled to reimbursement for the lost computer, warranty, and taxes... perhaps even a few hundred for her time and inconvenience. However, I disagree that she should be entitled to anything more.
An inherent risk to notebook computers is their insecurity. Notebook computers are lost/stolen all the time and many firms implement policies regarding what type of data should be allowed to be kept on these devices. If she has an identity theft issue arise out of this I would say she's learning the hard way - she shouldn't have left sensitive data on this type of device to begin with. The computer was accidentally lost it could have just as easily been stolen.
I wager that most of the people who have commented on this article are BestBuy customers and love shopping there because of its reasonable prices - it's interesting to see these people turn on their merchant during an event like this. Even more amusing is the general tendency of Americans to launch ludicrous lawsuits like this. Give it up lady. Go buy a new laptop, don't leave your tax returns on it next time, and purchase the music (most likely illegally downloaded). Oh and yeah... the money you lost on software? Well if you bought it you should have the disks - I guess you didn't purchase that either.
Give me a break.

Screw Best Buy and all the other big box retailers. Her lost computer is just the tip of the iceburg. You should look into their employee practices, and the manner in which they handle their suppliers.

Best Buy is only an A-/B+ student of the Wal*Mart school of ethics and practice.

Everyone should stop purchasing ANYTHING at these stores.

Best Buy jerked me around too. I bought a 50" flat screen television and with it they offered a calibrating service for an extra $200. The service is supposed to sharpen the picture on the brand new TV. The TV has to have been used for at least 100 hours before they could perform that service, so she assured me it may take several weeks for them to call for an appointment, to ensure my TV had been used enough. 2 months went by and I called, was told that I would be contacted shortly by the serviceman. Another month, I called and was told the same thing. No return call. Another 2 weeks, I called and was told the same thing, got nothing. 2 more weeks, I called and demanded to talk to the manager, at which point he said I should have called sooner and that at this point the calibration service was backed up because of an increase in television purchases and that I would have to wait much longer than had I called right after buying the TV. WTF? It has now been well over a year and I have not received the service I paid an extra $200 for.

This story is inspiring me to take a stand and make sure my Best Buy either refunds my money or performs the service I paid for immediately.

Thanks!

Dont give up. Keep fighting. My best friend went to Best Buy to return a default IPOd and was told there wasnt any in stock and to come back in 2 weeks time. She did but by then they refused to exchange a new one for her. My friend threw a fit and they had security practically threw her out of the store and told her not to return again. Its about time Best Buy get hit by million dollars lawsuit. They are not the greatest or biggest.

I too have had bad dealings with best buy and their "geek squad" and have since taken my business to Staples who have the same services but are much more customer friendly and much more knowledgable when it comes to computers. Staples techs are trained and certified.

GO for it . I recently sued a used car dealer for taking 16 weeks to deliver a title to my van , MOST dealers take 2 weeks or less in this state , i sued him for playing "GOD" with my time and my money , i asked for and got $4,000.00 and KEPT my van as well ,i only paid $2,800.00 for it ,btw i defended myself ,( he hired a lawyer)and it took only 6 months for me to get thru my case,, so yes go for it all , in this day and age , anything is possible , !

It is about time that consumers get involved and fight for what is right!! I am a retail manager in a store much like BB and know that consumers either have to fight or walk away with nothing. As a manager it is hard even for us to get results from corporate offices to help our customers unless the customer is willing to help us fight for what they want. I hope this lawsuit will open corporate eyes to see every customer and not just the $.

Rude employees, ridiculous return policies, and service with a smirk (by employees who usually have no idea what they're talking about). These are Best Buys corporate policies....
She's on the right track. This is not a frivolous lawsuit because of the potential damage that could be done to her (id theft). And to offer her a $900 GIFT CARD in response to her initial complaint. Please...
This is why we have a civil legal system, to hit companies that DON'T ACT CIVIL where it hurts; their big, fat profit margin!

Best Buy is certainly in need a rude awakening. If her identity is stolen, every personal item of value can be mortaged or sold out from under her.

If you REALLY want to send a message to Best Buy, buy from somewhere else. Personally, I *shop* at my local Best Buy so that I can "see, touch, and feel" what I am interested in, and then I usually by online from Amazon. Doing so, *even with shipping*, I normally save at *least* 20% from the "best price" that the so-called "Best Buy" will offer me in the store.

THAT is how to send Best Buy a *REAL* message. Hit them in the pocket book.

Those who ask about the back up, it doesnt matter if she did it or not, is about the trust on the company that tells you your item would be repaired without a problem. That's what you paid for, and is what they're offering, right? No respect for the person who pays their checks buying on the store. Hope she gets the 54.

seriously SCREW BEST BUY!
I only buy things there when its absolutely deemed necessary to save time by going somewhere else.
I dont apprecaite the way Best Buys' employees deal with problems, and I certainly don't appreciate them marking their products 60% above market price.

Forget'em. I hope they lose the case !

What everyone seems to have forgotten is that Best Buy failed to comply with the law in informing their consumer that information that contained sensitive information (social security number) was lost in a timely manner. This is what lawsuits are made of. In addition, as Ron, Irvine pointed out, the amount was simply to bring attention to the matter which it clearly did. She admits to knowing that she will most likely not get the amount but she wants Best Buy to explain why something like this happened. Imagine, for one second, that Best Buy has to mention a hole in their system that would allow thousands of customers to have their information taken. That would be more disastrous to their model than any lawsuit. She is doing this simply to get Best Buy to give her an answer as to why this happened. That is all.

Sheesh, after reading all this, I'm definately going back there again, WOW! It's a shame I'm not retired or independantly wealthy, then I could walk up and down every day in front of the store with a big sign. And emblazened on it....?
just a big fat "54" heheheheh
(of course I'd need flyers to hand out that detailed this story just for the customers walking TOWARDS the store)
Good luck and more power to us all!!!!
Descentman
remove NOSPAM to email me

For you idiots and assholes so hung up on the amount and how she should have backed up her data, read between the lines you dimwits: the amount was for attention, thankfully teaching you retards before you get ripped off like she did (and to get BestBuy's attention). Second, most consumers are computer newborns and can't tell the difference between hard drives and ram (I work IT, and this is a truth), let alone know how to backup take out her hard drive on her own.

For each of you for such lack of compassion for someone experiencing the type of issue that would probably have you crying to you mama, I hope one of these big corporations or some other big entity unjustly stonewalls you and f's you in the ass one day soon.

This is a joke.
I agree that she should be entitled to reimbursement for the lost computer, warranty, and taxes... perhaps even a few hundred for her time and inconvenience. However, I disagree that she should be entitled to anything more.
An inherent risk to notebook computers is their insecurity. Notebook computers are lost/stolen all the time and many firms implement policies regarding what type of data should be allowed to be kept on these devices. If she has an identity theft issue arise out of this I would say she's learning the hard way - she shouldn't have left sensitive data on this type of device to begin with. The computer was accidentally lost it could have just as easily been stolen.
I wager that most of the people who have commented on this article are BestBuy customers and love shopping there because of its reasonable prices - it's interesting to see these people turn on their merchant during an event like this. Even more amusing is the general tendency of Americans to launch ludicrous lawsuits like this. Give it up lady. Go buy a new laptop, don't leave your tax returns on it next time, and purchase the music (most likely illegally downloaded). Oh and yeah... the money you lost on software? Well if you bought it you should have the disks - I guess you didn't purchase that either.
Give me a break.

Good for her, It is not just best buy, every bank, credit card company, local tax county office, the state and federal government is out to punish john and jane doe to pay up in fees, penalties, or whatever.
The charges may range from $25 to $2500.
I call it the gouging of Americans by the powerful.

Good for her, It is not just best buy, every bank, credit card company, local tax county office, the state and federal government is out to punish john and jane doe to pay up in fees, penalties, or whatever.
The charges may range from $25 to $2500.
I call it the gouging of Americans by the powerful.

This story is pretty bad. I congratulate her for making this case. She will not even get close to the 54m that she made the lawsuit for, but she will get a nice sum for her troubles. It's these type of lawsuits that open the eyes of people.
I for one have never bought anything from a BestBuy since we just recently got one near where I live so I haven't had any problem with it. I can assure you I wont buy anything from them either after reading this story.
It's this kind of customer support that upsets me. They just can't tell the truth to what is going on with the product in order to get some extra cash. They need to pay for this due to the possibility of Identity Theft, and all the data that she might not ever see again like her pictures.
I truly hope she can get at least 1,000,000, but realistically I think she will get around 100,000, maybe more if she's lucky.

Best Buy - Austa LaVeesta to you baby! I'm soooo glad she decided not to take their garbage. I will NOT darken the doors at best buy again. We all need to stand together on these issues to motivate some Real change with these corporate greedbags.

I completely agree that Best Buy should compensate her for her frustration and damages. I went through something very similiar and never got any type of compensation or even a call back from Best Buy. I eventually purchased another laptop from another store. I will never shop at Best Buy again!!!

For all you whiners talking about the lack of customer service in America. It is your fault as much as that of corporate America. You have all wanted everything as cheap as possible for a long time. The end effect is that you (the greedy and cheap consumer) have driven all the companies that had good help and knowlegdable technicians out of business. Your appetite for a 400 dollar laptop has ensured that the stores will never be able to afford a well trained technician. Nor will they ever care about your satifaction because they don't make that much on a cheap laptop or PC. If you want better service buy from HP, Dell, IBM, Microage, etc. If you want better service buy from a company that knows about service and pay the extra hundred bucks for it. Best Buy is just this side of WalMart but WalMat does not pretend to have a computer service department (Geeks!,...that sounds reputable,...NOT!). If you buy computers at BestBuy or WalMart you have to be ready to maintain them yourself. Better yet call the manufacturer and get your extended warranty from them. They will almost always treat you better and more professionaly.

Whining will get you nowhere fast.

Adios,...

I only wish there was some way to turn this into a class action lawsuit to go after theses crooks. My parents took their computer in to BestBuy last week for a basic check. Just make sure there were no viruses or anything like that. Normally I could do all that for my parents but they live on the other side of the country so places like BestBuy are their only option. Well, after paying $129 the people at BestBuy erased their entire hard drive. Reformatted the whole thing even erasing the operating system. When they went to go pick it up the Geek Squad guys said "We are not liable for any data loss, have a nice day". Well ofcourse my parents flipped out and all they would do was give them a new copy of Windows and would not even refund the money. BestBuy is nothing but a bunch of crooks and they need to be taken down. My mother happens to work for the legal department of biggest Casino corporation in the world and is working on sueing BestBuy into chapter 11.

One more... never but NEVER accept a warranty from any of these stores. When you pay for it, the picture they give us is better than a michellangelo, but then, at the momment of the service, the picture is less than a copycat.

This is why you have to stop paying for the 'extra warranty.' We, as consumers, should demand that OUR PRODUCTS WORK, and that the companies be held responsible, even if we didn't shell out an extra $300 for a service that we used to expect. I'll admit, I shop at Best Buy.

The difference is, I have never had a problem. I never buy the warranties (with the exception of a REPLACEMENT warranty on an XBOX 360 controller that I KNOW my kid will break in 2 months.)

Don't try to get it fixed, take the junk back. They will take it, and that costs the company way more than juggling unhappy consumers.

I have NEVER been refused an exchange. I bought a junk video card, fan melted off 2nd day. No problem. They took it back.

A year later, I bought another, and didn't like it. I waited 3 months to take it back. Had my reciept, no problem. Store credit.

Accept responsibility for the retarded purchases you make. Research the companies you buy from. Most of all, know what to expect. You'll be much happier if you do.

Since this article first ran one week ago, I have read several dozen BB complaints and, although it may have already been mentioned, it sounds to me like Raelyn Campbell would do well to make this a class action lawsuit. These are appalling customer citations which convinces me, in spades, that we'll never buy anything more than a DVD or CD, if that, at BB ever again!

I am in 150% in full support of her. Companies have to realize that they can't bully their customers around anymore. The fact that they offered a gift card as a replacement for all the stuff she lost from her laptop is huge insult. People who say that this is a stupid lawsuit and she's just after the money don't realize that there is no other way to make companies take change that matter in America. That's how our system works, we should all get used to it.

It is my sincere hope that Best Buy be forced by the courts to pay the full amount PLUS court costs and legal fees for their actions and failure to honor their own extended warranty.

I am glad that this consumer is standing up for herself and the thousands of other customers who have been ripped off and lied to in a similar fashion by this store and other stores like it.

Further, it is my hope that the individual employees who either lied to her or caused others to lie to her be held personally liable in this case.

Maybe this will serve as a reminder that there is no excuse for unethical behavior on the part of retailers.

I too have had some bad experiences with Worst Buy before. They are a huge business and simply tried to brush her off by saying "oh, it's just another frustrated customer". What drives me insane is the fact that every product you buy at Worst Buy is non-refundable. They defend it by saying that you opened the package. How in the hell are you supposed to find out if the product works unless you open it and test it? It just so happens that there was one lady standing in line in front of me who was trying to argue her case with the store manager. She apperantly purchased Worst Buy gift card at another store, which sells their cards, spent $100 on the card, but the card didn't work. The manager was telling her that it was not their problem and responsibility that THEIR card didn't work. His defense was that she bought the card at another store, which sells THEIR cards and of course they profit from that. There are many many more cases like this. She left the store all frustrated...
Unfortunately, these things happen in the capitalist world every day, in which the big fish eats the small fish. Everything is just about the money, materialism, and greediness.

If I were the GC at Best Buy I would go down and beat my staff lawyers. $300 gift card and an NDA? If they had offered her 10K or 20K in cash instead of the insulting gift cards, then this would have gone away. They might have even got the NDA.

Gift cards are a fine place to start negotiations. They don't cost the company much (since they get to sell you something else at retail which they only paid for at wholesale). But, once it becomes clear that the person had 1) been hosed and 2) will require actual cash to handle, then they need to treat the cases with more competence.

Now, even if they are able to settle, what will that cost them. And, its costing the millions in bad PR. If this drags on, 54 million will seem cheap compared to loss of good will.

Awesome! After the remarkably bad service and breathtakingly rude clerks I've encountered at a local Best Buy (and unreturned complaint e-mails and phone calls), it is good see them getting some national grief. This woman should absolutely get every single penny of her lawsuit.

We are going to be purchasing 2 LCD TVs next month. After reading this I think we will avoid Best Buy altogether.

Sounds like my dealings with Best Buy on not 1 but 2 laptops. If they don't lose it, the laptop comes back to you with the initial problem repaired, but with several other problems created. My first laptop (the mother board blew out) came back compeltely destroyed, including them having ruined my keyboard to the point that there were no letters left on it, it would not boot into bios, and they had not connected the wireless modem up.

The next computer (after 2 months of complaining I finally got a replacement) the motherboard blew again (gotta love Toshiba), and I sent it out. It came back not working, CD drive disabled, and they refused to fix it anymore. Why, they calimed water damage. The techs that found the damage also stated that the damage had to have come while the keyboard was removed (when Best Buy was fixing it!).

Not only did they miss all the time frames they gave me on dates it would be fixed, they failed to notify me that there were any delays. On my 2nd computer, they even told me that THEY had NOT fixed the computer but had sent it to Toshiba, and upon talking to Toshiba, they clearly showed that the computer had been fixed by Best Buy in their operations in Chicago.

The extended warrenties are an absolute joke because the people Best Buy has fixing them don't have a clue how to work on a computer

Best Buy has become Worst Buy in my book! I had a situation with BB over the Christmas holiday, although not as serious as this persons but still bears mentioning. I purchased a video card for my wifes computer as an early Xmas present which unfortunately didn't work with her system so I ended up having to bring it back. After talking with the salesman he talked us into trying a different card so we said fine, and exchanged the 1st card for another. Once again the card failed to work, and I began to suspect that my wife needed a new pc so off to BB I went for a second time that day. The same salesman caught me at the door, and was surprised when I told him that the card didn't work. He began to ask some questions about the system, and came up with an idea why he thought it wasn't working. He then suggested that I try one more card, and handed me a card from a different manufacturer. I told him that I don't want to make this many returns since I generally know what I want & keep what I buy since I was in retail myself. He told me not to worry that all returns could be made up to Jan. 30th with no questions as long as I had my receipt, and further more they could price match this particular card with another retailer that was going to save me $35. I agreed, and everything went smoothly at the customer service counter - unfortunately it wasn't so smooth at home as her system refused to operate with the new card. I decided I wasn't going to make a third trip that day so I put the card back in its box with the receipt with the intent to return it. On Dec. 23rd I decided to return the card then at a later date buy my wife a new PC it was then at the customer service counter I was politely told that they could not return the card. I asked why since their return policy with till Jan. 30th with receipt it was then that I was told that they can't take returns for items not on the receipt. I asked what they were talking about, and looked at the receipt - there on the receipt was the card that i had returned a week and a half ago with the $35 discount, not the one I had walked into the store with! I explained that the associate must have made a mistake by reringing the wrong card then giving me this one - I also pointed the employee who did the exchange out as she was standing right there at the counter so they could confirm it. I had a manager (who I won't name) basically come up to the counter tell me that they don't take things back that aren't on the receipt, and didn't even care to listen to what I had to say. I was asked to leave the store immediately as if I had done something wrong. I contacted the Customer Service center with my problem & was pretty much given the same words, but that I would be contacted by a Regional Manager to hear my complaints. I have never heard from BB even after filing a Better Business Bureau report, and sending a written statement to the company. On a funny note I was at my part time retail job explaining my problem with Best Buy when a manager from Circuit City overheard my gripes - he asked that I bring the card to CC, and they would give me a gift card for the last sale price of the card if they carried it. I did as he asked, and was treated with dignity & respect - not as a dishonest person. I have since sworn off shopping at Best Buy, and have even asked them to stop my "Rewards" card which I had $25 in certificates to spend from the $2000 I had spent in the prior months. For Great Customer Service - DON'T Shop at BEST BUY!

i made the mistake of buying a laptop from Best buy. I bought a model that had a rebate that particular week and it was non functional from the get go so I exchanged it the next week, the store clerk told me that there would be no problem for the rebate, then surprise...my rebate was denied because I bought it the wrong week! then I brought it in twice for repair - thank god i bought the warranty-both times it was sent out to a third or fourth party to get fixed. the last time it was the week before my finals at school. they shipped it out to some company and then shipped my laptop to some lady in California - who called me looking for her lost computer. She brought my computer to her local Bestbuy. I was told twice that it would be overnight shipped to me. Three weeks later I got it by regular mail. I learned my lesson and bought a Mac from the apple store and I amm HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY!!!!!

I work in the IT industry, and my mother, who lives a couple hours away from me, had a hard drive issue in her BB computer: it was becoming loud due to bad bearings. She (against my wishes) brought her computer back to BB to be serviced. They took her old HD out, replaced it with a new one and just handed her the old one without offering to copy the data over to the new HD. They had the audacity to charge her $356.00 for this "service"! She had years worth of pictures on that HD not to mention loads of software and music. I had to drive to her house, slave the drive and copy all her folders over to the new HD. Last time she or anyone in my family does business with BB. BB's manager still hasn't returned my call...

I'm sure the Smartest Woman In the World (Hillary Rotten Whatshername) will introduce a bill to protect dumb consumers from themselves. It's a wonder the "non profit" Asian agency did not fire her. Image if she had lost confidential employer files. Yeah.. get a John Edwards type to sue for megabucks.. then who ultimately pays for it? The consumers do with HIGHER service fees.

In a moment of weakness, several years ago I purchased a printer from Best Buy. At that time (and they may still do this) they gave you a 10% discount on accessories at the time of purchase, including extra ink cartridges for printers. I purchased a complete set of four ink cartridges with the printer and got the 10% discount. The kid that sold me the printer through the ink cartridges in the cart and off to the checkout I went.

A few weeks later, when I went to use the ink cartridges after the originals ran out and the cartridges were the wrong cartridges. So I grab the four cartridges and off to Best Buy I went. I told them what had happened at the returns counter and they told me to go get the correct cartridges and they would "exchange" them. I went and got the cartridges and returned to the "returns" counter and after doing their little magic with the cash register I was told that I owed them what amounted to the 10% discount that I had received when I purchased the original cartridges when I purchased the printer. When I explained to them that I shouldn't owe them anything because their clerk was the one that had chosen the wrong cartridges, they reply was that it didn't matter because I wasn't purchasing a printer now and they couldn't give me the discount again. After considerable arguing with both the sales clerk and the store manager, I said that they would either exchange the cartridges at no charge or I would go get the printer and return everything, the Manager finally decided to do what 10 minutes before said couldn't be done and did the exchange without any money changing hands.

I will never buy anything again from Best Buy. This little example was enough for me to realize that they are no one that I would want to do business with for anything more that a ten or twenty dollar item. Has anyone else noticed that they charge at least twice the amount that any other store does for their extended warranties? NO THANK YOU< BEST BUY!

And just when you thought things couldn't get worse: a friend of mine, who bought his computer from Best Buy about a month ago, was told that Best Buy wouldn't fix his brand-new computer which was having problems. He ended up taking it to the techno-geeks where he works and they fixed it in 1-2 days. What does that tell you?

My wife's cousin had the same thing happen to her: Best Buy lost her laptop with all her stuff on it, and offered her a replacement. They made her believe that she was getting a top of the line laptop as a replacement for her lost laptop. But I looked at the machine (being a tech-type) and discovered it was a refurbished laptop with lower spec's than her original laptop. Basically, they tossed whatever they had sitting in the back room to her. She decided that she is too busy and not interested in the kind of battle going on here to pursue the matter further.

Typical Best Buy. I took my complaint as far up the food chain as I could and got blown off. Told them I would never purchase another item from them after using them for all the electronics and appliances in a brand new home- a substantial amount- and haven't- for 6 years now. Although I don't normally care for frivolous lawsuits, this one has already done it's job: "Beware of Best Buy" (if you didn't already know)

Are you kidding me, another waist of our courts time. Get a clue, back up your data. She is getting her 15 minutes of fame though and isn't that what she is really looking for.

Until you learn to spell waste, keep your opinion to yourself - it has zero credibility. Her courage is exactly what America needs and I'm glad my taxes are paying for it - this is far more important than Congressmen questioning baseball players.

I hope this negative publicity against Best Buy has some sort of impact on their stock price, even if just a tiny fraction of a point. From all the negative comments that others have made about Best Buy, I have doubts that the company will have a very long lifespan, without making some major policy changes.

A few years ago, I tried to return a purchase at Best Buy and they gave me a major, major run around... I tried to make the return at their Saugus, MA store and the manager Frank either didnt' know how or didn't want to return the purchase to my credit card... When I mentioned 93A (consumer protection law in Mass.) he suddenly claimed that I was creating a scene and he threatened to call the police on me! Now I NEVER shop at Best Buy, no matter what - never, ever. I will do my best to raise my kids to NEVER shop at Best Buy either and I will encourage all friends, family, acquaintances to NEVER shop at Best Buy. My hope is to see the company fail in the future, but if they survive at least I will be happy to know that I didn't help them turn a profit.

I, myself work for best buy and this is by far the best company i have ever worked for. I happen to work in the computer department and deal with these sort of issues. I completely agree with Mrs. Campbell and after reading this I am appalled by the way she was treated and how another best buy can treat her like this. If can assure you if it were the particular store i work at it would have never escalated to this point. Also, to hear that the store was going to give her $900 IN A GIFT CARD!!! is ridiculous. I firmly believe in best buy's services and products (most of the products). As for I obviously can't speak for the whole corporation, but I will say to the readers of this story i hope this does not discourage you of the best buy brand. and to see the corporate end of best buy to put up with this caliber of conduct by it's employees scares me. The general manager of that store should be fired. As for our Geek Squad, I am personal friends with the agents at my store and i assure you we do our job, and take it very seriously. However you must understand there are certain things especially on laptops that must be fixed by the manufacture and after it is shipped from out store to the manufacture the ball is out of our court. and based on some of the brand names we carry i wish it would work differently. I hope Mrs. Campbell wins this lawsuit because i know how it is to be without a computer for extended time especially how much computers have become a daily life must-have, and especially in her line of work. That particular geek squad should have taken more care of her belongings and the GM should hold more respect for his customers and their problems.

Go Girl; Best Buy screwed up my laptop when having repairs and I will never take a computer back to them. I had to pay ANOTHER FEE to have an independent fix the problem they created!

While it is true that people have no excuse for their ignorance when not backing up their valuable data (especially before bringing it in for service), that does not address the fact that they are LIABLE for her personal identity and privacy because of their negligence.

HIPAA became a huge issue this decade and put in place procedures and accountability for handling someone's private medical records.

Computers contain private educational, sexual, financial, social, and often medical information among others, and consequences and laws need to be initiated bny the government to hold an institution liable for their mishandling of it as such imo.

Sounds about right. I work for them and they are full of it. I transferred from another store and boy was I in for a shock. This store does not follow any policies like dress code and procedures. They do what they want (upper mgt is all under the age of 25). Others get mad at me for being an educated person. Do you know the GM out right told me education does not matter in retail?

I can tell you why the laptop got lost. Everyone behind the counter is called a CIA (counter intelligence agent). Basically no one wants to do counter (especially the males). If they feel the customer is rude a Service Tag won’t get created therefore no one knows who it belongs to or if the tag was created the agent did not mark the item like they should and simply did not ship it out to the service center. Another point if the laptop got shipped out the person receiving the inventory did not note this in Star. I can go on for days about how Best Buy is. I hope she wins and this help with the laziness. It might also make them think to hire people with experience that hold degrees and certification. You know it’s sad when you have more than the person in charge.

I am sorry but this is another absurd law suit! You could have easily encryted your personal data on your computer and saved yourself from identity theft and backed everything to an external hard drive...The most likely outcome is that Best Buy will only have to replace the laptop, it's called mitigating your damages, something you didn't do. The attorneys that you talked to probably should have mentioned something like that. Take their offer, its probably the best you will do in a situation like this.

I had a similiar experience back in Dec 2007. I brought my HP to Best Buy for repairs. When we got it back it was damaged, so it was sent back to be repaired again. After a few weeks I was contacted from BB that the computer was not repairable and was disposed of along with all my programs and other things on my hard drive. I asked for my hardrive back from BB and HP no one able to give me answers. Best Buy for my inconveience gave me a different computer in which I am not happy with and a gift card, but still no answers as to why they did not consult me on what I wanted done with my computer. I was told by HP there is no record of the computer ever being sent back a second time. So my question is what happened to it between BB and HP.

WOW !! thanks for the heads-up everyone !! have never had a bad experience @ BB but did have some computer issues approx 9 months ago, i had considered calling the geek squad but found an independent co. in my area who gave me a flat service fee of $80.00 per hour
w/a one hour minimum, as an older dude w/very limited computer experience i went ahead & had them send their tech out; he came in, checked the HD (won't go into the details, basically the computer was dead) anyway the kid went to work, put the system back together, installed some free spyware/defrag programs,
& had my PC back in like new condition in 45 minutes...was very nice & only charged the $80 & gave me a 10% discount as a new client !! God only knows what BB would have charged me !!! will always call them for any computer issues, am getting ready to purchase a lap-top & will definetley NOT go to u-no-where....again thanks for the info America....

This woman and Best Buy are not perfect. It is a one time chance in a lifetime, go for broke.
The lawyer took the case on contingent, "no fee unless we win". Now we see what John Edward is saying. Greedy, greedy, greedy.

I can only laugh reading this article, and the views of those congratulating Ms. Campbell. This woman is only one of many who attempt to bog down the legal system with frivolous lawsuits. It is a shame that Best Buy does not make it a priority to take better care of customers, but unfortunately for Ms. Campbell, her lack of personal responsibility and consciousness has left her with a loss of cherished information and the possibility of identity theft. She only reinforces the stereotype of those belonging to the outside world who view Americans as self-righteous, ignorant, and totally self- consumed. There are much more efficient ways of expressing her views, ways that do not take advantage of tax payer contributions to the legal system. If she had educated herself prior to this becoming a public spectacle, and had backed up her information properly, the offer Best Buy had initially given would not have seemed so outlandish and insulting. Yes, big corporations need to take responsibility for the mistakes made at the consumer's expense. But to make a mockery of the legal profession in an attempt to throw a public temper tantrum is inexcusable.

I am usually the first one to make fun of frivolous lawsuits, but this one actually makes sense. Yeah the price is high, but way to stick it to Best Buy! They suck!

Are you kidding me, another waist of our courts time. Get a clue, back up your data. She is getting her 15 minutes of fame though and isn't that what she is really looking for.

Raelyn, you go, girl!!! I've had very rude service on 3 separate occasions at a Best Buy --my limit of tolerance-- & VERY limited available access to any customer service complaint sources (I was put on hold for 15 minutes & just gave up). My husband & I work hard for our money; we shouldn't have to work harder in order to spend it. Obviously the larger issue is the unlawful breach in personal & information security, but when will companies take notice of Harvard's (I believe that is who did this study) findings that for every 'unhappy/unsatisfied' customer they tell & otherwise persaude 20 others to not do business with said company. Whereas a 'happy' customer tells only 10 others of their experience. Hence, negative PR has far more devastating ripples than positive. People are infallible, yes, however it is the strength in character in the follow up which makes or breaks a reputation. --From a consumer who believes character always counts.

i also had a laptop from best buy with a very simple problem that was covered by the warranty. i brought it to the geek squad as i was told to. and the 6 week estimate turned into 6 months of screaming and fighting with the idiots behind the counter there. they didnt not know what was going on, and later found out it never left the store. when they finally did repair it, they wanted to charge me $250 to fix it. i told them to shove it. i got it back, brought it to work. and with a little help from my sauldering (sp) gun fixed it in no less than 5 mins. screw best buy.

No amount of money can "buy" truth or honesty. As an individual or business - either you are truthful and honest or you are not. No degrees of being in between. You or you are not. Period. Best Buy dropped the ball on this one and will not own up to that fact. Ask yourself this. What if Best Buy's computer records, credit or financial information of it's consumers was comprismed by a third party vendor or service which could potentially result in causing them financial damage. Do you think Best Buy would settle for $2500 in damages? I think not.

My boss told me to check out this story as funny (ha!) enough... I just got a call this am from BestBuy telling me to come in to pick out a new laptop, in place of repairing my 8 month old one I brought in 3 weeks ago. Whilst I haven't had any problems with BestBuy (knock on wood), I am now concerned about this ID theft thing. I mean, how do I really know that my laptop is at HP facility with all the software I had on it. I did opt to pay $100 for them to backup all my pics & music (not 100% guaranteed) but won't know now until I pick out a new model and install. And I must find a unit on sale as I will only get back amount I originally spent and at time I got it at a really good deal.
Will keep you posted on this.

I've had a similar, but much less costly, experience with Best Buy. I was given the run-around on 3 different occasions about the problems I was having with my laptop. I had purchased the extended warranty for my computer, but the store refused to honor it after one year, even though the problems had started within 6 weeks of the date of purchase. I attempted to work with the store manager, whose response closely echoed the woman's experience in D.C.: I was told by the newest manager (I'd been working with 3 at that point), Brandon, that he was not inclined to help me fix the problem because I told a clerk that I was going to tell all of my friends, family, and colleagues about my experience. He said, "You're trying to hurt my business, so why should I help you?" Needless to say, I do not buy ANYTHING from Best Buy, even if that means paying more for some actual customer service!

I hope everyone reading this gets the message that electronic data is easily lost. While I understand the womans plight, we had problems with a Best Buy computer as well, she should have backed up her photos and info on another drive. Especially before releasing her laptop to another party. She seems to have made a $2,000 problem bigger than it should have been.

I am so supportive of this whole mess. How awful. Best Buy has discouraged me over the years to shop there myself. They keep trying to push those stupid extended warranties claiming that if you drive your car over your laptop you will get a brand new one. Well hey, why don't we all do that so we can get brand new ones! All for commission!!

I purchased an open box car stereo from Circuit City. turned out defective, sent it back twice...One of those" it works when the repair guy tries it but not when you get it home" things. That's probably how it ended up open box to begin with. The second time the clerk told me sheepishly that it appeared to be lostin transit and let me pick out a brand new one of similar quality-a little nicer actually, installed it in 5 minutes and off I went! I get all my electronics from circuit city now!

Most of the people here ( posting commnets ) are focusing on the lost data - as her legal aid attorney pointed out she had personal info - such as taxes - on the PC - whether or not they are encrypted - BEST BUY is obliged BY LAW to notify her of the loss of that information. They did not - therefore in my eyes - guilty - PAY UP - let the court decide an amount. if they decide 54 mill - so be it. You flaunt the law, you take your chances.

My son goes to American University and took his brand new computer back to Best Buy in D.C. for repairs in August. When he still had not gotten it back in October, after numerous calls from him, I took over. I was spoken to so outrageously by the customer service people in Tenleytown, one of whom told me to "buy my son a new computer if I was so upset about it", that I called their headquarters and reported all of the names of the people with whom I talked. We did get a gift card for a new computer which he bought, but all of his files are gone.

To make matters worse, this week Tenleytown Best buy called him to say that his original computer has arrived. It is February --they've had it since August. He went into pick it up and all of his files are missing. This is outrageous, and has caused me to tell everyone that I know never to BUY AT BEST BUY!

I took my laptop to the Myrtle Beach SC Best Buy when it wouldn't turn on. The tech at the service counter said the motherboard must have gone bad. She offered to back up my hard drive on an external USB drive, which would cost $99 for the drive, $99 for the transfer, and $25 for an overnight rush expedite on the data transfer. This was on December 12, 2007, 10 weeks ago. I went to the store and talked to the manager of the Geek Squad. He said "it's still at the service center". I joked with him and said I figured they lost it. He laughed. He continued, "maybe they are having touble finding the part, is it an older computer?" I told him the laptop was 8 months old and still under the 1 year manufacturer's warranty, which he then verified on his computer. The manager then said he has noticed problems with HP computers and taking longer than expected to get back, and he has even seen some come back after over 2 months with a note saying they couldn't be fixed, and then found it was a mistake and they had to be sent back to the service center again. At this point. They can't tell me the status of my computer. This article and following comments isn't very reassuring.

I hope we all remember this episode between November 21st 2008 and December 24th 2008. The Christmas shopping season will be in full bore. This is the time of the year where actions speak louder than words. A large majority of the companies profits are made during this time period, please choose to shop at another local retailer that actually cares about his/her customers. I always buy my laptops directly from the manufacture (Toshiba and Gateway) and in each case where I have had a service issue, my laptop was picked up by DHL, UPS, or another shipping company and repaired and returned within 7 days.

I used to be a regular shopper at the Best Buys. I liked thier setup and products. I have purchased all of my major appliances there. And every time I had to deal with some sort of problem. I went to purchase a large screen tv and that was the straw that broke the camel's back. I am forever boycotting Best Buy and thier horrible customer service and lack of training. I shop at Circuit City and have no complaints. Best Buy sucks!!

I am surprised by all the comments that ask the question whether this lady backed up her data or not. Are you saying that if I back up my data I should be ok with Best Buy loosing my laptop? I believe in backing up data but if Best buy treat me the way they did this lady I would be taking the same measures she did. I am glad someone took the first step with this lawsuit. Hopefully companies like Apple, Microsoft, and Wal-Mart will take notice.

I bought a Gateway laptop from BB. Nothing but head-ache. I will never buy another product from them. I too got the run around. Gateway's product also left a lot to be desired.

I've had really bad history with Best Buy.... I bought i pod and it broke i took it to store and was told i can not exchange it at the store even i had extended service plan... i had to mail it in ... it got lost ... it took me hours on the phone with multiple people and complaint letter to BBB to get giiftcard 3 months later..... when it broke again in september Customer service told me i could have exchanged it in the store.... there is no consistency in the policy and no ethics... company is so huge... that the customer is just a number..... now i try to find alternate electronics suppliers... most of the online and so far i have good expirience with few returns i had to make

Its about time someone took action against Best Buy. I had a very similar experience when a new laptop I bought didn't work properly from the beginning and instead of replacing it or allowing me to return it without hugh fees ..they said me only alternative was for them to fix it. The result of them fixing it was that I was without the laptop for almost 3 months...the harddrive was destroyed and I made endless frustrating phone calls and visits to the stores where Best Buy personnel was overwhelming unhelpful. They basically told me that they were doing me a hugh favor by fixing my brand new computer and consistently misinformed me when it would be ready. Nothing was their fault...they doubletalked and refused to be of any assistance. One of the most frustrating expeirence I ever had with a retail store. I eventually wrote the president of the company and enclosed my cut-up Best Buy credit card...i received a very unapologetic letter ..saying IF I had a bad experience then that's too bad....I have news for the president that when someone sends a detailed letter of complaint and cuts-up their credit card...its a good assumption that they had a bad experience.
My guess is this bad service attitude starts from the top and its the President setting this poor tone. In the end I received no compensation.for being without a computer for months (I actually had to buy a new one since I needed it) and losing my hardrive.....except for a $100 gift certificate from one store manager who finally took pity on me. He unfortnately was the exception ....So I say hurray for this woman who is suing Best Buy...hope she wins because this may be the only way for Best Buy to start doing the right thing by their customers.

Yup, this story rings all too true to me. I've experienced first hand what Best Buy's philosophy is concerning consumers......say or do anything that will get their money in our pockets!

I could write a diatribe about my experience but it's all been said here in thousands of ways. The funniest part will be that Best Buy, regardless of the number of negative postings related to this article, will stick to the standard big-business sales mantra of......"We work to ensure that our employess always strive to maintain the highest levels of professionalism while giving the consumer the best buying experience possible, and all while maintaining the highest of business ethics, blah, blah, blah."

Ummm yeah, the proof is in the pudding pal, so tell it to someone that believes it!

This is a fallacious lawsuit. She won't win. Every customer who has work done on their computer must sign a waiver of liability pertaining to personal data. Customers are warned in the document that personal data may be lost and they are advised in said document to back-up their data. They are also given an opportunity to have their data backed up for them if they don't want to do it themselves. This fact alone, not to mention that she accepted their initial settlement, will cause her to lose in court. I'm sorry this happened to her, but people need to read what they sign. I'm not excusing Best Buy's incompetence, but she is equally accountable. Reality Check people.

Another good reason to buy from walmart. They will at least replace a broken computer and their stuff is so cheap, you can afford to throw it away when it breaks... I hope she wins because best buy really sucks...

54 Million Dollars is absolutly outrageous!!!!! No bad customer service experience warants that type of punishment. She says it's not about the money. She said it was about identity theaft and making Best Buy "do what they are supposed to do". I think that is hilarious because if it isn't about the money why is the lawsuit for such a rediculous amount of money? Yeah ok Best Buy probably screwed up, but this woman is just being greedy. Do what any other smart consumer would do and not go back to Best Buy. This woman should be ashamed of herself for trying to get rich quick. Work for it like everyone else.