Of great importance to the Black Thumb gardener is being able to return the plants that you will inevitably end up killing. Which brings me to Home Depot's famous one year warranty on plants. However, there is nothing on the Home Depot web site that explains the particulars of the dead plant return process.
Here's how my recent plant return experience at Home Depot went down:
(First, you must go to the Customer Service Department, not the plant department.)
Also, for the record, my husband was too embarrassed to be seen with me. He lurked about in the garden hose department while I did the dirty deed.
Me: I'm here to return plants - here's my receipts.
Cust. Service Rep: (casting a desultory eye over the sad, shrivelled and dried up twigs that were once living green things, and after scanning first plant pot) - This doesn't match what is on your receipts.
Me: Well I called ahead to find out what I needed to do and no-one told me I needed to return the plants as well as the pots they originally came in.
Cust. Service Rep: I can't take these back anyway. It's been over 90 days.
Me: But it's a one year warranty. How can you have a one year warranty on plants that have to be returned within 90 days?
Cust. Service Rep: You can't return these because you didn't return the pots.
Me: But where does it say I have to return the pots as well as the plants?
Cust. Service Rep: I'm going to have to get someone from the garden dept. over here to identify that the plants are the same as the ones on your receipt.
Me: OK.
Cust. Service Rep: (over pager) - Miguel - please come to customer service.
Twenty minutes later. Wisely, neither Miguel nor anyone else from the plants department shows up.
Cust Service Rep: (Poring over receips). OK. So which of these plants are you returning?
Finally, she scans them based on my receipts and issues me a refund based on the plants I say I am returning. If only she had done that half an hour ago. But I ended up with a gift card for about 70 bucks and used it to take home some fresh victims - a Japanese Maple and a Douglas Pine.
So: moral of the story. All Black Thumbs need to carefully keep all Home Depot Garden Center receipts and pots so they can get a second and a third and a fourth chance at growing something. It can end up saving you hundreds of dollars. And between the California drought, the gophers, snails, aphids and other blights, you're going to need it! Happy black thumbing!
Here's how my recent plant return experience at Home Depot went down:
(First, you must go to the Customer Service Department, not the plant department.)
Also, for the record, my husband was too embarrassed to be seen with me. He lurked about in the garden hose department while I did the dirty deed.
Me: I'm here to return plants - here's my receipts.
Cust. Service Rep: (casting a desultory eye over the sad, shrivelled and dried up twigs that were once living green things, and after scanning first plant pot) - This doesn't match what is on your receipts.
Me: Well I called ahead to find out what I needed to do and no-one told me I needed to return the plants as well as the pots they originally came in.
Cust. Service Rep: I can't take these back anyway. It's been over 90 days.
Me: But it's a one year warranty. How can you have a one year warranty on plants that have to be returned within 90 days?
Cust. Service Rep: You can't return these because you didn't return the pots.
Me: But where does it say I have to return the pots as well as the plants?
Cust. Service Rep: I'm going to have to get someone from the garden dept. over here to identify that the plants are the same as the ones on your receipt.
Me: OK.
Cust. Service Rep: (over pager) - Miguel - please come to customer service.
Twenty minutes later. Wisely, neither Miguel nor anyone else from the plants department shows up.
Cust Service Rep: (Poring over receips). OK. So which of these plants are you returning?
Finally, she scans them based on my receipts and issues me a refund based on the plants I say I am returning. If only she had done that half an hour ago. But I ended up with a gift card for about 70 bucks and used it to take home some fresh victims - a Japanese Maple and a Douglas Pine.
So: moral of the story. All Black Thumbs need to carefully keep all Home Depot Garden Center receipts and pots so they can get a second and a third and a fourth chance at growing something. It can end up saving you hundreds of dollars. And between the California drought, the gophers, snails, aphids and other blights, you're going to need it! Happy black thumbing!
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