By Upset
I purchased a CAST IRON Urn/planter, for planting flowers, or small shrubs, at Canadian Tire in August 2009. I purchased the iron planter as opposed to plastic, because of the durability of cast iron. Of course the cost of a cast iron planter was probably 5 to 6 times greater than a plastic one which fades, cracks and deteriorates in sunlight.
We had the planter out from Aug 2009 until we stored it in our shed in Dec 2009. When we took it out of storage on April 9th, 2010, the planter had a round 2.5cm (1 inch) hole in the side of the casting. It was also cracked 3/4 of the way around the base. This is not a 6 inch planter, it is 74cm/29 inches high and weighs more than 23kg/50 pounds. When one buys such a lasting garden decoration, one does not keep the receipt, because one expects it to last more than 4 months. I immediately got assistance to load the planter on my truck, and went to Canadian Tire in Port Hawkesbury NS,, where I’d purchased it. the Customer Service lady seemed to think it strange that I had no receipt. She would not agree that an Iron Planter should last longer than 4 months of use. I never complained when she denied my request (after phoning her supervisor) for an exchange or refund. What upset me the most was the feeling of being ridiculed because I had the audacity to try to return the object.
I hadn’t even taken 2 steps away from the counter when she started commenting to another customer about people who didn’t have receipts. I was almost tempted to tell the customer to mind his own business. Her idle chatting could have caused quite a stir, had I not kept my composure and ignored her comments. It did ruin my evening, as I still sit here fuming over her ignorance. I never ridiculed her, so why should she ridicule me because I didn’t have a receipt. Does Canadian Tire now find it good business practice, and socially acceptable for their Customer Service Clerks to look down on paying customers?
francine1985 says...
I’m sorry you got such bad service. I think you should repert the cashier to a manager and if nothing is done maybee you should report to head office. i used to work at a canadian tire in NB. If we had acted that way towards a customer we would have been fired.
Andrea says...
It’s always right to keep your cool, but I have learned never to take no as an answer with the clerk on duty - if you can’t get satisfaction from them, always ask for the manager. I recently wanted to get a raincheck for an item that was out of stock at WalMart - it took 3 people to figure out that it was really out of stock and really on sale. The first girl kept insisting that I must have had an old flyer. Who knew WalMart prints about 3-4 flyers per week…
CrazySuperFish says...
It’s always hit or miss with Canadian Tire.
I’ve had exceptional service there.
And I’ve had service that has left me crying (really).
I now shop very carefully from Canadian Tire. I really question if I really need to buy stuff, and now most times it’s NO.
nick says...
Cast iron is not very strong. It breaks very easily and freezing will break most metal products.
Say What says...
I don’t understand why you thought something should be done on a product you bought 9 months ago whether you had a reciept or not. It would seem that the product got damaged becuase it wasn’t stored properly. I’m sorry you got lousy customer service, nobody deserves to be treated rudely, but why exactly where you there in the first place?
Johnny says...
One trick I learned in Australia and UK when I was there is, if you lose a receipt, purchase the product again at the current, regular price; photocopy the receipt and return the original product with the original receipt and then return the other product using the photocopied receipt. You can always say that you scan your receipts and don’t keep original receipts and the photocopy would appear to be similar to a scanned image of a receipt. I’ve used this technique a few times successfully only because Customer Service is now becoming terrible at several stores. They don’t accept the customer’s word. What would happen if you purchased a product with a 10 year guarantee and after 3 years it did not perform as it should. Would you keep the receipt for it? Sometimes copies of receipts look identical to the original.
Robert says...
Let me get this straight you bought something in August and it’s broken in April and you want your money back? REALLY?? ARE YOU KIDDING ME??
I would have laughed at you too! The sense of entitlement some of the customers have these days is bloody strange…
damn the tv I had for 6 years just stopped working, WONDER IF I CAN GET MY MONEY BACK!
foxeh says...
The thing I think that was most irritating was the service she received. I work closely with customer service and maybe they do not except a return without a receipt but rude service! There is no excuse for making a customer feel like they are an idiot and be so unprofessional to talk about it to the next customer in line. I think some customer service training is in order since that is the job they are doing. Just a heads up don’t ever make a trip to the Kents in Truro the service there is horrible too if you get even get a grunt out of the zombies that work there you are doing well.
Shanpan says...
Yes, I worked at CT too and I would have not returned you your money either without a receipt. Credit note at most, BUT, considering there was probably no UPC or any indicator that you actually did buy it at Canadian Tire it is hard to determine if it was even bought at CT or Wal-mart or Home Depot, etc.
If you had your receipt, I probably would have given you a credit note or exchange but without it, there is no proof of when you even bought it, where you bought it, and what you paid for it.
However, I will admit that the CS person was rude and I would never do that!
linda says...
“The thing I think that was most irritating was the service she received. ‘
Trust me, shes venting about the money not the “service”. Its always about the money…especially from someoone who thinks they can take an item they broke, near a year later, with no receipt and get a refund….lol
Anita says...
Johnny -
That is completely UNETHICAL. I don’t know why people think it’s okay to do crap like that and sleep well at night.
Save your damn receipts in the first place and you won’t need to do unethical things later.
Try working in customer service for a year or so and then tell me if you think the customer should always be right. I DOUBT IT!
Jerry says...
Most places give you 90 days to return a product with a receipt and without it would have to be at very least unopened. You might get some satisfaction from the manufacturer if the product has any kind of warranty past 90 days. I have had bad experiences with cdntire customer service peeps as well. It leaves a bad taste in your mouth and definitely sends you too any other store before cdntire for purchases with the security of no-hassle returns.
Chase says...
Seriously, look at it from the company’s point of view - someone is trying to get their money back for a used, broken item that they have no proof of purchase for, and claims it was almost a year ago?? Not only do they not know you bought it from them and not Home Depot etc, but it’s been 9 months by their own admission (and quite possibly more since there’s no proof)? Honestly, it’s a frickin’ plant pot, is it worth getting into a fight over when any reasonable third party is going to say you have no case?
ccg says...
I feel in today’s day and age, MANY MANY MANY people don’t keep their receipts. I never used to either! .. but ever since having terrible issues with many items over the years, I ALWAYS keep my receipts
the best thing to do .. is go to the dollar store get those little accordion style $1.25 little books and use it by placing the months in each little slot.. and then every so often empty your receipts from your wallet into this file system .. if u have a problem u go back to the month of august last year and u find it .. u will usually only have 40 receipts max a month.. i do it .. and trust me its helped me HUGE .. people dont expect u to have a receipt from that far back but smart people would! like me ofcourse!
Onshopper says...
Slightly off topic but… we were at that store on a trip and needed an oil change for our rental car. The garage manager could not fit us in but took the time to call around for us until he found a shop willing to take us. Great customer service and a great rep for the friendly nature of that town.
Oh, and BTW… how hard is it to keep receipts?? Walmart has always been very good to us when, receipt in hand we go in for a refund or even a price drop within their specified time.
Onshopper says...
Slightly off topic but… we were at that store on a trip and needed an oil change for our rental car. The garage manager could not fit us in but took the time to call around for us until he found a shop willing to take us. Great customer service and a great rep for the friendly nature of that town.
Oh, and BTW… how hard is it to keep receipts?? Most stores have always been very good to us when, receipt in hand we go in for a refund or even a price drop within their specified time.
sam says...
CCG, you are brilliant. I am taking your suggestion and buying one tomorrow. I already use one for coupons and don’t know why I hadn’t thought of this!
….the best thing to do .. is go to the dollar store get those little accordion style $1.25 little books and use it by placing the months in each little slot.. and then every so often empty your receipts from your wallet into this file system ……
For Rent Cardiff says...
Excellent article, I believe this is tremendously helpful. Keep up the invaluable work!
James says...
Cast iron should not have broken so quickly. They used to build bridges out of it! I would just say this is a lesson learned and to never go back to Canadian Tire. I stopped shopping there nearly 8 years ago and I don’t miss it a bit. They have nothing unique and the prices are mediocre. The service sucks, so I go elsewhere and get good service. It’s apparent that many employees (like those who come on here to ridicule you) hate customers intensely. Why would I, therefore, want to patronize their establishment?
terry says...
if the soil left in your pot had water or a lot of moisture in it when temps got below freezing, is expect a hole bigger than the one in your pot. is actually expect it to split in half. water expands a lot when it freezes. So stupidity should not be rewarded with a new pot. if you stored candles in garage during the summer, would you expect them not to melt. and then you’d want new ones I’m sure. dummy ! !
Ella says...
Never thought there were so many nasty people until I started reading the comments, or perhaps, there is only one making multiple entries under different names. That aside, there is no excuse for rudeness when it comes to customer service. I’d go straight to the manager and report the clerk. As for the item, they seem to be making junk and passing it off for quality products. I have cast iron planters that I’ve left outside for years and never had any problem. Today, everything has to be cared for with white gloves. It’s as if things are made for show and not to be used. Let the buyer beware!
Dawna says...
Canadian Tire is Port Hawkesbury SUCKS!! They never have anything in stock and they treat customers like they are idiots. You call ahead to make sure they have something and they say they do, and when you get there 5 minutes later another person says “We never had that in stock. Nobody would have told you that we did”.
Kyle says...
You’re not the only one that has had bad experiences at the Canadian Tire in Port Hawkesbury. The ‘Check Engine’ light came on in my car on a Friday afternoon, so I brought it to Canadian Tire… It was going to be $40 anyways. So, the ‘technician’ asked the manager two or three times how to hook the scanner up to the car. He came back 15 minutes later and told me that he could not receive a signal from the computer in the car. Then they gave me a bill of $47… WHAT??!!! I complained… didn’t get me anywhere because the manager was as brain dead as the technician. The idiots parked the car outdoors and had already passed me my keys so I left.
I got home and purchased a car code scanner off of Ebay for $40… and not surprised- it worked.
Of course they called me, threatened me so I went back to the store to tell them. They forgave my non-payment but, I really had to go to extremes to get my point across.
Second excursion to the Port Hawkesbury Canadian Tire-
I’m 22 and like to have fun… so I bought a crazy carpet. Anyways, after purchasing the crazy carpet, the young (bigger, toothy) female cashier turned around and asked one of her friends if “That guy was retarded?”
Of course, their managers denied it happening, called me a troublemaker and showed me the door.
My suggestion is IF you have to get something at Canadian Tire in this area, it’s worth the half hour drive to Antigonish, or go to Central or Home Hardware.
Leslie says...
Maybe it did get damaged from being stored improperly but it had something wrong with it. I’m finding that I am buying so many inferior products made in China that it doesn’t hurt to mention it to the store. So you learnt something, that you have to be careful with cast iron, I certain didn’t know it was that fragile myself. I would have reacted the same way that you did. I guess we live in a time where you are forced to keep all of your receipts annoying as that is. My husband purchased a rainsuit from Canadian Tire and first time wearing it it went into shreds. They didn’t have a problem with refunding his money.
Big Bob says...
“I am buying so many inferior products made in China”
Racist much?
Jeanne A. says...
After reading all these posts, it reminded me of the time I went back to Canadian Tire for a refund on a bread making machine. I was asked if I had used the machine to which I replied NO. Well I couldn’t believe the nerve of the customer service guy when he took the bread machine out of the box and stuck his nose into the machine and started sniffing it. Sure did’nt make me feel like an honest customer. I’m glad Canadian Tire doesn’t sell underwear. HA HA. Yes I agree with a lot of people that all this crap coming from China is so cheaply made and sometimes wonder if they use cancer causing plastics and paint. Hope I’m not paranoid.
Lastly, I want to say I get really irritated with Canadian Tires pricing, which we know is just a suckers game to get you to buy stuff.
Most of the time products are really only worth the sale price. Thanks for reading this and letting me blow off some steam. Good luck shopping at Crappy Tire.
Matt says...
My biggest beef with cdn tire is their “sales”
Tame their exercise equipment for example. They frequently have 2 items on “sale” marked down 50-80%. When you compare these ones to the items next to it it looks like a very good deal. In reality, these items were never meant to be sold for 1000+ to begin with. Before buying any big ticket item at cdn tire, whip out your phone and check online for the going rate on items. From generators to coffee makers they do it on alot of items. Always get another quote when dealing with them.
Matt says...
Ha! I left that rePly without reading the one above it. Buyer beware.
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Devyn says...
LOL @ the previous post. Wtf??