Rant - Boo Hiss

Babies R Us - go figure.

Background - We bought a crib. Crib was recalled. Instructions were followed, and crib voucher was received from crib company. Shopping around commenced. Also note, said crib voucher works at Babies R Us only.

Now that everyone reading is up to speed...

This week I received an email from Babies R Us about their "Great Trade-In" sale/deal. Basically, you bring in an old crib (or whatever from their select list), and you receive a 25% off coupon on the purchase of a new crib (or whatever from their select list). Since I had been trying to figure out a way to not waste the leftover parts from the recalled crib (we only had to send back the nuts & bolts), this was the perfect opportunity! The new crib that we had pretty much decided on was about $30-40 more than what our voucher was worth; the 25% off coupon would more than cover the difference. Keep in mind, we were more than willing to pay the difference when we saw the new crib, but this was too great of an offer to pass up.

So, today we made our way over to Babies R Us to place our order and scratch one more thing off of our "Baby To-Do" list. Being that it was Saturday, the store was quite busy. No biggie, we were not in a rush. We turned in the old crib and received our 25% off coupon with no problems. We were even allowed to bring a piece of the old crib to the back to compare the colors to make sure the new crib matched the changing table we still had. Everyone was very nice and helpful up to the point of check out.

The lady rang up our order, scanned the coupon and then proceeded to ask our method of payment. We then present the voucher. The cashier excused herself with the voucher - we assumed she needed a manager. About 15 minutes later, she comes back with a newly printed, slightly different voucher. She did not explain her absence, but we figured that she needed a bar code that the computer would recognize. No problem. As I stated before, we were in no rush. She then scans the voucher - remember, the crib and coupon had already been scanned. She then tells us there is a difference of $38. Now, in a normal, functioning world one would imagine that the 25% coupon would deduct from the price of the crib, and then the voucher would act like a gift card and pay the remaining balance. Well, sirs and madams, that is not the Babies R Us way. I thought the $38 difference was the negative left from the voucher being worth more than the total. No. That was the amount we still owed. Um, que? The poor cashier looked just as confused as we did. She walked to the other side of the Guest Services table and called for her manager. The manager speaks to her and explains what the computer did and that she cannot change it. The only reason we know this is because we were close enough to overhear; not because the worthless manager had the courtesy to come over and explain it herself or possibly apologize for all of the waiting and confusion - that would not have been very Babies R Us of her. Basically, the price of the crib scanned, then the voucher amount was deducted, THEN the 25% off was placed on the difference of the crib's original price and the voucher. Whatever. Screw it. We paid the difference and left with an order for the crib we wanted.

The bottom line is this - the principle of the matter. We were more than willing to pay the difference, but the store offered a great deal of a sale for us to take advantage of. Instead of clearly marking their coupons or policies, or even staffing a manager who gave a rat's ass, they nickel and dimed us with a scam sale. I realize that no one really wins with a recall on a product; however, the loss should not be shifted to the consumer who followed the requested procedure for replacing the defective product. On top of everything, the information about the event stated that the emphasis was on recalled products that should not be resold or passed down. We did everything we were supposed to, and our reward was $10 off. At least we got that, I guess.

If I was not already aggravated with my experiences at Babies R Us, this would have been enough on its own. I am DONE. They WILL NOT receive anymore business from us or our loved ones, if we can help it. We will definitely, beyond a shadow of a doubt, NOT be registering with them. Thankfully, I've had some great recommendations for online registries. I think those in addition to Target will be what we go with. I would like to give at least one option for people to shop at an actual store if they choose. But, NOT Babies R Us.

We are also contacting their corporate office to file a complaint. If that is the way they do business, then it should be clearly marked and/or explained to the consumer upfront.