Gateway, ripoff Irvine California

I purchased an e-machines computer from Office Depot, an excellent company in my opinion. I can't say the same for Gateway as you will see. The computer came with several rebates including 2 $50 rebates from Gateway which owns e-machines. I received the 2 checks from Gateway but they got lost in the paperwork on my desk.

When I discovered them the check expiration date had passed. I first contacted Office Depot and they gave me Gateway contact information. When I contacted Gateway they instructed me to fax them a copy of the checks and they would replace them. When the new checks did not arrive after a month I called again and nobody would help me.

So I wrote to Gateway Chairman and CEO Richard Snyder, sending him all the correspondence from my prior contact, and copied Office Depot to explain the problem. I received a call from Mr. Snyder's office informing me that they would not replace the checks because they had not been cashed on time. After several heated exchanges they still refused to replace the checks. But I did get an e-mail from Office Depot saying that they would send me a $100 gift certificate. I thanked them and said that I appreciated the gift certificate but they should not have been responsible for Gateway's incompetent customer service.

So Office Depot has now become my office supply store of choice and I will never buy another product from Gateway.

James
Cherry Hill, New Jersey
U.S.A.