Newcastle-upon-Tyne Samsung Experience Store

[CalMUK]

Where do I start with my experience today? I cracked my screen on my Note20 Ultra 5G this morning, so I quickly booked an appointment for 1130am at my closest Samsung store (which is an hours drive from me), through the Samsung.com website.

Got there on time to be greeted by an 'engineer' who quoted me £279 for the screen repair. Steep for sure but I broke it so gotta pay right?

Then he started asking for proof of purchase... for a phone out of warranty? Why? There's no mention on Samsung.com about this... nor in the booking email.

I mentioned I had my tablet in the car which is only in the car park. So I'll quickly get it, and he agreed I can use the WiFi to grab my Samsung.com receipt from an email.

So I returned 5 mins later with still 10 minutes of my 30 minute appointment slot to be greeted with "he has already seen you and is now on a conference call, you'll have to book another appointment in a few days as we are fully booked".

So thats it eh? An hours drive for nothing? They refused to take the phone.

So annoyed by this I rang Samsung Stars customer services. They tried their best, even tried calling the store but no one answered. So the lad I was talking to asked me to walk back to the store and speak to them further and see if they could answer their phone.

I was confronted with "I am not sure why customer services keep sending customers here as we are not Samsung.com, we are our own Samsung Experience franchise... we haven't had a phone line for a year now... book another slot and return in a few days".

Great eh? Amazing customer experience.

So my phone is still broke and I am unsure I will buy another Samsung product after that. Back to Apple...

[Pugs1957]

It seems the Experience stores are independent franchises. It states this at the end of the page where the Experience stores are listed and Newcastle is present.
I would have thought that's how they get some of their business. What you experienced is poor. Why would you need to provide proof of purchase for a private repair?

You need to pursue this with the store and speak to the horse's head not its ar*e. There's nothing Samsung can directly, unfortunately.

Best of luck

[BandOfBrothers]

Not a good experience at all @CalMUK especially when you've followed the procedure to set up an appointment and verbally agreed with the person in-house that you'll be back forthwith. The appointment time is set aside for you at the end of the day.

A conference call shouldn't have been made in a customers appointment slot.

To me it does not matter whether they are franchised or not.

They are representing Samsung.

Personally I would have asked to speak with the manager to try and further this.

I assume there no other service centres available nearer to you at all !

I wish all the best. 

[Cdtplug]

Aren't these just a rebranded carphonewarehouse?

[antikythera]

No, CPW are part of the Dixons group so got put into Currys PC World stores a while back when a load of their shops got closed nationally

[Cdtplug]

https://www.theguardian.com/business/2014/jan/29/samsung-60-stores-europe-partnership-carphone-wareh... they may have moved away from CPW but that's who ran them originally.

[BandOfBrothers]

@Cdtplug 

They used to be a while back but then Samsung took control back off CPW.