My wife purchased an Olympus C-7000 digital camera from Best Buy #477 (Lynnwood WA) on 12/18/04.
I returned the camera on 12/30/04 with the intent to buy a digital camcorder. The store exchanged the C-7000 camera for a Panasonic VDR-M50 and I paid the $196.02 difference at that time.
I attempted to return the camcorder on 1/13/05 (within the 14 day return window). However the customer service personnel denied the return because they felt that the purchase date of 12/30/04 was outside the 14 day return period. After re-counting the days, the customer service personnel agreed that the return was within the 14 day return window, but after reviewing the sales receipt further they decided to again deny the return because they felt that since the returned item (VDR-M50) was exchanged for an item that was originally purchased on 12/18/04 that the affective purchase date for the returned item was 12/18/04 and therefore not eligible for return.
Best Buy has the right to establish any return policy that they desire. However they also have a legal obligation to abide by the return policies that they have established and communicated to their customers. Best Buy return policies printed on the back of the sales receipt, posted on the web site, and displayed in their store, do not indicate that the return period for an exchanged item begins when the original item was purchased. Furthermore, I believe that any reasonable person would expect that the purchase date of this item would be when the actual transaction for the item occurred and possession of the item transferred to the buyer (in this case on 12/30/04).
If this was truly BB policy and if it was known to me, I would not have performed the exchange transaction (which was suggested by the store personnel). I would have simply returned the C-7000 camera for refund and then purchased the VDR-M50 camcorder outright.
Why would anyone perform an exchange and lose their return rights when they could do a return for refund on the returned item and then purchase the new item?
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