Reluctant to Return something?

[Nomad]

So as the title says, have we ever felt reluctant to return something in the past, and what were the reasons?

For example, I remember being a kid & not wanting to return this snow driller Batmobile thing because I was afraid of not being able to exchange it for another, so I dealt with not having the hood cannon part, and the same goes for my Black & Gold Megazord not having the sword.

Then more recently, I decided against taking back my Deluxe Crankcase because even though there was a crack on his knee, I knew that I lucked out in all other quality aspects. Along with that, it seemed like a real shame to condemn him to a life of possible destruction because of something as minute as that, especially since the broken park was still being held together by the outer plastic.

... so yeah, stories & thoughts?

[Matrix_Holder]

If you find another one at some point...buy it and return the other one with the reciept.

[Nomad]

Guess that's always an option, and if I packed it really well & didn't mention it being broken (I doubt they'd transform it at customer service to make sure), there's a good chance that he'd just get put back into the shelf with a bunch of tape on the bubble instead of being fed to the Sharkticons.

I could also just swap the leg if the new figure had shitty paint or badly bent fingers/hair, but there's still a chance that somebody else would buy that figure, exchange it, and then put Crankcase into the very situation that I tried to avoid.

... maybe I care just a little too much about my TFs haha.

[Matrix_Holder]

No...just tell them its busted ...defective. you don't even have to repackaged it well. They'll fill out a defective product slip. You boughtba defective toy and should be able to return/exchange it. Nothing wrong with that.

[Bruticus82]

I know what you mean. The one time I do remember trying to return a toy for being defective I went through four others and found they all had the same manufacturing issue - so it wasn't just a one-off (not a TF story).

In terms of TFs the worst so far was my generations blurr with an unpainted knee. Unfortunately they were scarce over here, so I kept him. I eventually found another but kept the other one, I figure I'll customize him someday.

[Pascal]

There were problems with Crankcase?

[Nomad]

Nothing major, but there's a small crack on the inside of his upper knee. It's still tight because there's a larger piece that covers it (the part that broke is attached to the thai), so I thought about taking it back but decided against.

I just didn't wanna see him possibly get thrown away because of it, especially since it doesn't move for transformation & since it'll mainly be sitting on my shelf. If it was something more noticeable or that was an immediate structural issue I'd have gone back that day (London Drugs in my area has like 4 of em), but for this it was like well... not worth the possibly sacrifice haha.

[juxtapose519]

I hate returning things, no matter what it is. Even when I have a perfectly good reason to return something because it was damaged before I opened the package, I still feel like the person behind the counter is assuming I'm somehow cheating the system.

Just the other day I took a sandwich maker back to Sears and when I told the woman behind the counter that it didn't work, she gave me the stink eye and asked me why the box was opened. I didn't think I had to explain that I didn't know the product wasn't working until I took it out and plugged it in.

[Nomad]

... but in the world of retail, it's never safe to assume anything. :)

[gagagalvatron]

Reluctant? Yes. But if it's a breakage issue (or even a possible future breakage issue), the toy's going back.

I can overlook minor paint gaffes, but a physical issue will get returned every time. Last two were a Cyclonus whose shoulder piece was malformed and Tracks, whose wing clip on the back was broken in package.

I tried to fix Cyclonus, but it wasn't an assembly error -- there was just something not right about the part. Tracks is one of my favorite characters, and I didn't want his wing disintegrating 5 years from now and be unable to find a replacement.

Last one I really was reluctant to return was MP Rodimus. The problem was the windshield, which had an impact spiderweb. The chest wasn't locked down and I think it bounced around during shipment until it cracked the windshield underneath.

I debated with that one. The rest of it was fine -- no leg panel failures or zombie arms. The legs and ankles seemed fine. Did I really want to return it for something minor and mostly cosmetic?

The answer was yes. It's an MP figure, and while it's primarily going to be in robot mode, the instant it went to car the defect was the most eye-catching thing. I feel sorry for the waste and the bother but I didn't cause the issue and shouldn't be disappointed every time I look at the figure.

The one time I didn't return something was Hatchet. Mine came with only one missile. Of course Wal-Mart only had one Hatchet, and in this case, while it's incomplete, I neither wanted the bother of going to the store and returning it, then having to find another one, nor the waste of trashing an entire figure for a dinky little missile. There was nothing wrong with Hatchet itself. In the grand scheme of things, no biggie.

[Scrapper6]

I too have been reluctant to return items, because chances are if it isn't obviously broken, as in the customer receptions person can't see that it's broken then they will automatically put it back on the shelf.

Case in point, when the Cybertron line was in full swing I purchased a Mini-Con Class Thrust vs. Anti-Blaze (Or whoever he was packaged with.) and the figure of Thrust was literally missing an arm. Somewhere on the production floor the figure failed to recieve one of the parts he was meant to have.

At first I contacted Hasbro themselves about the complaint (still have the pre-paid mailing slip they sent me to return the item.), but when I heard I might not get the exact same figures I opted instead to go back to Wal-Mart and exchange it.

I even made a point of telling the damn woman that a piece was missing from the item and that it was incomplete, straight out of the package. But what do I see a few weeks later? My returned item put back on the shelf to sell. So that if any kid bought it or unsuspecting parent/grandparent they'd be left in the same situation I was in.

Stupid frakking Wal-Mart employees.

I'm certain some of you also remember my HftD Terradive issues, with the nosecone being glued in place on the factory floor for whatever reason forcing me to return the item after buying another one from TRU. I don't like this, I know the toy broke and wasn't working the way it was meant to, but I just don't feel comfortable returning an item due to the fact that it just feels wrong to me.

I get that shit happens when you mass produce something, but up until that point I had never in my life had to return a toy for breakage issues and I didn't feel right doing it. Hell, even after I found out that my Duststorm Energon Constructicon figure somehow got two left hips, I still don't think it's that big a deal because it doesn't hinder the function of the toy. He still transforms, he still combines just fine, heck he's even got alternative poseability in that he can actually pose himself in a unique way. (Of course beccause of that minor glitch is probably why I"m having a little bit of a difficult time selling the group, but that's beside the point.)

It has nothing to do with how I feel about the toy itself, and more to do with the fact that I feel like a complete heel having to return a child's plaything, that I happen to be a collector of, to the retail outlet, because someone, somewhere, wasn't paying the right attention to their damn job at QC to prevent defective merchandise from leaving the factory floor.

I know it must be one of the world's worst jobs, but take some pride in your work man, even if you are some faceless cog in a giant wheel it's no excuse for slovenly behavior when you're getting paid to do something important. Of course if they were being paid a proper wage they'd probably treat their job a hell of a lot better. But we're not here to debate that sort of thing.

So yeah, I can sort of understand where you're coming from, returning anything can be difficult. But in the long run, if it is absolutely necessary I will do it, but I'll do my best to make sure the broken item is not put back into circulation for some unsuspecting consumer.

[Sun Swipe Prime]

I just didn't wanna see him possibly get thrown away because of it, especially since it doesn't move for transformation & since it'll mainly be sitting on my shelf.

I'm not sure why you're worried about it being discarded. It's not like you're taking food out of a baby's mouth or depriving someone of house and home.

I mean why should you take a bullet when you don't have too? You bought something expecting it to be in a reasonable condition, so that's what you should get. If the defect doesn't bother you, then what ever, but you paid your hard earned money for something. You shouldn't have to live with the unreasonable defects if you don't want to.


I hate returning things, no matter what it is. Even when I have a perfectly good reason to return something because it was damaged before I opened the package, I still feel like the person behind the counter is assuming I'm somehow cheating the system.


Being an introvert, I used to be like this. Returns used to make me nervous for this exact reason. But I grew out of it. You have to realize if you didn't do anything wrong then you have every right to return something. You paid for a working product that's what you should get. Who gives a crap what anyone else thinks you did or did not do. If you're an honest customer, you deserve honest service. If they think the worst of you that's their problem for being cynical not yours.

[Nomad]

... but it's Crankcase. Just look at those adorable eyes!

Also about putting things back on the shelve, I used to work at Canadian Tire, and there were plenty of things that were returned because they were broken or incomplete, and we were pretty good about not trying to sell them as well, being complete. Sometimes we'd keep em for parts or use two broken ones to make one full one, but for things like toys... people just don't seem to care.

For example, I saw a Crankcase (yes, this was sort of funny) in TRU that was missing its Mechtech weapon. It hadn't been stolen or anything because the package was perfect, but it was just missing. I took it to Customer Service, and the lady there took it outa stock & tossed it somewhere. Then when I went there next week it was back on the shelve, and now it's gone. It probably sold, and who knows what that person ended up doing with it.

[Detective Barricade]

About the only time I've ever returned something was a Recon Ironhide that was missing one of the arm cannons, (the one that doesn't shoot the missile) and I really didn't enjoy that.

DOTM Powerglide I've not been tempted to return, despite not really caring for the toy.

[Bountyan]

The Kranix that came with my Unicron had a broken minicon port, an overly tight foot, and a loose shoulder. Didn't want to return it though because one, I was too lazy to repack the entire thing and go to TRU, and two, I didn't want to risk getting a crappy Unicron since mine is pretty good.