My open letter to HP:An User's Feedback

Friends, I have sent the following letter to Hewlett Packard including its CEO Mark Hurd and its India Contacts. The letter involves no name calling or swearing and is the true reflection of an user who has been using HP's products for the last seven years. Please take your time to go through it and advise me as to what steps should I take to redress my grievances.

 

Remove the emotional content and rewrite it in a functional style. You have many valid points, but it clouded in a lot of undue (and tedious) emotional statements. Get rid of those and just stick to the facts.

By all accounts, this letter could be half it's size and still communicate all that you want/need to say.

 

I have removed some emotional outbursts but I feel if I crop it more, I have to compromise on the service details and the consequences. What do you say?

 

where did u get the ceo's contacts?

 

I say far be it from me to butcher your poignant letter but you did ask...


Sir,
I decided to purchase an HP Pavilion dv9000 series notebook which was the highest end model in 2007. The Pavilion dv9312tx

Total cost of the laptop was Rs 65260.00 plus one old Toshiba Satellite A60 notebook.
I bought this notebook primarily for its multimedia capabilities although occasionally I would play a few games as well.

1st Service:
Gradually the laptop started overheating and the keyboard became loose. One of the keys even came out. I took the notebook to HP Service Center, That was exactly 6.5 months from the purchase date. The fan and keyboard was replaced. I received the laptop back on 19-01-2008.

2nd Service:
In September, 2008 the laptop went dead and I took the notebook to HP Authorised Service Centre, on 26-09-2008. I had to wait till 03-10-2008 to receive my laptop. However it was repaired with a new system board

Renewal of warranty:
Because it would be dicey to continue with this “premium” laptop without an extended warranty, I purchased a 2 year Care Pack on 31-12-2008. The Care Pack number is G05UINAC908A. That was again after I was e-mailed by HP India several times that now I have the option of renewing my warranty within 90 days of expiry of my 1 year original warranty.

3rd Service:
After three months my DVD Writer died. In addition to that the Quick Launch Buttons died without a reason.

Again I took it to the HP Service Centre, on 17-03-2009. The notebook was returned on 27-03-2009.

4th Service:
This incident is very recent. Green lines appeared on my display and all dark colours were replaced with an ugly light green shade. I wasn’t even able to type properly because visibility was minimal. I promptly took it to HP Authorised Service Centre, on 04-09-2009. I was told that it would be returned in 4-5 days and only the display cable needs to be changed or repositioned. The notebook was returned on 19-09-2009.

The service report says only the system board was changed for the “umpteenth” ( be specific or omit) time. However I found that they have even changed the LCD display. They refused to acknowledge the change in LCD panel and they claimed that only board was changed.
On coming back home, I found that on turning the num lock key on, even normal alphabet keys started typing numbers.
Today I found that the BIOS serial number has not been properly calibrated. It is showing 0000000000 instead of the machine serial number. They were callous enough not to calibrate it. Now my Recovery Disks won’t run. My BIOS can’t be flashed and other notebook specific programs won’t run. They all give a message that “This program is not for this PC.”

Final words:
I was once a great admirer of HP products and have even recommended them to my near and dear ones for years. But what pains me a lot is the fact that my investment in this high end laptop (by 2007 standards) has gone waste. I eagerly wait for your reply so that I am convinced that HP indeed cares for its regular buyers.

sincerely

Pranjal Patowary

**************************************

You probably won't like my revision very much because I deleted most of what you wrote. Now there's virtually no emotional content, and the point of your letter is a lot easier to get at. Nevertheless, for the most part, the facts are still there. You might want to expand on those (if you feel it's necessary) but don't include any personal feelings expressions, thoughts or biases. Nobody will read that.

Incidentally, you might want to use billets. They are an excellent way to express your points and also make your letter quick and easy to read.


p.s. it's still too long. Good luck!

 

The letter is fine. Send it in. Better yet, call the HP case manager hotline.

 

Thanks alot Krane for formatting the letter. I would only add the Case numbers to reinforce my points.

@accesskb: http://www.hp.com/hpinfo/execteam/email/hurd/

sublime313: Can you please tell me the Case Manager Hotline?

 

I'm not sure if the faulty nVidia chips include the 7600...

 

Yes MGS, the 7600 is also one of those. If you go to their consumer support forums and HPlies.com, you will see that a majority of the people are in fact having problems with the Go 7600. My current system board is 3rd one in succession. Although I play minimal games, it has this habit of going out in 6-8 months.

 

I think you should keep the emotional tune in the letter. Otherwise, it just sounds like you are giving feedback without the desire for a response. With the emotional addition, you feel for the customer. Pran had a few issues and he should address it as he feels fit.

Either way, HP will receive and learn the same amount of information.

 

I have some more doubts. Whether the Case Managers Numbers are Toll Free and whether they are different for different countries?

 

Your first letter was fine, as its mainly a user feedback.

If you wanted it to be functional and objective then id keep the emotional experiences brief and go straight to the facts and core points.

Let us know of HP's response Pranalien

 

Definitely flip. Yesterday I engaged in active chat. They said that the database is down. I sent the letter to Mark Hurd, and to [email protected]. Right now I am engaging in another chat session. Lets hope for the best.

 

Take my word for it, emotional tones wane quickly. Especially when you may have hundreds of letters to read.

I used to work in the complaint department (although not for a computer company) and I can assure you that despite it being addressed to a specific executive, they seldom get those letters. ? But even when they do, it's unlikely they'll read more than a few lines before they realize it's contents and send it to the correct department. Those people (like me), aren't effected much by the emotional content, I (they) just want you to get to the point! The quicker that happens, the quicker they can help you.

Just think about it, would you like to read a hundred letters like that every day?

On the other hand, mine is just one opinion. So the OP can take your advice if he wishes.

p.s. BTW, no denigration to you OP; I've been where you are many times.

 

I will take both Krane and Flip's advice in mind before sending it one more time to both instant support and Mark Hurd. As of now no replies from them. I was told yesterday in a chat session that I should expect the replies by today or tomorrow.

 

Well if i were you, i'd demand a new laptop too you know. I heard that if your laptop has been repaired more than 3 times, hp sometimes give you a new one.. hopefully they can give you a new one which is equilant to the one you have now...

 

I won't sound desperate. But if I get the full amt refund, I will be satisfied. This notebook has brought nothing but trouble for me. I think I have to go for the 5th service now as the BIOS serial number and the keypad has been totally messed up during the previous service.

 

A slight update. Just a little while back I got the following mail from CEO,Customer Relations:

 

Hi friends. A new update here. I got a call from HP India today from a lady named Ritika. Initially it seemed as if she was reading from a prepared text. I conveyed her my reactions and experiences. She then asked me to visit the service centre again for the 5th time. I politely refused saying that what is the guarantee it will be fine this time after repeated services have not been able to rectify the issues of this notebook.

Looked like she realized she had to do more as I stuck to my point of feeling like an idiot for spending so much money on this model and then not getting the desired service. She noted down my personal details like name ,correspondence address and e-mail id and also added that she will be escalating the case and I will be contacted soon.

What also amused me was that she was asking for a feedback. I plainly told her that I will see how they deal with my case and then I will reciprocate. Now I am just keeping my fingers crossed.

 

Another HP India executive called me a couple of days back. She was asking me to take back the laptop to the service center to fix it. It seems they will magically fix the laptop this time and they are "sure" that I wouldn't have any other problems.

I am simply tired of all these so called short term "solutions" which will just delay the inevitable. Even after I informed them that I am currently on my 3rd system board, they are unmoved. I am painfully frustrated and will just mail another letter to HP CEO for the final time before bidding goodbye to their company's products.

 

hello,
i went through same issues with HP india.they are prompt in replacing the components but its futile as main issue they dont bother to fix.

their motto seems to be replace the part that is fired thats all.

good luck to you and i doubt you will get any refund or anything alike,

your issue is purely HP NVIDIA graphics.

its well known thing.

one customer less,they wont bother about.

one honest advice.i would have escalated the case to consumer court at district level if u have time and patience and see the results.

 

I don't understand. If they continue like this, they will start losing many of their old timers who swore by them. I had been using HP products for the last 8.5 years. After this issue, I don't feel like going back to them and quitting their products once and for all. After the 4th service, these are the defects which have newly arisen:

--Dead pixels on new display which they have replaced

--Defective system board(my 3rd one) with the faulty Geforce 7600

--Scrambled Keyboard. Turning on the Num Lock jumbles even alphabets

--BIOS serial ID is 0000000000. They were so reckless that they didn't even care to check to calibrate the serial number. Now my Recovery Disks won't run.

I am shocked and at a loss of words.

 

These are the complete texts of my two letters I have e-mailed Mark Hurd.

1st letter: http://rapidshare.com/files/289767949/hp_original_letter.docx

2nd letter: http://rapidshare.com/files/291247835/HP_Followup_letter.doc

 

In the last one month, the progress has been painfully slow.

Call support and chat sessions have been no hopers for me. Irrespective of the person in charge, they are just asking me to take the notebook once again to a different service center in the same city. And they are "hoping" that my problems will magically disappear somehow. Each time I have been given new case numbers. Case numbers have become redundant now atleast for me.

Instant support doesn't score much better. I got a complaint ID. The mail goes like this:

I am just playing a wait and watch game and not taking any proactive steps right now because I have been bogged down with work. But I have already started reasearch on the consumer complaint forums in India.

 

I hope you are successful at this. Seeing as HP isnt willing to give you any recourse, its best you turn to consumer affairs for assistance.

 

If there is such a thing in India.. I come from india and in that country, service from OEM's like Hp is crap... and the governement also doesn't do anything to help...

 

Additionally most of the laws here can be circumvented quite easily. The legal process is very lethargic and by the time the result comes, you are not even interested. That is the reason many people get frustrated and just move on.

And corporates like HP take advantage of this unique aspect to fool customers. It is actually happening since a long long time. I fully agree with what dr. pratik has said above.

 

Today I got my notebook from the service center. They replaced the motherboard, the 4th one. They sorted out all the other problems. Once I ran the machine for 1 hr straight, the GPU temps are running at 75C now with only Firefox running. The previous normal temps were in the range of 60-65C.

 

Another shock. HP's three strike rule is practised in the U.S only.

Here is an excerpt from a chat session I had today:

 

This is getting to be ridiculous. Do NOT give up. Keep going. The users here at NBR all support you!

 

A slight update on the case:

I newly registered a complaint and sent another letter to CEO. I got a call from the service centre person offering to repair the laptop. I flatly refused as this is not a joke. I got a case number and I was called by the Supervisor, Mr. Anand. After much discussion he offered to escalate the case to the next level.

Lets see now how it goes.

 

If you are under warranty still, I would say send it in again, since you already have 3 repairs for the graphics defect - it took me 4 repairs and on the 5th time, they agreed to replace the notebook

 

The notebook has warranty till Nov 2010. It has already been repaired 5 times at locations across India. The motherboard with the faulty Go 7600 has been replaced 3 times. I don't think anyone else will bear the patience borne out of HP Engineers' incompetency.

 

The 3 strike rule really depends on your countries consumer laws.

I believe in some countries like Canada and New Zealand, the notebook has to last at least 3 years.