Home Depot review: you can do it and we can screw it up

On June 24, 2008 I special ordered two types of tile which were recommended as a set from Home Depot. The employee struggled with the order, but after about 45-50 minutes he completed it. The order should not have taken more than a few minutes since I had all the measurements required. When I went to pay for the order I discovered the credit card account had been closed due to lack of activity. I reapplied, received a new number, paid the fee and went home to await my shipment.

NEXT DAY AT HOME DEPOT: When faxing the order to the vendor it was discovered the employee entered incorrect information for one of the matching tiles. The item is sold by piece and not by square foot which I discovered on the day the tile arrived and was finally delivered. I was never informed of the change or the incorrect calculation. On the tile's near arrival day, July 8, I called the store to check on its progress. I was told the tile shipped on July 1 and was on a truck. The store's delivery dates were Mondays and Thursdays. I would receive a call when the tile arrived, but check the web site for status updates. The next day I discovered the tile had been moved to July 11 as the expected arrival date. I called the store and was assured it would arrive on that day.

On July 10, I contacted the store to verify the tile's status and was told it was delivered to a store about 50 miles away. I was also informed that an employee had called me the day before to let me know of the shipping problem. As of yet, I had not received any phone calls or communication from the store, expect when I initiated it.

The July 11 date passed and no word from Home Depot so I called them on the 12th. I discovered the tile was missing...it was on a truck...no one knew where the truck was...the order was cancelled...I had been informed of its late delivery a number of times...everything they told me was a lie.

I called the "Customer Care" or perhaps it should be called "Let's pretend to make the customer think we care" line. I spoke with a gentleman who made me believe he was really involved and would have the store trace the tile and get back to me.

Later that day I received a phone call from an employee who stated the tile would be delivered Monday night...they would deliver it to me without charge no later than Wednesday...they had no control over the shipping company...the tile was not delivered to another store...the original order was never cancelled...all of it was just more lies.

YESTERDAY: July 15, 2008 I received a phone call stating the tile was in and ready to be delivered. I gave directions and waited for its arrival. When the truck backed up into the drive way I realized immediately that the amount I ordered was NOT what was being delivered. I spoke with the young woman making the delivery and showed her my invoice. She saw that I was short the necessary tile and calculated that it was short by 82.5 square feet.

Needless to say: I waited hours at the store to check on the tile, never spoke to a manager until the final delivery was incorrect. I am waiting right now for them to pick up the tile and return it. I went to a local tile store and purchased higher quality, lower prices and quality service. I should have done that to begin with. Like others, I will never shop at Home Depot again.