Best Buy Sued

Best Buy Sued Over "Shower Cam"

By David WoodConsumerAffairs.Com
April 12, 2007

The Best Buy "Geek Squad" brochure says that only "agents you can trust" will be sent to repair your computer, but a lawsuit filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court alleges just the opposite.
The suit, filed by 22-year-old Sarah Vasquez and her mother, alleges that Geek Squad employee, 26-year-old Hao Kuo Chi, placed a cell phone camera in the bathroom for the purpose of videotaping Sarah and her younger sister.
According to the lawsuit, Chi placed the phone on the bathroom sink at an angle that would record anyone in the vicinity of the shower.
Vasquez used the bathroom to take a shower and once out of the shower, she saw the camera phone along with its blinking red light.

Feeling that something wasn't right, Vasquez walked out of the bathroom to tell her sister about the phone, and when Vasquez returned to the bathroom, the phone was gone.
The younger sister later found the phone in her bedroom, removed the memory chip, and that's when it all fell apart for Chi. The video images on the chip show Vasquez in the shower.
The suit alleges negligent hiring, fraud, invasion of privacy, among others.
Best Buy released the following statement: "Best Buy was not informed of this action prior to being contacted by the media today. Obviously, we intend to cooperate fully with any investigation into this matter."

(and previously)

Ohio Sues Best Buy

A lot of Ohio residents say the pledges and promises made by electronics super store Best Buy aren't worth the paper they're written on. Because of the hundreds of consumer complaints he's received about the giant retailer, the state's Attorney General, Jim Petro, is suing Best Buy, charging that it's engaged in a pattern of unfair and deceptive acts and practices. Petro says the primary objective of the lawsuit is "to bring Best Buy into conformity with Ohio's consumer protection laws and ensure that Best Buy's Ohio customers receive the service they deserve." The complaints filed by Ohio consumers claim -- among other things -- that Best Buy repackaged used goods and sold them as new, failed to honor rebates, failed to honor refund and exchange programs, and failed to honor extended service contracts. Additional Consumer Sales Practices Act violations charged in the lawsuit include: failure to honor implied warranties of merchantability, substandard and/or inadequate customer service, and making false and misleading statements to consumers. In the complaint, Petro is asking the court to prohibit Best Buy from engaging in practices that violate the Consumer Sales Practices Act, and to order the company to reimburse consumers who lost money or otherwise did not receive the full service they were promised. The complaint also asks that Best Buy pay a civil penalty of $25,000 for each violation of the Consumer Sales Practices Act.