‘[They] broke a TV they did NOT buy from us and wanted us to gift them a new one!’: Couple demands electrical retailer replace a shattered TV they bought elsewhere after their kid smashed it with a controller, end up exposed and thrown out of the store

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  • Couple broke their TV then wanted a retailer they did NOT buy it from to gift them a new one!

    "They hadn't even bought it from us, so how could we replace it?”
  • I worked in electrical retail in a Mall in England back when the Wii console first came out.
  • When it was first released (if you are old enough...) you'll remember that the handsets didn't come with a safety strap attached at all, you just held it in your hand loose to play the games.
  • It had a thin strap with it, but no one ever attached them! So about 3 days after the release of the Wii a couple came into the store literally carrying their big LED TV (seriously high tech at the time & very pricey) under their arm & put it on the counter of customer services & demanded to see the manager!
  • (Sadly this was before the 'Karen' name tag existed!). We asked them what the problem was & they pointed to the giant crack on the TV screen and said it had just mysteriously broken.
  • We said that unless they had an extra warranty that accidental damage was not covered. They replied all snootily that the TV 'just broke'.
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  • the Kid with them sniggered. They refused to talk more unless to a manager. It was busy so he'd be a while.
  • I told them to browse. They left the kid with me (gee, thanks!) ...So I chatted a bit to the kid, till I softened him up...
  • then I straight up asked the kid (9 or so) what really happened. He said... "Well I was using my new Wii and the remote flew out of my hand whilst I was playing Ten Pin bowling & it crashed into the screen on the wall and smashed it." I was utterly astounded, luckily a co- worker had also heard what the kid said.
  • At that point the manager came up to me & before the parents could come storming back over I quickly told him the real story.
  • ...then the parents arrived & began to bullshit the manager utterly. "The screen just broke whilst we were out." Manager was a good bloke & said "Well your kid just told us that the Wii remote flew out of his hand into the screen".
  • Queue parents looking at the kid like he was gonna be grounded for a year, the kid was still smirking (as 9 year old lil shits are bound to do when getting Someone Else into trouble!).
  • Whilst this was going on actually had taken the time to look at the back of the TV and saw that it wasn't even a model number that we sold.
  • I quickly turned to my manager & said "This TV isn't even one we sell here.".
  • The manager looked at parents and asked what exactly they thought WE could do if the telly wasn't from this store.?
  • They both started yelling over each other saying that it was all our fault and that They shouldn't have to replace it, but still trying to say nothing about the Wii.
  • Our manager stonily said that there was literally nothing we could do as they hadn't even bought it from us, so how Could we replace it?
  • They were both so crossed lines and agitated that they started being utter Karens and shitty at us.
  • I could tell manager was 5 seconds from calling Mall security when the Dad said "...Well, we bought the Wii from you and That was what caused the accident.
  • So you Have to replace it!" "..ahh. So you DO admit it was an accident caused by your kid on his Wii?" The parents both just looked at each other (& the Mum looked SO pissed at Dad.) ...and the Mum took the kid's wrist and went to storm out of the shop shouting at Dad to follow them.
  • My Manager called after them "Hey, you can't leave the TV here... it's littering!" (I think he just pulled that out of nowhere cos he was utterly pissed off by that point.
  • "If you leave the TV here we'll contact Mall security and you'll be banned from the entire Mall." (There were other malls in the city, but ours was the biggest with all the best stores).
  • Dad just huffs and comes to retrieve it and they both get escorted out of the store by our own security!
  • ...A few weeks later Nintendo sent out stickers to put on all the Wii boxes to 'always attach a safety strap' & a few months later all Wii remotes started being shipped with straps attached already!
  • I think there were a LOT of broken TV's at this point... but I bet we were the only store to have a couple ask for a new TV at a store they never even bought it from!!

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