I have a Coleman airbed that I bought back in January. I was tired of going to CONs (youth conferences for youth in Unitarian Universalist congregations) and not being able to get off floor I slept on). Sure, I had a short airbed but I needed a taller one since the fall last summer.
I bought it … and wasn’t even able to use it the first time. I was sick the morning of the CON I bought it for and Shannon used it in my place. She said the kids were in awe of the magnificence of it! I have used it a handful times since then … once for a CON and a few nights at my mom’s. It was inadvertently overfilled a couple of nights ago and a small hole appeared. It was on the “flocked” side. Didn’t realize this until 1 a.m. when I woke up and realized we were deflating.
Alex tried to repair it but I am not sure it stuck. My sister and her daughter slept on it one night and, though Kelly couldn’t hear any hissing indicative of an air leak, it was certainly deflated in the morning and when my mom sat on it, her butt almost hit the floor.
The temps have risen again and are not cooling off at night to anything reasonable for sleeping. Sure, we have window units in the old, not-well insulated house. The upstairs one doesn’t do a good enough job of cooling off my room at night. Being of a certain age doesn’t necessarily help my plight any. I like a cool room. Chalk that up to growing up in a drafty house in Michigan, where my dad would keep the thermostat turned way down at night. My bedroom was the only one upstairs. I used to have so many blankets at night I would have to wake up to roll over.
I went to Walmart to purchase a new blow up bed. I know, I know … that may have been my first mistake. I spent 80-something on the first one (I bought one that came with a pump as the other pump was MIA at the time) and didn’t want to spend 80+ dollars on a new bed this week. I chose the Coleman as that is what we currently had and figured it is a good brand name. It still might be but their customer service leaves a lot to be desired.
When we set the bed up last night, it was obvious it is NOT as advertised: a queen double high bed, 19″ tall. That is a 12″ ruler Maggie is holding on the floor next to the bed:
I decided to call Coleman Customer Service this morning. Kudos to them for being open at 8 ET even though they are in the Central time zone. The woman I spoke to was friendly but not very aggressive in making things right. Now, I don’t expect them to fix the older bed … I have no idea where that receipt is hiding. When I complained about the bed that was too short, I was not given a satisfactory answer. I was told, “Well, it probably happened in the factory. Mistakes happen.” No real apology. I was told I could take pictures of everything and then send them a copy of the receipt in order to have them send me a new bed. It will take a week. Doesn’t help me tonight, now does it?
It is not that big of a deal … I can go return it to Wally World and get a different one. I even mentioned I would likely buy a different brand tonight (I might or might not) and she just said, “Have a good day!”
Here’s the thing: the box is clearly just the right size for the bed that was in it. It could not hold a larger sized bed than it already did. The box clearly states 19″ deep. Get this: there is a caveat that says, “Actual size may vary”. I took that to mean the actual inflated size may vary an inch or two in the total length and/or width. Not by 6″ in height/depth.
The UPC number, so buyer can beware, is: 007650107839 and the model number is 2000009098.
I realize they couldn’t send me a new bed out to arrive today. I realize they can’t do anything about the bed that was purchased at the beginning of the year. I am just dissatisfied with the whole way she handled it. No apology. No “what can we do to keep you as a customer”. Not what I would call over the top customer service.
Now THIS is customer service. And if I am ever in the position to stay at a Ritz-Carlton, I will!