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[IbizaPocholo]

Nintendo Japan May Refuse Repair Requests From Customers Who Harass Staff

Even social media harassment won't be tolerated any longer.

www.dualshockers.com

Nintendo Co. Japan has announced on its official website that it will update its product repair service/warranty rules to involve terms and regulations regarding customer harassment. Per the October 19 update, Nintendo will now refuse to accept repairs if customer misbehavior exceeds normal standards accepted by society, and the company may have to take appropriate legal measures as well depending on the severity of the misconduct.

The main content of the new customer harassment section lists multiple ways of conduct that are sure to revoke a customer's request for a repair. Nintendo has also warned about exceeding levels of malicious acts that will warrant reporting to the police or other appropriate authorities. The acts include (but are not limited to) intimidation, threats, insults, baseless demands for an apology or requests for free repairs, repetitive requests for long periods of time, and slander on social media websites.

In addition, it was determined that if there is a suspicion of repair applications for commercial purposes, such as multiple repair applications for multiple products within a short period of time, it will also count towards actions that may cause the possibility of refusing repairs. A Nintendo representative has spoken to FNN Prime Online, a Japanese news outlet, about the purpose of adding this new section, saying that the company's mission is to bring smiles to the faces of everyone involved in the company, including customers, employees, and developers, and doing so is naturally part of its mission to satisfy its employees.

Digital+ has reported that the Japanese online community has been very supportive of this decision, giving the company kudos and pleading for other companies to take similar measures. The clause about social media harassment in particular has earned the praise of many Japanese people, including Kansai University social psychology professor Hiromi Ikeuchi, an expert in customer psychology. As reported by Kyodo News, Ikeuchi said that social media harassment in various industries is more visible than other kinds of harassment and can, therefore, more easily influence potential customers' attitudes.

 

[AJUMP23]

No repairs for jerks.

 

[Esca]

Good. Complained should stand up for their employees to be treated properly. I don't know when people started thinking you can treat a person like so many do that are there to help if possible

 

[Deerock71]

 

[MLSabre]

Refuse Repair Requests From Customers Who Harass Staff​

As it should be.

 

[Topher]

not sure why this is hard

 

[lh032]

"Refuse Repair Requests From Customers Who Harass Staff"

Expectation:
Damn Nintendo treats their staff well.

Reality:
Nintendo: Save another cost for repair, NOICE!

 

[StreetsofBeige]

I'm all for it.

At one of my old companies, I worked right over the cubicle wall from out our department's only CSR. She handled all the phone calls and emails, which almost always involved someone complaining and wanting free repairs or free product for their old kitchen appliance that was out of warranty.... by like 5 years.

You guys wouldn't imagine how many fucknuts want a free product after they've used it for 5 or more years. I knew when she'd have a doozy on the line when she'd look at me with her headset on and smirk shaking her head.

Then when the call is over, she'd tell me complainer saying if the company didn't do what they wanted, they call the Better Business Bureau. Sometimes I'd hear her agree to whatever she was discussing on her headset, sometimes I'd hear her decline. But to be a CSR with such a cool attitude every day, it's amazing how much she brushed it off.

I find it amazing when people complain. I've had my issues with shitty products. I;ve never once had an issue getting compensation. Even for stuff out of warranty, I never had an issue. I had a free printer sent to my place out of warranty where she helped me out saying she cant issue a refund to me since I bought it from a store. She said I'll send you a brand new sealed one and see if yo can refund it at the store. The store said no, it's out of warranty and an old model they dont even sell anymore (Epson 777 worst printer ever that would use endless ink even in low quality/draft settings). But they said since I had the receipt and it was only half a year past the 1 year mark, they'd give me store credit. Good enough for me.

I also had an issue where I returned a cable box. Rogers Cable kept billing me an extra cable box rental fee. I said WTF. I only have one cable box now. I returned the other when I got the new one. They said no. I called or emailed them back (I forget) and said I returned it. They said where's your receipt. I said I cant find it. Both sides were cool about talking about it. They said they'd charge me $300 for it. I said forget it. They then countered saying they'll settle at $100. And I said ya. Done.

I was moving boxes around one day and found it in a box. I moved earlier in the year and got a new updated cable box. I guess I never returned the old one! So it turned out I was the ass who made the mistake. But it goes to show whether or not who is at fault, the key thing is if both sides are chill you should get a reasonable settlement both sides can agree on.

 

[jigglet]

While I agree, I have to admit that if I were sending in a Joycon with drift and was met with a poorly acted out surprise like "oh...seriously? we've never seen this before, are you sure you aren't using it too roughly?" I think I might lose it. It wouldn't surprise me if that was the company line.

(FYI not everyone lives in North America where they've acknowledged the issue and have agreed to fix them)

 

[Kamina]

I'm all for it.

At one of my old companies, I worked right over the cubicle wall from out our department's only CSR. She handled all the phone calls and emails, which almost always involved someone complaining and wanting free repairs or free product for their old kitchen appliance that was out of warranty.... by like 5 years.

You guys wouldn't imagine how many fucknuts want a free product after they've used it for 5 or more years. I knew when she'd have a doozy on the line when she'd look at me with her headset on and smirk shaking her head.

Then when the call is over, she'd tell me complainer saying if the company didn't do what they wanted, they call the Better Business Bureau. Sometimes I'd hear her agree to whatever she was discussing on her headset, sometimes I'd hear her decline. But to be a CSR with such a cool attitude every day, it's amazing how much she brushed it off.

I find it amazing when people complain. I've had my issues with shitty products. I;ve never once had an issue getting compensation. Even for stuff out of warranty, I never had an issue. I had a free printer sent to my place out of warranty where she helped me out saying she cant issue a refund to me since I bought it from a store. She said I'll send you a brand new sealed one and see if yo can refund it at the store. The store said no, it's out of warranty and an old model they dont even sell anymore (Epson 777 worst printer ever that would use endless ink even in low quality/draft settings). But they said since I had the receipt and it was only half a year past the 1 year mark, they'd give me store credit. Good enough for me.

I also had an issue where I returned a cable box. Rogers Cable kept billing me an extra cable box rental fee. I said WTF. I only have one cable box now. I returned the other when I got the new one. They said no. I called or emailed them back (I forget) and said I returned it. They said where's your receipt. I said I cant find it. Both sides were cool about talking about it. They said they'd charge me $300 for it. I said forget it. They then countered saying they'll settle at $100. And I said ya. Done.

I was moving boxes around one day and found it in a box. I moved earlier in the year and got a new updated cable box. I guess I never returned the old one! So it turned out I was the ass who made the mistake. But it goes to show whether or not who is at fault, the key thing is if both sides are chill you should get a reasonable settlement both sides can agree on.

The thing is: complaints, even unreasonable ones, are still something else than people being absolute jerks that insult and harass staff.
Every company should have the balls to decline service in such situations.

 

[jigglet]

The thing is: complaints, even unreasonable ones, are still something else than people being absolute jerks that insult and harass staff.
Every company should have the balls to decline service in such situations.

It's not an easy one to balance.

Some companies don't deserve it. My phone / internet provider is one of the best I've ever used, their customer service is so good that even when I can't get my way I can never get upset at them cause they always floor me with how hard they try.

However some put in the absolute bare minimum and constantly transfer you between departments to try to make you someone else's problem. These guys should not have any reason to do less work than they already do.

 

[Panajev2001a]

Nintendo will now refuse to accept repairs if customer misbehavior exceeds normal standards accepted by society

How do they even police this? What recourse is there if you feel they are abusing this regulation to refuse service?

I am fine with pursuing legal options for harassing customers service reps, because they have to prove their case.

 

[Panajev2001a]

not sure why this is hard

What if someone felt you were a jerk for this meme and banned you?

It depends what is at stake and who decides what being a jerk means and who has to provide proof I guess. Do you record your phone calls to prove you were not a jerk? How costly and time consuming it is to you to start a civil suit to get the service you were refused?

Do they want to sue customers if they harass staff? Fine, they should. The rest? It is very open for abuse.

 

[Skifi28]

Sounds good in theory, doesn't work well in practice for something we don't all define the same.

 

[Panajev2001a]

The thing is: complaints, even unreasonable ones, are still something else than people being absolute jerks that insult and harass staff.
Every company should have the balls to decline service in such situations.

If you are told that they cannot repair they JoyCon as they do not recognise drift being an issue and you present evidence essentially calling them out in a lie, is that being a jerk and offending the company line?

 

[UnNamed]

I wonder how they know who are those who harass their staff.

Should I wrote to the repair service a note with my broken joycons "Fix this shit motherfu**ers"?

 

[Sakura]

I wonder how they know who are those who harass their staff.

Should I wrote to the repair service a note with my broken joycons "Fix this shit motherfu**ers"?

How wouldn't they know? If you call in they will get your name and address.

 

[gamer82]

Thats all well and good but whays to stop them from abusing it, lying so they do t have to repair. Have they got any right to refuse a repair of goods that are still in warranty even if they think the customer is rude .

I remember years ago i purchased one of those pro switch controllers from bittdo the guy i was dealing with was in china or japan and he was fobbing me off telling me i wasn't using it right . Something was rattling around inside he kept fobbing me off asking to send in pictures/ videos then ghosting me . It took weeks to get resolved after him telling me i was unreasonable , no company gives away stuff, i was a thief and if i don’t stop contacting them he would get the police involved it was a nightmare . Really tested my patience but in the end a replacement was sent but i dont trust any company when it comes to repair or honesty its your word against their unless you record tour call yourself. Some say calls are recorded when in fact when you ask them to
Provide proof its conveniently not available.

This scream cost cutting o can guaranted it will get abused by some . I hope they don't get a karen on the other end of the phone assisting them.

 

[cireza]

Taking action against harassment is great, but hopefully they will also take action in order to make more reliable products.

 

[kapshin]

They're taking drifting away to another level

 

[Fake]

Nintendo becoming Twitter.

 

[West Texas CEO]

I wonder how they know who are those who harass their staff.

They monitor phone calls.

 

[IFireflyl]

The acts include (but are not limited to) intimidation

Agreed

threats

Agreed

insults

This one is hard to agree with because it depends what the individual considers an insult. I've had to explain to reps that I'm not insulting them because they were too snowflakey and wanted to take my comment that, "You're not listening to what I'm saying," as an insult.

baseless demands for an apology or requests for free repairs

Who determines what is "baseless"? If I sent something in for a repair and its been held up for two months, is that considered a baseless demand for an apology or free repair? The wording is vague, and this phrasing could certainly be used against legitimate complaints from decent consumers.

repetitive requests for long periods of time

I spent an entire year trying to get someone to fix my internet with Mediacom. Towards the end I was calling them 2-3 times per week. Everytime they would come out they would "fix" the issue, and the next morning my upload speeds were in the toilet again. They FINALLY found the issue (a repeater about a half a mile away was on the fritz, and it would backfeed bad signal starting at between 10:00 PM and 1:00 AM every night which caused me to see poor upload speeds when I checked it again in the morning).

Are repetitive requests that are legitimate treated this way? Who determines the validity of the request and how long a time frame is too long? This is too vague, and this seems like something that could be bad for consumers.

and slander on social media websites.

Free speech is free speech. If I want to go on Twitter and say Nintendo is comprised of a bunch of chode-sucking snowflakes, that is my right. That has absolutely nothing to do with my product getting repaired, and a company shouldn't be able to refuse service due to what I have said on my social media.

NOTE: I wouldn't actually do that anyway, but it's ridiculous that they're going to this extent.

 

[Coloress_Kafka]

I don’t think anyone has the right to harass anyone but I do have the right to get my product repaired if I’m under warranty or there is a recall.

A better option would be them saying “I’m terminating this call due to harassment, please use our automated line/chat to get your issue resolved.” Let them scream at the bots, they don’t have feelings…….yet.

 

[Lucifers Beard]

Good. They’re just trying to do their job within company policy and don’t need anyone to be giving them crap for it.

Rule of thumb? Don’t act like a cunt.

 

[alabtrosMyster]

I wouldn't want to be forced to work for someone who isn't at least decent to me.

 

[Kamina]

If you are told that they cannot repair they JoyCon as they do not recognise drift being an issue and you present evidence essentially calling them out in a lie, is that being a jerk and offending the company line?

If it is the truth and you aren’t insulting the person, then demanding a repair service or replacement is fair and shouldn’t be considered harassment. Being pushy in a respectful way to get your service isn’t harmful on a personal level.

 

[CuNi]

I would assume this only applies to devices past their warranty period, as I could see legal action be taken against Nintendo if they refuse to repair faulty devices during the (depending on location) 1 to 2-year long warranty.

 

[Panajev2001a]

If it is the truth and you aren’t insulting the person, then demanding a repair service or replacement is fair and shouldn’t be considered harassment. Being pushy in a respectful way to get your service isn’t harmful on a personal level.

Ok, how do you prove that? Say that the Nintendo rep considers that above the acceptable…?

 

[TLZ]

While I agree, I have to admit that if I were sending in a Joycon with drift and was met with a poorly acted out surprise like "oh...seriously? we've never seen this before, are you sure you aren't using it too roughly?" I think I might lose it. It wouldn't surprise me if that was the company line.

(FYI not everyone lives in North America where they've acknowledged the issue and have agreed to fix them)

This literally happened to me in Australia. It was widely well known. I was within warranty period. They told me nothing's wrong with them and made me pay. Assholes.

I went and fixed it myself watching the YouTuber that used the 1cm cardboard cutout thing. Not a problem since.

 

[S0ULZB0URNE]

Another reason to not support them in 2022.

 

[JimboJones]

Ok, how do you prove that? Say that the Nintendo rep considers that above the acceptable…?

I would say when it veers into making threats of violence, shouting at staff and verbal abuse.
There is absolutely no reason any of the above should be tolerated, even if you are frustrated about something.

 

[EDMIX]

lol

as someone that has worked in IT for a number of years, when I used to do tech support stuff, many companies would have their own polices on when to refuse a call and all had something based on profanity, abuse etc. Even if you had a warranty, we could refuse service after several offenses and they'd be denied a claim.

I always questioned this as, this doesn't actually sound like its based on the company just wanting to be nice to employees....how about a living wage if ya'll care so much lol This sounds more like a way to save money as MOST who call regarding a warranty, is based on something that STOPPED WORKING, so of course most will be pissed, granted not every last person is going to be abusive, but I recall using that function on a daily basis, so it adds up and I believe its to avoid repair cost.

So it works for both ends. Employee gets to calm customer down with threat of a denied claim, if not company avoid cost of repair.

 

[Drewpee]

http://[URL]https://www.dualshocker...efuse-repair-requests-customers-harass-staff/

[/URL]

Nintendo Co. Japan has announced on its official website that it will update its product repair service/warranty rules to involve terms and regulations regarding customer harassment. Per the October 19 update, Nintendo will now refuse to accept repairs if customer misbehavior exceeds normal standards accepted by society, and the company may have to take appropriate legal measures as well depending on the severity of the misconduct.

The main content of the new customer harassment section lists multiple ways of conduct that are sure to revoke a customer's request for a repair. Nintendo has also warned about exceeding levels of malicious acts that will warrant reporting to the police or other appropriate authorities. The acts include (but are not limited to) intimidation, threats, insults, baseless demands for an apology or requests for free repairs, repetitive requests for long periods of time, and slander on social media websites.

In addition, it was determined that if there is a suspicion of repair applications for commercial purposes, such as multiple repair applications for multiple products within a short period of time, it will also count towards actions that may cause the possibility of refusing repairs. A Nintendo representative has spoken to FNN Prime Online, a Japanese news outlet, about the purpose of adding this new section, saying that the company's mission is to bring smiles to the faces of everyone involved in the company, including customers, employees, and developers, and doing so is naturally part of its mission to satisfy its employees.

Digital+ has reported that the Japanese online community has been very supportive of this decision, giving the company kudos and pleading for other companies to take similar measures. The clause about social media harassment in particular has earned the praise of many Japanese people, including Kansai University social psychology professor Hiromi Ikeuchi, an expert in customer psychology. As reported by Kyodo News, Ikeuchi said that social media harassment in various industries is more visible than other kinds of harassment and can, therefore, more easily influence potential customers' attitudes.

Neogaf better shape up, not a one of you will be getting Nintendo repairs going forward.

 

[Sakura]

Agreed



Agreed



This one is hard to agree with because it depends what the individual considers an insult. I've had to explain to reps that I'm not insulting them because they were too snowflakey and wanted to take my comment that, "You're not listening to what I'm saying," as an insult.



Who determines what is "baseless"? If I sent something in for a repair and its been held up for two months, is that considered a baseless demand for an apology or free repair? The wording is vague, and this phrasing could certainly be used against legitimate complaints from decent consumers.



I spent an entire year trying to get someone to fix my internet with Mediacom. Towards the end I was calling them 2-3 times per week. Everytime they would come out they would "fix" the issue, and the next morning my upload speeds were in the toilet again. They FINALLY found the issue (a repeater about a half a mile away was on the fritz, and it would backfeed bad signal starting at between 10:00 PM and 1:00 AM every night which caused me to see poor upload speeds when I checked it again in the morning).

Are repetitive requests that are legitimate treated this way? Who determines the validity of the request and how long a time frame is too long? This is too vague, and this seems like something that could be bad for consumers.



Free speech is free speech. If I want to go on Twitter and say Nintendo is comprised of a bunch of chode-sucking snowflakes, that is my right. That has absolutely nothing to do with my product getting repaired, and a company shouldn't be able to refuse service due to what I have said on my social media.

NOTE: I wouldn't actually do that anyway, but it's ridiculous that they're going to this extent.

Please keep in mind some of this is just poorly translated. For example "repetitive requests for long periods of time" is not what it says in the Japanese. It is more meaning people who stay on the phone for hours saying the same thing over and over. For example, a guy who keeps repeating that he wants a new Switch tomorrow, instead of waiting a week or something, and won't let the agent off the phone.

Also, that isn't quite what slander means in this context.

 

[IFireflyl]

Please keep in mind some of this is just poorly translated. For example "repetitive requests for long periods of time" is not what it says in the Japanese. It is more meaning people who stay on the phone for hours saying the same thing over and over. For example, a guy who keeps repeating that he wants a new Switch tomorrow, instead of waiting a week or something, and won't let the agent off the phone.

Also, that isn't quite what slander means in this context.

I get that, but my point is that the wording is too vague for me to be supportive of the stance they are taking. That's why I was able to readily agree with the first two points. Dismissing consumers engaging in intimidation and threats is easy to support. The rest of it is very subjective, and this subjectivity could be used to dismiss decent consumers who are being railroaded. I'm not saying that it will. In the U.S. contracts that are vague generally support the party that did not write the contract. I don't know how this works for countries outside of the U.S. though.

 

[Venom Snake]

 

[Kamina]

Ok, how do you prove that? Say that the Nintendo rep considers that above the acceptable…?

Prove what? That the device is faulty?
To what lengths would you want to go to prove it? How long are you willing to discuss this with them if they are declining your claim?

 

[chromhound]

Don't send dick pics guys

 

[Eddie-Griffin]

In America the customer is always right culture, prevents this form being a thing. Unless you're a mom and pop or franchise store.

But for companies like Nintendo, you're supposed to take the heat.

 

[0neAnd0nly]

Something this… specific… means you KNOW there was ONE guy.

ONE person caused this.

Shame.

 

[Tams]

Yeah, I'm not surprised that people have been throwing abuse their way and abusing their repair service. Neither are acceptable, especially the former.

But on the other hand... that's what you get for shafting customers with below standard products/components. And it's disturbing that while using the law to punish and deter actual abuse, they could just as easily use it to silence legitimate criticism (and you just know that's going to happen).

The threat of using anti-slander laws over it is especially disgusting. Cunts.

 

[light2x]

What if someone felt you were a jerk for this meme and banned you?

It depends what is at stake and who decides what being a jerk means and who has to provide proof I guess. Do you record your phone calls to prove you were not a jerk? How costly and time consuming it is to you to start a civil suit to get the service you were refused?

Do they want to sue customers if they harass staff? Fine, they should. The rest? It is very open for abuse.

This is the dumbest possible thing I've ever read.

 

[Tams]

This is the dumbest possible thing I've ever read.

If you can't see how this could be ripe for abuse by Nintendo, then the only dummy here is you.

 

[light2x]

If you can't see how this could be ripe for abuse by Nintendo, then the only dummy here is you.

Lmao. Every company does this. I'm just surprised it took Nintendo this long to do it.

Besides you as a consumer have to abide by the company's rules. If you can't be bothered to abide by their rules then they have the right to refuse service and for you find another place to get your device repaired.

Of course if you really care about having your devices repaired you'd just learn the damn thing yourself like I did. I learned how to repair iPhones, Androids, iPads, controllers and Switch all by myself through watching Youtube videos for guidance and through careful trial and error because I'd be damned if I spent money on something I already bought or give it to these greedy companies.

 

[Tams]

Lmao. Every company does this. I'm just surprised it took Nintendo this long to do it.

Besides you as a consumer have to abide by the company's rules. If you can't be bothered to abide by their rules then they have the right to refuse service and for you find another place to get your device repaired.

Of course if you really care about having your devices repaired you'd just learn the damn thing yourself like I did. I learned how to repair iPhones, Androids, iPads, controllers and Switch all by myself through watching Youtube videos for guidance and through careful trial and error because I'd be damned if I spent money on something I already bought or give it to these greedy companies.

If you'd actually bothered to read the OP, this is the worrying part:

and slander on social media websites.

 

[chriskun]

What if someone felt you were a jerk for this meme and banned you?

It depends what is at stake and who decides what being a jerk means and who has to provide proof I guess. Do you record your phone calls to prove you were not a jerk? How costly and time consuming it is to you to start a civil suit to get the service you were refused?

Do they want to sue customers if they harass staff? Fine, they should. The rest? It is very open for abuse.

Sounds good in theory, doesn't work well in practice for something we don't all define the same.

These are such bad arguments. Youre basically saying that it is impossible to construct any standards for anything. This whole “depends whos making the rules” retort is already inherently apparent when it comes to everything, and it doesnt mean that private companies shouldnt be able to create their own standards.

 

[plip.plop]

Good. The mantra of "The customer is always right" is bullshit and needs to die. It has created entitled people who think it is their right to treat people trying to help them like shit. The last company I worked at had me calling customers as a supervisor trying to fix issues only to get yelled at for 10 minutes on average per call.

 

[Panajev2001a]

These are such bad arguments. Youre basically saying that it is impossible to construct any standards for anything. This whole “depends whos making the rules” retort is already inherently apparent when it comes to everything, and it doesnt mean that private companies shouldnt be able to create their own standards.

Private companies and consumers interests should be balanced. I expect Nintendo to be able to allow people to take a recourse where the burden of the cost is on the company not the customers. If you are refused service and you only alternative is to sue them, the balance of power is titles waaay to much in the other direction.
If you are saying that massive corporations should not make their own laws and be jury, judge, and executioners well yeah …

Corporate bootlicking aside, the company can create a good standard and provide a good and practical recourse option for customers or they can do a shitty job and have unilateral decisions you cannot appeal to .

 

[Panajev2001a]

Good. The mantra of "The customer is always right" is bullshit and needs to die. It has created entitled people who think it is their right to treat people trying to help them like shit. The last company I worked at had me calling customers as a supervisor trying to fix issues only to get yelled at for 10 minutes on average per call.

I worked my fair share of those jobs when I was younger and I still do not think we should jump from one extreme to the other, especially with massive corporations va single users (the other fun bit of how some companies try to put in their EULA’s that you give up rights to class action suits and thus only go to arbitration is the cherry on top).