Samsonite Consumer Reviews - Page 2

SUNRISE, FLORIDA -- I purchased a 2 piece luggage set at the Samsonite Factory Outlet store in Sawgrass Mills Mall in Sunrise, FL and on my first trip, 6 months later, the handle on the smaller of the set would not extend all the way to the top. The store sent the small piece to the "repair center." A month later, they called me back to say it WAS a factory defect, and for that reason they would fix it... If they couldn't fix it, they would replace it with a new one. Great deal, right? WRONG!

They told me the model/style had been discontinued and they didn't have the matching handle for it. They could replace the handle with either a black or blue one, but it wouldn't match my green suitcase. I told them if they couldn't repair it so that it would match, I wanted them to replace both pieces... After all, that's why I bought a matching set. They told me "NO" and that was not part of the warranty. They then said they would replace the entire piece of luggage, but it would be a different color... same problem, would not match my other larger piece.

I then asked them if they would at least change out both handles so both pieces would finally match and once again... "NO!" I finally asked them if they would let me return or exchange it and what do you supposed their response was?? You guessed it - "NO!!" 1-800 customer service was USELESS... They simply take your information and send it on to another person who makes the decision (which is ALWAYS not in your favor). They KNOW they are doing me wrong and they simply do not care about their obligation to their customer or saving me as a future consumer.

The moral of this store is this: I personally believe that the "factory outlet store" is nothing more than a graveyard dumping ground for their manufacture defects. They send their damaged crap to the store to sell cheaply to unsuspecting customers who feel they are getting a good deal on last year's models. They know that it's harder to sell individual pieces than sets, so they get you to buy the set and when the sucker customer finds out one is damaged, they simply replace it with another non-matching piece thereby insuring they can sell all of their crap merchandise individually as they intended to in the first place.

I went to Samsonite because of their "good reputation in luggage" and 10 year "warranty." The fact is their luggage is defective and their warranty is useless. I would obviously NOT recommend this store to anyone who wants to buy a high quality set of luggage with a good warranty because you will end up with NEITHER.

I returned a piece of Samsonite luggage about an hour ago to the factory outlet store where I purchased it because the retractable handle had fallen apart on me. The piece of luggage was purchased in Feb 2007, and the receipt indicated that it had a 3-year warranty. It was the original receipt, in excellent condition. The clerk told me that the warranty was not valid because it was so close to being expired. Duh... She called security on me because I got upset. Security showed up, and so did another, considerably older employee. I can only guess that the second woman was a manager. She did not say one way or the other.

This second employee said that my luggage repair would not be covered - that I would have to pay for it - because of a clause in the warranty that addresses "normal wear and tear". She said my warranty was no longer valid. These are my questions:

1. Does any other manufacturer arbitrarily end a 36-month warranty at 34 months? 2. Whether it's luggage, a car or something electronic (TV, stereo, cell phone, etc), shouldn't the warranty exclude ABNORMAL wear and tear as opposed to normal wear and tear? Can you even imagine a car warranty expiring early because you drove the car 11,000 miles per year? 3. Neither employee would tell me the cost of the repair, not even an estimate. I asked why not, and there was only silence. Do I not have the right to make an informed decision?

I just found the same piece of luggage online, at an awesome price of $80.99, supposedly for this weekend only. Even a rough estimate of $10, $50 or $75 would have allowed me to make an informed decision, and I would not have become angry.

DELHI -- NEW DELHI, FEB. 9. This was a suitcase that was certainly not meant to `travel' as a Delhiite learned the hard way. Having bought the suitcase from Samsonite, the last thing that ** expected was that it would crack on its first journey. Determined to get back the money she thought she deserved, she fought a four-year-long battle in a consumer court. The district consumer disputes redressal forum now has held Samsonite responsible for the quality of material used and directed it to replace the suitcase or refund Rs. 6,200 at 9 percent interest.

In its defense, Samsonite argued that the suitcase got damaged as the carrier mishandled it and the guarantee card specifically states that if any damage is caused due to misuse, neglect or mishandling by a carrier, the guarantee will not apply. It further stated that the guarantee cover is only applicable if there is a defect in material and workmanship. The guarantee does not cover any damage caused by misuse, defect, accident or damage by a common carrier, the company submitted. And since Ms. ** stated that her suitcase got cracked on the way back from her trip abroad, her complaint should be dismissed, the company argued.

Ms. ** in her version said that the suitcase could only crack due to poor quality of material used by the manufacturer or due to a manufacturing defect. It could have not happened only because she travelled by air. She also alleged that she approached the dealer as well as the company to replace the suitcase, but they both agreed to get it replaced at her cost. After going through all the evidence, a bench of the district consumer disputes redressal forum presided by member ** observed that there was no deficiency in service against the dealer.

However, in the case of Samsonite there is no denial in the sale of the suitcase and the company has not refuted that the suitcase was cracked. "Their plea is that the said cracks developed during air travel by Ms. **. However, we are unable to be convinced by the argument that the cracks on the suitcase developed due to mishandling by the air carrier and that too during the first visit. The development of cracks is definitely linked to the quality of the material and the workmanship,'' the bench stated.

Therefore, it held the company responsible and directed it to either replace the suitcase or refund Rs. 6,200, the cost of the suitcase at 9 percent interest. The company was also asked to pay Rs. 1,000 towards costs of litigation.

While returning home from Heathrow, the handle on my suitcase would not retract. It was the second time I've used the bag. I took it apart when I got home to find an internal molded part was broken. I left my contact info on the Samsonite website with the promise of a response within 24 hours. I received no response. I tried again a few days later with the same result. I called the 800 number on the website and was on hold for 20 minutes without ever speaking to a human. I tried this twice but no one picked up.

I finally received a response when I contacted European Customer Service. I was told I would have to ship my suitcase (at my expense) to an authorized repair agent who would determine if the product was covered under warranty. I provided model #, photos of the damaged piece and asked if they could just send me the part. I offered to pay for it. They refused and insisted I ship my suitcase.

Having taken apart the bag, I'm surprised at the low quality of its components. The broken part was an inexpensive piece of plastic 1 inch by 5 inches long which easily could have been mailed. The lack of product quality was only compounded by the misrepresentation of their website and disinterest of customer service personnel.

ON-LINE DIRECT WITH SAMSONITE -- I purchased 5 suitcases in September for gifts at Christmas. My granddaughter used it only 4 times and the seam came apart. She went back to school across country. I called customer service, which informed me of several repair shops from my zip code to determine if it is eligible for free repair or new one. All four repair shops were in NY and I live in CT which is 2 hrs away and the suitcase is in AZ. She will not be back until Christmas and cannot use it on return. She is also on campus with no vehicle.

Due to these issues there was no one to speak to to help with my issues or concerns. It is like I have to eat the cost of an item that is a defect. The seam came apart. It should have held up with only 4 uses. Very frustrated and feel the company does not want to stand by their product.

ATLANTA, GEORGIA -- I purchased a Samsonite Garment bag at $150.00 value, or at least I thought until I sent it back for repair within a year and they told me that it was smashed and not repairable, blaming it on the airlines. I do understand that the airlines abuse bags but Samsonite guaranteed the bag and would honor their agreement. I had to send it back to them 3 months after I bought it because of a zipper issue, and then had to send it back after they “so-called repaired it”. Their products are very cheaply built and I would not spend over $50.00 for their products, at least at that price you know what you are going to get.

I bought this Samsonite suitcase at Macy's, in Chicago, a year ago, after my other suitcase had been damaged and could not be repaired because it was not a well-known trademark. I bought a Samsonite because it said it had a "ten-year global warranty". On the way back from my last trip, one side seam was ripped, even though my suitcase was not overloaded. I brought it back to a Samsonite luggage dealer, here in France, who sent it back to Samsonite. The Samsonite Europe Service center replies that it is the airline's fault. I would think a suitcase seam would be built to withstand handling by an airline staff.

My wife bought this garment bag for me and initially I was very pleased - thought I couldn't go wrong with a Samsonite bag. However, when I started looking around to find a swivel top hanger that works with the bag, I couldn't find one. I stopped at a Samsonite outlet, then I emailed customer service. They emailed back a copy of a page from their catalog, showing 6 hangers but 4 of the 6 have markings to indicate they're no longer available. I called the customer service number, waited on hold for at least 10 minutes, then talked to someone that said only 1 hanger was available but she wasn't sure if it would work for my bag.

Today I got a message saying that the only hanger that would work for my bag is the wire hanger (like the one you get from the dry cleaner). The problem with those hangers is that you can't fold down the hook, so your suit hangs too low in the bag. I can't believe they don't make a hanger that's compatible with a new bag that was just purchased weeks ago. Are you kidding me??

ALLENTOWN, PENNSYLVANIA -- I travel for a living and in September purchase a new Samsonite suitcase at the outlet in Reading PA. The rubber on the lifting handle starting coming off in November and finally in December as I reached to lift the bag, my hand was sliced. I was in Denver heading to the airport and had to stop and get stitched. Traveled home the next day with duct tape covering the handle. I called customer service and have been getting the run around. Am now told that I need to purchase a new suitcase and it is normal wear and tear. Really? The suitcase was used 5 times. You mean to tell me that the handle should disintegrate after 5 uses?

Bought this high-end Samsonite hardshell suitcase for my 150,000 miles per year travel. I put more than 250,000 miles on the suitcase and it was never damaged once until this week when I arrived in Europe - the Samsonite logo badge on the front of the suitcase was pushed straight through the case leaving a hole. The badge was attached by making an indentation in the case material which made the case material around the badge very thin and it was this thin area that broke cleanly away from the case itself. It looks very much like a badly designed method for attaching the badge and the airline agreed and said it looked like a manufacturing defect to them.

I contacted Samsonite and asked for help under my "global" warranty only to be met with zero help. They suggested I get the airline to fix it or I take it to their repair depot here in this European city I am in only for one more day (a weekend day). What would I do? Leave the suitcase at the repair depot and carry my clothes in my arms when I fly to my next destination? I pointed this out but received zero reply. Samsonite's warranty means nothing - their high-end products are overpriced and apparently designed for failure.