This is the letter that I forwarded to Radio Shack:

To Whom It May Concern:

Yesterday, December 13th, 2008, I purchased an Eton FR300 weather radio from your store in Alpena, MI. When I entered your store I was shown two units that were on a 2-day sale. One was the Eton FR300, and the other was the 7-Channel Handheld Weatheradio® with SAME Operation. After weighing the differences, we chose the Eton.

When we got home we decided to open it up and test it, to make sure that it worked properly prior to wrapping it for Christmas. Glad we did, the unit worked on the weather channel, but not on FM or AM.

I called the store and spoke with one of the sales team (name not mentioned). I asked if I could return the Eton and get the 7-Channel Handheld Weatheradio® with SAME Operation at the price that it was being offered when I purchased the Eton. He stated that he could not, and that no matter what reason, when a sale is over, it's over.

If I were returning it just to exchange to the other unit without having a problem with the original item purchased I could understand the policy. However, knowing that the unit is not working properly, I cannot comprehend why your policy would be to not allow a customer an exchange for a different product from the date of purchase that was on sale at that time. If this truly is your policy, then I hope you understand that I cannot support that policy and must choose to not continue as a patron.

To finish this, after I was told that information I then stated that I was going to return it and not purchase anything if I could not get the sales price on the other unit. Your sales associate stated, "that's up to you".

I am going to return the Eton and purchase a NOAA radio from a company that does not endorse a similar policy.

Radio Shack.Com - Black Friday . Bought a computer that was "available" at the time of purchase for $499. It was never shipped and somehow became "unavailable" nine days later and the order was cancelled. EVEN after I called and pointed out that it was still on the website as being available (though for $200 more than I paid for it) and that a sales representative told me they had 500 on hand and could get me one by Christmas, they refused to honor the original sale, saying they could not make up for Black Friday sales errors. The supervisor went so far as to say that they were trying to work out the website so that it read properly that the item was out of stock and that the other sales rep was just wrong that there were any available. Ironic when a tech/electronic company blames tech problems for their attempt to make an extra $200. I second the idea of the company shutting off its customer base with incredibly poor service and what to me seems to be essentially dishonest behavior. I will never do business with them again!

In a letter to the CEO, Julian Day, I wrote the following:

I am a perfect example of a typical Radio Shack customer. I have made quite a few purchases there over the years, and when friends have a need for something in the electro-technical area, I would have been among the first to suggest that they visit their local Radio Shack. In other words, I was part of a strong loyal customer base.

The company however is being undermined by very, very poor middle management. Here has been the most recent very disappointing experience at my local Radio Shack. I recently purchased a medium priced Jensen CD/AM-FM combination player which was both AC and DC. I had been using the AC with regular alkaline batteries, and found that using this as often as I did, I was spending too much on batteries.

I went to my local Radio Shack (Edison, NJ, US Rt. #1, Wick � Pathmark Shopping Plaza ) and found that the Nickel Metal Hydride Batteries ( SIZE C ) were about $17.00 for two. I needed six. I purchased four that day (about a month ago) and just this past week I bought another two. The Alkaline batteries finally ran out so I began to charge the six Nickel Metal Hydrides. I was using a fairly new Ray O Vac, all purpose battery charger that was good for both Nickel Metal Hydrides and Nickel Cadmiums. I knew that it worked well because I had been using it for my AA and AAA batteries all along. The two most recently purchased �C� cells took the charge after a few hours with no problem. The four batteries that I purchased about a month or so prior, did not take the charge. I left the batteries in the charger overnight and found that they did not charge at all. I used a small volt meter to check them and they were completely dead.

I never kept the packaging or the receipt, because I never anticipated this to happen. It was a battery, not a device, and until this time it never occurred to me that a brand new battery couldn�t be charged. The batteries appear to be brand new and they are clearly marked RADIO SHACK, so where else would I have purchased them?

I returned to the store and merely asked for an exchange. The manager, who started to say his name was Edward, said that he could not exchange them without the packaging. I obviously explained that I didn�t have the receipt or the package, but, if he looked he could see they were brand new. He printed out the receipt and said this is the policy and would not help me after that. I asked him for his name and he refused. I asked him for the name of his supervisor and he said he didn�t know. I asked him how I could contact his supervisor and he wrote down a number, ( 908-534-8001) that I called and called and called, but no one ever answered and there was no message.

I called to Texas to your office and was routed to the answering service for the Central New Jersey regional manager but never received a return call. I AGAIN called to your office ( 800-843-7422 ) and used the internal directory and left a message with YOUR service and never received a return call.

The return policy clearly states:

Merchandise must be returned in like-new condition (except for damage caused by any product defect) with the original packaging materials (including barcode/UPC label), accessories, instructions, and the original sales receipt, otherwise your product may not be eligible for return or it�s return may be subject to a refurbishing fee�Radio Shack performs a careful inspection of all returned items for signs of use or wear.

The KEY WORD is otherwise� I would have gladly subjected the batteries for inspection and then OTHERWISE had the staff replace them! The manager would not even entertain the notion that the product was defective! If this was a few dollars or a complicated device I could be more understanding. I even asked them to hold the defective batteries over night and try to charge them for me. The batteries are advertised as being able to be charged over and over again. These were CLEARLY brand new. The manager was unresponsive and said to me the policy was clear, no receipt no exchange. There wasn�t even any inspection. All I received from that store was an arrogant and inexcusable excuse for customer service. It is no wonder that these store are in trouble.

If these items cannot be replaced, I have been cheated out of over $35.00 for batteries that cannot be charged and never could be charged because they were defective and they could obviously not have been purchased ANYWHERE else BUT Radio Shack.

My wife is the national customer service manager for a major Fortune 500 company and practically argued with me that it would be impossible for a company the size of Radio Shack to tolerate this level of customer care (non-service) and an attitude of arrogance that can only be explained by inadequate or non-existent management.

My wife purchased an LCD TV and gave it to me as a gift (Scott LCT37SHA). Do not buy one for an enemy. After a week it turned into a radio. To their credit Radio Shack replaced it without a bit of trouble.. They should have given me a refund though. After a year they no longer carry the brand.. Gee I wonder why... At the end of the 1st year the remote went out and it cost me about 100bucks to replace it... I know, I'm a sucker... Now the replacement TV cuts off after operating for 30 minutes. Yeah you can turn it back on but it'll turn right back off after 5 minutes until you get so frustrated you just go to another room...

Glad I never mounted this sucker on the wall! I'm now awaiting a response to an e-Mail I sent to the company... Wanna bet they tell me tough luck...

Do not patronize Radion Shack/Akai/Scott products until they come clean...

Yesterday I went to radio shack with a cordless phone headset whose battery was dead. The clerk sold me a new battery. I mentioned that it was expensive and she said 'Oh we have a radio shack card so you can get 15% off, would you like one." I thought that it was a chain discount card, like a CVS card so I said yes. The clerk handed me a keyboard to input information. They wanted my social security # and address. I was put off and said What is this. Why do they want this?" and she said "I don't know, it's so you can get your charge card to get 15% off." I finally said, "Is this for a credit card?" and instead of answering "yes" or "no" she said 'It's for your charge card so you can get 15% off." I was stupid enough to continue.

Then, of course, I found out that I HAD just opened a credit card and she had just charged my purchase to it. (She also tried to sell me 2 more batteries - telling me that if the battery from one headset had gone dead, the remaining headset batteries had to be replaced too.) I told her I didn't want the card, but she said she couldn't cancel it. She did cancel the purchase, at my insistance, and I charged the battery to my usual credit card. I asked her for the receipt (of cancellation) and she refused to give it to me. She did NOT give me a receipt for the purchase on MY credit card, but when I got in my car I realized it and went back. She ran me a duplicate, said she didn't have the original receipt.

Today, I called the Radio Shack credit card people and learn that the charge is still on the Radio Shack credit card account.

People, beware!