Ms. Jill Dean, Consumer Affairs
Office of the Attorney General
500 E. Capitol
State Capitol Building
Pierre, SD 57501_5070

FAX: 605-773-4106

RE: Official Consumer Complaint and Dispute of Gateway Computer Purchase

To Whom It May Concern:

I purchased a computer through Gateway for business use. I received defective monitors 3 times, not only did it take months to get them replaced each time, Gateway tried to charge me for monitors I had sent back to them that were defective. On top of that, the system never operated correctly from day one. I have put hundreds of dollars in repairs into the system because I do not have a local Gateway store to take it to for repairs. In essence my warranty was worthless unless I wanted to pay a lot of money in shipping charges or drive hundreds of miles.

I have spent numerous hours on the telephone with various representatives, all of whom made promises they did not keep. I have left several messages that have never been returned. I cannot even recall the number of hours I have spent on hold. Due to the fact that I purchased the computer on payments I have had extreme difficulties dealing with their credit providers and been thrown back and forth between the two companies, as to whom was responsible for what, and getting my needs taken care of.

It is now two years later and I have paid $800 towards a computer that has been worthless since day one. I requested to just return the system for a full refund many times and the only offer I have been given was to receive $200 toward a trade in on a system they still claim I owe $1600 on.

This has gotten to the point of ridiculous. I have lost more work hours and revenue due to this situation than I will ever know. I charge $30/hr for my time and the way I see it, I am now owed money by this company. Running my own business, I know the importance of customer service. I have to wonder if Gateway has any idea of what that term's true definition is. They should call that department the Gateway "customer run-around department". I am at my wits end with this matter and I refuse to pay any more money on a system that I couldn't sell on E-Bay.

I got that computer out of my office long ago as it was more of a hassle and loss of time and money than it was worth. I ended up giving it to a friend that has the time and energy to be constantly fixing computer problems. I do not have that time or energy. I can get that computer back to give back to Gateway, however, I must have a resolution to this matter before my credit report is injured any further.

I may not be able to purchase my next home due to Gateway's unacceptable practices and lack of customer service. I will be forwarding this information to any and all parties who deal with consumer affairs and rights. From what the credit company that works for Gateway has told me, they "feel bad" about trying to collect money after all of the horror stories they have heard from the consumers they contact.

This has gone on long enough. It is time for Gateway to put their money where their mouth is and put their words into action. Time to change some internal processes and make themselves accountable for their business practices, time for small business owners like me to be compensated for the loss of time and money over what should be a simple computer purchase. Enough is enough. I will be dealing with the repercussions of this matter for years to come and, from what I have seen so far, no one at Gateway will ever take care of my needs, concerns and financial damages that Gateway has directly caused through their lack of customer service and inability to make things right with their customers.

In closing I would like to reiterate that I have spent an outrageous number of hours dealing with Gateway representatives as well as Hurley State Bank and Citibank Reps. I have paid $800 or so towards a computer that I was never able to use for business as it was intended to be, lost work hours due to computer problems, lost data due to the need for computer repairs, lost time and money with clients that I was not able to service due to these computer problems and time spent contacting Gateway for resolution. I have lost time with my family and children due to phone calls in the evening about the Gateway problems. My credit report has extremely negative ratings now due to my refusal to pay for a system that is defective. I will be feeling the repercussions of this matter for years to come, financially, in business and personally.

Sincerely,

Mary Micah King, MKING19@aol.com
Jobs North Bemidji

cc: Executive Response Team
610 Gateway Drive
P. O. Box 2000
No. Sioux City, SD 57049

cc: Citibank/Gateway
PO Box 9025
Des Moines, IA 50368-9025
Fax: 423-477-6696