Best Buy shopper fumes after store ‘refused to price match’ – and employee says it’s all because of the ‘holidays’

A SHOPPER was left in disbelief after a major retailer refused to price match an item, even though their website states they do operate a price match policy.

The disgruntled customer took to social media to seek the views of other consumers on Reddit.

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“My local Best Buy refused to price match. Said that they don’t price match at all over the holidays. Heard of this?

“They said they’ll only price match on a Best Buy purchase against a price drop at Best Buy only,” said the poster on the BestBuy subreddit.

They continued: “When I called customer service they didn’t understand this. The guy over the phone was able to honor the price match and now I’ll be picking up the item at this same store.

“Anyone ever heard of this before? It was a manager’s decision but he is out right now. The staff refused to cooperate when I asked for their policy in writing.”

Responses to the post were mixed.

“Very odd. Might just be a local store or uninformed employee thing,” wrote one person.

Meanwhile, several others said they’d had the same experience with the retailer in the past.

“I’ve been told this exact thing in store in previous years but online the policy did not mention this. I just ended up purchasing elsewhere,” said one commenter.

The OP went on to explain that employees didn’t even ask what product they wanted to price match.

“Imagine talking to a rep and asking about price match and they said ‘we don’t do that at all during the holidays. At all’.”

ARE THERE EXCLUSIONS TO PRICE MATCH?

Best Buy states on its website that it does not price match from the Thursday before Thanksgiving through the Monday after Thanksgiving, which in 2024 was November 21 to December 2.

However, no other holiday exclusions are mentioned in the price match policy explanation.

The retailer does not match prices from all stores and websites, stating: “We’ll match the current product price of key online and local competitors.”

These it calls qualified competitors and they include Amazon, Home Depot, Sam’s Club, Apple, Walmart, Costco and Target, among others.

The matching is also applicable to new products only, so excludes refurbished, clearance and open-box items.

Purchases from third-part sellers on qualified competitor websites, Best Buy Marketplace stores on a third-party website, Best Buy Education and Best Buy Business are also not eligible.

Best Buy came under fire from customers earlier this year when the retailer changed its returns policy, cutting the refund window from 30 days to just two weeks.

Shoppers can benefit from a 60-day return window, but to do so they have to join one of the retailer’s paid membership programs, which costs from $49.99.

Another change just before Christmas saw restocking fees added to electronic product returns.

Items affected include digital cameras, camera lenses, camcorders, projectors and screens, drones, electric bikes and some scooters.

There is no restocking fee if the item is returned unopened, if purchased in certain states, including CO, AL and OK, and where prohibited by law.