My husband and I recently moved into a new home. We decided that to try to save some money in the first year or two, instead of air conditioning, we'd put ceiling fans in various places throughout the house. We found some that we liked for the bedrooms that were reasonably priced. When we tried to purchase them (at the end of November), we were told that no Home Depot in the area had them in stock, but that they were a regularly stocked item, so they would be back in shortly (within a matter of weeks). This is where the story gets interesting...
Two weeks later, my husband went back to inquire about the status of the lights. He was told that the delivery date had been pushed back. He then asked about special-ordering the lights - he was told that special orders cannot be made for regularly-stocked items. Three fans/fixtures were on order, and we would get a call when they arrived shortly before Christmas. The call never came.
My husband returned to the store shortly after Christmas to inquire about the status of the fans. He was told that they would arrive in January. This continued until early February.
We returned to pick up some building materials for another project in our home, and I thought I'd check to see if the fans had come in. When I finally found an associate to help me, I was told that the fans had been in for a couple of weeks, but were not on the floor. It took a further 45 minutes to locate the fans and get them to the check-out.
The paying process started at approximately 5:15pm. First, the fans were rung in at $20 each above their list price. Once this discrepancy was sorted out, the other issues began.
The sales associates told me to get a Home Depot credit to take advantage of their "Don't pay for 12 months" promotion. I applied, and was approved, but could not activate my card because I don't have a land-line attached to my name. I have a cell phone, a VOIP line at home and at work. I have (and use) every other major credit card. This is not enough for Home Depot.
When the process was done, it was 6:30, and I'd paid with another credit card.
We got the fans that we wanted, but we felt that the service we received was a long way off the mark.