Samsung forum: Internal Crack on my TV panel

I too have a Samsung Plasma with an internal crack. TV was purchased 14 weeks ago from Costco. I first contacted the Costco warehouse to see if they would assist me in the exchange of the TV since it had bearly been over 90 days; they said that I had to contact Costco Concierge since it had been past 90 days. Concierge proceeded to put me in contact with Samsung who sent out a tech to assess the plasma and take pictures.

I spoke with an ECR rep for Samsung and they have notified me that they will not be repairing my plasma b/c it is "Physical Damage". I mentioned to the rep that they use these words "Physical Damage" very loosely, of course the plasma is physically damaged there is a series of cracks on the screen. I brought to their attention the dozens of blogs that I had read from customers with the same problem, so obviously there is a problem. The ECR rep than openly admitted that there has been instances where units have overheated and caused internal cracks that cannot be felt from the outside. I told her that was exactly what the problem was with my unit. She asked me to hold and later came back on the line to tell me that the cracks were not consistent with what they should look like from a screen cracking from overheating. What a bunch of B/S! Samsung is back peddling trying to find any excuse not to repair these plasmas and turning their backs on the customers. These are not cheap TV's and I expect to get what I pay for.

I have since taken this issue back to Costco and a supervisor has been nice enough in trying to resolve this issue, he understands my frustration and wants to make sure I'm happy. The problem is that they keep sending it back to Concierge, which has told me that the only people that can make the decision on an exchange is the management at the Warehouse. Still warehouse management insists on having Concierge resolve the problem with Samsung.

I don't see a quick resolution to this, and as you can imagine it is FRUSTRATING!

I too will be filing complaints with all the appropriate agencies.

My tv is less than a year old and is "covered under" the warranty. I am in the process of having a service tech come out and look at my tv. I have the same problem, whereas the internal screen cracked without any physical damage to it. I am afraid, after reading so many other similar problems, that I will be rejected as well. I am interested in any information you can provide involving this.

I will keep this post updated with the progress of my situation.

I purchased a Samsung PN50A550 from hhgregg in may 2009 and today 10/22/2009 as I was watching TV I heard a pop and then a loud humming noise I ran to the TV and turned it off noticed that the screen was cracked in the upper right hand corner. So I researched online to see if this is common. Come to find out I am not the only person with this problem. I called Samsung and got a Trans Number (4005694112) And a repair person should be coming this next week. I figure he is going to confirm that there is no physical damage and Samsung is going to say yes there is. So any help would be beneficial.

Thanks,
Michael H.

My transaction # is 4005699504. The TV was delivered on Oct 22, 2009 - Thursday. I bought the TV after I looked at it at the Samsung Experience Store at the Time Warner building in New York. They are sending a tech out. I wish I had read this forum before buying this TV. It looks like its a common occurrence. Initially I wasnt able to see the crack because of the dark background. I did see a line run across the internal screen but I thought it was due to an optical illusion caused by glare. Then, after a few minutes, that line had morphed into more cracks. Also, a parallel crack to the original crack developed as well and as I started calling Samsung, more cracks developed across the screen. I didnt know what was happening. I hadnt even turned the TV on and it was amazing to see cracks develop on the screen. There is something wrong, I guess, with the internal structure. I havent even peeled off the plastic stickers on the TV yet. Now its just sitting there with the cracks. This has been a terrible experience with Samsung. I hope they replace my TV as they did for you guys.

I would strongly suggest all owners who's warranty is (or who's warranty was in effect when the crack happened and so notified Samsung within the warranty period) contact The State Of New Jersey, Office of Attorney General (at address below).

Samsung have signed a "Assurance of Voluntary Compliance ("AVC") with the State of New Jersey, as a result of "the companys business practices related to repairing home appliances under warranty or service contracts."

(1) Read the following link: http://www.nj.gov/oag/newsreleases09/pr20090804c.html

(2) File a formal online complaint against Samsung here: http://www.nj.gov/oag/ca/ocp/ocpform2.htm

Once you file a complaint, Samsung has 30-60 days from receipt of the complaint, to reply.

If their settlement offer is not acceptable to you, you have the option to submit to binding abritration with the New Jersey Division Of Consumer Affairs (a free service); reject the offer; or, at your own expense, legal action.

I too had been put in touch with the attorney filing a class action suit in New Jersey and after reading Michael Holtslander's post figured I'd send one more email to Samsung making them aware that I hadn't given up on my case.

I stated that I had contacted the same people and organizations that Michael had and sent the email yesterday. Well, today I got a call from Samsung saying they were going to fix the issue! Finally. My 50" was even a couple of months past expiration, but they've finally decided to stand behind their product. Don't give up people!

Please let me know this lawers name and contact info where as I need to be prepared to take action if samsung refuses to honor thier warranty!

After approximately two weeks I have:

1. Filed with the office of Consumer Affairs

2. Spoken personally with the attorney for New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs (Jeffrey Koziar)

3. Contacted my personal attorney, Terrence Van Dzura

4. Made massive amounts of phone calls to Samsung (that led nowhere)

However, out of the clear blue sky, I got a call this morning (As I was actually filing online with the BBB) stating they were going to replace my 10 month old 42" plasma tv. (my model discontinued)

Samsung you have finally stepped up to the plate. The reason doesnt matter. I will now buy your products again. You have some great products, but it all goes down the tube with poor customer service and/or failure to back your product

It was still unnecessary though. Just cover the warranty and back your product, and you will keep your customers happy and returning.

PLEASE help the other people.

That is how a business makes money, repeat business !!!!!!

This seems to be happening with large screen Samsung screens, I think mostly Plasmas. From my research it seems to be mostly 42 and 50 inch screens.

I'm sure this happens with other tvs but not to this extent. The interesting thing here is that it's like reading the same page over and over. The stories are almost identical which gives weight to the theory of being a bad panel inside.

Most people are getting the crack from the left side of the screen, then it moves toward the center and down to the bottom.

It would seem as if Samsung may either be realizing this now for whatever reason, or maybe its cheaper to replace than the class action lawsuit.

I hate to say, but their TVs are among the top rated right now, and that can't be disputed. As of now, they seem to be doing a turnaround regarding this issue. If they continue correcting this, then they'll have my business back.

The TV that the Samsung experience store in Time warner Center in NYC ordered for me from PowerSellerNYC (by the way I would ask Samsung and others not to refer/buy from these guys - they are not BBB accredited and they use bad delivery companies, who dont give a damn about your time constraints) had a cracked panel. I described that in my earlier post. The TV has now been replaced by PowerSellerNYC - the store that sold it and NOT by Samsung. From all the posts here, it is pretty clear there is a design flaw in the TV. Samsung should fix that or recall the TVs and issue a better designed TV for all who purchased this 50" plasma.

My 58" Samsung was a Christmas present for my wife. The box was delivered Dec. 23rd, 2009 and opened Dec. 25th, 2009. We plugged the television in and the first thing we noticed was a very loud humming noise. Whether that humming noise was preceeded by an initial crack or pop, I can't recall. When you plug in a brand new TV, you are waiting to see the great picture, not symtoms of defects.

The TV was unpacked with the utmost care. Two people lifted the TV out of the box and set it carefully on the floor. The seller says it is the shipper's problem. The shipper says it is my problem. Samsung hasn't rendered a final decision yet.

There is no "point of impact". There are several random cracks, but no "star" type of shattering glass indication at all. The front surface is not blemished at all. The protective tape is still on the frame.

Through working with my attorney, I've filed with the NY Attorney General, The NY BBB, The NY Consumer Affairs Dept, the shipper and the seller (HomeGoodz.com). The agency complaint submissions were in connection with the seller and shipper - not the manufacturer. I didn't realize before now, that this is a common internal defect.

Still awaiting a final decision from Samsung, which I expect today or Monday.

When business transactions are conducted between honest parties, the outcome of those transactions should end up in a fair and equitable status. I have always lived by these reasonable expectations and will continue to do so.

Any advice from you people?

Thanks Waldwolf for the support.

HomeGoodz does indeed have a US mailing address in New York. But No one should ever order from them anyway. A terrible experience that continues to get worse.

Samsung told me they would get back to me today or Monday. Doesn't look like it will happen today. I'll call them Monday if they don't call me and then take the actions you suggest with them.

I have disputed payment with VISA. And have submitted forms. I did that before they had paid and before they had billed us. I had also filed with Samsung, but no one there had told me that this is a common problem. It seemed I was the only one with an internally cracked screen.

He asked whether the crack had been preceeded by a pop. The six of us remember the very loud noise that occurred. Not sure if anyone would remember an even louder sound to start with. We were all so startled that with the noise... I get the idea the "pop" is even louder than the buzzing. The buzzing could be heard all over the house upstairs and down.

Thank you for the best wishes and advice.

Frank

Thank you for the information. Pretty much shows the difference between what Visio thinks of their customers vs. Samsung.

Thanks for the help TSTEPP11 !

Hi ...

I just realized that I had not updated the list on my 50" Plasma TV problem. I FINALLY got it out of my house and a FULL REFUND check. I did have to discuss what the refund would include, but I did get my sales tax, shipping and installation costs refunded in addition to that awful TV. I did not experience the humm or cracked screen, I had green and purple horizontal strips on the screen.

I was told that I had to have it removed from the mount ... when I shared that I had absolutely no way to do that, the lady on the phone had selective hearing and couldn't/didn't hear my problem. When the trucking company came to pick it up, the driver was very pleasant and understood my dilemna. He and I removed it and he exchanged the check for the defective TV.

Here is my question ... should I STILL file a complaint with the NJ Attorney General? I did get it resolved, but, it literally took MONTHS and I lost time from work and suffered extreme aggravation. And, I wonder if I should join the ranks to show the number of people that are getting grief instead of service from Samsung.

Please share your thoughts. I'd be more than happy to join everyone else to expose the problem with their TVs and their warranty service too.

Thanks in advance, I look forward to hearing your ideas.

Based on advise ... I will go ahead and file a claim. I stored the "white elephant" for months, I lost three days of work, not to mention the stress of even trying to get Samsung to belly up to the bar and do what was right.

I asked to speak to a supervisor so many times that I was spitting nails ... and still didn't get any form of intelligent life on the phone. They would not refund my money until they got the TV. Their left hand and right hand don't even know what was going on.

I hope that everyone that has problems with Samsung's customer service (should be called customer abuse!) and (lack) of warranty support should file too. Hopefully there will be enough pressure to get some kind of compensation for all the agony.

I'll keep this list posted and hope that others will do the same.

Happy filing!
DJ