Legal Question in Consumer Law in Virginia

Re: Sears Purchase

Why don't you contact the Sears Customer Service Department and see whether they can accommodate you? Their business is keeping customers like you (and me)happy----and shopping at Sears.

Re: Sears Purchase

Contrary to Mr. Hendrickson's view, I feel that the company has changed drastically in recent years, and their customer service department now functions only to cause delay and to allow disgruntled consumers to feel like they've done something by calling and venting their frustration (so the consumers won't do anything that would really be effective). This view was confirmed recently in a consumer protection case I prosecuted against them involving a washing machine.

Based on the facts as you've stated them, I think the simple answer is yes, you do have recourse to get the TV at the price they advertised.

Since you had a binding contract, you have a right to "cover" upon notification of their intent to breach the contract. This means that you have a right to get a comparable product somewhere else and make them pay you the difference (it's really got to be the same or very similar - no extra bells and whistles - to be "comparable"). That's standard contract law; in addition, the Virginia Consumer Protection Act gives you a minimum of $500 and up to three times your actual damages, plus attorneys' fees for each of the consumer protection laws they violated. And I can think of at least three.

Be sure to figure out differences in shipping and interest costs, too. Btw, it doesn't make any difference whether they credit your account afterwards, you're still entitled to the $500 minimum damages if you've suffered any loss at all, not necessarily a financial loss (but presumably you pay something for the use of the internet connection, so however small, you lost something), although I expect you'll have to pay more to get what they promised you. Also, you don't have to buy a replacement product to be eligible for damages under the Consumer Protection Act, but it makes your case stronger if you do.

Btw, print off the screens that say "legal stuff" or "terms and conditions", and see what those say, too. But even if there's gobbledygook that says "we're not liable for anything that happens, no matter what", they may still be liable under the Virginia Consumer Protection Act if anything they did was false, fraudulent, deceptive, or misleading.