Franchise run by scammer

[rql]

To Verizon:

You should know that your franchise Mobile Guru NYC, 104 Fulton St, New York, NY, 10038, 212.321.0362, is not an honest shop and is run by a swindler. We have been Verizon customers for a while and urgently needed a new phone for our daughter. Yesterday, March 15, 2019, we went to a Verizon store, and it was literally the assurance of a company we trusted that made us feel confident that we would not be deceived.

The salesperson was the store manager, John. For $400 plus tax (overpriced) we bought what John told us was a new iPhone 6S with 32 GB of memory. But the phone was not what he described. It was not a new phone and had only 16 GB of memory, sold in an open box that we later noticed was labeled not as iPhone 6S with 32 GB but instead as iPhone 7 with 128 GB. (We didn’t notice because the phone was gold pink, and the box that John gave us had an image of a gold pink phone on the cover.)

Here are the details: When we entered the store and asked John if he had an iPhone 6S in stock, he said yes. The price he gave was high, and we asked if has refurbished, which he denied. He also told us about a new monthly service arrangement offered by Verizon Wireless. We agreed to the new monthly service arrangement and, 20 minutes later,  when we had finished with it, he brought out a phone, not a box, but a phone in his hand. We asked why it wasn't in the box. He said a customer returned it before 14 days were up. I objected to the price, given the open box. I also asked if it as refurbished. He denied. He said it has a one-year warranty and he has the original box in the back. Asked whether he has another iPhone 6S in stock, he said he doesn't. Then he brought us a box from the back of the store which we assumed came with the phone. We asked if it was a 32GB, he said, I think so, then said, yes, it is. Stupidly, we didn't check it. Before closing the deal, he warned us that the sale was final and we wouldn't be able to return it.

Assuming the phone was new and had 32 GB of memory, and assuming that John represented the Verizon corporation, we decided to go ahead and buy it. Because we needed the phone immediately on account of an emergency, we were willing to pay John’s price, $400, which we understood at the time was above the manufacturer’s recommended price of $360 for a new phone. We left the store with a cash register receipt for the $435.50 sale, but no additional paperwork because John said his printer was broken.

A few hours later, in our neighborhood, we visited our local Verizon dealer (153 7thAvenue, Brooklyn, NY 11215, 315-210-8028) to transfer data from our old (broken) phone to the new one. Later I tried to set up the phone and realized it is only 16 GB. We called John to arrange a return of the phone. Without hesitation he said he would give us an iPhone 6S with 64 GB at no extra charge (this led us to realize he had also apparently lied about having had only one iPhone 6S in stock). When we visited the store the next day to simply return the phone and get our money back, John was out, and his sales associates explained that they could not take the phone back without his authorization.

We still have John’s phone, which we are eager to return for a full refund. Because of our emergency need of a new phone, we went ahead today and bought a factory-sealed iPhone 6S with 32 GB for $360 from the Verizon franchise run by Nia in our Brooklyn neighborhood. At that time, the manager there, Nia, told us that the “new” phone was not new (new phones come in factory-sealed boxes and with Sim cards). John's had no Sim card. At home, we checked the phone's serial number [removed] with Apple: the warranty of the phone has expired.

We expect a response from you and a plan of action of what you're intending to do about this.

Content modified as required by @verizon_wireless_terms