PetSmart has a unique product offering and clientele, for whom it must provide a complaint resolution mechanism suited to their needs.
If you are curious about how PetSmart’s complaint resolution mechanism works, and how to make a complaint under it, please read on to see what I discovered!
How Does the PetSmart Complaint Resolution Mechanism Work In 2024?
PetSmart customers can make complaints through various channels- in-store, phone, mail, email, online on PetSmart’s site’s contact page and social media pages, and government agencies in 2024. Common complaints include customer experience and ethical issues around pet ownership. However, customers are generally dissatisfied with how PetSmart handles complaints.
Continue reading if you would like to know more about how PetSmart handles customer complaints, the complaints you can present at PetSmart, and much more!
How Do I Complain About an In-Store Incident at PetSmart?
Make your complaint first to your associate for any incident that happens in-store.
The associate is qualified to handle simple complaints and will know who to refer you to in case of emergencies.
All associates have supervisors to whom you can escalate your complaint if unsatisfactorily handled by the associate.
The PetSmart store’s manager is the store’s highest authority, and is qualified to handle most of the complaints arising from their store.
If you receive no assistance or wish to make an anonymous complaint, you can call customer care, email, or fill out a form on PetSmart’s website.
You can also comment your complaint on any of PetSmart’s social media account pages.
How Do I Make a Complaint While Shopping Online at PetSmart?
You can use PetSmart’s contacts to report in-store and online shopping incidents.
Moreover, customers can call customer care toll-free and anonymously if they wish. They can also write to PetSmart.
Further, customers can contact PetSmart online on its site or social media pages with their complaints.
Here are PetSmart’s Contacts:
- Call customer care on 888-839-9638 toll-free. To navigate to live assistance quicker, press 3. This line does not offer call-back services.
- PetSmart contact us page
- Email customercare@petsmart.com
- YouTube
Additionally, you can mail your complaint to:
1745 W Bethany Home Rd
Phoenix, AZ 85015
United States
Where Else Can I Lodge My Complaint About PetSmart?
PetSmart customers have alternatives to lodge their grievances if they have no faith in its complaint resolution mechanism.
Several federal and state government agencies exist that protect consumers from inferior products and bad business practices.
The consumer protection agencies you can make your complaint to include the following:
- Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC)
- Federal Trade Commission (FTC)
- Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
Since PetSmart deals in animals as well, it comes under the regulation of government agencies dedicated to the care and protection of animals.
PetSmart customers can lodge animal welfare-related complaints to these organizations.
The customer should first report to their local animal control agency as a matter of emergency for any animal abuse they may witness at PetSmart.
Here are some agencies to which customers can complain about animal abuse at PetSmart:
- The Humane Society of the United States
- American Society for the Protection and Care of Animals (ASPCA)
- People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA)
- The Anti–Cruelty Society
PetSmart customers can also post their complaints on review sites. The possible negative publicity may motivate PetSmart to resolve your complaint.
Customers can choose to go through the courts to address their grievances if PetSmart is not likely to do so satisfactorily.
For advice on your legal options, seek the advice of legal counsel.
What Happens After You Lodge a Complaint at PetSmart?
PetSmart has an internal complaint resolution mechanism that more or less follows the established industry template for dealing with complaints:
- As soon as you make your complaint, you receive an acknowledgment, and your case is logged, unless you are complaining in person in a store.
- If you have not made your complaint to the staff concerned, your case will be allocated to a worker most qualified to assist you.
- This employee will reach out to you to learn more about your complaint. Be as accurate and precise as possible, and submit any relevant evidence you may have.
- PetSmart will likely keep a record of the interaction; you are also advised to do so.
- An investigation follows, in which you may play a role. PetSmart may then clarify its position or offer amends.
- PetSmart will try to be as conciliatory as possible, and will make up to you even if you haven’t quite made out your case.
- If you are dissatisfied with the result, you may escalate your complaint within PetSmart’s structures or seek remedy elsewhere.
What Are Common Complaints at PetSmart?
Complaints at PetSmart commonly concern product quality, quality of staff service, transactional issues, and ethical issues around mishandling pets.
Here are some of the common complaints PetSmart handles:
- The quality of pet products at PetSmart. For example, some pet beds are easily damaged under normal use.
- Shortages of favoured products, even when they are available online and paid for.
- PetSmart’s customers accuse the employees of rudeness, slow service, and the inability to provide updates on the availability of both items and services.
- Staff seems untrained in some instances, resulting in mishandling pets, especially when the animals are already distressed.
- Item prices are not updated in some stores. Discounts are sometimes excluded from the final charge, and regular pricing is placed on clearance sale items.
- Disregarding the welfare of the animals in-store.
- Ethical concerns about procuring, keeping, and disposing unsold pets.
Moreover, customers have reported fish overstocked in tanks, with most dead, and pets whose feeding and hygiene seem neglected.
How Efficient Is PetSmart’s Complaint Resolution Mechanism?
Consumer Service Board ranks PetSmart at 272 out of the 995 companies it ranks, with an overall score of 40.85/200, based on 385 ratings.
On the site, PetSmart scores 1.9/10 for issue resolution, 3.6/10 for reachability, and 3.5/10 for friendliness.
Consumer Service Board’s overall verdict is that PetSmart’s customer service and support are disappointing.
Consumer Affairs awards PetSmart 3.9 stars based on 985 ratings, while Pissed Consumer awards 1.9 stars based on 640 reviews.
Hissing Kitty gives PetSmart 1.42 stars based on 48 complaints, and the Complaints Board gives it 1 star for solving only 96 of 530 complaints.
What Are PetSmart’s Customer Service Hours?
You can send an email or contact PetSmart on its social media channels at any time, but may have to wait for up to 8 hours for live support.
PetSmart is available on call every day of the week at any time, though the best recommended time to call is 3:00 PM. The average wait time is 4 minutes.
To know more, you can also read our posts on what is PetSmart, PetSmart competitors, and PetSmart return policy.
Conclusion
PetSmart offers several options for its customers to lodge complaints, though some of them are discontented with the results.
If not satisfied with the company’s customer service, customers can have recourse to government agencies set up to assist them and review sites or the law.