'Best Buy thinks they're sneaky': Customer receives $200 gift card with Samsung Galaxy S25 purchase. Then he tries to return it

In a viral TikTok video that has garnered over 228,000 views, content creator Shayne McKinney (@shayneisgreat) took on Best Buy and emerged with a surprising lesson about the company's return policy.

McKinney began by explaining that he bought the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra as a temporary solution while waiting for his OnePlus 13 to arrive. He purchased the phone at his local Best Buy store and received a $200 gift card with his purchase. Initially, McKinney thought he had struck gold – he would get to use the S25 Ultra for a week while keeping the $200 gift card.

However, when McKinney tried to return the phone, he was quoted a price that reflected the original phone price minus both the $45 restocking fee and the value of the $200 gift card. To receive the full refund, including the $200 gift card, he would need to return the unused gift card.

"Looks like everybody was right," McKinney said in his video. "I will end up $45 in the hole for doing this. But still, I got to use an S25 Ultra for a week for $45." The outcome left viewers divided – some were outraged by Best Buy's tactics, while others saw it as a clever business move.

Many users took to the comments section to express their opinions on McKinney's experiment. "So in other words you didn’t actually get a free gift card, you paid $200 more for the phone," wrote one user. A second person chimed in, stating that Best Buy's actions constituted "a crime of sorts." A third user noted that companies often trick consumers into buying things they don't need.

A fourth user warned McKinney that his experiment could be seen as "return fraud," a criminal offense in Arkansas. Return fraud occurs when individuals exploit a retailer's return policies by returning items for refunds or store credit under false pretenses. Online retailers are particularly vulnerable to fraudulent returns, which cost retailers billions of dollars each year.

McKinney responded to the claim that his purchase was an example of return fraud, saying he had explicitly informed Best Buy staff about his intentions to keep the S25 Ultra and send back the OnePlus 13. The Daily Dot reached out to McKinney via TikTok direct message and Best Buy via email for more information on this incident.

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