GameStop Dumpster Diver Accuses Employees Of Deliberately Destroying Usable Products

Stuff breaks, and sometimes you have to throw it out. That’s life. However, when a dumpster diver discovered a batch of games and equipment thrown away outside of a GameStop store, he was angry when he discovered that many of the items had been deliberately destroyed. Why scratch up games that could be donated to a hospital games room or some other place where people in need could have fun?

That was the key question of this video taken back in February that somehow only attracted GameStop’s attention this week. In the video, discoverer JayPee shows us deliberately scratched games and controllers with their cords cut.

The video finally attracted GameStop’s attention last week, and late Friday afternoon they posted a response on Facebook.

Hey GameStop fans. We completely agree with the suggestions of donating games or accessories to charitable organizations. We do that routinely with our partners Ronald McDonald House Charities, Make-A-Wish Foundation and St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Regarding the Dumpster Video: It is our company practice to discard or destroy products that are damaged, defective, no longer work, or cannot be repaired. It is our understanding that this was the case with the product shown in the video.

JayPee questions this statement, wondering why store employees had clearly cut cords and gouged discs. Had those items been returned as defective and they just weren’t visibly damaged? That’s possible.

Even so, JayPee wonders why the items, many of which contain batteries that could become dangerous over time instead of recycling them as e-waste.

GameStop Responds to Dumpster Video [Gamespot]

GameStop Statement [Facebook]

by Laura Northrup via Consumerist