Help Me Hank: Help Me Hank! Even exchange

From the halls of Montezuma, to the shores of Tripoli, to the flag raising at Iwo Jima, to this Marshfield living room -- retired Marine Captain Eugene Broadway's semper fi. He’s even celebrating the Marine Corps birthday with a gift from his son-in-law.

Eugene Broadway
"The Marine Corps birthday was November the 10th and this was the 230th birthday celebration."

His gift was this special Marine Corps pocket watch. It’s the old fashioned type you wear on a chain.

Eugene Broadway
"I was happy to get it. It’s very nice."

You’ve seen this kind. It’s supposed to flip open and flip closed, except this one didn’t stay closed. Semper broken.

Eugene Broadway
"When I got ready to wear it, I couldn't, because the back wouldn’t stay on."’

So retired Captain Broadway marched right back into the store where his son-in-law bought it, but unusually for a marine, this was losing battle.

Managers said they’d exchange the defective watch for a new one, but told him he had to pay the sales tax again.

Eugene Broadway
"And that just didn’t seem right."

He engaged the enemy with logic.

Eugene Broadway
"I told them that I received this watch as a gift. I do not have a sales slip."

He engaged the enemy with facts.

Eugene Broadway
"This is the first time I'd ever been told you have to pay sales tax on an even exchange."

But the store held their ground.

Eugene Broadway
"They said if you want it, you have to pay the sales tax."

So, he finally retreated.

But then brought in the reinforcements.

Eugene Broadway
"I said well I'll give Hank a call."

We, in turn, called out the really big guns, the Mass. Department of Revenue, with commander in chief Alan LeBovidge.

Alan LeBovidge, Mass. Dept. of Revenue Commissioner
"When you have an exchange on a defective product and you're getting a replacement product, there's no sales tax on the replacement product."

We made one phone call to the store and soon after, it called the captain to apologize.

And the problem? Semper solved.

Eugene Broadway
"Hope this wouldn’t happen to anyone else."

And he indeed got his money back, as well as a $10 gift certificate. More questions about the state’s sales tax? Check out the link below.

Related Link:
Massachusetts Department of Revenue