Custome Service

Last Saturday I ordered a part--doesn't matter for what--and was told it would be in in three or four days. I called two days ago and was told they would check and call me back. Yesterday I talked to the guy I ordered it from and told the same thing. So far not one phone call. I can understand misplaced orders, supplier problems, etc. What I don't understand is how businesses can just blow customers off without responding at all. And what about suppliers that don't service their customers? So here I sit waiting two weeks for a part so I can spray and no word on when my parts will be in. I bought the sprayer from them and paid for the part upfront. They've lost a customer. In this economy, you'd think they'd want to keep each one. End of rant.

Larry

I've found out over the last year that Poulan's warranty is totally worthless, at least as far as chain saws are worth.

I've mentioned this saw on this forum in the past. In a weak moment, I bought a Poulan 14" Saturday night special saw from Oersheln's. Right off, you could tell it wasn't running right. Hard to start, plus if you let it idle for five seconds, it would stop and would have to sit for several hours and cool off completely before it would restart.

None of Poulan's own service facilities would touch it. They all said the same thing, that it was probably an adjustment, Poulan doesn't warranty adjustments, and if I left it I'd have to pay at least their minimum labor charge. The last Poulan dealer I talked to said it actually sounded like a bad coil and ignition module (one unit), but he still wouldn't risk spending time on it that he wouldn't get paid for. He said they'd had some bad ignition modules right out of the box.

At the time, I threw the dammed thing under a bench in my shop and bought a Stihl. (Which has been flawless). Then this spring, I got to thinking about the Poulan. I hated to give up on it because it probably didn't even have a full hour of actual sawing time on it. I got it out and found the ignition was completely dead. What the dealer said about the ignition module made sense, and they were about $20 online. I figured I'd gamble that much, so I ordered one.

After I'd installed the ignition module, it started right up and runs like it's supposed to.

Upshot is, I have a serviceable saw with $20 more in it than I paid for it. I also have a 20" Poulan that really hasn't been a bad saw, but there's no way I'll ever buy another Poulan.

Well, now that you've openned this floodgate. Bought a brand new JD 5303 4wd w/ loader and had the dealer add a second set of remotes. 14 hours later I find a small but annoying hydraulic leak from the end bell of the remote control valves. I'd been using a PTO chipper with hydraulic feed. Fine. Drop by the dealer, explain the situation and say 'no real rush - let me know when you can arrange a service call to fix'. Afterall, there's no way they will find the place, much less the tractor, without me.

Two weeks pass with no call. Call them. Sorry, we've not had a chance to make the service call. Huh? You were to call me to let me know WHEN to expect the service. Sorry, we'll call back today.

So a week later I drop by the JD shop, sit down in a chair at the service manager's desk and plop my feet on his desk. Sorry, we'll schedule a time and give you a call. Nope, we'll decide that right here and now.

Next day it was done, but why was is so painful? I was less polite with the customer satisfaction questionaire that arrived shortly thereafter.

You just shake your head don't you?

That way with local dealer we deal with, but dad hates to go out of town because he needs them for parts when time is tight. Kind of a lose-lose situation but you'll live with some poor service for local parts. He isn't the type of guy to burn bridges whereas I probably would have by now. It would be impossible to go into it all but his problems all came from getting major purchases delivered on time and working correctly, parts hasn't been a problem. Same with other customers who have bought equipment, its sales and management and not service and parts. Go figure.

I know this will sound harsh but here goes. You bought a saturday night special saw for what...$150? From where? Cheapest place you could find. Closeout store, big box, On line?
Then you want a local dealer that made no profit on the sale take a chance they will not get paid by a manufacturer that has already cut them out of the deal once by marketing there product to somone who undercut them on the sale,fix the saw for you for free.
All on a problem you could have fixed yourself for $20???
Sorry but I side with the local dealers...

On the flip side, when you buy an item from a local dealer and you STILL get terrible service, what's making you go back and buy parts from them? I sure wouldn't.
I have tried on a few different occasions to shop locally for parts for my snow blower, lawn mower, chain saw etc. etc......and every time the answer is the same "we can order it for you"........well I can order it.........and it will be cheaper.........and likely here sooner because I'm not waiting a week to have a larger order to put in. Another place with an inexperienced parts person told me the model number I had given her for my 20hp Johnson outboard motor didn't exist therefore she couldn't find the parts I needed.......a carb and fuel pump rebuild kit....I even offered to show it to her as it was in the back of my truck......so I ordered it online, got it in 3 days and paid less. My snowblower they lost my parts list and never did get back to me with a price or availability. Two different dealers..........I tried, they failed me, I'm done!

Chris, I disagree. First of all we don't know where he bought it so don't hold that against them. And second, that is the risk the dealer takes for selling Poulan. If it has a warranty it should get fixed for free.

What happens if you buy a new car with the 100K mile warranty from your local dealer. Take the car 1000 miles away (with only say 5000 miles on the car) and it dies. Should the nearest dealer refuse to work on your car because you bought it somewhere else? Your idea doesn't sound so sweet now does it?

Ok, sorry 'bout the place of purchse bit. I re-read his post and saw where he stated that. But the rest of my post stands though.

I'm not blaming the dealers, I'm blaming Poulan.

I was a McCulloch dealer thirty years ago when they were at their peak, and anything I did under warranty, I got paid for. Parts, labor, adjustments, whatever.

You where lucky. I have been the service manager at two different dealers that handle two different lines. At both of them you always lost money on any warranty repairs. Why?? Parts are paid for at dealer cost, no freight paid. Labor is paid at flat rate no relation to how low it actually takes. No fluids covered. So if you split a tractor to replace a burnt out clutch you will not get paid for new oil. The customer is supposed to pay for it. No pickup or delivery paid, customers responsibility to get tractor to the dealer. NO pay for the use on "loaner" equipment.

Plus after all of that joy wait on your payment for months.

I find it hard to believe that any JD dealer would lose money on warranty work. A good mechanic can make a dealer extra money, especially when using a flat rate book. Another thing I find odd is that you were complaining about people bad mouthing JD tractors and now you're bad mouthing mother Deere's warranty policy and payment for dealers. What's up with that and why would a JD need warranty work anyway if they're so good? Dave

Back in 1977, I was looking to buy my first brand-new car. Had it narrowed down to two vehicles: either a red AMX [in stock], or a black Mustang Cobra [had to order]. Did some shopping around, and ended up back at my hometown Ford dealer, hoping I could get him to match--or even come close to--the price I had from a competitor.

The dealer told me, "Yeah, I can match the price...but if you buy the Mustang from any other dealer, and it turns out you need warranty work done, we WILL find a way not to schedule you."

So I bought the AMX and never set foot in that Ford dealership again.

Sounds like warranty work on electric fence chargers.One co. took ten weeks to pay but would jump all over me if I was a day late paying for parts.I got rid of them.

I'm sure you don't need me to give you simplistic advice to the point of being trite such as: "I wouldn't go back to them again." No one who has other options would do otherwise. In most cases the problem stems from the fact that there IS no other dealer outlet within a practical distance to take your business to. Sure, you can drive 75 miles, waste several hours and so on but of course that is just being victimized in a differing fashion. If the company is large or requires that you speak with someone on the phone in another state just what are you supposed to do about that?
When I hear "we'll call you back" no matter what the source I just take it as a matter of course that I won't be called back. The practice seems so universal as to be able to make a pretty safe generalization of it. I'll give them a day and start calling back. I'll give them a another chance if it is not important and then put plan "B" into action which consists of calling them every day. I'll get the name and extension of who it is I talked to and if it is a small office try to deal with the same person each day. I'll be polite but given enough calls to the same person they will expedite the process just to get you off of their back. But it's when calling a large business that my resolve not to have my time wasted really comes into it's own. If I've gotten the runaround, a hassle or a "no" from some nameless, faceless drone I'll simply conclude the call, hang up, and promptly call again, get some other desk jockey and go through the same process while all the information is fresh and in front of me until I get some satisfaction. I couldn't even guess how often I have gotten different results from a different person. I'll call back three or four times if necessary and get three or four confirmations that a solution is in progress if necessary and once I am sure I'm not dealing with the same person of a couple of minutes ago, go through the process again. Sometimes you might need to call back at a different time of day to gain the desired effect but it almost always works.
Once it becomes clear that it is company practice to brush off customers with the short term thinking of merely the initial sale, I won't waste any more time in waiting to be dealt with as a valued customer. I'll request a part, schedule an appointment or phone the dispatcher 3-4-8-10 days in a row if necessary.---- Leaving for work?--time for a call, come in for lunch on the weekend?--make a call while eating lunch--answer the phone because a friend called?-- whoops!-looks like time to remind them again, get home from work and come in with the mail?--time for another call. What I won't do is let them tell me they'll call back and then patiently and politely wait for them to do so once they've falied to do so. I've been down that road too many times to not know what to expect.
It doesn't work 100% per cent of the time but it works quite well much of the time, especially when compared to the rate of success you will have in conceding to the standard US business practice of "the brush off".
As a small asside, once having received a particularily brusque brush off or poor service of some store manager I have increasingly begun to take the time to contact a office or regional, manager, the home office, the customer service department head, the personal department or whoever it takes to enlist the wrath of a higher up to bear on the uncaring individual. In a small one store operation it may or may not have the desired effect as it may be staffed by a close knit culture of sour individuals but I know from my varying experience with differing offices, managers and department heads that I have worked with, that some of them become as mad as I am if they perceive that they have lost a potential customer. I have sat in on more than one meeting, or been present in a number of situations when some fellow worker received a shocking dressing down to the point of losing their job, behind the scenes and away from the public eye. The individual who was the crux of the original situation probably never knew what happened but consequences followed.
There often is a disconnect between the department heads and counter sad sacks who the public sees and deals with. That disconnect can work for good or ill and it can work both ways but I've seen enough of it come down in support of the customer to invest a few minutes of time to speak with a higher up or crank out an e-mail. For some reason out local farmer's coop seems rife with poor customer help but I've obtained remarkable results with the afore mentioned methods as just one of many examples I can recall.
In a blighted business environment the results only get better in that higher ups are very concerned indeed that their often tenuous position not becomed threatened by ill reports to their own higher ups or clients become lost.
There is a particularily comforting satisfaction that derives from emerging victoriously over some disrespectful and callous treatment in which you have been dismissed without consideration concern especially when that consideration and concern has been garnered with a claim of "customer service" or a company or product gaurantee.