what happened to customer service - big time rant

[poohtown]

I know the customer is not ALWAYS right but it seems customer service is no more. Here's my lastest example and rant:

My husbands motorcycle broke down. He brought it to a new repair shop that just opened in town. (He figured it was closer and he could support town businesses). The mechanic told him it just needed to have the carborator(sp?) cleaned. So he paid him $200.-, had it fixed, picked it up( a day later than promised), drove to work and on the way home broke down. So we had to bring it in again. He calls and says the gas tank has rust in it and that's why the carbs are getting clogged. So now he wants to charge my husband an additional $300. to clean the tank but he also wants to charge another $200. to reclean the carbs. I couldn't believe it. When my husband tried to talk to the guy, the mechanic just yells 'well it's not my fault your tanks rusty'. I said 'well your the mechanic, we brought it in to fix it, we didn't tell you to clean the carbs - you said that was the problem'. Anyhow, the bike is back in the garage. I couldn't believe the guy didn't offer to reclean it for no charge or at least less.

Sick and tired of people acting like they're doing me a favor by letting me spend my money on their work.

 

[dianeschlicht]

I would think this controled by some sort of guarantee. I would call the Better Business Bureau and maybe the Commerce Department to see what you can find out.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

Didn't you know? It is called "customer no-service" now.

 

[buzzlady]

I think that I would take it somewhere else.

 

[crazyforgoofy]

or the gum snacking girl who finally cuts off her personal phone call after 5 minutes of you standing at her desk/window..........

or telephone customer service moved to India............

or you finally reach someone after poking the 23rd button on the phone and he/she tells you to call a different number.

But then there's the great service we got from the Honda dealer in Madison, WI while we were there visiting. The nearest dealership to our home is 100 miles away so we decided to take advantage of their service while at my sister's house. They did exactly what needed to be done, did it quickly and well and didn't overcharge us. They were friendly, helpful and got approval for each repair and they cleaned my car and put on a windshield wiper at no charge! So there IS hope.

 

[robinb]

Did your husband talk to a manager/owner of just the mechanic? If the mechanic missed the cause of the clogged carborator the first time you shouldn't pay for the cleaning because it's full of rust again. Less than 24 hours later. Let us know how it turns out.