Complaints

• Initial Complaint

  03/28/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Delivery Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Aug. 22, 2022 I shipped my Shopsmith headstock to Shopsmith Repair - woodworking Academy for repairs.Aug. 30, 2022 I received a request for payment of $698.14 for repairs of my headstock. I sent the $698.14.Aug. 30, 2022 I received a confirmation of paid in full from Shopsmith Repair.Sept. 6, 2022 I was informed that my Shopsmith headstock was lost. *******************, the business owner, told me that ***** lost my headstock, and this was the 4th time that ***** had lost a headstock. Sept. 7, 2022 I called ******************* to inquire about my headstock. He told me that ***** has not found my headstock and if they couldn't find it he would build me another one. Sept 9,2022 ******************* suggested he send me a loaner headstock until ***** could find mine. He also said he would send me a prepaid shipping label for the return of the loaner headstock. Sept. 16, 2022 I received the loaner headstock.Oct 18, 2022 I called again to check on my headstock, I was told it was still lost and ******************* had not filed a claim yet, My headstock was insured for $1200.Jan. 6, 2023 ***** said ***** refused the claim twice and he would build me another headstock if I would pay for the parts. I told him NO, I would not give him another dime. Then he asked for 2 weeks to build me another headstock.Jan. 25, 2023 I received a headstock. the shipping box was busted open on one edge, but I saw no damage to the headstock,Jan. 27, 2023 I tried to mount the headstock on the frame. I could not mount it because the wedge lock is corroded in the housing and the capacitor was hanging by the electrical wires. the dials on the headstock also had surface corrosion. It's my opinion that he sent me a defective headstock. I now have a loaner headstock and a defective head stock in my possession. ***** said if I will Pay for the return of both headstocks he'll send me another one. All I want is what I payed for, the repair and return of my headstock.

  Business response

  04/10/2023

  We have been in consistent communication with ***** and have gone above and beyond for him to make up for ***** losing his machine and refusing our claims. We received *****'s machine August 24th, 2022. We sent ***** the details of what is needed for repair and he approved those repairs. We sent him an invoice for $698.14 on August 30th, 2022 which he promptly paid. We scheduled ***** pickup on September 1st, 2022 and ***** came to pick up the machine on September 2nd, 2022. We shipped two machines to two different customers in the same pickup that day, one to a *************************** in ***** (which arrived successfully) and the other to ************************* in Georgia (which did not arrive). We purchased $1200 worth of shipping insurance for each machine. Four days later ***** called me asking about the whereabouts of his machine. We told him "We'll check into it" and immediately contacted *****. The ***** driver, *******************, remembers picking up both machines but admits he forgot to scan the label on *****'s box. The ***** driver, ***, said and I quote "Your package is NOT LOST, there are cameras on my truck and cameras at the warehouse that see every step the package takes to it's destination", however we still have no response from claims department other than denials. We immediately filed a claim on the machine online on *****'s website. The claim was denied on the basis that "***** was never in possession of *****'s machine". We have a surveillance camera facing the spot where the package was picked up but unfortunately after 7 days it deletes the video. By the time we realized ***** was denying my claim even though we purchased valid insurance it was too late to retrieve the video footage. Since then we have called ***** corporate, spoken with managers in ***** stores and done everything we can think of.

  It has always been our policy that we are not liable for machines once they leave our shop for shipping. In 30 years we have never had issues until 2021 where ***** and *** began losing our packages and refusing our claims. Being such large companies it's near impossible for us to fight them with limited funds for law suits or other methods.

  We informed ***** that ***** is denying our claim and claiming that they never even picked up the machine from our shop. ***** was very upset which is understandable so we agreed to send him a loaner machine until ***** finds his machine. On September 9th, 2022 We shipped ***** a fully functional headstock (better in more than one aspect) than the machine ***** lost. ***** wasn't satisfied with this solution and he demanded that I send him his lost machine which is impossible at this time. I fully expected for ***** to either find *****'s machine by now or pay the claim of $1200 to me so I could cover the price of a replacement machine to *****. January 16th, 2023 I sent him a second machine. ***** received this and claims it's defective but that's impossible as I've never sent out a defective machine in my 30+ years of experience repairing Shopsmith Headstocks. The box arrived busted open and ***** sent me pictures of this. ***** claims he can't mount this second machine he's received from us on the base due to the machine being defective however it's clear it was damaged in shipping. We filed a claim for this damage and ***** asked for a picture of the packaging but ***** had only kept the box so on those grounds ***** denied that claim as well. ***** has since sent the second machine back to us to assess how it was damaged, but continues to use the loaner machine we sent in September of 2022 as a replacement.
  

  We have had such a horrific experience with ***** and we have sent ***** multiple machines to try to make things right even though the fault lies in the hands of ***** on both losing the machine and denying our claims wrongfully. It has become clear to us that ***** will not stop demanding machines from us until we can send him his original machine and will not understand that we have done everything to date in our power to get back his machine and have not been able to. ***** has a fully working replacement machine that is better quality then the one that was lost so we believe we have satisfied full replacement of his machine and cannot continue to send ***** machines at our cost. We will continue to fight ***** on this matter and all of this has been communicated to ***** at this time.
  

  Customer response

  04/11/2023

   
  Complaint: 19859445
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

  ***** has only sent me two headstocks, the loaner and a defective headstock that looks like he picked it up at a 2nd hand store. the defective headstock has RUST on the inside and outside. The capacitor was hanging by the electrical wires and didn't even have a mounting bracket for it.  The wedge lock was frozen inside the housing, so it couldn't be mounted on the way tubes.  The inside of the headstock still has sawdust from a previous owner.  This headstock was defective when it left his shop.  I did ship this headstock back to ***** at my expense with the assurance that he would reimburse the cost of shipping.  Now he owes me $125 plus a headstock.  The loaner headstock will not be a replacement for my headstock.  The electrical cord is 6 ft. long, it should be 12 ft long.  The color is brown and gold, all the rest of my shopsmith equipment is grey   Again, all I want is what I paid for.

  ***** said he was going to film the opening and repairing of this headstock, and send me a copy.  Well, that hasn't happened yet.

  I checked with ****** they told me that they made ***** a shipping label but he never shipped the package.
  
  Sincerely, 
  
  *************************

  Business response

  04/14/2023

  Hey *****,

  I am one of the repairmen here at Woodworking Academy, *****************************, however I am not the repairman who repaired your machine. I haven't repaired a machine in about 2 years, but I have repaired around 50 machines in my 10 years repairing ********* headstocks. My brother ****** was the repairman who did your machines. He is an ASE certified mechanic that has been fixing cars and commercial vehicles for about 12 years now. However none of that experience has prepared us to work on ********* machines like training under *****. So we acknowledge your 20 years repairing transmissions but ********* headstocks are a highly specialized niche that takes many years to master. So without a doubt we will never send out a junk machine or one that has been repaired poorly.
  
  We just opened your box and recorded the entire process. We are working on sending the video now, it's long and is also a large file so we're doing our best to send it to you within the hour.
  
  In the video you will find very little rust none of which affects performance. The only rust that could be found was on the takeoff hub (small cap that goes on the middle shaft) and on the inside of the motor pan. Rust on those parts is extremely common on used machines and in no way affects operation. Your claim that this machine was in a high moisture environment that caused it to rust inside and out is completely false and inaccurate.
  
  In the video we also found that the wedge locks were hard to move, we took the machine apart and were able to loosen the wedges with the headstock locks by using some force. We determined that the handle and shaft were bent and that's what caused it to be impossible for you to loosen them by turning the handles. Again this must have happened in shipping.
  
  We also found the capacitor was dislodged due to a severe jolt during shipping. You'll see in the video that there is a metal clip that holds the capacitor firmly against the motor. We never send out a machine with a loose capacitor. Your claim that it was never fastened is also false and inaccurate.
  
  Now we did notice some sawdust in there. That was confirmed in the video and that is not up to our standards. We do apologize for the sawdust in that machine and for that reason we are going to refund your shipping cost. Please let us know if you accept Venmo, Cashapp or Zelle we will refund that right away.
  
  Now we need to address the fact that when we sent you the first machine, that was only intended to be a loaner. That was *****' personal shopsmith which is better in many ways than the one that ***** has in their possession. ***** promised you a second machine as a replacement under the assumption that ***** would pay the claim which they have continually denied. It is unfortunate that it was damaged in shipping but that does not happen very often at all. Now that it has been returned and found to have been damaged in shipping we'd like to discuss how to move forward.
  
  So where things currently stand is here:
  
  1) ***** made a mistake when they scanned the wrong box and lost your machine. They have also refused to award our claim. That is not our fault, it is the fault of ***** and is their responsibility. We are very upset that this has happened, however we maintain on our website that we are not responsible for machines once they leave our shop for shipping. With that being said we don't ever leave customers without a replacement. The other 3 times this has happened Woodworking Academy has provided a comparable replacement to the lost machine and each time the customers were satisfied. You are the first customer to have a machine lost in shipping that is dissatisfied after receiving a replacement.
  
  2) We have gone above and beyond for you, sending you a loaner and attempting a second replacement.
  
  3) We have proven with video footage your claims that we sent you a poorly refurbished machine are false and that machine was damaged in shipping.
  
  4) We have accepted responsibility for the sawdust in the machine and will be issuing you a shipping fee refund.
  
  5) You are still in possession of a perfectly good ********* ********************* & Copper Anniversary Edition built by ************* Corp complete with Poly-V system, stronger headstock housing and single bearing quill (far superior to the double bearing quill your original machine had).
  

  6) In this BBB complaint thread you stated "All I want is what I paid for". Since that machine is not in our possession and has been lost in shipping, that request is impossible for us to fulfill. What you have in your possession is more than equal to "what you paid for" which was around $700 in repairs. You have received a better machine which you say is not sufficient mainly because the color is different and cable is a few feet shorter. If you want a newer factory refurbished machine, they sell them for $1700. It seems because your used machine was lost in shipping you are demanding essentially a "like new" machine which is unfair to our company and cannot be provided free of charge.
  
  Here is our final suggestion to you:
  
  You can keep the loaner headstock we originally sent you, it is a fine replacement and better in many ways than the original that ***** has. I will even ship you a 12 foot power cable that you can put onto that machine. The color being different is not grounds for the machine being unacceptable for you.

  We regret your original machine has been lost in shipping but we have replaced it with a better machine. That is more than sufficient. We apologize for the sequence of events that you've experienced and we ask that this be resolved.
  

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