Complaints

• Initial Complaint

  05/13/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  March 17 took lawnmower in for $75 tune up and mentioned a vibration problem we wanted to have them diagnose. they called on March 23 to say mower was ready for pickup and we owe $248. they said they couldn't fix the vibration so the charge should've been $75, instead they did a lot of unauthorized work. picked it up on April 22 and tried to negotiate some of the charges. the owner/employee was rude and wouldn't budge. for example there was a fee for gas but there was none in there when we tried to start it. now the mower barely runs, it's impossible to start. called twice on May 6 and no one answered. May 9 spoke with someone who said to bring it back in. took it back today, May 13, and the guy was extremely rude and didn't even listen to us explain the problem, said he was too busy. offered nothing in the way of repair or refund. we're seeking our money back and would like to warn other customers to stay away from this horrible business.

  Business response

  06/09/2023

  Customer came in and dropped off a machine for a tune-up and claimed their machine was shaking. No estimate was requested or paid for at the time of drop off. Upon first diagnosis of this machine we found that it would not start which the client failed to inform us of. We determined that we would have to go through and clean out the carburetor in an attempt to get this machine running so that we could then proceed and do the tune-up and diagnose the machine shaking. However, this did not resolve the issue of it not starting because the carburetor was too corroded, so the carburetor was replaced and the machine then ran. The fuel also went bad in this machine so we had to replace it with some of our fresh fuel. We only fill machine with enough fuel for us to work with or else we would have to charge much more. All fuel we put in was consumed diagnosing this machine. Upon diagnosis once running we found that the client hit something too hard with the machine which bent their blades and the shaft of the engine. The blades were hence replaced, but once a engine shaft is bent it cannot be repaired. The shaft however was not bent enough to deem this machine unusable, it would just cause more vibration than normal for the rest of this machine's lifespan. Then we finished up doing the tune-up last. This machine was thoroughly tested to ensure everything ran and worked as well as it possibly could. The client wasn't notified of any work done until the machine was finished since they never requested an estimate at drop-off and we did not deem it necessary. Charges were not up for negotiation since no estimate was requested and all work was required to be done to diagnose and repair this machine. Customer repeated multiple times upon pickup after going over everything that it was all fine and took the machine after paying by credit card which results in a 4% increase in charge than standard check pricing. Customer came back in May 13th and spoke to us but we cannot offer any sort of warranty since all was working at time of pickup and there is no repair for the shaking besides replacing the crank shaft which would be well more than the machine is worth. Attached is the clients invoice and one of our multiple signs around the shop about estimates and our policy about notifying clients.

  Customer response

  06/12/2023

  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.  1. There is nothing on the receipt that states they have the right to make repairs at their discretion. I am not sure where that sign is posted and the owner never stated that when I dopped off the mower for a $75 tune-up.  If you are going to increase the bill by over $100 dollars customers deserve a call to decide if they want to fix the machine or just pay for services rendered and buy something new.   2. The owner is correct that I asked to know why the mower was shaking and I accept the fact that it is a bent crank shaft.  I will even accept that the blade was bent and needed to be replaced. 3. Charging $8 for gas in a push mower is absolutely ridiculous.  That is about 2.1 gallons of gas at the current price for a push mower that holds about 1/4 gallon and in his statement he said they only put enough in to work on the machine.   I was never ok with being billed for services that I did not approve, and I made that perfectly clear, I asked for the $75 tune-up fee to be waived since the carburetor and blades had been replaced, but was told no.  Other people started to enter the business to pick up equipment and I had to mow my lawn so I paid for the mower instead of making a scene.   To the crux of the complaint:   4. The mower did not start when my daughter tried to use it for the first time. When I tried using the mower it would not start until fuel was sprayed in the carburetor.  With a brand new carburetor that should not be the case. I called the shop and took the mower back but the owner did not try to start the mower or diagnose any problems, instead he went and sprayed fuel into the carburetor to start it.  When I asked that he try to start it first his response was "why would I" and when I became frustrated with that answer I was told to "lose the attitude".  I use fuel stabilizer in my gas and feel that a mower with a brand new carburetor should not need any additional help to start.  This mower still does not start without spraying fuel in the carburetor.  I expected the business to make a good faith effort to fix my mower and they pushed me out the door with a band-aid fix of spraying fuel in the carburetor when I need to start it.  Regards,  ****** *******

  Business response

  06/22/2023

  In response to 1), the sign that was attached is posted on the wall directly in front of the main entrance when you walk in with all our hourly rates and other notices/policies, as well as, further in the office where we keep another set of the same pricing information and other notices/policies. Both of which are in plain sight so that everyone can see and read. In response to 3), the $8 for gas does not only reflect the price of gas but the time and resources for travel back and forth we must make to get the fuel and the fuel stabilizer we use to treat it. We had no reason to waive any fees for the work we did since all work was required. In response to 4), there were no issues with starting or running this machine once all repairs were made. It was tested thoroughly here at the shop, which is why we had used all the fuel which we replaced in this machine. If you look at the invoice it states that we “replaced the fuel”. The fuel that was originally in this machine went bad and had to be replaced. Once the client took this machine home, they more than likely put bad fuel back into this machine which has since created for them the new starting issue. The fuel either went bad due to age or water being in the fuel. Fuel that is over 30 days old can accumulate condensation (Water). Just because fuel stabilizer is used, it doesn’t mean it will keep the fuel good forever. Small engines such as these may run off bad fuel but cannot start off it, which is more than likely the case of why starting fluid is needed to start this machine. Overall, we do work just like this commonly on other machines and never have issues with our many other clients. We see no reason to refund the bill for this machine. We will not do any further work on this machine because we feel that the client will not be content with any further work we would do or charges that may apply. Suggested solution for this machine would be to drain all fuel out of this machine and put in fresh fuel from the gas station. PS: Client failed to mention the machine would not start, just because it ran last fall does not mean it will start after setting all winter, this is also very common. 

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