Complaints

• Initial Complaint

  04/12/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Stevens marine refuses to take responsabilty for my boat sinking

  Business response

  04/16/2024

  ****************** declined several repairs on his 2006 Searay 240 boat after he initially sank his boat earlier last year.  Insurance covered the repairs except for a number of maintenance items.     One of the declined maintenance repairs was the replacement of his seawater pump which he decided to do on his own to save money.   ****************** struggled with this repair as he brought the new pump in to get advice on how to do the repair.  Additional inclement weather also occurred requiring inboard engines to be drained to avoid freeze damage while in ****************** possession.  Either an improper installed seawater pump and/or removed drain plug would result in the vessel taking on water.  Unfortunately, due to the amount of time from when the boat was picked up to when the issue occurred and any repairs that ****************** decided to undertake are outside of our control.  Furthermore ****************** explained that his insurance company would be covering the repairs and wished to have an additional $5000 in compensation for his troubles.  

   

  Thank you,

  *************************

  GM

  Stevens Marine

  Customer response

  04/27/2024

  The only item I declined was replacing the fuel, that had not been
  compromised, when my boat was caught in a squall during Hurricane *******
  on 8.18.2023, with 40 MPH winds which created three foot waves on Lake
  Tahoe. I got in as close as I could to shore and tried to anchor, however my
  anchor would not hold. I saw a mooring buoy and tried to attach a line from
  the aft of my boat. The storm was so fierce, and it was just myself and my
  dog who were getting thrown from side to side in the boat. I finally was able
  to attach the line and the buoy slammed against my transom and outdrive,
  which then caused a leak somewhere in the boat.
  I was interested in getting a water pump for my engine, and asked for the
  serial number. They gave it to me and I ordered the part. When it arrived, it
  looked like too bizarre a piece of equipment to fit into a boat water pump, so
  I went back to Stevens ****** and spoke with their service manager and
  asked how this piece was supposed to fit. When he explained I quickly
  realized that this was the wrong part and so it was never installed. (picture
  attached)
  The only thing Ive done to the engine is to top off the fluids, nothing else.
  When additional inclement weather occurred, it required the boat to be
  drained. I inquired about this and was told that with only one day of freezing
  weather it would not need to be drained and not to worry. I still requested
  that he drain it as a precaution. To double check, I called them later to make
  certain it had been drained. He told me exactly we drained the motor and
  put everything back together. All you need to do is put in the transom plug
  and youre good to go.
  The boat was in my driveway so I could clean the outside. We had more
  freezing weather, so I placed four heaters in the boat. Two in in the bilge, one
  in the cabin and one on the upper deck. Those heaters kept the boat from
  freezing.
  After the bad weather, my son and I launched the boat at ***************.
  My son took the trailer back home and was then supposed to meet me at my
  slip at ****************** to give me a ride home. I was just a little above
  idle just before I got to the **************, and then decided to plane off. As
  I did, the engine started to miss badly. I lifted the hatch and was surprised to
  see two and a half feet of water in the bilge. I called Stevens ****** from the
  boat to tell them what was happening. He asked where the water was
  coming from and I replied that it was hard to tell with 2.5 feet of water in the
  bilge. I then told him the boat was sinking and had no more time to talk. I
  
  
  was near the **************. Being almost 78 years old I did not feel like
  going for a swim in the cold water, so looked for a place to set the boat.
  While my boat was in the care of Stevens ******, either they or their
  subcontractors broke the stove top and the cabin lock latch. When they
  transported the boat to have the new rugs fitted in *********, they must
  have been driving at too high a rate of speed, as 4 of the snaps were pulled
  off. When I picked the boat up, the cover had been rolled up and placed
  inside the boat. They then sent the boat out to have the interior detailed,
  which took another two weeks. When I checked their work, I told the service
  manager I could have gotten a can of rug cleaner and done a better job
  myself. I could not believe how poor of a job they had done, and that they
  thought it was fine.
  While there, I asked one of the employees to help me lift the trailer as far as
  he could to drain any left over water. He told me they had already done that.
  However, a steam of water ran out of the boat for about 200 feet. I then
  asked if they had gotten the water out of the cabin bilge to which they
  replied that they had. I lifted the stair to where the shower bilge is located
  and it was still full of water. I then asked the lot employee if they had a pump
  with a hose, they did and I personally pumped out the cabin bilge while I was
  there.
  The service manager repeatedly lied to me as well as refusing to answer
  some of my questions. They claim that I declined several repairs. The only
  thing I declined was having my fuel refilled as it was never compromised.
  There is more, but this is long enough. These folks at Stevens ****** are not
  folks you want to be dealing with. I did ask for 5K in reparation. Not for the
  boat, but because my insurance will most likely cancel my policy, or increase
  the rates so high I wont be able to afford it. Of the boat almost sinking
  because they never installed the drain plug after they drained the boat. And
  having to salvage the boat myself as all the salvage companies were
  overbooked due to the ice storm and no one could help me, although my
  insurance did not want to pay for me doing my own salvage. I have also been
  paying for an empty, covered slip since the day I initially dropped the boat
  off after it almost sank in **********. The resale value will depreciate greatly
  from this incident.
  **** stated in his comments that I sank the boat myself, shame on him for
  making such a statement. If you take a look at Stevens ******s reviews on
  
  
  line, it will give you an idea of how their companies work ethics are perceived
  by their customers.
  Sincerely, ***********************
  
  

  Business response

  05/09/2024

  Unfortunately ****************** declined several repair items that were identified after his 2006 Searay 240 sank.  These items were 1) draining/replacing fuel 2) replacing the seawater pump and 3) replacing the distributer, all items he decided to take care on his own.  The fact that ****************** was attempting to work on his boat was evident in his previous complaint and in his visits to our service department after trying to understand why certain parts he had ordered online were not fitting.  We cant be responsible for ****************** attempts to work on his own vessel. 

  Thank you,

  *************************

  GM 

  Stevens Marine

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