Complaints

• Initial Complaint

  06/27/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  We purchased a simplicity mower in November 2021. It is under warranty. Approx. 2 weeks ago the drive belt from the machine was thrown. We brought the mower in for Warranty repair and picked up the mower 10 days after drop off. Within 1 hour, the drive belt cam off again. We had discovered that the transmission bolts ( which also keeps the drive belt in place) were (2 missing) 1 stripped completely and NO lock nuts on any of the remaining transmission bokts. Called the company and they arranged for pick up today- June 24, 2022 after I spoke with a male worker on the phone. The male worker had previously stated when arranging the puck up that the mechanic was in error, and that "we will get it in right away with no wait". We called the storec1 hour before closing and the owner stated he had no idea about that promise, and he will get it looked at "when a bay opens" and that " it was not fixed properly the first time because you (we) made them rush". After having several words with the owner about the previous problem, the incorrect mechanic fix (downright negligent) the owner stated that he "will not work on ( the warranteed) mower because (you) I am rude. I have now picked up my $3600 mower with the dealer refusing to do any repairs.

  Business response

  06/27/2022

   WHEN CUSTOMER CALLED US ABOUT HIS PROBLEM, HE HAD ALREADY BOUGHT A BELT AND INSTALLED ON UNIT HIMSELF, WE PICKED UP UNIT AND HAD IT IN LINE TO FIX, UNDER WARRANTY BUT THIS TIME OF THE YEAR WE ARE COVERED UP WITH WARRANTY REPAIRS, DUE TO LACK OF BEING ABLE TO HIRE ENOUGH MECHANICS, HE WAS PUSHING US AND UNHAPPY HE HAD TO WAIT, THOUGHT HE SHOULD GO IN FRONT OF EVERYONE ELSE! WE HAD A WORKER TRY TO FIX UNIT, UNFORTUNATELY HE DID NOT GET UNIT RIGHT. CUSTOMER CALLS BACK MAD, WE PICKED UP UNIT TOLD HIM WE WOULD GET RIGHT BACK ON UNIT, AS SOON AS A REAL MECHANIC GOT A UNIT OUT OF HIS BAY TO WORK ON UNIT, WE WERE IN THE PROCESS OF FIXING THE UNIT, WHEN CUSTOMER CAME IN AND WAS VERY BELLIGERENT! MAD THAT UNIT WASN'T DONE, MECHANIC WAS ALMOST DONE WITH UNIT, BUT CUSTOMER DEMANDED WE LOAD UNIT ANYWAY, HE WAS UNDER THE IMPRESSION THAT WE WOULD FIX THE UNIT AND DELIVER BACK TO HIM THE SAME DAY, WHICH I WISH EVERTHING WOULD ALWAYS GO AS EXPECTED. HE GOT IN MY FACE POINTING FINGER AT ME AND TALKING TO ME LIKE A DOG. I'VE BEEN IN BUSINESS 49 PLUS YEARS, TO OLD FOR ANYONE TO TALK TO ME THIS WAY, TOLD HIM I WOULD NO LONGER IN NEED OF HIS BUSINESS AND ANY OTHER REPAIRS WOULD HAVE TO BE TAKEN SOMEWHERE ELSE. 

      I HAVE WORKED MY WHOLE LIFE BUILDING A GOOD BUSINESS AND TAKING CARE OF CUSTOMERS, TO THE BEST OF MY ABILITY, BUT SOMETIMES THERE ARE PEOPLE, THAT THINK THEY ARE BETTER THAN ANYONE ELSE, HAVE CUSTOMERS THAT WERE HERE BEFORE HE WAS, BEEN WAITING LONGER THAN HE HAD. WE HAVE NEED OF MORE MECHANICS, BUT LIKE ALL BUSINESSES NOW, WORKFORCE IS HARD TO GET. EVER DEALER I KNOW IS IN NEED OF MORE MECHANICS, AND THEY ARE JUST NOT OUT THERE. 

  RONNIE L*********

   

  Customer response

  06/27/2022

   
  I am rejecting this response because:
   We were informed the machine was NOT in bay after being promised it would be fixed without delay due to mechanics FIRST fix failure.

  Sincerely,
  **** ****

  Business response

  06/28/2022

  Ok, let's start from the beginning again. Customer called and said mower would not pull and belt was off machine, we picked machine up and told customer that we were very far behind, and he would not get machine back for a while. Customer kept calling and saying he needed machine and did not have time to wait on mechanic to fix. We told him that we would try to get someone else to fix if this problem was just a belt maybe some junior mechanics that do not have a tone of experience could attempt repair. We did so and got unit fixed weeks before we told him we could, and he was happy, and we delivered unit back. The unit tore up again (same problem) and customer's wife called back and was upset and mad and wanted us to pick machine up and fix it immediately and my worker told her that we would pick it up and get it fixed and that she would not have to wait like the last time (a week) that we would get back to fixing it when it was brought back. This misunderstanding is she thought that meant as soon as it got back that we would take and push a piece of equipment that was torn into pieces and strung everywhere out of the bay immediately and fix machine but what was meant is that when a qualified technician got done with the next piece of equipment that is in his bay and in the way fixed, he would then pull unit in and fix. So, repairs would be done in a 24hr period but not the same hour or day received. Customers husband called back to see if it was done, a few hours to see if it was ready and I told him it was not we were still waiting on a bay to clear so we could get to it. Customer said that was unacceptable and that i would pull it in and fix it that day or he would come up here and there would be hell to pay. I told customer over phone that we were trying but we had to have somewhere to work on machine and this would only happen when a bay got open. He then proceeded to cuss me and said that I would do what he asked and how he asked, or he would call a lawyer and I could talk to his lawyer about that. I told customer that he was more than welcome to call his lawyer and do what he needed to do since I knew I was doing all I could do and if that was not good enough, he could come get mower and take it somewhere else. I asked him who told him that we would get to it the same minute it came back so I could verify who said this and so they could get on phone and better explain the process in which we needed to get unit fixed right this time. Customer would not let me talk, he kept interrupting me and all I was trying to tell him is that worst case scenario I would just deliver it back tomorrow (within 24hr or receiving it) but he would not accept that and kept threatening me with coming down here. I told him to do what he needed to do, and I would start working on machine as soon as it could and that's all I could do. He then shows up here and cusses the owner, the secretary, a mechanic and one of our customers that was trying to calm him down. He violently pounded on the shop counter and talked to the owner like he was a dog. The customer then says he wants his mower loaded up now, unaware that we had almost had it fixed, so mechanic hurried up and put belt back on and installed missing bolts. No charge to customer and we brought it around to load up, but customer was still confrontational and young boy that loads mowers decided that he would just let the man load it up himself as he was scared to be out there with the man. Customer loaded machine and left, with a machine that was driven to him to show him that the belt was back on, and missing bolts were installed. Customer just let emotions get the best of him and wanted everything his way and would not work with us. We have one best of the best for 23 years in a row for best place to buy and repair. You do not do this in a small town unless you give great service. but sometime people are just to entitled and you cannot help them see they are not the only one with problems. I do not expect my employees to be cussed or threatened and when you do so we reserve the right to refuse any business that may be harmful to employees or make them feel like they are in a hostile environment. It is too hard to find good employees to replace them with as i am sure you know.  

*Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business. ↩