Paying good money to have my boat scratched

[Baseline]

The shoe could be on the other foot. Several years ago I knocked the lower unit off my Yamaha. I took the boat and motor to my dealer for repair. They did a good job repairing the motor and did some extra work. I dropped it off in their lot with the cover on and picked it up in the same lot again with the cover on. When I got home I removed the cover and found a full set of SnapOn screwdrivers in the case, a set of SnapOn sockets including drivers, an air driver, a Yamaha electronic engine analyzer and a extra $600 stainless steel prop. It was like they finished up the job and put the cover on and put it in the lot.

When I discovered the extras they left in the boat I went back to the dealer to return the tools, analyzer and the spare prop. Both the mechanic and the Service Manager were very happy to get their tools and parts back.

If my boat came home with damage I wouldn't handle it by phone I'd take the boat to dealer and deal with it in person.

[NailsWI]

Hypothetical situation:

Rig already has some damage, customer brings it in for service and them claims service dealer did it. Sticky situation for sure.

It sucks but, take pictures of your rig, top to bottom and inside out just in case something like this happens.

Dealer could also take steps, like doing a walk through upon delivery to verify condition of rig with owner present.

[Custom Eyes]

[QUOTE=NailsWI;6392786]Hypothetical situation:

Rig already has some damage, customer brings it in for service and them claims service dealer did it. Sticky situation for sure.

It sucks but, take pictures of your rig, top to bottom and inside out just in case something like this happens.

Dealer could also take steps, like doing a walk through upon delivery to verify condition of rig with owner present.[/QUOTE]

Heck, that doesn't even matter with a company that is crooked and wants to fight it. I had damage to my boat while in the hands and possession of the factory that made it, had pics documenting the warranty issues that just happened to capture the undamaged areas before it was in their possession also. Didn't matter. At first all I heard was stuff like well, what if...………., how do we know when those pics were taken...…….., how do we know the time stamp in the pics and files are legit...…….. They ended up making good on it, along with the warranty issues, but not without a long drawn out fight and nearly getting courts involved. They caved at the close of the business day before filing the lawsuit.

[2catch1]

Worked at a new car dealer for years that would occasionally have a customer claim we damaged there vehicle. Little did people know the place had cameras all over. I'd say over 50% of the time the vehicle came in with damage and most other times our wonderful car wash did it. ( gm broadway machine with brushes )

[REW]

Jigging,
I am sorry to hear about your situation.

I have done quite a bit of business with these folks and have always been treated fairly.

Stop over and ask to speak to the manager and be very careful and precise about your speech. Also, before going take a series of pictures of the damage and print them out.

If, by any chance you have pictures of the boat from anywhere that was prior to the incident without the damage - that would be even better.

Simply state your case, and explain that you would hope that the situation could be resolved to have the boat in the same condition as it was when the boat was brought in.

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By the way, all commercial dealers must have industrial insurance. In this case, the incident happened at the dealership and their insurance would cover the full cost of the incident resolution. You might remind them of that if they tend to balk a bit at resolution.

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Not to belabor the point, but my son's car had an incident at a dealerships service bay. The car fell off the lift due to a mechanical failure. The shop wanted to total the car that had just been repainted and was in perfect running condition. The dealer ship indicated that all future communication be handled through their insurance company. After calling the insurance company, who only wanted to total the car, I found the name of the best body shop in town and had them go over and pick up the car with their understanding that I would be responsible for the repair. So, they went over, picked up the vehicle and began the repair. Then, every day for the next 6 weeks I spoke to the insurance adjuster for at least 20 minutes asking for appropriate resolution. Finally, about the time that the car was finished and ready to be picked up, the insurance agreed to pay the bill and my son went to the shop and picked up his car in the same pristine condition as it was before the car was serviced for a bad fuel pump. The repair bill for the body shop was several times the amount that they would have given for totaling out the car.

Incidentally, I spoke to the owner of the dealership where the car had been taken after everything had been settled. He wanted to let me know that the incident with my son's car was the straw that broke the camel's back, so to speak. He canceled the insurance with that company and signed up with a better company. He had had problems with the company with settlements for the last few years and was tired of the hassle.

Now and then, persistence pays off.

Take care

[85Aluma]

Had a new Dodge Ram door speaker failed under warranty. Took it in to dealership i watched the tech take a wonder bar flat pry bar and jam it between the door panel and door frame , that was back in the day 96 i could actually be in the shop and no one told you to leave . Long story short dealership owner was a total jerk , at first he was not going to fix it , i told him i watched the guy do it around and around we went , well fast forward he's dead and his kids sold the dealership but not until they lost the Dodge Ram franchise and then lost the GM franchise . I have not had good experiences with dealerships period . My wife bought a new equinox and had a shimmy which they tried to isolate , while in their possession a front caliper locked up and we were given a new 2500 Silverado for a week until fixed . The shimmy is still there , but at least they did not scratch or dent the car ! Another Ram dealer on a different new truck sliced my factory leather steering wheel , now try and prove that one . A dealership starts with the owner and the people he hires ! I know they are out there , i hope !

[Mark R]

REW that’s quite a story about your sons car and how it took 6 weeks to repair and how you called the adjuster every day for 6 weeks and argued over the value of the car. I’m guessing he paid the difference of the ACV and your demand just so he wouldn’t have to talk to you anymore, Like my boss usd to say misery is optional.

[walleyecheek]

And my Boss used to say THE CUSTOMER IS ALWAYS RIGHT !!!

[clawman]

[QUOTE=walleyecheek;6392702]What do you mean BigPapa ? The man says they scratched his motor and scratched the boat and now the Dealership wont own up to it ? What else is there we need to know BigPapa ?[/QUOTE]
Two sides to every story

[walleyecheek]

Yeah that's why we have a service called small claims court ?