Vendor problems

[captcrash]

I dont post much here, but I lurk, and absorb alot. I am having a problem getting parts or even a return phone call or e-mail from one of the site sponsors. Without getting into who or what, I ordered $3700 worth of parts from a company, and was told that some parts would ship out right away, some would be a day or two, and some were special order so they would take 1 - 2 weeks to be built. I called after 3 1/2 weeks and I hadn't seen anything, so they were going to look into it. I wait 3 days and I call and leave a couple of messages. I get a call back that the first part would ship out that day, and by the end of the week for the special order part. No mention of why, or when on the last part. He would call my later that day with a tracking number. It has now been another week. I have called and left voice mails, and I have sent e-mails, and I get nothing. It has now been almost 6 weeks, and I have not seen anything. Sorry for being so cryptic, but does anyone have any ideas?
Brian

[Fesler built]

If you are not getting answers ask for your money back, if they can not tell you when or what you are going to get you can get a refund. If they are giving you some kind of up dates and just not what you want to hear get your money back.

[Finch]

Is the company the actual manufacturer of the parts or just a 3rd party? If it is a 3rd party what were the actual parts you ordered?

I know the vendors have shortages at times on certain items which the 3rd parties cannot control. Stuff happens but communication is the key in those situations. They need to be upfront and follow thru with updates until resolved.

Good luck,

[Charley Lillard]

"It has now been another week. I have called and left voice mails, and I have sent e-mails, and I get nothing. It has now been almost 6 weeks, and I have not seen anything. Sorry for being so cryptic, but does anyone have any ideas?
Brian"

I have a idea...Post the Company's name !!! Maybe then you will get a response.

[Mr.VENGEANCE]

i think they dont let that happen here Charley..

i dunno why.. for SOME reason..

but yea.. who is it?

[mpozzi]

I hope you paid using a CC as the card shouldn't be charged until parts have been shipped or built if special order. You can always cancel that order and see if another company can handle your needs.

This may be a Larry question and I would PM a mod asking for assistance.

Mary Pozzi

[Charley Lillard]

Not sure why it wouldn't be allowed if it is spelled out factually.

[captcrash]

I am not here to bash a company, I was just venting my frustration. The company is a sponsor of the forum, and I guess that I am one of only a handful of members who has had a problem with this company in the last few years, so even if I was to out them, I dont think that it would do anything to hurt their buisiness.
This company is a dealer, and I contacted the manufacturer today and learned that the order was just placed last week, one week after I started to call to find out where the parts were, and one month after I ordered them from the dealer. Someone dropped the ball, which I can deal with as I used to work for a parts manufacturer, and I know how this can happen. My issue is that the guy doesn't have the courage to admit that there was a screwup, or to reply to my e-mails, or return my phone calls. I told them in my last voice mails, and e-mails that if I do not get a call from them tomorrow, I will file a dispute with my credit card company.
Larry has already sent me a PM and offered to help if he could, but I would rather the company stand up and fix this situation without being forced to.
Brian

[Tony_SS]

I bet they'd stand up real quick, even return your calls, if their name was allowed to be posted.

[jy211]

I bet they'd stand up real quick, even return your calls, if their name was allowed to be posted.

Ain't that the truth :nopity:

[barraza]

Companies behave this way BECAUSE THEY CAN. They are hardly ever called on it. The hot rod world has been like this for decades, and it never gets better. Quality control in the aftermarket is sketchy at best. Stick around long enough, and you will see it all, even from the big name producers. They have all done crap engineering and production at one time or another.

[dropit69]

yeah i have had my fair share of parts problems for my second gen..not with getting them just getting the wrong stuff ..i had to send them a pic of the part i was wanting once..they are suppose to be 2nd gen experts and ddint know what part i wanted..and sending stuff back 2 -3 times sucks..

[TA219]

I am in the final stretch of my build (just got paint on the car) and I was about to make one last big purchase for all of the "small things" but luckily I did some searching and found that the vendor I was going to order through (not a site sponsor) was infamous for high s&h and bogus "deals". Hearing reviews from other PT guys really saved me some money and anguish!

While I respect your decision to not sit here and "bash" anyone,
Dont let someone yank you (or others) around and get away with it. If you dont have resolution soon, post the name up :)

[94SNGLTURBO]

i hope you get your parts.. post their name up.. it sucks that its happening to you but id hate to see it happen to more people on the forums

[JamesJ]

i think they dont let that happen here Charley..

i dunno why.. for SOME reason..

but yea.. who is it?

$$$$ they are paying to be protected and look good.

Not directed to you Larry, just the way the world works unfortunately.

[Larry Callahan]

I don't disallow it. Some times things just get out of hand and it turns into a massive dog pile.

Everyone in the world wants to throw two cents in on an experience that most of the time is unrelated and it just goes crazy.

I never ask anyone not to post the name of a company they have a problem with. I have on occasion offered to help push someone to get something solved but that's it. I think if there is a real problem and it's not the rare one that happens to every company then we should all be aware of it so either the problem can be solved or everyone knows not to deal with some company.

It can be done and it has worked in the past but it usually just turns into a mess.

[parsonsj]

We've had success with locking such a thread and only allowing the affected parties to post. It eliminates the dogpile, though it takes a lot of Moderator time.

PM Larry or one of the mods if you wish to pursue something like that.

jp

[MonzaRacer]

We've had success with locking such a thread and only allowing the affected parties to post. It eliminates the dogpile, though it takes a lot of Moderator time.

PM Larry or one of the mods if you wish to pursue something like that.

jp


There ya go, give that a shot, at least we would know SOMEONE wasnt doing there job at that company. Maybe order takers or buyers or what ever. Heck we have had several sponsor and parts people post up to pm them and THEY tracked down issue and got it fixed.
Sometimes vendors just get overwhelmed and then when the over worked one lets someone else take the ball it gets dropped.

[rjsjea]

"
I have a idea...Post the Company's name !!! Maybe then you will get a response.

AGREE.....it's one thing for a backorder, but at least return a call or email.

[ErikLS2]

I hope you paid using a CC as the card shouldn't be charged until parts have been shipped or built if special order. You can always cancel that order and see if another company can handle your needs.

Mary Pozzi

Not having your card charged until your item ships would be ideal. However, in my experience at least, this is never the case. If I have a relationship with the vendor I'm not going to make a big deal about it because they haven't let me down,..... yet. It is tough to see $2-3K sometimes be gone for 4-6 weeks or longer before any parts are in hand.

Not sure what it costs merchants put a hold on a card, like the rental car companies do while you have the car out, would be better. That way, the consumer can't max out his card while the part is being built. Then let the charge go through once the part ships.

[captcrash]

I will not post the name or company, as I spoke with them 5 or 6 times today. They are a good company that evryone on this site would know, and that is why I ordered from them. Part #1 has shipped and should be here tomorrow. Part number 2 should ship today and I should see it Friday. Part number 3 might ship next week, but that part is not a big deal. They have admitted that they screwed up and that they will make it up to me on the next order, but there probably wont be one. If every company could have 99% accuracy that would be huge, but that still means that there would still be one pissed off customer for every 100 orders, and I guess that I was the lucky #100. I feel comfortable saying that this will be resolved, and I dont think that I ever doubted that I would get my parts, my whole problem was with a lack of communication, and hopefully that has been resolved now.
Brian

[Mkelcy]

Not having your card charged until your item ships would be ideal. However, in my experience at least, this is never the case. If I have a relationship with the vendor I'm not going to make a big deal about it because they haven't let me down,..... yet. It is tough to see $2-3K sometimes be gone for 4-6 weeks or longer before any parts are in hand.

Not sure what it costs merchants put a hold on a card, like the rental car companies do while you have the car out, would be better. That way, the consumer can't max out his card while the part is being built. Then let the charge go through once the part ships.

There is only one vendor I've dealt with who charges my card before items are shipped - and they are a sponsor here. Everyone else charges the card when the item is shipped and not one second before. Frankly, it strikes me as marginally ethical/unethical.

My decision is that I will not deal with anyone who charges before the item is shipped. I simply don't feel like financing someone else's business and don't want to worry about how hard it will be to recover my money if the parts never show or the vendor goes under.

[Doug1]

It's good to know that they are making things right.

[DriverzInc]

Glad to see who ever the vendor is they are taking care of you. This why in the custom wheel industry it is common practice to take a 50% deposit, which I believe binds both parties to finish out the transaction. This way both the dealer and the customer are invested in the transaction. The only time we ask for 100% up front now is when the manufacturer requires 100%, which is unfortunately the case with Billet Specialties, and now Rushforth.

[Tony_SS]

I will not post the name or company, as I spoke with them 5 or 6 times today. They are a good company that evryone on this site would know, and that is why I ordered from them. Part #1 has shipped and should be here tomorrow. Part number 2 should ship today and I should see it Friday. Part number 3 might ship next week, but that part is not a big deal. They have admitted that they screwed up and that they will make it up to me on the next order, but there probably wont be one. If every company could have 99% accuracy that would be huge, but that still means that there would still be one pissed off customer for every 100 orders, and I guess that I was the lucky #100. I feel comfortable saying that this will be resolved, and I dont think that I ever doubted that I would get my parts, my whole problem was with a lack of communication, and hopefully that has been resolved now.
Brian

It's good to know you finally got an answer. Maybe the threat of posting their name helped that. Simple communication usually solves most problems. If the company is going to charge your account in full before the item ships, they owe the customer some respect by returning calls and answering emails.

[Steve1968LS2]

$$$$ they are paying to be protected and look good.

Not directed to you Larry, just the way the world works unfortunately.

Really?

Not that I know of.. I'm a mod and have never been directed to protect anyone.

If the post is kept factual then I see no reason why the vendor can't be named. Then they can post their side if they wish.

What's not allowed is bandwagoning where everyone (who has nothing to do with the situation) piles on.

[elitecustombody]

Posting the name would sure help others in future to avoid this type of hassle from this particular vendor .

I think it would be fair to refund 15-20% off your current bill, not on next order that most likely will never be placed.

There are thousands of guys building their cars and wouldn't want this kind of experience to slow down their build .

Looking at the bigger picture, this thread only helped OP and not anyone else,which is fine ,because that's what he wanted ,but posting the name would help many others to be be aware and this vendor to stay on top of his game. Just my .02c

[ErikLS2]

There is only one vendor I've dealt with who charges my card before items are shipped - and they are a sponsor here. Everyone else charges the card when the item is shipped and not one second before. Frankly, it strikes me as marginally ethical/unethical.

My decision is that I will not deal with anyone who charges before the item is shipped. I simply don't feel like financing someone else's business and don't want to worry about how hard it will be to recover my money if the parts never show or the vendor goes under.

I agree with what you're saying and I will point out the vendor I've had this experience with is Frank at Prodigy. Placed a couple orders of a couple grand each and each was billed right away and I waited for the parts. Of course I would rather be billed when the parts ship but one of the orders was for a set of Rushforths which it appears have to be paid up front anyway (he did at the time offer to take 50% up front and the rest when finished).

But, there's more to my experience with Frank. I asked him for some input on building my own g-link type rear susp. So far he has sent me some brackets for the axle side of the lower links and a pair of lower control arms he had laying around that he cut in half and tapped for some reason (can at least use for mock up), FOR FREE.
When I offered to at least pay for shipping, he said "don't worry about it". I would prefer a relationship with a vendor that sees the bigger picture and doesn't nickel and dime me on everything. In return I'll be a little more tolerant of billing methods and parts delays and not care if I pay a couple bucks more for something.

Customer satisfaction is EVERYTHING in business but each customer has their own requirements to be satisfied. It's up to the customer to communicate what they expect and the vendor to listen and deliver as much as it is the vendor's responsibility to communicate their business practices and keep the customer informed about their order status. Especially in this day and age of e-mail, Blackberrys and so on.

[JamesJ]

Really?

Not that I know of.. I'm a mod and have never been directed to protect anyone.

If the post is kept factual then I see no reason why the vendor can't be named. Then they can post their side if they wish.

What's not allowed is bandwagoning where everyone (who has nothing to do with the situation) piles on.

I don't think you or anyone would be directed to protect anyone, but subconsciously nobody wants to see there friend get called out, and if your a sponsor here then you most likely have some type of relationship with the people on the board or whatever it is, and most people think that because they are sponsors they are good people, smart, have good products, things that you actually need, I just mean its marketing, they "sponsors" want to look like team players and sell stuff, thats why they are sponsors.

Its just that if someone started taking about some company nobody cared about and not a single person here used then, then I don't think much would be done, but if it was a sponsor or someone that was not, but everyone liked the chances of people stepping up would be much greater mod or users.

And I was not the one who said it was not allowed... Just giving a reason if it was not...

[chr2002ca]

Hi Brian,

That's an exceptionally frustrating position to be in and it's absolutely uncalled for. You took the high road by not posting the vendor's name, but honestly, I would have. If things went down as you described them, then they dropped the ball in several areas, the worst of which was how they disappeared on you. We all make mistakes, but when someone disappears with your money and can't even call you back and/or is shoveling you BS shipping info, then they've definitely crossed the line and don't deserve your future business or the opportunity to frustrate others like that. There are some really great vendors and dealers out there that I'm devoted to that actually and consistently care about their customers, and those are the ones that deserve our money.

Please feel free to send me a private message and tell me the vendor's name. You're helping me by doing that and I would appreciate it.

On a positive note, glad to hear that you're finally starting to get your parts.

-Chris

[Mkelcy]

I agree with what you're saying and I will point out the vendor I've had this experience with is Frank at Prodigy. Placed a couple orders of a couple grand each and each was billed right away and I waited for the parts. Of course I would rather be billed when the parts ship but one of the orders was for a set of Rushforths which it appears have to be paid up front anyway (he did at the time offer to take 50% up front and the rest when finished).

But, there's more to my experience with Frank. I asked him for some input on building my own g-link type rear susp. So far he has sent me some brackets for the axle side of the lower links and a pair of lower control arms he had laying around that he cut in half and tapped for some reason (can at least use for mock up), FOR FREE.
When I offered to at least pay for shipping, he said "don't worry about it". I would prefer a relationship with a vendor that sees the bigger picture and doesn't nickel and dime me on everything. In return I'll be a little more tolerant of billing methods and parts delays and not care if I pay a couple bucks more for something.

Customer satisfaction is EVERYTHING in business but each customer has their own requirements to be satisfied. It's up to the customer to communicate what they expect and the vendor to listen and deliver as much as it is the vendor's responsibility to communicate their business practices and keep the customer informed about their order status. Especially in this day and age of e-mail, Blackberrys and so on.

No doubt Frank has good customer service.

That said, I stand by my prior position. I have no issues with a vendor charging me some or all of the cost of a part if the part is a non-returnable special order item (most custom order wheels, for example) or if the vendor has to front the cost of a long lead time item with a manufacturer. I'm not looking to transfer my risk to a vendor; I'm simply looking to the vendor to bear the risk that is appropriately his.

Standard off-the-shelf parts should only be charged when shipped, either by the vendor or drop shipped by the manufacturer. The vendor has no risk until the part is shipped - so why is the customer put in the position of being out often thousands of dollars while the vendor and the manufacturer are processing the order?

I'd rather pay 5% more for a part and be charged when I've got tracking numbers, than save 5% and worry for months whether the part will ever show up.

[ErikLS2]

Standard off-the-shelf parts should only be charged when shipped, either by the vendor or drop shipped by the manufacturer. The vendor has no risk until the part is shipped - so why is the customer put in the position of being out often thousands of dollars while the vendor and the manufacturer are processing the order?

I'd rather pay 5% more for a part and be charged when I've got tracking numbers, than save 5% and worry for months whether the part will ever show up.

I couldn't agree more. I really like getting an email confirmation when the order ships as well as a tracking # so I know what day my expensive parts will show up and can be on the lookout for them, especially if they're going to sit in front of my house (one reason I have most stuff shipped to my workplace).

Also, like you said, there is no reason to be charged in advance for an off the shelf part or kit that could easily be resold if the buyer goes sideways on you.

I'm sure the vendors are reading all these comments.

[bret]

yep :)

[John Wright]

I'm sure the vendors are reading all these comments.
I hope so too.....I can think of one vendor who could use some of this information to help their position in the auto aftermarket world. I'm not speaking of some part-timer, who works out of the house on nights and weekends, this is a full time business.

I didn't personally have problems, but have heard several complaints similar to these about late parts, lack of communication, partial shipments without any information regarding the balance of the order, customers left to wonder where their parts are on a couple forums/boards....not good business practices, IMHO.

Hopefully they are listening and taking notes...I wish only the best for them, I know they are small and busy trying to get going, but they do need to take better care of their customers.

[Mr.VENGEANCE]

the funny thing is that post like these keep Vendors on their toes..

whenever a post like this comes up, they keep thinking..

"Is he talking about me?.."

paranoia sets in... ahahah

NO.. I personally am not talking about YOU.