Vendor Issues

[jbregar]

So, it's the weekend so I'll see what they decide to do about it on Monday but I wanted to get an opinion of whether or not I'm asking too much.

I placed an order with one of the vendors for an AC kit and power steering pump toward the end of week before last (Thursday, I think). I called them when I hadn't received any shipping confirmation or the like by Tuesday of last week and they told me the pulley for the power steering pump was backordered and delayed the order. I paid for both the AC stuff and the power steering pump in full.

Now, it's kinda crappy someone didn't call Monday and ask me if I wanted the rest of the order shipped or to wait... I needed the AC evaporator box so I could lay out my dash. But whatever, nothing to get too bent out of shape over. Anyway, it finally shipped last Wednesday (invoice arrived too, I'd paid for the power steering pump and all the AC parts, but not the pulley) and arrived this Monday. The way this kit works is half of it comes from the vendor the other half comes direct from Vintage Air. I got the part that comes from the vendor.

Since the PS pump wasn't in the box, I assumed they were going to install the pulley on the pump and send them together when the pulley came in.

When I hadn't seen anything from Vintage by Wednesday, I called them. They said Vintage takes a day or two to ship and if it wasn't there this week to give them a call back.

I got a call from them yesterday (Thursday) telling me they had a COD item coming to them (the vendor) from ME and wanting to know what that was. I said I had no idea and it must be an issue.

Also yesterday, I got the shipping confirmation for the PS pump pulley. Track it and it's showing the package weighs 3 lbs. So... either its mis-weighed, they shorted me the power steering pump out of the original order, or it's the lightest power steering pump in history.

Today, I got a door tag from UPS that says they have a package for me from Vintage Air (yay!). And it has a COD on it for $750 or so (boo!!).

So, apparently Vintage attached a $750 COD to an item that was already paid for in full (I have the bill on my credit card to prove it).

I realize mistakes happen, but this order seems to have had its fair share. So, what I requested from them is this:

1. They either have Vintage remove the COD (if that's even possible) and get UPS to give me the package OR they have Vintage re-ship the items overnight at their expense. This'll be a relatively heavy two packages from Vintage... it has the compressor, condenser, hoses, dryer, etc. in it... so it's not going to be overly cheap to overnight.

2. If they did indeed short me the power steering pump, they overnight me the power steering pump at their expense.

I feel like I've waited long enough for this order (this is two weeks since the order), so eating some overnight shipping charges is the least they can do.

I have to say I'm pretty disappointed. I realize the big mistake here is Vintage's, but on the other hand when you use a drop-shipper you're taking responsibility for them as well as yourself.

Let me know what you think. Notice I've kept the vendor out of it (they all sell Vintage Air stuff) because they haven't had a chance to respond to me privately. I just want to know if my demands are reasonable.

 

[broncnaz]

I think they should have at least told you that some parts would come from the manufacturer and whatwould be backordered.
Pretty much I'd wait until you talk to the vender again and see what happens from there. I'm sure they will want to sort it all out and make it right. Its sounds like a huge cluster and I can understand why backorders, manufacturer item, some parts in stock ect. While it kinda sucks I never plan on any part coming in on time.

 

[jbregar]

Oh, they told me the AC stuff would come from the manufacturer. The problem is, they did... with a $753.24 bill.

jb.

 

[HoosierDaddy]

Wow , what a clusterfudge .....
Seems like you are staying pretty coolheaded so far , I'll award you some cool points for that.

Vendor should have called you immediatley regarding the backorder , I know there is one vendor here who is notorious for that ..... I have never ordered from them for that reason.

Not sure what to say about the COD issue , but it definately wasn't your fault , they ought to do right by you somehow. If you want it overnighted , that may be acceptable.

However , what would have been wrong with pre-ordering the stuff somewhat ahead of schedule ? Only because , as you have seen , shiate does happen ..... you need to plan for that as much as possible.
I ordered the stuff for my various conversions at a month ahead of time , usually more.

 

[22213evl]

explain to the vendor(who should be responsible for anthing THEY sell) about the cod thing and see if they will make it right (overnight I think is fair) if they don't tell them you will out this poor display of customer service to their customers (cb.com ) because there is no excuse for not delivering what you are promised in a timely fashion.

 

[jbregar]

Oh, I was a week or two ahead of schedule... so there was slack built in. The problem is, they ate into that quite a bit so I had to rush a bit to stay on-track.

I'm more frustrated with the COD thing. It's just odd. Who uses COD anymore, anyway... and where does Vintage get off sending something they're drop-shipping COD?

The bigger deal is I guess I expect that when I make the effort to call you, ask if the stuff's in stock, you say yes, then place an order... I expect that you'll give me a shout if you were mistaken by the inventory state so I can either tell ya it's all good, or order it from somewhere else if I need it right now. Not communicating is what leads to pissed off people and that sucks.

Yeah, I'm pretty level-headed about the whole thing. I got the evap. box, which is what I needed to do the dash. I just needed to get my dash to the rod shop so they can cut the holes for me with their plasma cutter. They're fitting it in, so it was somewhat timely.

On the other hand, I have a set of Auto Meter gauges ordered through a local shop that're now about a week overdue... which is even more frustrating since they were supposed to be here in 3 days (we're at a week and a half and counting).

Just blows my mind that if Amazon can get billions of packages out and on time... why can't Auto Meter get two gauges to a shop in a timely fashion? I've actually taken to ordering a lot of my parts through Amazon because A) they're fast, B) they're reasonably cheap, and C) I have prime, so shipping a Warn M8000 Winch overnight costs me $3.99.

 

[gravy]

I know they have had struggles with VA- I ordered my kit and VA changed the the bulkhead fitting on them without saying anything. I had to pay to ship it to VA and them they sent the 4 in a row one. When I recieved it it still wasnt the one shown in the BC directions- It was good I didnt hole saw anything cause VA doesnt make the cast version of the fitting anymore, they never told anyone- I could have bout a polished one for 120 or something. Either way the new straight 4 worked out better since you only need to drill 7/8 holes. The vendor didnt know but since this is all outsourced but I guess it is his problem since he made all the arrangements. I know if you call him he will make good on it.

 

[chuck]

It's me. What happened to working it out with the vender before going to CB.com? Where is the horde that was looking out for cage last week?
As you brought it up, to save myself a lot of typing I have posted you note that I replied to this morning before I noticed this thread. About paying overnite shipping. It's easy for you guys to say yes he should send it over night. But over night shipping of a package is around 10 times the price of ground. On most of my products I would be money ahead to take the product back and refund the money.

While I realize you're probably gone for the day right now and most likely may not respond until Monday, I wanted to email (I'll be calling too, I assure you) to express my EXTREME displeasure with the way this order is being handled.


First off, when the pulley was backordered I was not called to ask if I wanted the rest of the order shipped out. It was just held until I called to see where it was. The power steering pump was added on and wasn't needed immediately, but I needed the AC evaporator box to get my dashboard laid out and cut to keep my project on-time.
THE ORDER FOR THE PULLEY WENT FROM THE SALES DESK TO THE PACKER WHO KNEW WE WERE OUT OF STOCK ON THE PULLEY AND THAT THEY WERE IN SHIPPING TO US SO HE HELD THE PULLEY ORDER. NOT WHAT WE NORMALLY DO. THE NORMAL IS TO RETURN THE ORDERS TO THE SALES DESK BUT THE PACKER DECIDED ON HIS OWN THAT IT WOULD BE FINE THIS TIME. MY BAD, I HAVE FIXED THIS PROBLEM AND APOLIGIZE.

Second, if I'd know the power steering pulley was going to be a delay, I would have just sourced one locally. But that doesn't matter because you didn't send the power steering pump separately even though you charged me for it with the rest of the stuff. On top of that, it appears my power steering pump didn't even ship WITH THE PULLEY because the package coming my way right now (for delivery Monday) is only 3 pounds. That's either just the pulley, or the lightest power steering pump in history. So, you shorted me a power steering pump it appears unless that is the package and its mis-weighed. IN AN EFFORT TO HOLD DOWN PRICES WE PICK THE PUMPS UP WHEN WE ARE IN CA., THE LAST TIME WE WERE THERE WE THE PUMPS WERE NOT READY SO THEY ARE BEING SHIPPED FROM THERE. ROXANNE WILL CHECK TO BE SURE YOUR PUMP WAS SHIPPED MONDAY.



Third... and the worst of the bunch... when I arrived home today I had a door notice for an attempted delivery from Vintage Air. Which would be great, its the rest of my stuff from the AC kit. Except it has a COD attached for $753.24. While I realize this is most likely Vintage Air's problem, I paid for the whole thing through you, so it reflects incredibly poorly on your company that it was apparently sent COD by mistake. I AM NOT SURE WHO SCREWED UP ON THIS. WE GOT A UPS NOTICE THAT A $753.24 COD WAS COMING TO US FROM CO. WE DO NOT EXCEPT CODs ANBD VINTAGE AIR DOES NOT SEND CODs FOR US. ROXANNE WILL ALSO BE LOOKING INTO THIS MONDAY. MYSELF OR ROXANNE WILL CALL AS SOON AS WE HAVE NEWS.

 

[chuck]

I just talked to jbregar and I think this is all worked out, I hope

 

[LilRedBronco]

It's me. What happened to working it out with the vender before going to CB.com? Where is the horde that was looking out for cage last week?

SNIP

I assume I am part of the "horde" that was looking out for Cage last week.. I was looking out for fairness not necessarily Cage. And BTW you saw this before I did and I think the assumption should be that folks haven't see the thread yet.

Not sure "horde" is a good word to use towards potential customers either. Maybe I am just being a bit touchy though...

Anyhow, I will say that I think coming here to a forum to "out" a Vendor is bad form even if you try to cover the vendors name... Because that then gives people an opening to disparage other vendors by throwing there name in as in yeah I had the same problem with LilRedBronco's widget service similar to this one.

The potential to cause harm to a company is too great to use it for anything but a serious rooting out of an issue. As an unabashed and confirmed capitalist I believe strongly in the power of the people to affect change with a company. I also believe that with these first strike outings on a forum in the long run you greatly weaken the effect and sooner or later it becomes common place enough that "taking it to the streets" becomes a no big deal situation.

In other words there are two great reasons NOT to do this so quickly. Yes two weeks is an eternity (I am the most impatient person here) but you haven't waited to weeks for a response from this vendor.

OP nothing personal but I sincerely hope this Vendor outing stops for the sake of the vendors AND most importantly so we do not weaken a powerful tool. We all know the story of the boy who cried wolf. that is what will happen here.

And folks remember there are tools that also have bite...

I want to speak to a manager NOW...

Emails with unemotional but strong discussion of the matter and make sure you keep any and all responses and make sure you copy yourself so you have a record of the actual SENDING of the email.

The local BBB - A company that does not participate in the BBB should be used with caution and a company that does not respond to BBB issues should be ostracized. Trust me on this...

State's Attorney General- This should be used only in the most EXTREME cases where you feel that you have been wronged to the point of damage by a company. But I assure you the State's Attorney General if they get a complaint form a constituent about a company... The proverbial poop WILL indeed hit the fan.


I hope you kids work it out and the OP becomes a long term and faithful customer. And the Vendor learns that horde is not a great thing to call potential customers (just giving you a hard time no worries)

 

[regshawn]

It's me. What happened to working it out with the vendor before going to CB.com? Where is the horde that was looking out for cage last week?
.

I have to say until you chimed in I did not think this was you at all, and I think Admin must be asleep at the wheel the last few days!! I think no one came running to this thread because it was not straight out bashing a vendor! With the CAGE bashing asshat, he had zero grounds for what he did, as CAGE has no control over a shipping company and yet he still went above the call of duty to try and fix it, as I'm sure you will. Admin should have shut them down when it started.

 

[chuck]

I assume I am part of the "horde" that was looking out for Cage last week.. I was looking out for fairness not necessarily Cage. And BTW you saw this before I did and I think the assumption should be that folks haven't see the thread yet.

Not sure "horde" is a good word to use towards potential customers either. Maybe I am just being a bit touchy though...

I was using the work "horde" as a descriptive term not as a derogatory term. I think you are right about me seeing this first, I knew that up front just stirring the "horde" a little.

 

[chuck]

I have to say until you chimed in I did not think this was you at all, and I think Admin must be asleep at the wheel the last few days!! I think no one came running to this thread because it was not straight out bashing a vendor! With the CAGE bashing asshat, he had zero grounds for what he did, as CAGE has no control over a shipping company and yet he still went above the call of duty to try and fix it, as I'm sure you will. Admin should have shut them down when it started.

I try to claim my mistakes. That way no one else gets the blame for my mistakes and no one can hold them over my head as in "if you don't give me free I will post to classicbroncos.com" which purty much ends my trying to get alone.

 

[blackbeauty]

I have to say until you chimed in I did not think this was you at all, and I think Admin must be asleep at the wheel the last few days!! I think no one came running to this thread because it was not straight out bashing a vendor! With the CAGE bashing asshat, he had zero grounds for what he did, as CAGE has no control over a shipping company and yet he still went above the call of duty to try and fix it, as I'm sure you will. Admin should have shut them down when it started.

Yea censorship, that will get the truth out.%) %)
The way I see these "bashing" threads is usually the good vendors look even better afterwards, and the bad ones look like they need to try a little harder to get my hard earned $$ .

 

[Mark]

Vendor bashing threads are NEVER a good idea. Even a "cleverly" disquised one as this.

Since when is "horde" a derogatory term?? Sounds like a sensitive woman type.

 

[carter2772]

I am getting really tired of these threads that point fingers and lay blame before there has been much done, if anything, from the customers end to try and resolve the issue. Just because you purchase something does not make you ENTITLED to what ever you feel is what should have happened. And i dont mean to point my response totally at this thread, but there has been MULTIPLE threads recently of customers being complete 13 year old spoiled brats, that are going to stop their feet, slam doors, and cry, just cause things got screwed up. CB is not about this. Work it out with the vendor first, then chime in here if you are not satisfied. And if those people cant make a simple phone call to whoever the vendor is and talk to the manager or owner with their issue, GO TO PIRATE as piss and moan there.

 

[LilRedBronco]

I assume I am part of the "horde" that was looking out for Cage last week.. I was looking out for fairness not necessarily Cage. And BTW you saw this before I did and I think the assumption should be that folks haven't see the thread yet.

Not sure "horde" is a good word to use towards potential customers either. Maybe I am just being a bit touchy though...

I was using the work "horde" as a descriptive term not as a derogatory term. I think you are right about me seeing this first, I knew that up front just stirring the "horde" a little.

No worries

 

[LilRedBronco]

I am getting really tired of these threads that point fingers and lay blame before there has been much done, if anything, from the customers end to try and resolve the issue. Just because you purchase something does not make you ENTITLED to what ever you feel is what should have happened. And i dont mean to point my response totally at this thread, but there has been MULTIPLE threads recently of customers being complete 13 year old spoiled brats, that are going to stop their feet, slam doors, and cry, just cause things got screwed up. CB is not about this. Work it out with the vendor first, then chime in here if you are not satisfied. And if those people cant make a simple phone call to whoever the vendor is and talk to the manager or owner with their issue, GO TO PIRATE as piss and moan there.

Couldn't have said it better. I really don't think people understand how much damage you can do to a company by doing this.

For example I am the kind of guy that when I drop some money on a new gun or a vehicle or whatever I not only read traditional reviews but I look around at stuff like this... And the time I spend at these sites is often limited. I just try to get a "taste" and if I read this and saw what happened with Vintage Air I'd probably go a different route if possible. Because I know MOST forums have strict rules about when you can crash a vendor.

Did VA screw up? Yes, but did they do something horrible that falls out of the world of an honest or even a stupid mistake no I don't think so.


So I really hope folks stop this and it is my experience that these things go in waves. Someone sees this or the CAGE thread and says hey I had an issue.. And frankly some folks just like attention or stirring the S so I hope this doesn't start.

I REALLY like this forum NONE of the typical BS that goes on at some forums is present here. There is a forum I go to a lot because I am a firearms enthusiast and even though I am a paid member I have stopped going because it is just getting ugly there with politics and sell check and grammar Nazis and general nastiness.

This place is great as are the folks here. Here's to hoping it stays that way.

 

[LilRedBronco]

Yea censorship, that will get the truth out.%) %)
The way I see these "bashing" threads is usually the good vendors look even better afterwards, and the bad ones look like they need to try a little harder to get my hard earned $$ .

Would you describe either of these companies in this thread to be a "bad" vendor yet? Do you think the OP did what he could to solve the issue with Chuck?

If you say no then you'd probably agree none of them deserve to potentially have their business hard over this matter. And I am positive that you realize small business owners like Chuck work real hard for their money too. I really don't want to see him get harmed. There are a couple of arguments you could make like the OP didn't name names or Chuck spoke up etc.

But it happens and can happen and I don't want to see a business owner hurt any more than I want to see you hurt.

If a business owner screws up bad enough than by all means we should go with the pitch forks and torches. It is just a power that we have that we should be careful with.

I just don't want folks think I am totally against the practice or censorship in any form EVER.

 

[LilRedBronco]

Vendor bashing threads are NEVER a good idea. Even a "cleverly" disquised one as this.

Since when is "horde" a derogatory term?? Sounds like a sensitive woman type.

Are you talking to me who never used the word derogatory or to the vendor? I think I made it obvious that I was just giving him sh!t and it is unlikely I would have defended his cause if I thought he was being derogatory

But
In case you are talking to me, I assure I am not a sensitive woman type. And if you were wrongly directing it at me I assume that you now see the error that you made.

You are wrong though about never a good idea. They certainly are a good idea if used correctly.