My dealings with A&A
12-21-2008, 08:45 PM
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My dealings with A&A A couple months ago I ordered their vortech base kit for my 99 C5 for $5200 plus shipping. I received everything in a timely fashion, and the majority of the parts were never taken out of their original packing. Shortly after ordering the kit, I was in a car accident in my daily driver, and shortly after that I lost my job. Apparantly my father tried contacting them while I was away in Florida, and when I spoke to him he said he had a hard time hearing Andy but it sounded like he would let me send the blower back.
Once I returned home, I called Andy and told him who I was and explained the situation to him. He immediately got a pissy attitude with me saying that I am a lair and it's bullshit that I was lying to him. I told him I didn't know what he was talking about, and he said my father told him that I was in a car accident and that was why I needed to send the blower back. I assured him I was in a car accident, just not in my C5, but the main reason I wanted to send it back was because of the loss of my job. He said he could take it back, and never mentioned anything about restocking fees. He told my father he would waive the restocking fees.
I then went to USPS and started shipping the items out, making sure to get insurance on everything. About a week went by without hearing from A&A, so I gave them a call. They said they only received one box, and that there was damage done to it. I asked them what to do, and they said wait till the rest of the boxes come in and we will go from there. Fair enough. More time goes by and no response, so I call back again. I spoke to Steve, he went over what had happened with the boxes, and then told me I would be reimbursed $4200. I nicely told him I spent $5200 on the kit, and he then told me that I was charged with a 10% restocking fee, and there were damaged parts. I asked him to have Andy call me.
Couple minutes go by before Andy calls. He immediately gets an attitude with me saying how I am a liar and he said he decided not to waive the restocking fee. He then told me about the parts that were damaged and said he sent me pictures of them which wasn't true. I told him he didn't, and he later e-mailed them to me. There is no denying that there was damage done during shipping, as you can see it in the pictures. I told him that they need to make a claim to the shipping company, because I had insurance. Andy then said to me, "Do you know how long that is going to take? I'm not doing that ****, I will look like an idiot sitting in the post office with a supercharger." He then told me that I needed to go to the post office to make a claim. I tried explaining to him that he needed to do it, as the post office wouldn't just give me money because I told them something I shipped to California was damaged. To make a long story short, he told me that he would not go to the post office to make a claim. The only way he would make a claim is if they came to his store. Are you kidding me?
I told him he was a criminal, and that money was rightfully mine. He told me that it "wasn't that much money anyway".
To sum things up, I am completely disgusted and appalled by his actions. How can you not make a claim on something that a customer has insurance for? Also, how are you suddenly gonna tag on a restocking charge? I understand that he spoke to my father, but the matter of the fact is that it was MY purchase, and I wasn't there when they spoke. I have no control over what my father said. I was 100% honest with Andy. I could have easily listed the blower for sale on this forum, or sold it at a shop for a fraction of what I lost sending it back to them. I just makes me sick knowing that this company did this to me. I understand they didn't have to take the blower back, they could have easily just said no. And you know what, I could have lived with that. But the way things went down are just disgusting and I am still really pissed about the whole situation. Why did I bother getting insuranceon the whole package, when obviously it doesn't matter to them that I had it.
Mods, I can only ask that you do not delete this post. I understand they are a sponsor, but people have a right to know the goods and the bads of the sponsors of this site.
Dave
Once I returned home, I called Andy and told him who I was and explained the situation to him. He immediately got a pissy attitude with me saying that I am a lair and it's bullshit that I was lying to him. I told him I didn't know what he was talking about, and he said my father told him that I was in a car accident and that was why I needed to send the blower back. I assured him I was in a car accident, just not in my C5, but the main reason I wanted to send it back was because of the loss of my job. He said he could take it back, and never mentioned anything about restocking fees. He told my father he would waive the restocking fees.
I then went to USPS and started shipping the items out, making sure to get insurance on everything. About a week went by without hearing from A&A, so I gave them a call. They said they only received one box, and that there was damage done to it. I asked them what to do, and they said wait till the rest of the boxes come in and we will go from there. Fair enough. More time goes by and no response, so I call back again. I spoke to Steve, he went over what had happened with the boxes, and then told me I would be reimbursed $4200. I nicely told him I spent $5200 on the kit, and he then told me that I was charged with a 10% restocking fee, and there were damaged parts. I asked him to have Andy call me.
Couple minutes go by before Andy calls. He immediately gets an attitude with me saying how I am a liar and he said he decided not to waive the restocking fee. He then told me about the parts that were damaged and said he sent me pictures of them which wasn't true. I told him he didn't, and he later e-mailed them to me. There is no denying that there was damage done during shipping, as you can see it in the pictures. I told him that they need to make a claim to the shipping company, because I had insurance. Andy then said to me, "Do you know how long that is going to take? I'm not doing that ****, I will look like an idiot sitting in the post office with a supercharger." He then told me that I needed to go to the post office to make a claim. I tried explaining to him that he needed to do it, as the post office wouldn't just give me money because I told them something I shipped to California was damaged. To make a long story short, he told me that he would not go to the post office to make a claim. The only way he would make a claim is if they came to his store. Are you kidding me?
I told him he was a criminal, and that money was rightfully mine. He told me that it "wasn't that much money anyway".To sum things up, I am completely disgusted and appalled by his actions. How can you not make a claim on something that a customer has insurance for? Also, how are you suddenly gonna tag on a restocking charge? I understand that he spoke to my father, but the matter of the fact is that it was MY purchase, and I wasn't there when they spoke. I have no control over what my father said. I was 100% honest with Andy. I could have easily listed the blower for sale on this forum, or sold it at a shop for a fraction of what I lost sending it back to them. I just makes me sick knowing that this company did this to me. I understand they didn't have to take the blower back, they could have easily just said no. And you know what, I could have lived with that. But the way things went down are just disgusting and I am still really pissed about the whole situation. Why did I bother getting insuranceon the whole package, when obviously it doesn't matter to them that I had it.
Mods, I can only ask that you do not delete this post. I understand they are a sponsor, but people have a right to know the goods and the bads of the sponsors of this site.
Dave
12-21-2008, 09:25 PM
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Man sucks to hear about your bad times when it rains it pours..
Ive had dealings with a&a and they have always been straight up and help with whatever even with parts that I purchased elsewhere... Honestly You must remember he didnt have to take it back at all.. Also i think last month he was having a sale on the c5 kits for 4200. Andy and steve have always been great with me..
Ive had dealings with a&a and they have always been straight up and help with whatever even with parts that I purchased elsewhere... Honestly You must remember he didnt have to take it back at all.. Also i think last month he was having a sale on the c5 kits for 4200. Andy and steve have always been great with me..
12-22-2008, 07:35 AM
#3
Ummmmm, the shipper is the one who has responsibility for any claim actions, not the recipient.
All in all, most of these after market dealers are decent but there a few who don't know how to deal with the hi-po crowd. I'm not saying you are, but most of us performance people are real ******* customers. You almost have to expect this kind of stuff. Im surprised he took it back to begin with.
All in all, most of these after market dealers are decent but there a few who don't know how to deal with the hi-po crowd. I'm not saying you are, but most of us performance people are real ******* customers. You almost have to expect this kind of stuff. Im surprised he took it back to begin with.
12-22-2008, 09:32 AM
#7
I don't understand why you expect andy to deal with the shipping company when it's your package. The product you were sending back to him was damaged and your saying it's his responsibility to deal with it. I think your confused on how things work.
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12-22-2008, 10:07 AM
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Ummm this doesn't sound like Andy at all??? I have dealt with Andy directly with both of my Vettes and he is by far the most stand up guy that I have ever dealt with period. I have even called him on his cell in the middle of the night, while in the middle of a build, and has been more then helpfull even then.
12-22-2008, 10:43 AM
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the shipper has to go after the shipping company. Go and get the rest of your money from them. You should at least get close, with the money from A&A, to what you paid for the system.
Sorry to hear about you getting laid off. It is a bitch these days!
12-22-2008, 11:57 AM
#11
bad luck on your part doesn't constitute reason for the rest of the world to accomodate you. If you were so compromised by a $5200 expenditure that when you did lose your job you were in a bad way, perhaps you shouldn't have spent the money in the first place and had saved that money for a rainy day. As the old saying goes, "poor planning on your part doesn't constitute an emergency on my part" holds so true. That is what is so wrong today with people, they constantly want to shirk their responsibility for their own actions when the slightest head winds show up.
Andy has been a straight up guy to myself personally and to hundreds of others. Truth be told, he should have told your Dad, a deal is a deal. Go cry somewhere else. That said, count your lucky stars that he felt any consideration for your problems. Get off your tail and go to the Post Office and file your claim.
Next patient...
Andy has been a straight up guy to myself personally and to hundreds of others. Truth be told, he should have told your Dad, a deal is a deal. Go cry somewhere else. That said, count your lucky stars that he felt any consideration for your problems. Get off your tail and go to the Post Office and file your claim.
Next patient...
12-22-2008, 03:29 PM
#13
It kills me when customers drag businesses through the mud, especially when the customer is in the wrong. The customer's always right, isn't always right. This is Andy's response on CF, copied and pasted because they closed the thread.
Geeze. What took you so long. You threatened to do this weeks ago.
Does anyone ant to know what really happened?
I get a call from Daves father telling me that he was in a very bad car accident and was in the hospital. He went on to tell me that "he would be in the hospital for some time". That, as we found out later, was a total LIE, designed to play on my sympathy.
When asked about a restocking charge, I said "under the circumstances" I'll forego any charges.
Well, a week later, Dave calls up and asks if he can return the system.
I wanted to double check and make sure it was the same person that was supposed to be in the hospital "for some time".
It was. His story, however, was completely different. He had lost his job but there was no mention of a car accident until I called him on it.
Then we get the story that " it's not my fault that my dad said that", and "you can't change the deal now, after you agreed to no restocking fee"
I explained to him that the ONLY reason I agreed to the deal was because I thought he was laying in a hospital bed somewhere.
I'll have to be honest, I probably was a little less flexible after being scammed. But I think I have every right to be.
He sent the package back, not in the box we sent it to him in, but in three separate boxes. The main box had everything but the head unit thrown in it with very little in the way of insulating material.
Yes the box was beat up, but had it been properly (or even half way) packaged, there would have been no damage.
As it was, just the air filter got crushed in that box. He was charged $60 for that. That's more than fair.
The intercooler came in another box and was OK. He was refunded 100% of that.
The blower came in a separate box. We put the blower in a box, then put that box in the big box with lots of cushioning. He sent it back in the small box and the foam had all been collapsed. It needed to be put inside another box or have more cushioning put in that box. The blower was just bouncing around in there and god scraped up pretty bad. The volute had punched a hole in the box and got scraped on the conveyers.
This wasentirely his fault, not mine or the Post Offices. His answer to this was " it looked OK when it left so it's not my fault"
I've sent thousands of packages and had to file a few damage claims. If the contents are not properly boxed and insulated, your claim is going to go nowhere.
I explained this to him and told him I was not going to go down to the post office and stand in line with a scraped up supercharger that had little or no insulation in the box.
I charged him $200 and sold that particular unit at a discount to someone else. I didn't make a dime on it.
He did not return the free T shirt that came with the kit, so I charged him retail for that.( $16.95)
The actual, out of pocket expense, that it cost me to send him that package and return it back to stock was taken into account.
Here is a copy of the email I sent him on Dec 4th explaining what sort of expenses I had incurred:
Quote:
The ONLY reason I told your dad there would be no restocking fee is because he LIED to me and played on my sympathy. That’s just not right.
I don’t think you realize that this transaction COST me money. When you charge something, the credit card processing company charges us just over 3%.
If we reverse the charge within 30 days, we don’t have to pay the charge. After 30 days, it becomes a new transaction. We actually get charged to refund you the money just as if it was going the other way.
That’s over 6% out of pocket expense to us. I don’t see how you think that I’m being an ******* for not wanting to eat that.
We also paid him $28 an hour to assemble and box up the kit in the first place.
My wife spent time inventorying the kit before it went out and handling the invoicing. She had to do the same when it came back.
Steve, who makes $35 an hour spent time taking pictures for you and dealing with you on the phone.
The boxes are clearly damaged and the parts were clearly not packaged properly. You can’t have parts flying around loose in the box.
The filter is just junk, there is no doubt about that.
The blower is all scraped up. The pictures clearly show that. Why should I eat that? You packaged it. The blower was just bouncing around in the box. The box it was in is not a shipping box. That box was put in another box with plenty of packing when it was sent to you.
I have to send it to Vortech, have it disassembled and repolished or sell it at a discount.
Nobody (UPS, Fedex. USPS) is going to pay for damage for stuff that is improperly packaged. It just doesn’t work that way.
While I’m sorry you lost your job, the fact remains that after 30 days we have to charge the restocking fee. After this explanation, I’m sure you’ll see that I am certainly not making any profit on this.
I think that's pretty clear explanation of my position on the matter.
Like I said earlier, had I not been blatently lied to and had the kid not had a typical kid's attitude (Nothing's my fault) I may have been a little more inclined to help him out.
He received a refund of $4403.05.
I try my best to give everyone the best deal and the best service I can. But if you lie to me and try to take advantage of my generosity, then I will treat you like any business would. No better, no worse.
There's not a business out there that would eat these expenses, particularly under the circumstances.
Andy
__________________
Geeze. What took you so long. You threatened to do this weeks ago.
Does anyone ant to know what really happened?
I get a call from Daves father telling me that he was in a very bad car accident and was in the hospital. He went on to tell me that "he would be in the hospital for some time". That, as we found out later, was a total LIE, designed to play on my sympathy.
When asked about a restocking charge, I said "under the circumstances" I'll forego any charges.
Well, a week later, Dave calls up and asks if he can return the system.
I wanted to double check and make sure it was the same person that was supposed to be in the hospital "for some time".
It was. His story, however, was completely different. He had lost his job but there was no mention of a car accident until I called him on it.
Then we get the story that " it's not my fault that my dad said that", and "you can't change the deal now, after you agreed to no restocking fee"
I explained to him that the ONLY reason I agreed to the deal was because I thought he was laying in a hospital bed somewhere.
I'll have to be honest, I probably was a little less flexible after being scammed. But I think I have every right to be.
He sent the package back, not in the box we sent it to him in, but in three separate boxes. The main box had everything but the head unit thrown in it with very little in the way of insulating material.
Yes the box was beat up, but had it been properly (or even half way) packaged, there would have been no damage.
As it was, just the air filter got crushed in that box. He was charged $60 for that. That's more than fair.
The intercooler came in another box and was OK. He was refunded 100% of that.
The blower came in a separate box. We put the blower in a box, then put that box in the big box with lots of cushioning. He sent it back in the small box and the foam had all been collapsed. It needed to be put inside another box or have more cushioning put in that box. The blower was just bouncing around in there and god scraped up pretty bad. The volute had punched a hole in the box and got scraped on the conveyers.
This wasentirely his fault, not mine or the Post Offices. His answer to this was " it looked OK when it left so it's not my fault"
I've sent thousands of packages and had to file a few damage claims. If the contents are not properly boxed and insulated, your claim is going to go nowhere.
I explained this to him and told him I was not going to go down to the post office and stand in line with a scraped up supercharger that had little or no insulation in the box.
I charged him $200 and sold that particular unit at a discount to someone else. I didn't make a dime on it.
He did not return the free T shirt that came with the kit, so I charged him retail for that.( $16.95)
The actual, out of pocket expense, that it cost me to send him that package and return it back to stock was taken into account.
Here is a copy of the email I sent him on Dec 4th explaining what sort of expenses I had incurred:
Quote:
The ONLY reason I told your dad there would be no restocking fee is because he LIED to me and played on my sympathy. That’s just not right.
I don’t think you realize that this transaction COST me money. When you charge something, the credit card processing company charges us just over 3%.
If we reverse the charge within 30 days, we don’t have to pay the charge. After 30 days, it becomes a new transaction. We actually get charged to refund you the money just as if it was going the other way.
That’s over 6% out of pocket expense to us. I don’t see how you think that I’m being an ******* for not wanting to eat that.
We also paid him $28 an hour to assemble and box up the kit in the first place.
My wife spent time inventorying the kit before it went out and handling the invoicing. She had to do the same when it came back.
Steve, who makes $35 an hour spent time taking pictures for you and dealing with you on the phone.
The boxes are clearly damaged and the parts were clearly not packaged properly. You can’t have parts flying around loose in the box.
The filter is just junk, there is no doubt about that.
The blower is all scraped up. The pictures clearly show that. Why should I eat that? You packaged it. The blower was just bouncing around in the box. The box it was in is not a shipping box. That box was put in another box with plenty of packing when it was sent to you.
I have to send it to Vortech, have it disassembled and repolished or sell it at a discount.
Nobody (UPS, Fedex. USPS) is going to pay for damage for stuff that is improperly packaged. It just doesn’t work that way.
While I’m sorry you lost your job, the fact remains that after 30 days we have to charge the restocking fee. After this explanation, I’m sure you’ll see that I am certainly not making any profit on this.
I think that's pretty clear explanation of my position on the matter.
Like I said earlier, had I not been blatently lied to and had the kid not had a typical kid's attitude (Nothing's my fault) I may have been a little more inclined to help him out.
He received a refund of $4403.05.
I try my best to give everyone the best deal and the best service I can. But if you lie to me and try to take advantage of my generosity, then I will treat you like any business would. No better, no worse.
There's not a business out there that would eat these expenses, particularly under the circumstances.
Andy
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12-22-2008, 04:27 PM
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I've had good talks with Andy... and I wished I would've bought one of his kits...
Instead, I blew a couple grand on an old '70 Vw Beetle for a fun cruiser.
I'm still getting a 'blower for my Zo6 (hibernating in the garage) in the future... and I'd still call Andy.
Instead, I blew a couple grand on an old '70 Vw Beetle for a fun cruiser.
I'm still getting a 'blower for my Zo6 (hibernating in the garage) in the future... and I'd still call Andy.
