poor service-reader's digest version

[newfie]

first of all, my last rod was a TFO and it's fantastic!

You all bring up great points that made me re-visit my emails so I should clarify a little further.

Well this all went down in sept of 2010 soI wasn't very proactive and I feel it's been too long to start it up again, or maybe I'm wrong. I just came across the broken rod while cleaning and it burned me up a bit and I just had to vent here. Don't get me wrong, I'd love a replacement


I should also mention that after requesting a replacement of equal value, the owner emailed:
"Hi Ian,

******* graphite rod was never on a life time warranty, especially on close-out sales. Please take this matter to a dealer where you purchased this rod."

But he only said this after I told him the retailer sold it with manufacturer warranty.

This manufacturer isn't a sponsor but I'm still not saying anything at his point because I'm not sure anyone's done anything wrong.

The retailer claims the manufacturer backed the warranty the day i bought it so I don't feel he's responsible. The manufacturer never really made any claim to me. So I don't feel as though he's done me wrong but I'm a bit surprised that the manufacturer wasn't a bit more accommodating as i was willing to mail him the broken rod and even pay for just the tip. He claims not to have a tip,yet he still sells the rod direct online. Still a bit strange to me. What do you guys think?

[maodiver]

how thell would he know if you got it on closeout? have a friend send it back for you as if he bought it new. you are not wrong...so post the name. I don't want to buy that rod company. This is the reason I buy Redington.

[ohiotuber]

I hate this, but sometimes you have to play the dirty little games that less reputable companies play. Have someone send it back claiming it was a gift. If they don't honor the warranty, email or call them & let them know WHO you will lodge complaints with & WHERE you will post your negative experience.
Keep in mind that (at least in my experience) class A companies with solid customer service would NEVER put you through what this outfit did & YES, you should name them. A large part of my shopping decisions are made by researching "What if something goes wrong?". I have never had issues with Hook & Hackle, St Croix, Sage, LL Bean, Orvis, Cabelas, et al.
Bottom line is that even if this works out to your benefit, REMEMBER what you had to go through to get them to honor their promise.
Mike

[Greg H]

I have a few observations here.
1) The purpose of a warrantee is to encourage you to buy, and by honoring it, to encourage you to buy more and recommend it to others. That's not happening here.
2) If it is a 'brand name' rod, then it is not much of a brand if it doesn't stand behind a warrantee.
23) What does 'life of the rod ' mean? Does that mean that when it is broken the life is over so there is no warrantee? Or does it mean when the rod is discontinued its life stops? That's not much of a warrantee.
4) I agree with others, if the rod you purchased is no longer available (although apparently it is), the current matching rod in the lineup should be sent to you. St. Croix did that with me when my Legend (2pc black) broke and I received a 4pc Legend Ultra. It did cost $75 for upgrade and shipping but I thought that was fair.
5) I also agree with others, let us know the name of the company that does not have good communication with either you or their retailers, and who is therefore causing you grief.
6) Bug the daylights out of them until you get satisfaction - hopefully you have a warrantee card or their warrantee is shown online. The squeaky door gets the oil (and the rod).

[kbproctor]

Yell loud and long on forums, Facebook and anywhere else people will listen and name names! Toyota pulled a nasty on a son whose mother had just been murdered here in the Denver area and just came and got her car without even seeing if he could take over the payments. The local press got hold of it and people started hounding them on Facebook. It took less than 24 hours for them to return the car and forgive the loan completely. It was cheaper than trying to overcome the bad press.

Tell us who it is so we can help you spread the word that this company is trying to give you the shaft.

[WarrenP]

I have read this post and I have only one concern. You stated: "he still sells the rod direct online." I do not know of any reputable rod manufacturer that sells their rods direct to the consumer online. The reputable rod companies only sell through dealerships. If this person/company is selling direct to the consumer, then you are not dealing with someone that you can really trust and they probably do not have any warrantee.

Just a thought and nothing more.....

[Eight Thumbs]

I sure would appreciate the name of the company. Don't protect this rip-off operation. 8T

[jszymczyk]

I've made posts about the great customer service I've received from various companies and always say which company it was. Same should be true for bad customer service. Please say which rod company it is -- also Jesse, the rod company who is a sponsor here. Why not? I'm sure whatever company, there will be replies from people detailing good experiences too- it will help the company to be competitive and improve. As far as "reputable" companies selling only through dealers, I'm not sure I can agree with that. I've had no warranty issues with rods in over 30 years, so I can't add personal experience. I do however, want to spend my hard-earned $$$ (when the time comes) on products which are worth it. As it is, I will never spend $650, or $400 on a rod, or probably not $250 on one.

[Silver Creek]

Bottom line - you got hosed. Having said that, you are lucky you did not pay full retail for that rod.

I agree that they should have replaced the rod. I also agree that you need to document the warranty policy by copying the policy from thier web site OR via an email from them. Once you have that, you can sue them in small claims court and/or you can write the FTC and document the false advertising. If you do not get the problem resolved, I would file a complaint.