ComplaintsforMeineke Car Care Center

• Initial Complaint

  05/11/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Unanswered

  More info

  ****** *** ***** ***** **** is where I took my car. It was a $65 charge for dianosis. He told me I had a leak in the engine valve covers. I told him to fi it. Cost me $1200. I complained and told him right then that the car wasn't running well. It had never had a leak in the exhaust and the exhaust wasn't busted when I brought it in. I thought that was what was making the motor jumpy. He said he fixed it but it didn't. I went ahead and took it and a couple of days later, I looked under the hood and there was oil everywhere. I called him. I took it up there and showed him where the oil was where he had "fixed" it. I left the car there. He said that it was a bad valve cover gasket. The car is still not running properly.

  Customer response

  07/31/2023

  They have contacted me and attempted to resolve my issue but my car is still leaking oil. The manager told me he had to fire everyone so there was no one to fix my car. At this point I just want a refund so I can take my car somewhere else to get fixed. 

• Initial Complaint

  12/20/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I paid this company to repair my vehicle and the same day I picked it up it started doing the same thing . I was referred to this company from Carsheild. I paid them $1700.00 out of pocket. This company is now saying that the issue is a new issue and they will need to do additional diagnostics and possibly more repairs that will cost even more. They are refusing to release my vehicle.

  Business response

  01/25/2023

  I have reached out to Mrs ****'s and I am waiting to hear back, this is the first I have been made aware of her having an issue. I left her a message to call back and if I do not here from her I will try again after lunch. 

  ***** ********

• Initial Complaint

  11/22/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I went to the St. Peters location on October 21 for an alignment. They performed the alignment, however it wasnt correct. I went back 2 more times and the problem was never corrected. After the 3rd time I gave up since it was clear they were unable to do the service I paid for. I went to a different repair shop and they were able to get it aligned correctly the first time. It turns out I needed a 4 wheel alignment, which Meineke was unable to provide. This location did not inform me that they couldnt do 4 wheel alignments, they instead charged me and told me nothing about them not being able to do what I paid for. I basically paid them to waste my time. I wasted my time and money by going here since they were not honest with me. I have tried contacting them many times, all requests have been ignored. I need a refund of the full amount paid since the correct service was not performed.

  Business response

  12/22/2022

  I have personally called Mr **** multiple times and his request for a refund is not an issue, it does require him to return a phone call or respond to an email. I must clear up the fact his car did not need a 4 wheel alignment. To many shops charge for the adjustments but many times cars do not need a 4 wheel adjustment. If his car needed a 4 wheel alignment we would have charged $40 extra dollars and asked him to pay for it, who wouldn't want to make more money! Our shop has the equipment to do a 4 wheel alignment and Mr **** was never told that we cannot do one. We in fact have 2 alignment machines in our center. Most shops only have 1 machine, we have 2 and both can adjust all 4 wheels if needed. Since Mr **** has never taken the time to call back or respond to an email I cannot ask him where that misinformation came from. I will also add that I personally dealt with Mr **** when he came back. He told me, "His car drove straight but the steering wheel was off center". This is a common error made by a technician when setting the front wheels during the alignment process. I again personally explained to Mr **** that if his alignment was off the car would not track straight on the road as he told me it did. The fact his steering wheel was off center was a "Front Toe Set Adjustment" a simple fix. This process does not change the alignment at all, it only centers the position of the steering wheel appearance left or right.  It takes only a few minutes and we did exactly that for him the day. He came back about 15 minutes later after that adjustment and said his wheel was just off a little now in the other direction. I apologized to him and explained the technician will make a slight adjustment back and things should be perfect. That day was the last time I herd from Mr **** so again if Mr **** wants to resolve any issue he has to be willing to take part in the process rather than make accusations that we have not reached out, we have. 

  As for another shop performing a 4 wheel alignment to solve his issue, he simply paid for a service his car did not need but if he is happy great. Mr **** did come back and we did make the adjustments for him but not to his satisfaction I assume. I personally would not go back to a shop for a 3rd time and I don't expect him to either, however some communication would have been helpful. I will remind you again, he has never reached back out and he has never provide a copy of a bill from what he claims the other shop did either. My issue is Mr **** could have called if there was still a problem and we could have resolved it that day. Should have been pretty simple if you ask me but as I said he never called and never replied to a single email I sent to him. 

  Consider this resolved, I will see to it that Mr **** gets a refund.

  ***** ********

  Meineke Car Care Centers

  Customer response

  12/29/2022

  Complaint: ********
  
  I am rejecting this response because:
  I have received no emails from them as they state. I have received no refund from them as they stated they would do. I went to this location 3 times and they still couldnt get my car properly aligned. Why would I go a fourth time when its obvious they werent going to get it right. Why would I pay for this since it was obvious it wasnt going to be correct. 

  I do not consider this resolved until they issue a full refund. They have everything needed to issue this refund.
  
  
  Sincerely,
  
  ***** ****

  Business response

  12/29/2022

  I never said we would not refund Mr ****, nor did we ask him to come back. I agree I would not go back to a place 4 times for the same issue. I made the statement that he could have picked up the phone and expressed his concern when he left that day. I also stated he was taken advantage of, his car did not need a 4 wheel alignment, Mr **** told me to my face his car drove straight, his only issue was the steering wheel was off center, that does not mean the alignment is off. I also stated that again if he was happy with the service he received then great no problem I would get him a refund. I did ask for proof he went to another shop and requested a copy of that bill for our records which he has never provided. It frustrates me that Mr ****'s phone worked when he wanted to bring it back for service, not sure why it stopped working after his revisit. Now if I get an award for proving I sent him the emails and made the phone calls then I am happy to provide proof but I doubt that gets me anything. Mr **** asked for a refund and I said we would provide it to him. I honestly believe he was not happy with his service but a phone call would have been very helpful and his request for a refund is not out of line.

  ***** ********

  Customer response

  01/05/2023

  Complaint: ********
  
  I am rejecting this response because:
  I have still not received any emails, I have sent many and none have received a response. Also no phone calls. I do not know why they are turning a simple refund into this unnecessary difficult process. They also promised a refund, however no refund has been issued. I really thought Meineke was a trustworthy company, however after these responses I can no longer think that they are. 

  I cannot consider this resolved until the refund is actually issued.

   

  
  
  Sincerely,
  
  ***** ****

  Customer response

  01/19/2023

  I have not received any refund from them.
  

  Business response

  01/20/2023

  Consumer disputed the charges received the money from credit card company
  and now the business states that they would have paid him but does not feel they need to now since he already received his money back from the credit card company.  The compliant is closed as unresolved, even though the business never said they would not refund him the money. 

• Initial Complaint

  03/26/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Failed to give price upfront for tires, charged extra for diagnostic with no quote up front, call than attempted to get price for front head light refused to give me price and told me I should go buy it myself if i am unhappy with their work and they would consider to install it,,, as president of a large company this is the worst service and smart mouth people I have every had to deal with, I would never ever use this place again.

  Business response

  03/28/2022

  There are so many things wrong here and Mr ****** is welcome to reach out anytime to discuss "Facts not Fiction".  We did not "Fail" to give a price prior to work being performed. Mr ****** never had a conversation with the store manager until after the truck was picked up. He was not present when the Jeep was dropped off nor present when the Jeep was picked up. His son authorized the repairs and he requested the diagnostics. After we told him what was needed he told our store manager he had a friend that could do the work and declined that part of the repair. Mr ****** is under the impression the dash tells you what is wrong, further the parts needed and there is no need for diagnostic time. This could not be further from the truth and if it did in fact tell you that information his son would not have requested the details. Mr ****** sent his son to the shop, the entire process was handled by his son and though it might be frustrating for Mr ****** it's even more so for me when he makes a complaint full off false accusations. As stated in his complaint he asked for a price on the headlight. While the store manager was looking up the price he told him it was the more expensive bulb. Knowing how expensive HID lights can be the store manager said since you're not happy about the prior visit grab a headlight and we will put it in for you for free. He was just trying to make Mr ****** feel better about the miss information he had with diagnostics and better overall about his visit, what more could you want! He was never a smart mouth at any point during the conversation, in fact he handled himself better than most would have given the way Mr ****** spoke to our store manager.
  
  The exchange between Mr ****** and the store manager was tense due to his lack of information about diagnostics. The phone call then went "COMPLETLY" sideways when the store manager offered free labor for the headlight. Mr ****** proceeded to blow a gasket on the phone and let the store manager know, as he did in this complaint, that he is the president of a large company and does not have time for that. I am sure there are many people that simply do not have extra time and I totally understand. A simple "I do not have time", would have been much better than what he did. I am confident Mr ****** would never allow a member of his staff to be treated the way he treated ours. Mr ****** should reflect back on the phone call, all 3:19 seconds are recorded.

  
  A refund is hardly an equitable solution because our manager mistakenly thought Mr ****** had the time to grab a lightbulb from a parts store.

  I am available anytime Mr ****** would like to discuss this matter.

  ***** ******** ******* *** **** ******* ******************* ************

  Customer response

  03/29/2022

  Complaint: ********
  
  I am rejecting this response because: Completely false statements have been made by the business and factual is not true. Beside the Rude treatment and disrespect that continues and is clear in there response the business is being dishonest.  A complaint is going to Corporate office of the business and copies of this complaint and response are being sent directly to the President and Board of directors of the company. 
  
  
  
  Sincerely,
  **** ***** ******

• Initial Complaint

  12/14/2021

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I took my vehicle to this shop to get my tire put back on because my tire was shaking. Then I was driving one day and my tire popped off. I took it back to Meineke and they put it back on. I picked up the car. Then I was driving it again and the tire popped off again. I requested my car to be towed to the W Clay location because it was free. The W Clay location refused to accept the tow. I had to pay to have my car towed to my house. I called ****, the owner, and he told me to call the Meineke hotline and pay the difference of the tow. This issue was not my fault. Then I called and the town truck couldn't pick up my car because of the hooking issue. I have spent plenty of money for repairs. It's not fair my tire popped off twice and I have to spend money.

  Business response

  12/27/2021

  I thought I responded to this already, I definitely spoke with the customer on 12-15-21, the conversation I had with her was that she was going to get the car towed here for inspection. I expressed that its been 5 MONTHS since we seen her car and that anything is possible. I told her we would check her car for free and warranty any damaged part that we installed as a result but I could not help her unless she has the car here. I can not speak for the Meineke on West Clay, they do not work for me but I did make the Meineke Corporate office aware that West Clay Meineke Car Care refusing to help any customer is not acceptable but again I can not do anything about another centers poor business practices. As of today 12-27-21 we have not seen the customers car and I can not emphasize enough that we have not seen this car since July of 2021 so anything is possible. To have the car towed to our center using the Meineke Rewards Program makes towing a fraction of what it could be. I further told her if it needs a repair that I would work with her on the amount she would to pay for the extra miles of the tow. Meineke Rewards Towing gives our consumers a free tow, 100% covered up to 5 miles, beyond that the customer only has to pay for the extra miles. Tow vendors usually charge between $4 and $6 per mile, Meineke St Peters to the Meineke on West Clay is 7.2 miles so the customer may have to pay for about 3 miles of a tow bill. 

   

  I am still willing to look at the car but the customer has to bring the car in, until then there is nothing I can help with and that is exactly what I told her I would do. 

  ***** ********

  Meineke Car Care Centers

*Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business. ↩