ComplaintsforGene's Marine Bait and Tackle

• Initial Complaint

  04/19/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

   I took my boat into them on 4/13/ 2023. With only a shift issue.  My boat has all brand new working parts rebuilt motor water pump you name it
  
  He calls me up an hour later you have bad gas. That was the first lie. Then he tells me he drained 3 gallons out until it ran clear. Then he gets it running. Now after about 2 minutes of running its over heating. That was his second lie. Let me remind you I had this boat running right before I took it down. I've owned this boat for twenty years. I know it inside and out. Then he tells me my bill is up  to $550.00. And he hasn't even started on the shift problem. I replied saying the boat isn't  worth that much the way it is sitting. He knew I was upset when the water pump he so called replaced. Then said he could get it done for that price. While I'm there I look the boat over my steering wheel is now locked up and on top of that he has cut the wires to the interrupted switch that controls the shift.

  then I get home an hour later and he tells me my bill is $695.00 and if I pay him in cash it would only be $647.00. So then I got a hold of the Attorney General's office and told them that they said I need an attorney. That night I texted this mechanic and told him he was full of it and when I come back down I'm bringing law enforcement with me. Because then he had the audacity to tell me he didn't cut the wires. My boat is a ford 2.3 OMC. It is a vintage boat with parts that are hard to find and cost an arm and a leg to buy. He is a swindler and not a Marina. He's running a junkyard. 

  Business response

  04/25/2023

  Thank you for bringing this to our attention. 

  *** ****** brought his boat in with a shift problem. He said it was his last attempt at trying to fix and sell his boat. In order to fix the shift problem, the boat needed to be running. Boat wouldn't start. After many attempts, I called him. He said to go ahead and drain the gas to see if that was a problem. I did so and gas was bad.

  This rebuilt motor he speaks of was done over 14 years ago, as stated by him. I unhooked the shift interrupt switch and boat started. ( These are the wires he is saying I cut). After the boat ran 40-60 seconds I noticed the riser was heating up and water was coming out of the plastic cover that covers the water pump impeller housing so I shut boat off immediately. Upon removing the cover I see the impeller is burned completely out. I called Mr ****** and even sent him a picture of the melted impeller. He gave me the okay to fix it stating he'd changed the impeller 2 or 3 times himself. I changed it and got the boat started to adjust his cable.

  I noticed the block is heating up again. I tested it with temp laser gun and shut it off. At this point I know the block has further cooling issues. I call him again to let him know what is going on and what the next step is. Again he gave me the okay to continue. I'd been working on this all afternoon and decided to wait until the next morning.

  Mr ****** came in the shop at 9am. I talked to him about all the issues with his boat and showed him the invoice so he would see where he was at money wise. He said he wasn't trying to spend that much on it because he wanted to sell it for a parts boat.  At that ***e, another customer came in, and Mr ****** was trying to sell him his boat for $2,000.00.

  After that, he jumps in his boat and says his steering doesn't work, and that it wasn't like that when he brought it in. I never touched the steering. I told him how it could be freed. He wanted to do it so I gave him the tool and showed him what to do. It then moved freely by hand so the problem had to be the cable, or behind the dash, or steering wheel. When I asked him when he steered it last he said 2 days prior.

  This would be impossible because the boat won't run. I tried several things but the boat still runs hot. I tried to call him but no answer and no mailbox, so I texted him.

  I actually felt bad for him having so many problems with the boat. He said he'd come pick it up on Wed or Thurs and pay his bill. Then his text messages became nasty and he made several threats. His boat is sitting here waiting for him to pay his bill and pick it up. The boat is nowhere near the condition he claims it to be. 

  Customer response

  05/15/2023

  I went to Gene's Marina with law enforcement.  The police officer ask me to at least pay half the bill. $290.00 is what I payed. I did that for the officer to keep the peace and for Warrenty issues. I plan on going through the boat this weekend. Because I believe he has done more damage then good. I will keep you posted.  Because I still plan on recouping my loss. I hope to God he didn't hurt the motor or transom.
  Thanks again 

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