ComplaintsforUniversity Place Tire & Auto

• Initial Complaint

  09/01/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  $7711.33 worth of work done + Plus the redo by another shop that found that the work paid for had not been done or was faulty.When the manager was ********** couldn't say enough good about this shop however recently things have changed since ****'s retirement.Because of their mistreatment and they would not take me seriously, I went to another facility and found out that **** had not done the work in some cases and in other cases they had done it wrong...In the case of the timing belt and the brakes it would've been at physical risk to me life had the error not been remedied.And each case I went back to them to Give them the benefit of the doubt and the chance to make good their reputation by doing the work that I paid for. They were begrudging demeaning and defensive & denied any fault. I have had the repairs re-done to make the car safe. I have all charges and work documented. I am requesting a refund on all work. Both the original, the diagnostic and final repair.

  

  Business response

  09/20/2023

  I apologize for the delayed response, this is the first email that has come into our inbox. 

  I have attached the copies pertaining to repairs and returns for warranty work, with everything documented. We pride ourselves on being honest and standing by our work, unfortunately this customer's vehicle has had parts fail and we stood by them each time and covered them at no cost for the customer, even when warranty was no longer valid. 

  Initial brake repairs were performed 03/29/2022 Invoice # *****, vehicle mileage *******. Customer came in 01/24/2023 Invoice # *****, vehicle mileage *******, with a noise concern from the driver's rear brake- rotational squeaking and brake light coming on and off- which we did not duplicate the concern. Technician verified brake fluid level full and clean, technician did remove the brake components and found everything operating as normal, even wear from side to side and inner and outer pads, lubricated components, sanded brake pads to remove any glazing and reinstalled components. We did suggest the brake light could pertain to the parking brake sticking periodically, requested she not set the parking brake so we can monitor and rule out if necessary. Customer returned 08/02/2023 Invoice # *****, vehicle mileage *******, stating that another facility advised her that the passenger rear brake caliper was sticking and had no brake material remaining and driver's rear still had 6mm of pad life remaining. ************** verified the other faiclities findings, and we agreed with their statement. Although our invoices state that our warranty coverage is 12 months and/or ****** miles, we still resolved her brake concern at no charge out of our pocket, we even went as far as replacing both rear brake calipers and pads to make sure customers satisfaction was met. We also offered to place a chair in the shade outside for customer to watch the technician perform the repairs because she accused us of not replacing the components initially and charging her- which we would never do. The brake readings indicate that the brakes were in fact replaced as the driver's side with the caliper not malfunctioning still had good pad life with 6mm remaining, this number would have decreased more signficantly if that was truly the case, the brakes had approximately ****** miles in use, they start with 8mm of pad life on the rear brakes of vehicle. We showed the customer new components and old components at this time as well. 

  She arrived unannounced on Tuesday August 15th with a check engine light that was on, 13 days after brake repairs performed- she stated it only came on after we repaired her brakes. Vehicle's check engine light would not set due to any brake repairs, this light is utilized for engine, sensors and various components that are monitored by the vehicle's on board computer. She stated that she was at another facility the day previous to this for an oil change. Found the check engine light was on due to the other facility not reattaching her evap emission line on the air filter housing, after checking her engine air filter- we cleared the fault and reattached this line at no charge to customer. Customer also had a noise complaint- another facility noted coming from behind timing cover. We did perform a timing belt replacement on 01/19/2023, Invoice # *****, vehicle mileage 157,777. We did pull the vehicle in to listen to her noise complaint which was in fact coming from behind the timing cover of vehicle, advised customer it would be covered under the warranty at no charge to her, we just needed to schedule for a day she could leave the vehicle for the repairs as there was not enough time in the day to complete that day. She was scheduled for an appointment on  Thursday, August 17th for us to resolve her noise complaint, which would have been covered at no charge. She left a ***** voicemail August 16th before our facility opened to cancel her appointment and we never heard from her again. 

  We have gone above and beyond for this customer to insure her happiness and she has continued to talk poorly to me and about me to other employees and other facilities that have called to discuss it with me, which is uncalled for. At this point in time we are no longer interested in a business relationship with this customer, as we can not seem to make her happy no matter what we do for her. 

  Customer response

  09/28/2023

  I understood that the report was due on the 28th. I am at the library right now writing it. I want to reiterate that the failed repairs that were detailed the UP auto are the reason for the loss of confidence in their work so that I took the car to a new mechanic for the diagnostic of the Work done at the time of the timing belt, January 20 23 which was still under warranty.

  I want to state that U P auto did confirm that there was a problem. Manager made a comment at the time saying "we certainly have had a lot of faulty parts put in  your car."

  when the mechanic at the new shop did the diagnostic they found that in fact, it was not a matter of faulty parts but of improper installation. They found that the bolts had been torqued to the point of breaking and the system would've failed in a very short time..
  

  they also found that the headlamps that were supposed to be replaced at the time of the timing belt were out and they replaced them for me.

  my concern is not about restoring a relationship with the shop because I have lost confidence in their competence and they're concern for my safety.
  

  My concern is for the reputation of the shop who has served me well until the change of management.

  out of respect for the former owner I wanted to give the shop a chance to maintain their reputation By making reimbursement for the failed work.
  

  I have retained all receipts and have the original copies they were submitted at my first submission

  To summarize:

  $3999.44 for the entire job

  if they are unwilling to make reimbursement for failed work, my next step will be to take legal action in small claims court.

  Thank you for mediating in this matter

  Customer response

  09/29/2023

  I have a correction to my closing statement from 9/28/2023.

   

  The two statements I am comparing are presented very differently so After getting help deciphering I have a correction to make to my final statement. 

   

  U. P. TIRE & AUTOMOTIVE did other things in addition to the timing belt apparatus and I do not see a separation of parts versus labor.

   

  South end auto did the replacement and because they clearly separate parts and labor for this one job, 

  I am going to request that replacement amount even though it appears to be less.

  

  Business response

  09/29/2023

  This case/ claim has been reported as closed, although I have noticed a response after the deadline from ****************. As stated previously we were more than willing to correct the concerns at no charge under warranty pertaining to the timing belt repairs performed on 01/19/2023 Invoice #*****, she was the one to cancel the appointment and have no further contact with our facility. The most current document provided from **************** requesting refund of $3999.44 pertains to all of the work completed which was more than the timing belt repairs refund is being requested for. Photo provided does not show any documention stating said concerns or showing the work performed by the other facility, just shows a dollar amount of  $1514.40, I have attempted to contact South End regarding this concern and for documentation but have not received any calls back. Our facility has no issues standing by our repairs and we will reimburse for the amount of repairs if they were in fact a direct result of parts or workmanship pertaining to Invoice # *****. I have attached the original invoice that **************** states is hard to decipher, and provided a secondary that shows the timing belt repairs on there own for easier understanding and break down of services provided that day. 

  The customer had mentioned headlights not working, which was documented and shown in previous uploads, all of the lights were checked and functional that day. Again, going above and beyond, I personally showed her the high beams and low beams in the parking lot and they were functioning with no issues. 

  As far as my statement the customer is refering to "we certainly have had a lot of faulty parts put in your car". We were having a conversation about how unfortunate it has been that her vehicle has had faulty parts- this wasn't a false statement, we don't build the parts here- we have no control over that, we try our best to avoid this by using higher quality parts to decrease this occurrance. 

  Our management/ ownership here at our facility has not changed, I have been the manager for 14 years this October and I have been the same person to help **************** through out the years since she began seeing us in 2017. We do have a wonderful reputation and our facility does everything in our power to keep it. So again to wrap this up, had the customer just come to us in the first ********************** with concerns, this could have been resolved without needing mediation. We do not need to be threatened of further legal action. We have no issues reimbursing the cost of repairs in the amount of $1514.40, as long as there is documentation to prove the concern pertaining to the timing belt- proper documentation. Once this is provided we will be more than willing to send a check to address provided by consumer through this portal, but we would like to have it documented that we no longer wish to have any further interaction after this is resolved and vehicle will not have any further warranties standing through our facility. 

  Customer response

  10/02/2023

   
  Complaint: 20555163
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

  I just spoke with south end auto and they did not receive a call from you but today on Monday at 11:28 AM I called them and they said they would be happy to give a response they're waiting for your call right now their number is ************. The manager noted that you would have to call between business hours they always pick up there was someone at the phone at all times they are there from 6 to 6 but their business hours are 7 to 5. I have sent A copy of their written response twice now ...that says there was A problem with the way the parts were installed.
  

  The reason why the lights were working when I came about the timing belt noise,  was because I had just come from the other shop and THEY REPLACED them... that's how I knew that they had not been replaced before because they were not working and so south end auto fix them I reported that to you and you tested them "after the fact".

   

  I will re-send a picture of the response for the third time. Regarding why the unit needed to be replaced. Once again I am reiterating that because of loss of confidence I could not come back to that UP auto. Up to that point every repair had had to be redone I had to travel take time off &  go back for a second look. So in all wisdom I needed to move on to find a reliable service. When I began to go to UP auto **** was in charge. I was very sad when he retired. For me my experience at UP auto changed at that time.

  I want to say on his behalf that U P auto honored Every warranty And I trust they will continue to follow that noble example.

  once again my address is: ***********************************************************

  
  Sincerely,
  
  ***********************

  

  Business response

  10/03/2023

  We were able to obtain a copy of the invoice for repairs completed at the other facility- ********, I have uploaded that document. I have also uploaded an invoice from **, showing the reimbursement/ credit amount and documentation. Again we are willing to reimburse **************** for that Invoice from ********, in the amount of $1514.40. We would like to make sure we gather the correct mailing address so we can mail that check out via certified mail. We would like no contact outside of this BBB portal. This credit back to the customer will bring this to a completed solution and we will no longer provide any further assistance to **************** and all warranties on previous repairs completed here at our facility will be voided. Thank you. 

  Customer response

  10/04/2023

   
  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.
  
  

  Below is the requested mailing address.

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

  1419 ***********

  ********, ** 98008

  
  Sincerely,
  
  ***********************

*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. ↩