ComplaintsforWalpole Tire Service, LLC

• Initial Complaint

  07/23/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  On Thursday, July 18, 2024, I ordered tires directly from Goodyear.com which were to be delivered to and installed by Goodyear's installer, Walpole Tire Service, on Monday, July 22, 2024. I arrived for my 9:00 AM appointment to find that Walpole Tire Service seemed ill prepared for my appointment. (They were unsure if they had received the tires and had little to no knowledge of my appointment.) Because of this, I was informed I would be waiting behind multiple other customers and it would take an hour and a half to two hours to replace the tires on my 2020 Ram 1500 Limited. I opted to wait in their lobby for my vehicle's tires to be replaced. Upon receiving my vehicle, I noticed gash/chatter marks in two wheels, a dent in another, and rubber or grease markings covering the fourth wheel. I requested to speak to a manager. Directly, after an associate informed the general manager, ****, of the issue, **** approached me but shrugged me off after mistaking me for a tow truck driver. Another manager then approached me and asked about the situation. He went out to my vehicle and inspected it, but was unsure and referred the issue back to the GM. **** then came out to inspect the wheels himself, but quickly claimed it was caused by curb cash. He claimed he would review video footage from the shop and recommended I take my vehicle elsewhere to have other installers confirm his claim that it was curb rash. After reviewing the footage, **** called me the next day again denying any responsibility for the damage. When I delivered the vehicle to Walpole Tire Service to have tires installed, the vehicle was not damaged. The vehicle had been detailed less than a week prior and had mud guards installed just days before. I inspected the wheels and tires for damage both after having the vehicle detailed as well as prior to installing the mud guards myself. Therefore, I know without a doubt these markings were not there prior to the tire installation.

  Business response

  09/11/2024

  On July 22nd we mounted 4 tires for Mr. ****** that he ordered online from Goodyear.com.  Once the online order is received by Walpole Tire via e-mail we reach out to the customer at the contact number listed and ask that they request a particular salesperson upon arrival that is familiar with the online order and how to proceed.  During the Goodyear online order process, Mr. ****** was able to select an appointment time.  Please note that this selected time is for us to know when to expect Mr. ****** and aid in workflow management.  The appointment as detailed on Goodyears website does not specify that we are going to begin work on that vehicle immediately.   This is due to the fact that a very large percentage of tire work is unplanned.  However, we strive to deliver quality work as quickly as we can to all of our customers in the order that they arrive.  

  Mr. ****** arrived on a Monday and we were very blessed to be extremely busy.  I was in the middle of receiving a vehicle that arrived on a tow truck.  I had never met the vehicle owner or the tow truck driver.  While in the middle of helping the customer that was towed in, I was informed about Mr. ******'s wheel situation.  I have never met Mr. ****** before.  While trying to identify the tow truck driver I had a very brief interaction with Mr. ****** because I mistakenly thought he was the tow truck driver.  During this interaction with Mr. ******, I acknowledged that I was aware of his wheel issue and to please give me a moment to finish helping the customer I was currently waiting on. 

  Once I was done with the owner of the vehicle that was towed in I introduced myself to Mr. ****** and asked him to point out the marks on his wheels.  I followed Mr. Waren outside as he pointed out the issues.  Mr. ****** was concerned with 2 issues:

  1) Black marks from the fresh rubber of new tires combined with lubricant sliding very tightly onto the wheel.  I was able to very easily wipe these off with my fingers.  These are common and simply wipe off.  I wiped one off while Mr. ****** watched.        

  2) Abrasive scratch marks on the outside edge of the wheels.  I examined these marks very well.  They are very commonly referred to in the automotive industry as "curb rash" as a result of a wheel rubbing on an abrasive concrete or asphalt curbside of a road, parking lot, sidewalk, etc.  These marks are VERY common and I have seen countless numbers of them in 20 years.  Anyone with experience in the automotive industry can identify curb rash easily. 

  However, Mr. ****** was convinced that the marks were caused by a careless technician with the machine that is used to mount the tires.  Due to this, I invited Mr. ****** into the shop to demonstrate how the tire machine works and it is simply impossible for a tire machine to damage a wheel in the manner that Mr. ******s were.  It is absolutely possible for a tire machine to damage a wheel, however, the damage done by a machine has very characteristic marks that are easily identifiable.  The marks on Mr. ******s wheels could not have been caused by a tire machine.  Mr. ****** still was not satisfied after the demonstration. 

  At this point, I offered to review the security camera footage of the tire installation to ensure it was performed properly and investigate if we could have possibly caused the marks.  As promised, I reviewed the camera footage that evening.  I immediately called Mr. ****** the next morning to relay my findings.  I also invited Mr. ****** to come to the store at his convenience and review the camera footage himself.  Mr. ****** declined this offer.    

• Initial Complaint

  05/07/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  On April 21, 2024 at approximately 4:30pm my passenger right side strut blew out. I called my insurance company and they dispatched a tow truck to come and pick up my vehicle and have it delivered to *** * ******* *** ******* ** ****** Upon arrival at Walpole the tow truck driver took pictures of the vehicle. At that point there were no damages located on the front hood of the car. I received a call the following day from a salesman letting me know that they were going to park the vehicle behind their gate so it would be secured. May 6, 2024 at approximately 6:20pm my husband arrived to pick the car up and noticed the damages done to the front hood. April 7, 2024 at approximately 7:20am I arrived back at Walpole to show them the damages that was done to the vehicle. The first associate came out and looked at the damages and stated that he saw the damages May 6, 2024 and thought it arrived there damaged, once I presented him the pictures from the tow truck company, he then stated that he was sorry and that they will get the matter resolved and get the damages fix. He went inside and got another associate to come out and look at the vehicle. The second associate proceeded to look at the damages and get pictures and stated he would have to look at the cameras because he didn’t think any of his guys would have damaged the vehicle and not report it. I would like to get this problem resolved as smoothly as possible.

• Initial Complaint

  05/01/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  On March 9th, 2024 Walpole Tire and Service (Ruston, LA) was to drill out one stud on the vehicle's right axle and two on the left axle and replace them with studs and bolts. The total charged was $189.09. On March 10th we have a picture showing that none of the work was completed. They scheduled us to return on March 21st to get this fixed. Later that day (3/21), they said that everything was fixed. On March 28th there was a loud noise coming from the rear axel. Bringing it back to Walpole, they discovered that one of the studs they replaced had come out and was rattling around in the brakes, causing a lot of damage. Also, one of the other studs that they replaced was missing its bolt. Walpole stated that they would call me back to discuss this further, but they did not and I needed to call them multiple times to get any answers. The person I first talked to stated that his manager said that they would not repair any of the damage. I asked to talk with the manager. The manager stated that he needed to look into what happened. The manager did not call me back and I had to call him multiple times to find anything out. After multiple weeks of me calling for an update he finally stated that they would fix it all. It has now been over a week and a half since he stated that and they have not called me to make an appointment. I called on Friday, April 26th and the manager said he would call me back. Today, Tuesday, April 30th, I called them for an update and a worker would not talk to me, stating that the manager was dealing with this matter and I had to wait for him to call me back. The manager has not called me back.

  Business response

  05/30/2024

  Good morning.   **** ***** and I have had several conversations with *** ******* and his son, ****.  **** was the original salesman that was helping **** and I became involved after this situation arose.   After my initial contact with *** *******, it took a while to completely understand what happened and what mistakes were made.  However, I felt the need to completely understand the situation in order to respond fairly.  This included **** bringing the truck back into our shop so I could evaluate the situation.  This visit by **** was the first time I was able to actually see the truck myself.  Following this visit, we conveyed to *** ******* that Walpole Tire intended to repair the truck and rectify the situation.  However, we had to locate, purchase and have the appropriate parts shipped in.  It took a few days to find the parts.  Once they were located, we paid extra to have the parts shipped next day air and scheduled **** to have the truck repaired.  Unfortunately, it took the parts 2 weeks to arrive after we paid $50 to have them sent next day air.   Obviously, this delay further frustrated the situation for both parties.  At this point, I believe **** has returned home to Wisconsin for the Summer.  We will continue stay in contact with the Rothmans in order to resolve the issue when **** returns.  

  **** ******

   

  Customer response

  06/02/2024

  
  Complaint: ********
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

  We were notified on May 1st that the parts needed to complete the repair would arrive on May 9th and that we had an appointment to complete the repairs on May 10th at 7:30 am. On May 10th, we received a message at 9:40 am that the backing plate had been delayed and was only shipped on May 9th. We were then told that they rescheduled the appointment for Monday, May 13th at 9 for them to break down the rear left wheel and pull the axle. Then at 3 they would put the new parts on. We received no communication from them. On May 13th at 12:15 am we sent them a message asking for an update on if the piece arrived. At 7:38 they responded that the piece did not arrive and that they will reschedule when the part arrives. On May 16th we asked for an update. We were told that the USPS lost the package and that another piece would be sent Overnight via FedEx. With no communication from them, on Monday, May 20th we asked for another update and when to bring the truck back. We were told to come at 2pm on Friday, May 24th. On Tuesday, May 21st we were given the FedEx tracking number for the new shipment and that FedEx tracking number indicated that the package was delivered. When we asked if it had arrived they stated that it had not. We asked to be sent the emails that they had taken pictures of and texted to us, they were given an email address to send them to, and this request was ignored and they did not respond to the request at all. On Wednesday, May 22nd, they supplied us with what they called the, "correct tracking info" but this tracking number was not from FedEx, but from the USPS and it was the same tracking number as the original tracking number for the package that they said the USPS had lost (back on Friday, May 10th). On Thursday, May 23rd we were told that the package arrived. On Friday, May 24th when the truck was there to get fixed, they stated that the power had been out and that they needed to keep the truck overnight. They also stated that to complete the job they now needed to replace the parking brake cable, something that they couldn't get until the following Tuesday, May 28th. They then stated that to fix it they would need to remove bolts in order to replace it. They said they would not be responsible for any parts or labor that will have to be affected to replace them. Soon after they sent that they stated that the entire back axle will have to be replaced because they cannot get the bolts off and would have to cut them off. They wanted to know if we wanted a price quote to replace the rear axle. We were not going to pay them more money to fix something that their negligence caused, and we picked up the truck. The truck still does not have a functioning parking brake and they have not fixed the damage they have caused. The truck was brought in for service on March 9th, 2024 and as of today, June 2nd, 2024 the repairs have not been made (85 days).  
  
  Sincerely,
  
  **** *******

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