Purchasing items from iboats WARNING!!

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brownies

Chief Petty Officer
Joined
Jul 5, 2004
Messages
495
Less than a week ago I purchased a NEW Motorguide Digital trolling motor from this website. $1600.00 and it's DOA on arrival. <br /> Don't start with the troubleshooting advice...This MotorGuide is defective.<br /> Can't return it. Iboats sent me to Motorguide. Motorguide sent me to not so local dealer. Dealer(s) say take a hike, you didn't buy it from us. 10 phone calls later and I've made this circle two more times. <br /> iboats refers me to motorguide, they refer me to a motorguide dealer...and....iboats IS a motorguide dealer!!<br /><br /> ALL I wanted was to EXHANGE a defective NEW item for another. Looks as if this is going to take WEEKS to resolve and I bet the MOST I get is a repaired or remanufactured unit and it'll probably get damaged in shipping...at my cost.<br /><br /> Just something to think about before dealing with iboats or motorguide.
 
S

Stratocaster

Petty Officer 1st Class
Joined
Aug 13, 2003
Messages
334
Re: Purchasing items from iboats WARNING!!

Welcome to the wonderful world of drop-shipping.<br /><br />Good luck in resolving it.
 
chuckz

chuckz

Chief Petty Officer
Joined
Aug 22, 2004
Messages
625
Re: Purchasing items from iboats WARNING!!

If you made the purchase with a credit card, talk to the credit card company. They may be able to have the purchase credited to your account. Credit cards contain many built in protections for the consumer.
 
TOHATSU GURU

TOHATSU GURU

Admiral
Joined
Jul 22, 2004
Messages
6,164
Re: Purchasing items from iboats WARNING!!

Don't take this wrong, but your warranty is with the manufacturer not with iboats. The warranty policy for most products, including that one, is that the motor must be sent to an authorized servicing center for repair. If it was a toaster or some small dollar amount item, individual store policy's might very well allow you return it. But any kind of big ticket item is almost always going to be handled the same way. Even if you had purchased it from a boat dealer across the street from you they would send it out for repair...Because the manufacturer requires them to. You can ask motorguide for a policy adjustment where they might replace it for you, but be real nice and shed a tear or two to get them to do it. If you get the least bit upset with them. Bam! Down will come that wall of policy...Good Luck.
 
B

brownies

Chief Petty Officer
Joined
Jul 5, 2004
Messages
495
Re: Purchasing items from iboats WARNING!!

Yes and no I sort of agree with INTERNETOUTBOARDS. <br />I agree with the be nice part. <br /> I have a small salvage yard myself and while it is a small business, I'm fairly certain we move more parts than any salvage yard in the state. (not money, but parts).<br /> AND...A customers attitude is a major influence if there is a problem.<br /> BUT....If I SOLD the part, no matter when, what, where it came from....a problem may not be my fault...but it IS my responsibility.<br /> UPS breaks it, may or may not be my fault. but it is my responsibility. I take care of the problem and then I'll go after who was at fault.<br /> <br /> This was not a warranty issue. This was a NEW item that was defective.<br /> There is a difference. Buy a new Chevrolet, engine problems six months later...GM warranty will probably be accepted, although reluctantly.<br /><br /> Buy a new Chevrolet, it won't start when you walk out of the showroom....I'd like to see a persons reaction to mention of "gm warranty".
 
B

brownies

Chief Petty Officer
Joined
Jul 5, 2004
Messages
495
Re: Purchasing items from iboats WARNING!!

I was not so much ranting and raving when I typed my first post....as I was trying to get iboats attention.<br /> I have purchased many things from this website and this is my first problem.<br /> One minute into my 1st phone call and it seemed like refund or exchange was going to be no problem. At that point I was not just an iboats fan....I was then an iboats worshiper.<br /> Then things got worse and I was not liking what I was hearing.<br /><br /> BUT, It seems iboats is everthing I have thought they were from the first few orders I placed with them.<br /> IBOATS DID call me back and apologized for the run around and said that THEY would work things out with their supplier and THEY would work things out with me. (I thought I should be dealing with the company that sold me the item, and seems that thought is mutual).<br /> Solution is in the works.<br />Thanks to WHIT at Iboats.com.
 
B

brownies

Chief Petty Officer
Joined
Jul 5, 2004
Messages
495
Re: Purchasing items from iboats WARNING!!

IBOATS is back to the top of the list as far as this customer is concerned.<br />Maybe it was a bit of confusion between myself and iboats, or iboats and their supplier, or ???<br /> Either way, problem is being addressed by Whit at iboats and that's a good thing.<br /> Seems iboats customer service is exactly where it should be. <br /> My thanks to the customer support personell at iboats.com.
 
1

18rabbit

Captain
Joined
Nov 14, 2003
Messages
3,202
Re: Purchasing items from iboats WARNING!!

Glad to hear it all worked out for you. As L.I. Chuck mentioned, only buy with a credit card, if there’s a problem, the sponsoring bank will reverse the charges. Reversing charges is so common now many banks will do it with a simple phone call, tho technically your dispute needs to be in writing.<br /><br />Whose problem is it, iboats? yours? or the manfs? Depends on where you live and what your state’s laws are. How it will be resolved depends on the integrity of the businesses involved. Because it was DOA, you should not have to pay the return shipping charges, you should be supplied with a UPS drop tag (prepaid label).<br /><br />Fwiw, Brownies, if you were just a couple states over, in California, every retailer of Motorguide products is also required by state law to an authorized drop-off point for any warranty repairs. Any electronics reveived DOA can be exchanged at any retailer. If the retailer doesn't cooperate, a local small claims court can help adjust their attitude. I have never encountered a retailer that didn’t accept an electrical/electronics item purchase from somewhere else. Sometimes they grumble about it, but they all play along.<br /> :)
 
D

DHPMARINE

Captain
Joined
Dec 16, 2003
Messages
3,688
Re: Purchasing items from iboats WARNING!!

Hope things continue to work out for you.<br />I would have reccommended some trouble shooting,as should have Iboats and Motorguide.It may have been a simple solution.Maybe not.<br /><br />Yes,a credit card is a great idea,but it works both ways.This past summer a customer had us repair a small ******* outboard.After picking it up and using it,he dropped it and broke some parts.Back in the shop.While there for repairs,the front office told me he refused to pay the credit card bill for the first repair.He claimed it was warranty work.We explained to the credit card company the motor was never registered,so ****** would not pay us.The credit company did.<br /><br />DHP
 
Boomyal

Boomyal

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Aug 16, 2003
Messages
12,072
Re: Purchasing items from iboats WARNING!!

IMHO, regardless of retailer warranty responsibility statements, DOA's are the retailers responsibility.......
 
B

brownies

Chief Petty Officer
Joined
Jul 5, 2004
Messages
495
Re: Purchasing items from iboats WARNING!!

Possible scenarios:<br />1. It only took us 2 days to get that first trolling motor to you, which is why we think you bought it from us. (you probably needed one and 2days off the water may just be killin you). We apologize that you wound up with a defective item. We will send another at no charge asap and you can be back on the water 2 days from now. Just send that defective one back to us when you can.<br /> (I've done that for people before...it's RARE, but, This type of action is based on my opinion of the CUSTOMER involved). I'd NEVER expect that of ANY large corporation.<br /><br />2. Send it back, If really defective we will send you another at no cost. Turnaround time 7-10 working days. (reluctant to accept, but, acceptable and easy).<br /><br />3. Same as (2), but, with a refund offer. (reluctant to accept, but, better)<br /><br />4. We didn't make it, call motorguide, send it to them, they open back up on the 3rd, and maybe they will fix it, hard to say....good luck. (turnaround time 4weeks to never. At best a repaired or remanufactured NEW item just like the ones you could have bought for half price...but, you get to wait a few months to find out anything).<br /><br />5. I'll buy another one from you RIGHT NOW so that I can be back on the water in 2 days. I'll send this one back today as well. Just refund on the defective one when it gets there.<br /><br /> I tried for (5), was told (4), was thinking up a few new scenarios, and was called back and offered (1). <br /> Yep....number (1). <br />My gratitude and appreciation toward iboats.com is now on whole new level.
 
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