Non-existent customer service.......

Nelo USA and importer-rep Michael Martinov. He has know about my warranty issue for over five months, and over three months ago, promised me reimbursement for a local repair that I paid for out of pocket. In the meantime, many claims of “It should be in the works” but no results. No result as well for the dealer I bought from, who has an identical boat with the same problem. I absolutely love the boat now that it’s fixed, but do not recommend dealing with this company or this guy.

Mikey, pay up
Talk the talk and walk the walk.

I think that …
… the Bulgarian and Russian mafia have teamed-up to conspire against you since you used a non “union” repair facility instead of one of their own -:wink:



Seriously though, despite the disproportionate # of slavic names in the list of Nelo worldwide reps, I do not think that’s the case. Just looks like poor customer service aided probably by misguided cost-cutting and no customer tracking software to remind Nelo’s customer service or fulfilment branches of their duties…

Curious
I’m curious - which boat and what was the problem?



That’s lousy about the lack of service, it’s always dicey to deal with a company with only a toe in the water in the US market - too easy to shake it off and run away…

I feel your pain
although with a different dealer and manufacturer. I too am very satisfied with my boat but only after I had to shell out some bucks to have my seat reglassed after less than 90 days of ownership. Live and learn who to do business with and who to avoid.

I’ve gotten the run around
from some of the biggest names in the paddling/sports equipment business. Unusable boat due to a MFR defect in one case and a rack that did considerable damage to a composite boat in another. The bottom line is, well, the bottom line. They realize that an unsatisfied customer will do them little harm. They either won’t pay at all or won’t pay unless they are forced. Welcome to the way it is.

The boat…
…an otherwise well built Inuk…with a deck seam which delaminated. Had either wax from the gelcoat, or mold release which wasn’t wiped off before application of the seam. The real drag is having a boat with a two year warranty that actually has NO warranty…due to thier unwillingness to honor it. Oh well…

Sympathy
It is very discouraging trying to deal with issues and not getting anywhere!

But when we get good sevice a lot of us remain silent.

I had some issues with my Impex Force 4 and after a discussions with them they picked up my boat for repair and gave my a loaner to boot.

Thanks Impex!

I second Impex
I had some trouble myself with a Currituck and an Assateague. Impex acknowledged the fault and replaced both kayaks with custom layup and colors of my choice.

And then they shipped them to Australia.

Stuff happens and it does (with all kayaks) but the difference is in the manufacturers customer service.

Impex has proven to be an outstanding company that really stands behind their product.

Valley
I noticed a crack in my plastic seat and contacted Sea Kayak Georgia where I bought it. Ronnie returned my call in 5 minutes, contacted Valley, and they shipped me a new seat at my request.



Took a few weeks to get here but I’m very pleased with th e new seat.

Sea Kayak Georgia…
…I’ve been goin’ there and knowin’ them since '02…and they are the best!!!

customer service
Now days it pays to find out about customer service before buying a product-any consumer product–I’m glad to have purchased a Hurricane Kayak and Bending Branches paddle–both companies have excellant after purchase service

Alder Creek…
Alder Creek Kayak in Oregon has fantastic customer service.

I live on the east coast and have done business with them through their website and email. They have always provided exceptional customer service…they are the best!

Manuf., rep, and dealer reviews needed
This is why I feel strongly that a section here at paddling.net for reviews of manufacturers, regional reps, and dealers would be very helpful to consumers.



Yes, such reviews would be personal and subjective, but a trend would emerge from them that would allow us to avoid a bad experience.



I traveled to another state to do business with a specific dealer who I had a good sense about. Very glad I did as when problems occurred they were immediately rectified by the dealer (over the objections of the rep). That kind of excellent service should be publicized.



My kayak is worth more than my car. Most people check out manufacturers and dealers carefully before buying a car. We need to be able to do the same with a kayak purchase. If a manufacturer knows their service will be publicized, they will be more careful choosing their reps and dealers, and institute better customer-service training and standards.



I commend the poster for publishing his negative experience. Takes guts.

Hurricane?
Nah. Tried to contact them…no phone, only email. Email sent with phone number request and email reply was to just send us your questions. I replied and another 2-3 days later, same answer. I replied thanks, but no thanks. A few days later, they send a cell phone contact number. Not inspiring CS in my opinion.

i have the same problem
with Ocean Kayaks.

P&H
I may as well weigh in. Excellent customer service from P&H kayaks. Bought two Scorpios in the spring, a couple minor issues. One with the seat and another with a skeg cable. Called P&H in North Carolina and had replacement cables and seat repair kit in no time. Extremely friendly and very concered about the problems, I believe they went out of their way to rectify the situation and make sure they have a satisfied customer. BTW, I recommend the Scorpios if looking for a 17’ boat.

Customer service
Good idea to have a central register to log in experiences. However how to make sure the comments are genuine? I mean, not a plant by an employees of the manufacturer (the little P&H advertising above is odd… and very much like many similar ones) or bad mouthing by a competitor?

Current pnet system works well
for reviewing kayaks. You could wonder the same about the kayak reviews—are they genuine? Are they by company reps? A disgruntled employee? Same question across the internet with all reviews of products and services, and would be no worse for reviews of mnaufacturers, reps, and dealers.



All it would take would be a new subcategory of reviews here at pnet.

Advertising!
I do not and have never worked for P&H! I am just informing P-net readers of my experience with the company’s customer service, which I thought was the purpose of this discussion. I guess my “advertising” posted earlier shows that I am happy with their product and service. Is something wrong with that? I better not tell you I like Bush’s Baked Beans or I may be accused of manufacturing baked beans.

jbwiz