Shi**y service.......

[suzbnd12]

I don't know about the rest of you but I do quite a bit of business over the internet and I demand good service from a company with which I choose to spend my hard earned money. Most companies. as a whole, do a pretty good job but I can not say this is true with Bell's Suzuki out of Lexington Kentucky.

On July 7th, I ordered 2 items from them and on July 11th they charged my credit card for the 2 items without shipping either one of them. I emailed them after a couple of weeks and got no response so I called them long distance since they have no toll free number on their website.
They told me that one of the items was on backorder but they would ship the available item, which I received at the end of July. After a 3rd phone call in the last week and a half to them, I finally received my second backordered item today, August 9th.

The only communication that I received from their company in this whole matter was when they shipped the backorder. Other than that, I was totally in the dark about the whole process.

Moral of the story: Don't do business with Bell's Suzuki.

Customer service like this I can do without so I'm just passing on a heads up to the rest of you people.

Bill
'05 B12S

[billybandit]

Why don't you start up "Bill's Suzuki" and offer better service? You could be rivals!

Write to a popular magazine about it so more people know to avoid that place. Sorry about the poor service.

Ps nice name

[Landry]

What is it with the backorders?  Seriously!!

It's simple, Mr. Salesman, either you have the item or you don't.  Period.

Most of the time that I am caught in the backorder purgatory, there's a perfectly useable part floating on some shelf somewhere.  

Meanwhile I sit and wait, without any info whatsoever, while the person too incompetent to check HIS OWN inventory at the time of the order is out scurrying and trying to find my part on SOMEONE ELSE'S inventory.  Nice.  

I've gotten into the habit of not dealing with places without toll-free numbers (I mean c'mon . . . show some effort, get a toll-free where I can bitch!), and I also try to speak with a live human to verify that I am not about to play "Backorder Backgammon" for the next few weeks.

The only way to make it any worse is to be on backorder during riding season.  Now THAT really sux!

[suzbnd12]

I've gotten into the habit of not dealing with places without toll-free numbers (I mean c'mon . . . show some effort, get a toll-free where I can bitch!),

Thanks Landry. I'm adopting your policy.

Sorry service burns my  

Bill
'05 B12S

[PeteSC]

I hate that, also.
  If they don't have something in stock, they should at least contact you within 24 hours and ASK if you want to wait for the item, and then only bill you for it when they ship it.

[terrebandit]

Chapparel handled me like that one time before and i said never again.  

If I need OEM parts I now head down to my favorite dealership, unfortuately its about 45 miles from my house (no problem - please read on).  Whats great is that I know the parts and service manager down there because I've been going in there shop for about 3 years now.  They are real nice people and they answer my questions when I need them to.  I too am drawn to the lower prices on the internet (Ron Ayers, JT motorsports, etc) but what I found is that my favorite dealer will often times get real close on the prices that are offered at these "on-line" stores, plus I don't have to pay huge shipping costs (just tax instead which is less).  The distance is no big deal because, I like riding in that area so its just an excuse for me to get out for a ride to get prices.  Once the parts arrive in their shop, the parts manager who lives in the same town as me will meet me on his way home for work, thereby saving me a trip back.  Now thats customer service!  I swear, if I am ever in the market for a new Suzuki motorcycle, I will buy it from them  definately!

Athens Suzuki in Texas Rocks!  

Dave

[Jehu Bandit]

It's like anyone can get in to the internet mail order business - just set up a website, advertise everything on the entire World Wide Web for sale, take credit card orders and then run around and try to obtain them before the customer gets too pissed off. I would not need an offcie, a warehouse or even a telephone based upon the way some of these outfits operate.

"Zero inventory" is a business model practiced by many, even the manufacturing giants. The idea is to have the fender arrive at the receiving door just moments before the fenderless car is arriving at the "fending bolting on point" in the assembly line - then, according tot he plan the manufacturer will have his product out the door and paid for before the bill becomes due on the fender. It's a great business model on paper and does lend itself to cash flow efficiency but SUCKS for the consumer when dealing with a retailer.

I'm with the above post. I want a toll free number and a real live person on the other end taking my CC number and telling me if the item is IN STOCK or not.

[Red01]

"Zero inventory" is a business model practiced by many, even the manufacturing giants. The idea is to have the fender arrive at the receiving door just moments before the fenderless car is arriving at the "fending bolting on point" in the assembly line - then, according tot he plan the manufacturer will have his product out the door and paid for before the bill becomes due on the fender. It's a great business model on paper and does lend itself to cash flow efficiency but SUCKS for the consumer when dealing with a retailer.

 
They've been trying that for years where I work. They call it Just In Time (JIT). Seems the corporate motto is "Inventory is Evil!" Might work OK for building cars or smaller stuff, especially when parts/options are few or non-existant, but it doesn't work so well when you're putting together multi-million piece jigsaw puzzles where nearly every one is different and parts don't arrive on time... Then because some parts are late, you can't continue with the parts that connect or cover up the late parts. The other problem is when you run functional tests and a component fails, there's nothing in stock to replace it with so you either wait for a replacement (if you have the time), or go cannibalize an upsteam plane (providing there is one that's using the part you need at a level of completetion that you can rob it for your part)... Now you're removing and replacing parts twice instead of just once.
I could go on, but I don't wanna bore you... [/soapbox]

[NCBANDIT]

I have really started giving ron ayers almost all of my business as they have whatever I order sitting at my house the next day. I ordered a choke cable from the local stealership once and It took 2 weeks to receive it. That's not all that bad, but the parts guy told me 2 days, then tomorrow, and then tomorrow and so on. If they wouldn't lie to you and just tell you that it may take a few weeks it wouldn't be so bad.



Red 01, a head's up
The new JIT type system is called "lean manufacturing" I have just been through a class on this where I work. If they start pushing this in your workplace you should just sleep through it, it's almost identical.
And oddly enough, the factory simulation we did in the class was an airplane factory.

[Red01]

Red 01, a head's up
The new JIT type system is called "lean manufacturing" I have just been through a class on this where I work. If they start pushing this in your workplace you should just sleep through it, it's almost identical.
And oddly enough, the factory simulation we did in the class was an airplane factory.

Too late... we've been subject to that set of buzz-words, too.
Having trouble sleeping? You can read about Boeing Lean Manufacturing from a 3rd party.

"Our entire enterprise, will be a lean operation characterized by the efficient use of assets, high inventory turns, excellent supplier management, short cycle times, high quality and low transaction costs."

Boeing's 'Vision 2016' Statement, in 2002.

     

[gsxr400 racer]

I hate that, also.
  If they don't have something in stock, they should at least contact you within 24 hours and ASK if you want to wait for the item, and then only bill you for it when they ship it.

This is how it should be , what pete said . Im in the parts business and sometimes i come across back orders mostly suzuki oem parts , and a few odds and ends , most shop deal with back order phillips ( wich is lockhart phillips) this is where most of the sport bike stuff comes from. and most places need half down or all payed before they order stuff . i do call peeps all the time but im not gonna hold someones hand till the part comes in! Ill call ya to let you know its back ordered , your choice then. and ill call when it comes in but i also give a estimated date of the back order part to be released. But nothing is worse than the guy that needs to go home and abuse his wife some more save the yelling for the miss's . act like a human and be treated like one!  

[B6mick]

I will not comment on what happens state-side,
But here in oz it sucks big time, the only gripe I have with the ownership of the wee bandit, is the lack of parts kept, at suzuki Aust, for the dealers to draw from. Now as I said on the Oz forum, one place in melb at least has seen the short fall and does keep stock, and thank god for him. Mick Hone Motorcycles, and for the most part his prices shyte all over the other suzuki dealerships around. A few years back suzuki Aust removed dealerships from bike shops, and for varying reasons, maybe they need to have a good long look at themselves. 3 weeks for a common as dog shyte part, thats common to at least 4 different models, is total crap ( I have been known to end up making new parts quicker than suzuki can supply ).  The one good thing I can say for HD, tomorrow I can walk into the dealership in town, and ask for a genuine full bearing kit for a 42 WL gearbox and have it in my hand quicker than it takes me to pull the cash from the wallet. Suzuki could do much much better when it comes to parts.