Shop Products
Houzz Logo Print
anthonyg_ma

Dealing with incompetent delivery persons

anthonyg_ma
17 years ago

I just have to rant about this - My wife & I bought a new Whirlpool washing machine from the new Lowe's in NH this past weekend. They delivered it this AM. It was raining, and shame on me, I didn't cover the floor/carpet, so it got a bit wet when they brought in the new machine. OK, my bad, and I can accept the blame for that. No big deal. But, when they were moving the new machine into position in the laundry room, they did not install the front feet/levelers first. The sharp corners dug into the vinyl flooring in several places as a result. I only noticed the damage after they left, when I was cleaning up the water/mud. The floor is older and we were thinking of replacing it in the next year or so anyhow. But that's not the point. Now it's ruined and will have to be replaced immediately. They did not exercise adequate care in my opinion. They are supposed to be 'professionals'. I expect my house to be treated with respect.

I contacted Lowe's and they said they have to raise the issue to the appropriate managers, they'll get back to me, yadda, yadda, yadda. I got lip-service basically.

I'm not happy. How have others handled situations like this?

Comments (10)

  • davidandkasie
    17 years ago

    YOU should not have had to cover the floor, they should have done so before they brought anything in. they also should have cleaned up the mess they made, that is built into the delivery. i would complain about the whole thing, not just the scraped floor.

  • pjb999
    17 years ago

    Sounds reasonable to me. In fairness, following up and getting back to you IS the correct procedure, however, if you don't hear back, then you should take it further.

    Big retail organisations are only as good as the little person at the pointy end, and most organisations are painfully aware of this....and usually try to do the right thing. Or one hopes they do.

  • anthonyg_ma
    Original Author
    17 years ago

    To be honest, I'm not expecting them to fix the damage or reimburse me for anything. (although if they do offer I certainly won't say 'no' :-) I just want them to get back to me and acknowledge the issue so it doesn't happen again, to me or anyone else. A little effort on their part can go a long way.

  • drummer13
    17 years ago

    to add insult to injury, you probably signed some 6-part form to set up the delivery, and somewhere buried in teh fine print is probably a disclaimer releasing them from any damage liability.

    But if I was you, I would at the very least, demand some sort rebate or discount on the bill to make up for it.

  • anthonyg_ma
    Original Author
    17 years ago

    I have to admit, I was shocked by Lowe's response. I got a phone call today from the delivery manager, as promised. He was apologetic and, whether he meant it or not, sounded sincere. They offered to give me a $100 refund against the original bill. They also offered to have an insurance adjuster come out to the house if I felt that was not fair, and further evaluate the damage. I really didn't want to turn this into a big ordeal, so I gladly accepted the apology and $100 offer.
    Maybe there's hope for these big box stores yet :-)

  • deweymn
    17 years ago

    May I ask what your profession is?

  • anthonyg_ma
    Original Author
    17 years ago

    Hi deweymn - sure, I'm a Software Engineer at a networking company. Us nerds gotta work somewhere :-)

  • susanjn
    17 years ago

    I had a similar experience with Loews when they delivered my washing machine. They scratched a wood floor, and promptly sent someone out to fix it. I have no complaints.

  • azzalea
    17 years ago

    I like the truly personal service I get dealing with an independently owned store for things like appliances and furniture. Their prices are better than the big stores (I know, I've checked thoroughly and NO ONE beats the prices offered by a local store I deal with), not only that, if you have a problem and call, you speak to the owner, and get prompt action.

    Similar problem when I bought a new washer, dryer a couple of years ago. They brought it in without bothering to put a piece of cardboard between the appliance and the narrow doorway, so it had a few scratches when it was set in place in the basement. I called the store and within the hour, the owner was here, fixing the scratches. Don't exactly know how he managed it, but I've never been able to find them--he did a fantastic job.

    Good to hear, though, that you got decent service from the store you dealt with. You should have mentioned the carpet, though (if you didn't) because they really are responsible for that as well. DH works for a company where the employees are in and out of customer's homes and they take full responsibility for that kind of thing, if a customer complains--as they should.

  • glennsfc
    17 years ago

    I am a flooring professional. Last year I had appliances delivered to a Florida home and stupidly assumed that the delivery technicians would know how to work over flooring, but apparently they did not. I hadn't taken the time to properly protect the flooring, so that was stupid on my part, since I know what to use and how to do it.

    Fortunately, although they slid appliances out and in without floor protection, the floors just had some very minor scrapes. This crew looked a little 'green' so out of my desire to be helpful, I called the foreman of the group over to talk and gave him a bit of friendly advice on how to avoid damaging floors when moving appliances. His response told me that no one had ever discussed this with him and his crew. Why would that not be a part of the training of delivery technicians?

    He thanked me for my input.