Tire Rack SUCKS!!!
Dec 15, 2004, 02:01 PM
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Tire Rack SUCKS!!!
Well, another crap experience with Tire Rack. Previously, I have had to chase down a UPS truck because Luke got my shipping and billing zip codes and street addresses mixed up. Got a 50 dollar gift certificate for that one, so purchased a set of Kumho MX's this past summer. That went fine, so I figured why not order again?
Order a set of 205/65/15 Blizzak WS-50's from Neal in the morning. I did a miscalculation with tire size, so I called him back 2 hours later and asked if they could simply remove the shipping label from those tires and place them on a set of 205/60/15 Blizzak WS-50 tires. He said that he can't do that. This was at 2 in the afternoon. I asked for a tracking number. He was unable to provide one, because they had not left the warehouse yet. I figure it's an easy enough fix to swap them out, especially considering UPS does not pick up for another 3 hours, but Neal says he has no contact whatsoever with the warehouse, which I find hard to believe, considering that he had to get in touch with them SOMEHOW to get the tires shipped to me in the first place.
He advises me that I should refuse the UPS shipment, they will send the tires back to South Bend and my return will be processed and then you can send me new tires. This seems excessively complicated, and leaves me with a tight window before the weather turns to snow/ice, but I comply.
UPS comes, we refuse delivery.
UPS comes again when we're not here and leaves the tires outside.
Great.
Call Neal and tell him I'm not a happy guy. He transfers me to customer service. They say UPS will come by this afternoon to pick them up. Awesome!
UPS never comes.
I call Neal the following day. He doesn't call me back.
I call customer service and speak to Heather. She says they will pick them up today.
UPS never comes.
Call customer service up again. They tell me to leave them outside and that UPS will pick them up.
UPS never comes.
I call again the following day. See a pattern developing here?
Finally, after talking to someone in Customer Service who suggests that I print out a Fed Ex RMA (which was e-mailed to me), bring it to a fedex drop point and have them process it. Why this wasn't mentioned the other 7 times that I called, I have no idea.
Bring the tires to FedEx on my lunch break. Consummate with my experience thus far, it takes an hour to get it done and I don't eat lunch that day.
So here I am, with no tires, out 350 dollars, it's 20 degrees outside and it's going to snow tomorrow and I'm still driving around on Kumho MX Z rated performance tires.
Yes, I'm thrilled.
Go Discount Tire Direct, SCREW Tire Rack.
Order a set of 205/65/15 Blizzak WS-50's from Neal in the morning. I did a miscalculation with tire size, so I called him back 2 hours later and asked if they could simply remove the shipping label from those tires and place them on a set of 205/60/15 Blizzak WS-50 tires. He said that he can't do that. This was at 2 in the afternoon. I asked for a tracking number. He was unable to provide one, because they had not left the warehouse yet. I figure it's an easy enough fix to swap them out, especially considering UPS does not pick up for another 3 hours, but Neal says he has no contact whatsoever with the warehouse, which I find hard to believe, considering that he had to get in touch with them SOMEHOW to get the tires shipped to me in the first place.
He advises me that I should refuse the UPS shipment, they will send the tires back to South Bend and my return will be processed and then you can send me new tires. This seems excessively complicated, and leaves me with a tight window before the weather turns to snow/ice, but I comply.
UPS comes, we refuse delivery.
UPS comes again when we're not here and leaves the tires outside.
Great.
Call Neal and tell him I'm not a happy guy. He transfers me to customer service. They say UPS will come by this afternoon to pick them up. Awesome!
UPS never comes.
I call Neal the following day. He doesn't call me back.
I call customer service and speak to Heather. She says they will pick them up today.
UPS never comes.
Call customer service up again. They tell me to leave them outside and that UPS will pick them up.
UPS never comes.
I call again the following day. See a pattern developing here?
Finally, after talking to someone in Customer Service who suggests that I print out a Fed Ex RMA (which was e-mailed to me), bring it to a fedex drop point and have them process it. Why this wasn't mentioned the other 7 times that I called, I have no idea.
Bring the tires to FedEx on my lunch break. Consummate with my experience thus far, it takes an hour to get it done and I don't eat lunch that day.
So here I am, with no tires, out 350 dollars, it's 20 degrees outside and it's going to snow tomorrow and I'm still driving around on Kumho MX Z rated performance tires.
Yes, I'm thrilled.
Go Discount Tire Direct, SCREW Tire Rack.
Dec 15, 2004, 02:26 PM
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I had no problems with tire rack. Of course I also know how to calculate tire size. Also, did you ever think UPS sucks and didn't follow their directions for pick up. Bet ya didn't think of that one.
Dec 15, 2004, 02:38 PM
#3
It sucks when you're on that end, but that's the way it works between the warehouse and the office. The order is processed and prints over there and the order is pulled. I work for a huge business here that has the offices, plant and warehouse. Now, we can contact our warehouse, and I'm sure they can also. The thing is...you're not the only one ordering that day. It might take them 2 hours to go through that UPS semi trying to find YOUR ORDER to take off. Same thing here, if it's on the truck and has been for a little while...it's buried and is on it's way to you...simple as that. Not really sure why UPS couldn't get the call tags right to have them picked up, but then again...UPS sucks. I try to go FedEx whenever possible, never had a problem with them.
Dec 15, 2004, 03:02 PM
#4
I understand your frustration, so shedding some light on how our process works might help.
It's very similar to how tke_413 works as well. Since this fitment was was off the menu I could not verify any data for you. This is where I have to hope the customer has done his/her research so they go into it knowing exactly what they need. Unfortunately this wasn't the case and a correction had to be made.
When I place an order into the system it gets put into line with all the other orders to be verified for credit card info, pulled off the shelf, and then loaded onto the truck for shipping. This process can take an hour or up to two days depending on the volume of orders that day and price of the order. In your case, verification went quickly and it was loaded onto the truck almost immediately. After a certain point the order cannot be pulled off the truck and stopped by our warehouse. To physically do that would involve unloading the complete truck and all of the orders behind yours that have already been loaded. We do not have the staff or facility to do that. This is why its important to know exactly what you want when ordering. If your not sure, we can put a hold date on the order or you can place the order at a later time.
If you refused shipment when UPS tried to deliver the tires they should not have been delivered the next day. Once an order is shipped its in UPS's hands and they have primary control over what happens with it. If the guy runs the truck off the cliff, if there's a weather condition that delays shipping, if the delivery guy just doesn't follow directions, or plain forgot, that's out of our control. Once call tags are ordered, it can take up to 4 business days for them to show up. Call tags are also the last thing that a UPS driver will deliver that day, sometimes by a completely different driver than your used to. You can always take the tires to a depot (either FedEx or UPS) and ship them back to us. But its usually easier for us to issue tags and have them picked up for you.
Again, I am sorry for the experience you had with this order. I will apologize on behalf of my customer service department for not handling it as smoothly as they could have. However, there stills the fact that the original product ordered was incorrect per the information given to me by you. Were all human and make mistakes but I find it unfair for you to pin the sole blame on The Tire Rack. We could have handled it better, but again the information provided to us was incorrect to start.
It's very similar to how tke_413 works as well. Since this fitment was was off the menu I could not verify any data for you. This is where I have to hope the customer has done his/her research so they go into it knowing exactly what they need. Unfortunately this wasn't the case and a correction had to be made.
When I place an order into the system it gets put into line with all the other orders to be verified for credit card info, pulled off the shelf, and then loaded onto the truck for shipping. This process can take an hour or up to two days depending on the volume of orders that day and price of the order. In your case, verification went quickly and it was loaded onto the truck almost immediately. After a certain point the order cannot be pulled off the truck and stopped by our warehouse. To physically do that would involve unloading the complete truck and all of the orders behind yours that have already been loaded. We do not have the staff or facility to do that. This is why its important to know exactly what you want when ordering. If your not sure, we can put a hold date on the order or you can place the order at a later time.
If you refused shipment when UPS tried to deliver the tires they should not have been delivered the next day. Once an order is shipped its in UPS's hands and they have primary control over what happens with it. If the guy runs the truck off the cliff, if there's a weather condition that delays shipping, if the delivery guy just doesn't follow directions, or plain forgot, that's out of our control. Once call tags are ordered, it can take up to 4 business days for them to show up. Call tags are also the last thing that a UPS driver will deliver that day, sometimes by a completely different driver than your used to. You can always take the tires to a depot (either FedEx or UPS) and ship them back to us. But its usually easier for us to issue tags and have them picked up for you.
Again, I am sorry for the experience you had with this order. I will apologize on behalf of my customer service department for not handling it as smoothly as they could have. However, there stills the fact that the original product ordered was incorrect per the information given to me by you. Were all human and make mistakes but I find it unfair for you to pin the sole blame on The Tire Rack. We could have handled it better, but again the information provided to us was incorrect to start.
Last edited by Neal@tirerack; Dec 16, 2004 at 08:23 AM.
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Dec 15, 2004, 06:39 PM
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Neal,
I called you with the change no more than 2 HOURS after placing the order. You informed me that you could not get me a tracking number yet, indicating that they had not been put on a truck yet. Now let me get this straight, a package can make it onto a truck without you receiving a tracking number?
Fact of the matter is, you could have called and changed the order, but you didn't. Having a lack of communication between sales and shipping like this is just unacceptable in my opinion and this was the last straw for me. After having to physically chase down a UPS driver myself to get a tire that was being shipped to a nonexistintent address on a previous order, I decided to give you guys the benefit of the doubt.
Truth be told, you were too comfortable in your office to pick up the phone and tell the warehouse what to change. You didn't return any of my 6 phone calls or voicemails after the fact and customer service didn't do anything until I talked to the 6th rep 2 days ago. No returned phone calls, pm's or e-mails. You did nothing to help me and if it wasn't for me calling back 2x a day, I'd still be stuck with these things. Call tags or no, it was TIRE RACK'S responsibility to talk to UPS and make sure they picked them up. You dropped the ball on this, not me.
To turn around and blame me for your customer service department not following through with UPS is simply ridiculous. It took 2 WEEKS to get this resolved, and that was only after I lost an hour out of my day bringing them back to FedEx myself.
As a salesman, it is your responsibility to ensure that your customers are happy. Yes, that falls under the realm of customer service, but heaven forbid you should go that little extra mile.
Turning around and blaming a customer for your lack of service? I buy about 24-30 tires a year for my vehicles and can now say that I will never purchase another thing from Tire Rack, period.
I called you with the change no more than 2 HOURS after placing the order. You informed me that you could not get me a tracking number yet, indicating that they had not been put on a truck yet. Now let me get this straight, a package can make it onto a truck without you receiving a tracking number?
Fact of the matter is, you could have called and changed the order, but you didn't. Having a lack of communication between sales and shipping like this is just unacceptable in my opinion and this was the last straw for me. After having to physically chase down a UPS driver myself to get a tire that was being shipped to a nonexistintent address on a previous order, I decided to give you guys the benefit of the doubt.
Truth be told, you were too comfortable in your office to pick up the phone and tell the warehouse what to change. You didn't return any of my 6 phone calls or voicemails after the fact and customer service didn't do anything until I talked to the 6th rep 2 days ago. No returned phone calls, pm's or e-mails. You did nothing to help me and if it wasn't for me calling back 2x a day, I'd still be stuck with these things. Call tags or no, it was TIRE RACK'S responsibility to talk to UPS and make sure they picked them up. You dropped the ball on this, not me.
To turn around and blame me for your customer service department not following through with UPS is simply ridiculous. It took 2 WEEKS to get this resolved, and that was only after I lost an hour out of my day bringing them back to FedEx myself.
As a salesman, it is your responsibility to ensure that your customers are happy. Yes, that falls under the realm of customer service, but heaven forbid you should go that little extra mile.
Turning around and blaming a customer for your lack of service? I buy about 24-30 tires a year for my vehicles and can now say that I will never purchase another thing from Tire Rack, period.
Dec 15, 2004, 06:54 PM
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Tire Rack 
very fast servcie (so order correctly). UPS 
they only come by when you're not home (worse during holiday season).
Ordering wrong things, just plain carelessness which equals
on both ends.
very fast servcie (so order correctly). UPS they only come by when you're not home (worse during holiday season). Ordering wrong things, just plain carelessness which equals
on both ends.
Dec 15, 2004, 06:59 PM
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4G63>OOOO : It's too bad you couldn't just order the correct tires you wanted the first time. Then your tires would have arrived promptly and you wouldn't have to blame others for your initial mistakes. That's my .02 cents.
- Jason
- Jason
Dec 15, 2004, 07:06 PM
#12
I had a similar experience with The Tire Rack with some Lexus brake rotors that I purchased. 2 weeks of drama, and never got my rotors. I ended up cancelling my order.
I too will never purchase from The Tire Rack again, but they have so many customers, they don't really care to lose a couple.
I too will never purchase from The Tire Rack again, but they have so many customers, they don't really care to lose a couple.
Dec 15, 2004, 07:12 PM
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Funny thing is, I could have used the tires Neal sent me, but probably would pop the bead off unless I ran an inner tube or used some bead sealer. Circumference wise, they're close to stock, but talking to a few more seasoned ice drivers, they advised me that there's too much flex in the sidewall to be safe at the loads I'm going to put on it. So I decided to call Neal back and see if he can jump the sidewall down from a 65 to a 60. Less rolling diameter also prevents you from filling the wheelwell with snow and ice. He said it was too late and the rest is history.
Too bad it went down this way. Tire Rack's been good in the past, but you have to draw the line somewhere. I actually asked if he could ship FedEx because of the UPS screwups in the past, but no dice. I guess it's worth losing customers to maintain that relationship with brown. Tire rack's usually convenient, but when you start blaming me for you not following through on a sale, I have to take my business elsewhere, even if I am paying a little bit more. I value respect over saving a few pennies on some rubber.
Too bad it went down this way. Tire Rack's been good in the past, but you have to draw the line somewhere. I actually asked if he could ship FedEx because of the UPS screwups in the past, but no dice. I guess it's worth losing customers to maintain that relationship with brown. Tire rack's usually convenient, but when you start blaming me for you not following through on a sale, I have to take my business elsewhere, even if I am paying a little bit more. I value respect over saving a few pennies on some rubber.
Dec 15, 2004, 07:16 PM
#14
This sounds like something that should be handled by PM, email, or phone conversation. But, since it is on a public forum for all to see, I guess I'll chime in.
The way modern business and shipping works is so intertwined in various computer processes, business practices, etc. that some things that seem simple on the surface are really very complex. At the click of a button, someone halfway across the world could be shoving your order into a box and putting it in something akin to a black hole until it arrives at your doorstep. Sometimes, if something is in the middle of a transaction, it is basically in limbo and nobody can recover it. If TireRack was a small mom & pop operation, you would definitely have a valid gripe. However, TireRack is a large scale business operation, so I believe Neil when he says it couldn't be done as you requested.
As for the UPS mishaps, it's hard to say where the blame lies. Initially it was 100% UPS for delivering a refused order. The follow-up UPS pickup sounds like either a communication breakdown between UPS and TireRack, or someone on TireRack's end dropped the ball following up. It happens.
As for Neil not returning one of your phone calls, well I doubt he stays holed up in his office all the time. I'll bet sometimes he's at home, at lunch, or taking care of personal business. I don't think it's fair to demand 100% availability. However, he is/was obviously trying to help you as best he could, which is more than you can say for 95% of the online businesses that exist.
I feel your pain, and I hate it when things go wrong, but I honestly can't see the merit in your case to boycott TireRack. After all, it was your mistake that threw the wrench in a very well-oiled machine.
Good luck with your tires, and yes how in the heck are you using 15" tires on an Evo?
EDIT: By no means am I telling you not to exercise your freedom of choice and vote with your pocketbook, I'm just saying it doesn't sound like a strong enough case for a general boycot.
The way modern business and shipping works is so intertwined in various computer processes, business practices, etc. that some things that seem simple on the surface are really very complex. At the click of a button, someone halfway across the world could be shoving your order into a box and putting it in something akin to a black hole until it arrives at your doorstep. Sometimes, if something is in the middle of a transaction, it is basically in limbo and nobody can recover it. If TireRack was a small mom & pop operation, you would definitely have a valid gripe. However, TireRack is a large scale business operation, so I believe Neil when he says it couldn't be done as you requested.
As for the UPS mishaps, it's hard to say where the blame lies. Initially it was 100% UPS for delivering a refused order. The follow-up UPS pickup sounds like either a communication breakdown between UPS and TireRack, or someone on TireRack's end dropped the ball following up. It happens.
As for Neil not returning one of your phone calls, well I doubt he stays holed up in his office all the time. I'll bet sometimes he's at home, at lunch, or taking care of personal business. I don't think it's fair to demand 100% availability. However, he is/was obviously trying to help you as best he could, which is more than you can say for 95% of the online businesses that exist.
I feel your pain, and I hate it when things go wrong, but I honestly can't see the merit in your case to boycott TireRack. After all, it was your mistake that threw the wrench in a very well-oiled machine.
Good luck with your tires, and yes how in the heck are you using 15" tires on an Evo?
EDIT: By no means am I telling you not to exercise your freedom of choice and vote with your pocketbook, I'm just saying it doesn't sound like a strong enough case for a general boycot.
Last edited by machron1; Dec 15, 2004 at 07:25 PM.
Dec 15, 2004, 07:17 PM
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Tirerack is the best place to order tires from. They have fair prices, lightning fast shipping and some of the best customer service I've ever seen. We have ordered rims, countless tires, lower springs, and even 2 entire sets of H&R coilovers for a Porsche 911, and a BMW 330xi. No errors in shipping (because we ordered the right thing to start with). An example of their unbelievable customer service.....We order a full set of Breyton 18" rims for a BMW 330xi....when the rims came we saw that there was a knick on one of the rims. We called them and without question the sent out a brand new rim with mounted tire...before we ever sent the other one back......no questions asked. We could have dropped the rim ourselves and it wouldn;t have made a difference....A TOP NOTCH COMPANY!