General > Beating a dead horse

Horrible Treatment and Warranty Claims from Arctic Spas what to do.

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mackle:
I purchased an Arctic Spas Cub from a dealer in Vaughan, Ontario, Canada about 3 years ago. I purchased an Arctic Spa because I thought it was supposed to be the best even though it costed significantly more. I am the kind of person who is willing to pay for quality. Well it turns out that just because you spend more on a spa doesn't mean that you are going to get quality workmanship or service. I have had problems from the beginning with various things going wrong with the spa. The bear paws that turn the diverter valves always break. I've had problems with the capacitors that control the jets numerous times. The jets and other components that were glued into the shell were done so poorly it looks like crap once filled with water, etc. From the get go, apparently, the way it was set up from the dealer and the information that was provided was incorrect. I have wasted so much money on salts and chemicals because of this incorrect information. The last straw was when I discovered two major problems: 1) the surface of the interior shell started to blister and 2) the Forever Base began to crack. Both have 5 year warranties. After the discovery I snapped some pictures and contacted Arctic Spa Service. The guy at the dealership was nice and seemed to handle starting a warranty claim in a timely and efficient manner. I was called back after a week and told that I had two options. Option 1: Arctic Spas will replace the shell and base under warranty, but they will want to move my old equipment over. Option 2: I can pay something like $1800 to upgrade to a new spa. I have already put enough money into the spa so I figured why put another $1800 in. So I opted for the first option, to move my old equipment to the new shell. Well I got a call back with some surprising details: they want me to pay $600 to ship my spa back to the dealer to have the equipment moved over and then back to my house, and then a minimum of $300 for labour to move the equipment over. (By the way, I'm pretty sure they would want me to pay $600 for shipping on top of the $1800 for a new spa plus setup fees) To me this is ridiculous! What is the point of having a warranty when you have to pay for all these expensive extras that they never tell you about in the warranty papers. I consulted my paperwork and contract that I initially signed with Arctic Spas. On all the warranty sections where I needed to initial off that I understand about the warranty, there was no mention whatsoever of these extra costs. Additionally, to be safe, I had the dealer write and initial off on each section that parts and labour are included. Well, too bad for me, but the dealer I bought it from no longer sells Arctic Spas and can't help me out. I called the 1-800 number for Arctic Spas and asked to speak to the warranty claim department. I first spoke to Scott there and told him my problem and that my contract stated nothing about extra costs. His response to me was: "[That contract doesn't mean anything because it is between me and the dealer alone. This is our policy that the customer must pay for shipping from the dealer to the customer.]GET OVER IT! THAT'S LIFE!" I got upset and asked him where he gets off speaking to me in this manner. His response was something to the effect of F*%& Off! I then asked to speak to the president of the company. He put me on hold for a few moments at which time Dennis came on the line. I began to explain the issue and that I am very upset with the way in which I was being treated. He pretty much told me the same thing Scott did also in a very nasty tone. I was so upset with them that I hung up. I cannot believe what Arctic Spas (Blue Falls) has resorted to for "customer service." I spoke with the original dealership who now only sells Jacuzzi. The manager there asked me to send him an email with the details of the problem so that he could take it to the higher ups at Blue Falls. Apparently, no one at Blue Falls would respond to them either. By the way, Jacuzzi doesn't charge their customers anything extra whatsoever for warranty replacements. They even had to rent a crane to remove a spa from a deck to replace it and have it shipped back to the States all on their own dime! Arctic Spas told me that because my spa is in my deck that it is my responsibility to remove it. I'm sure it's my responsibility that the spa shell blistered too as well as the weather being too hot or cold. Harumffff!! Take it from me. DO NOT BUY ARCTIC SPAS or any BLUE FALLS products unless you would like to pay for all the problems you WILL have on your own dime! What can I do?

C2SGuy:
It does sound like your agreement was with the dealer. Just because they quit selling Arctic should not release them from agreements they signed with customers.  I would try to work with them to cover the transport and labor to honor their agreement with you.

Hottubguy:
I can see the shipping not being included as I;'m pretty sure no manufacturer covers that but the $300 to movew equipment over seems absurd to me

Sam:
I'm sorry that you are experiencing issues.  Access to the hot tub and the cost of getting it to the factory are usually the responsibility of the purchaser if the tub cannot be fixed on site, for most hot tub brands.  I don't think that this is anything unique to Arctic.  From the Arctic Spas warranty:


--- Quote ---a. In the event that a spa or component thereof must be
returned to Arctic SpasŪ distribution centre, all freight costs are the responsibility of the spa customer 
--- End quote ---
http://www.arcticspas.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/Arctic-Spas_warranty_english.pdf

You should definitely read a copy of the warranty before purchasing such and expensive product, though this disclaimer is in most hot tub warranties.

As to the crane access; It would be like if you put any appliance in a place that required a crane to get it there and it failed.  Maytag isn't going to hire a crane to remove your refrigerator if it is submerged in a deck and cannot easily be removed.  There are inherent risks when placing a hot tub in difficult to access places.

I don't think that you should have to pay to move the equipment over though.  That part I would fight.

TwinCitiesHotSpring:
yup, definitely read every single part of the FULL warranty before you buy......cost to customer if a Hot Spring has to be shipped back to the factory $0.00...matter of fact they (Watkins) even pays us to pick up the spa from the customers house to ship back

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