Does distance to dealer matter?

[Debbie1011]

We are looking to buy our first hot tub and need some advice. We have one local dealer that sells HotSpring and Dynasty. They have a good reputation and seem happy to answer questions.

About 50 miles away are more dealers that sell Jacuzzi, Bullfrog, Clearwater and Caldera. Is 50 miles too far to expect reasonable service or should we stay local?

[Holgmi585281]

I would travel any distance to get great service and a Knowledgable dealer. Here in the UK there are heaps of the usual cheap fly by night hot tub cowboy shops. Unfortunately most people are attracted by cheap prices (too good to be true prices). We have Artesian about 35miles away ,jacuzzi around 20miles away . I didnt visit Artesian but i did Jacuzzi although the assistant there didnt instill much confidence for me. In the end i went for dealer reputation . They are superb , i had spoken to people who bought from them and they have a great aftersales service . I travelled 2hrs 25mins by car (139miles) to the showroom and am currently waiting for delivery and installation on Saturday 8th June. Find a reputable dealer that will look after you . The distance is nothing if you dont get great service when you need it . 

[BullFrogSpasMN]

It's all relative the size of town/metropolitan area you live in...in my case 50 miles isn't considered much at all, our techs regularly travel 20-40 miles one way due to the large market we cover, with that said 1 question I would ask would be what are the trip charges associated with them coming out to service the spa.  Trip charges are common (even under warranty, it's the business covering it's costs) but just make sure they aren't 'overcharging' for that 50 mile distance, I've seen some dealers trying to charge $200+ for that distance which is overcharging imo, $75-$100 would be reasonable...just my opinion of course

[Holgmi585281]

Hmmm  that suprises me even under warranty? I have seen lots of comments on various forums and ratings sites regarding charging to come and take a look . That's not something that generally happens here if at all. Is this just the hot tub industry or do other  industries do the same ? Vehicles etc or self employed people.

[BullFrogSpasMN]

Hmmm  that suprises me even under warranty? I have seen lots of comments on various forums and ratings sites regarding charging to come and take a look . That's not something that generally happens here if at all. Is this just the hot tub industry or do other  industries do the same ? Vehicles etc or self employed people.

trip charges are VERY common in the hot tub industry, not like I communicate with every dealer across the country but we do check up on 'market rates' for service costs, etc and do speak with other companies to compare and I don't really know of any dealers NOT charging one, I do know I have 5 competitors within a 8 mile radius of my store and they all have 'trip charges' as well.  The manufacturer covers labor (onsite) + parts so these charges are needed to maintain the business. If I'm paying a technician $20 an hour and he's driving a service van 75 miles in a day doing 5 warranty calls you can bet any business isn't absorbing all those costs (gas, tech wages, insurance, etc) it's simply not sustainable.

[castletonia]

Within reason, distance doesn't matter.  I just sold a hot tub that is 145 miles from my store.  I was upfront with my customer that we would not be able to respond to service requests as timely as if he was 5 miles away and I do write it into the sales contract about service call fees.

I would say 50 miles is not that far if the dealer is reputable. 

[castletonia]

Hmmm  that suprises me even under warranty? I have seen lots of comments on various forums and ratings sites regarding charging to come and take a look . That's not something that generally happens here if at all. Is this just the hot tub industry or do other  industries do the same ? Vehicles etc or self employed people.

Trip charges can be necessary if the dealer doesn't want to lose money on every warranty service call.  I sell Hot Spring, Caldera, and Marquis, all considered reputable manufacturers.  The labor rate they pay under warranty would allow me to not lose money if the service call could be completed in 1 hour including drive time to and from the store.  Anything more than that and we are losing money.  Keep in mind, there is more cost associated than just the service techs hourly wage.  Gas, insurance, vehicle wear & tear all add up.  Plus a competent tech costs more.

Each dealer is different.  I don't charge trip charges unless it is specified in the sales contract (likely due to excessive mileage) or if the hot tub came from a different dealer.  Now, if it is something stupid like a dirty filter, then I charge.

[The Wizard of Spas]

Hmmm  that suprises me even under warranty? I have seen lots of comments on various forums and ratings sites regarding charging to come and take a look . That's not something that generally happens here if at all. Is this just the hot tub industry or do other  industries do the same ? Vehicles etc or self employed people.

Manufacturers leave the language in the warranty open-ended so that each dealer can decide how they choose to conduct the labor-aspect of the warranty, due to the amount of variables:  Service radius, price of gas, market indicators (competition saturation, quality of service provided, what is and isn't included in service, extras/freebies, etc).  Everyone is in a unique situation, so it is tough to say that all things should be treated the same.  For instance - is the tub in a deck? Is it in a pit? Are you X miles away and require extra cost for trip charge? Is the tub full-foamed, how old the tub is, so on, so forth...

The dealer is - in my opinion - 50% of the decision when buying a tub.  The product may be stellar, but if the dealer is of poor repute, you'll find that warranty / no warranty / partial warranty is close to irrelevant. 

I hope this helps.  Good luck moving forward.

[BullFrogSpasMN]

Hmmm  that suprises me even under warranty? I have seen lots of comments on various forums and ratings sites regarding charging to come and take a look . That's not something that generally happens here if at all. Is this just the hot tub industry or do other  industries do the same ? Vehicles etc or self employed people.

Trip charges can be necessary if the dealer doesn't want to lose money on every warranty service call.  I sell Hot Spring, Caldera, and Marquis, all considered reputable manufacturers.  The labor rate they pay under warranty would allow me to not lose money if the service call could be completed in 1 hour including drive time to and from the store.  Anything more than that and we are losing money.  Keep in mind, there is more cost associated than just the service techs hourly wage.  Gas, insurance, vehicle wear & tear all add up.  Plus a competent tech costs more.

Each dealer is different.  I don't charge trip charges unless it is specified in the sales contract (likely due to excessive mileage) or if the hot tub came from a different dealer.  Now, if it is something stupid like a dirty filter, then I charge.

Castle what part of the country are you in? just curious

[castletonia]

Hmmm  that suprises me even under warranty? I have seen lots of comments on various forums and ratings sites regarding charging to come and take a look . That's not something that generally happens here if at all. Is this just the hot tub industry or do other  industries do the same ? Vehicles etc or self employed people.

Trip charges can be necessary if the dealer doesn't want to lose money on every warranty service call.  I sell Hot Spring, Caldera, and Marquis, all considered reputable manufacturers.  The labor rate they pay under warranty would allow me to not lose money if the service call could be completed in 1 hour including drive time to and from the store.  Anything more than that and we are losing money.  Keep in mind, there is more cost associated than just the service techs hourly wage.  Gas, insurance, vehicle wear & tear all add up.  Plus a competent tech costs more.

Each dealer is different.  I don't charge trip charges unless it is specified in the sales contract (likely due to excessive mileage) or if the hot tub came from a different dealer.  Now, if it is something stupid like a dirty filter, then I charge.

Castle what part of the country are you in? just curious

Wisconsin

[Sam]

We've got customers that are up to 4 or 5 hours away and always manage to work things out satisfactorily.  Sometimes you gotta take one on the chin and send a tech out for an entire day on a call.  If they purchase an entry level spa, there's going to be less wiggle room.  If they bought a $14k spa, we'll bite the bullet.  Either way, it's our responsibility to manage the situation appropriately.  If it's a crappy dealer with a bad rep, I would be cautious even if they were close.  It would be a deal breaker if I were far away and the dealer was suspect.  50 miles is not a big deal in my opinion, if the dealer inspires confidence in their support.  I would ask them if it will have any effect on customer service and see what they say.

As for trip charges, every place that I have worked has had a trip charge and I think it's reasonable to do so.  I had a couple of issues arise under my home warranty and had to pay a trip charge.  When my newer refrigerator failed, the parts and labor were covered but I was assessed a travel charge.  You can't compare it to a car because the dealership doesn't send a tech to your house.

That said, we usually waive the trip charge within the first year.  Definitely within the first 6 months, unless other extenuating factors are at play such as large distance or difficult access.  If we make a mistake we certainly will waive the charge in that case as well.