Be careful when you are looking for a hot tub

[luigi311]

Many of you may remember that I had dealings with an unscrupulous dealer here in St Louis.  He had an attorney threatening to sue me.  Turns out after I talked to my attorney, I found out that this is a common practice  used to scare people.

DO NOT BELIEVE WHAT THE SALESPEOPLE SAY THEY WILL DO.  GET IT IN WRITING!

In my case, the salespeople, owner and attorney told many lies and it took about 4 months to get my deposit back to me for good.

Their attorney told me that any judge in America would side with them.  It was an open and close case.  

Well, he was wrong and I won!!!  There have been posts about a certain ST LOUIS dealer on this site.  Just be careful.  

[Guzz]

Good for you Luigi! I remember your predicament and am glad it turned out in your favor, are you still looking to buy a spa or have already done so?

[J._McD]

That's good news luigi, it is truely a disappointment, I am sure, to have to endure what you experienced.  None of us really know the whole story, but the important thing is that it is behind you now and you can finally move forward.

What other tubs have you considered in STL and does this put you back into the sopping mode?

[luigi311]

I still need to look at Marquis.  They are pretty far from me.  The Caldera is my favorite at the moment.

By the way, after many messages and emails no one from Sundance company has ever tried to get ahold of me.  Several members of this board even gave me 800 numbers that they thought would work.  One emailed back that they see things going downhill since Jacuzzi bought Sundance.

Still would love a hot tub!!!  I'm jealous of you guys!

[Gomboman]

I hate to ask, but, what kind of problem did you have with the dealer?

[orlandoguy]

What on Earth could the sue you for?  If it is for exposing bad customer service for the public to see, I see myself being sued in the future as well.

[Chas]

My policy is to always put everything in writing. I goof now and then, as do most humans, and I absolutely hate it when the customer stares at me and says something like:

"But you said you'd throw in a step..."

So 'get it in writing' is a great idea for any shopper or dealer.

[luigi311]

I was going to buy a hot tub and couldn't decide on color.  So we wrote contract contigent on color.  The salesperson never ran my credit card through.  She then threatened me that my contract would be cancelled if I did not call her before the weekend was over.  I called and left a message and never heard back.

Drove to the store and dealt with another salesperson, who told me he would tell the other salesperson I stopped in.  

Days later I called to speak to the original salesperson, who was not in and had not called me back.  I spoke to salesperson #2 and he told me about an open model and we did a phone contract and I would have to come in and sign it.

Long story short the company never called me back.  And about 3 months later I called to see if my hot tub was in.  Neither salespeople were in, but my hot tub was.  When I asked what tub was there, I was told there were two.  I was shocked.  

Neither sale should have been completed because we never could get all the paperwork done properly and I couldn't get a call back from a salesperson.

I went in to get my money back and was told I had to speak to an owner.  The owner then got his attorney involved because I told the story on the internet.

Long story short, salesperson 2 did not communicate with salesperson 1.  Because both salespeople wanted to get paid, they both put orders in for tubs without having valid contracts.

The owner told me that because the tubs were ordered he had to charge me for them and if I didn't pay he would keep my large deposit.  He then lied to me and told me he had 2 valid signed contracts.

Then I had to fight with him for 4 months to get my money back.

AND I WON!!!

[J._McD]

Luigi, we never had an explanation regarding the details before.  It certainly seems plausable to me that "salespeople" could possible do this, but I find in inexcusable for the ownership not to nip this in the bud and make you happy.

Wow, I have always heard the stories of the "salesman said", but this adds a new dimension.

Shoppers and newbies out there looking for a Hot Tub add this one to your list of things to do before purchasing a Hot Tub, ASK TO BE INTRODUCED TO THE OWNER.  You can thank him for the opportunity you had to shop his product and would like to be able to make a decision soon, but would like to have the assurance that you will be taken care of and could always be able to speak with him, IF EVER NEEDED.

You may never need to, but imagine those who would not be willing to meet the people that are willing to spend 6, 8, 10k, or even more with their establishment.  There is no harm in going to the top, just to know it's there when you need it.

This would have certainly nipped this in the bud.  Thank you Luigi for the additional insight.

[drewstar]

 ...and we did a phone contract and I would have to come in and sign it.

 And about 3 months later I called to see if my hot tub was in.

Neither sale should have been completed because we never could get all the paperwork done properly and I couldn't get a call back from a salesperson.

I went in to get my money back and was told I had to speak to an owner.  The owner then got his attorney involved because I told the story on the internet.

I am glad this all worked out for you in the end. I am surprised though that you did not have to accept one of the two tubs (after all, after 3 months, you went looking to  see if your tub had arrived.So apparently you thought you bought a tub as well) How you get from that,  to I never legally ordered a tub is strange.

Still, I am glad to hear it's behind you and this should be a lesson for everyone that business is business is business and take the time to ensure  the paperwork is all in order.

[Bonibelle]

This kind of reminds me of the time I ordered my first mail order computer. I ordered a Gateway, configured it the way I wanted it, discussed at length all the things I needed and applied for an MBNA Gateway credit card to pay for the computer. I was assured my paperwork was in the mail and the computer would follow shortly. When a couple of weeks went by, no computer, no paperwork, just a new credit card, I called again. There was no record of my order (but my credit was approved). I tired again to order the computer. Weeks again went by no paper work, no computer. I called back and again, no record of an order (I had order number and all). So I took my Gateway credit card and bought a Dell...and I have purchased Dell computers ever since. At least Gateway never charged me for the "lost orders"!

[luigi311]

I knew that my credit card had been charged for a large deposit and it had never been refunded.  Only when I asked for a refund did I get refered to the owner.  He neither confirmed or denied anything the salespeople said.  He was not available many days or very many hours of each day.
He admitted he wasn't sure how all of this happened, but didn't see any ordering mistakes.  So since this is costing him money, I have to forfeit my large deposit.
I asked to speak with him when I was ready to finalize the sale and was told I would have to talk to him later.  He was the only one who could authorize a sale price and even the I could hear him talking in the background and to the salesperson on the phone, he was too busy to talk to me and I would have to call back to try to get a better price.
My deposit was just to hold a tub.  When I called to see if my tub was there, I was just wondering what they were doing with my money.  I really didn't think that they would have one there, much less two or three.