A R E Inc

Review: I have ordered 3 custom canopies from A.R.E. in the past, but this 4th order has been a disaster. Drastically wrong color, and a ladder rack that did not fit the canopy. This is a major problem for me because this is a business vehicle with color linked advertising, and needs a functional ladder rack. I had anticipated putting the truck into service this week and scheduled work for new hires. Now, because the truck has no functional ladder rack, my employees cannot do the work I have arranged for them. I need this vehicle up and running. Normally, I would expect the business that made the errors to compensate somehow, but A.R.E. Has dragged their feet on every part of the modifications. They have refused to pay for local shops to complete the needed work of paint and rack modifications, and have also made NO efforts to expedite a return of the canopy to the factory for modifications. The canopy is still sitting at the dealership waiting on a truck to take it back almost two weeks after the problems were identified. Meanwhile, I have lost work time, and lost income from the delays amounting to $600/day. Also, ARE refuses to acknowledge any problem with the ladder rack even though both the Dealership and myself have taken photos of proper ladder rack operation and why this ladder rack will not work. They are refusing to modify the rack, replace the rack or even return the rack for a refund. I have been a loyal ARE customer since 2006 and am frankly disgusted at the treatment I am getting.. If this is how they treat customers that have spent over 17,000 dollars on their products, I can only imagine how poorly other clients are treated.Desired Settlement: Refund on return of ladder rack, or pay to have it modified by a local shop.Expedited paint. Preferably by paying for it to be done by a local shop.Compensation for lost work time. $1200 for at least two days, even though I have lost already 10 days of labor time from lack of proper equipment for my employees.

Business

Response:

We would like to address the consumer's issues in order of his statement:

Review: I purchased the A.R.E. canopy in 2009. Recently after washing the vehicle I noticed water coming in the back of the truck from the rear window. There was a space where the frame of the window was attached to the fiberglass shell. I immediately took my truck to the closest repair shop. Both myself and the repair shop took pictures of the problem. It was obvious that the fiberglass was failing to hold the window in place. Later the fiberglass failed completely and the window is now hanging by the other half of the rivets on the other side. I took more pictures and notified A.R.E. They are refusing to honor their lifetime guarantee on the fiberglass falsely claiming that it is a window issue and not covered. As I showed in pictures and pointed out the rivets are still intact from the window frame and the fiberglass clearly shows failure. A.R.E. if failing to fulfill their contractual agreement to warrant their fiberglass due to poor design and manufacturing.Desired Settlement: I want A.R.E. to successfully repair the fiberglass and reinforce the fiberglass so that this doesn't happen again. I do not just want epoxy to be put on the window frame since this gives no structural integrity to normal road vibrations put on a vehicle.

Business

Response:

Hi [redacted],

Review: "Unfortunately"... ARE blamed us for deterioration of the fiberglass topper. They indicate that we were neglectful; even though it took a paint professional to bring it to our attention aprox. 1 1/2 months ago. ARE warranties these products with a lifetime warranty useable by the original owner. This vehicle is 13 years old...we feel they do not expect people to have their vehicles that long...therefore using "neglect" as an avenue of escape in the coverage.Desired Settlement: Unfortunately...One of the Managers answers her voice mail with "have a blessed day".....to us, at this point in our dealings and dissatisfaction with ARE...we would not use them since it appears they are using The Lord as a sales tool. The only resolution at this point would be fully refunding the cost to replace this with another custom truck topper of similar value at today's cost.

Business

Response:

A.R.E. offers a limited lifetime warranty on our truck caps and tonneau covers. The warranty extends to the original owner as long as it is on the original truck, which is the case here. However, we do have several exclusions to our warranty, one of which is neglect. After carefully reviewing the consumer's photos and consulting with our authorized A.R.E. Dealer who was viewing the cap in person, the damage to the consumer's cover is being excluded from our warranty due to neglect. It has nothing to do with the age of the unit, it is quite simply a case of neglect, which we can not cover under our warranty.

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.

Regards,

[redacted] The last thing we would ever do is "Neglect" anything we owned....the vehicle is in outstanding condition...we have babied that truck ever since we purchased it. "Neglect" is not a very nice word to attach to us and to our way of life. ....of course your dealer would go along with you...he wants to keep your relationship healthy....you think?...we purchased this in "Good Faith" with a "Lifetime warranty"....we are not neglectful......quite possibly you are neglecting the customer........in this day and age that seems to be the "norm".....my family and I do not treat people this way....even when provoked.

Review: My complaint is simple, stand behind your warranty. You can see I have had nothing but problems with this truck cap since I got it (in my e-mails and receipts). Four months after purchasing I had to send back at my expense because the fiberglass was all busted up. ARE told toys for trucks that I neglected my truck.

Now the back latch busted off and the fiberglass around the door is cracking . You can see this in the pictures I attached the thin black lines. Once again, they told toys for trucks that it looks like I neglected my truck. My truck is my pride and joy. It is 11 years old and looks like brand new. How do they come off saying that I neglect my truck?Desired Settlement: I would like a new fiberglass cap along with the back door. They can take my windows out of my old cap. ARE wanted to fix the fiberglass, but you can't fix the cracks in fiberglass they will appear again.

Business

Response:

I am very sorry for the issues with your truck cap. A.R.E. offers a competitive warranty that will help support our customers. However, our warranty does have time limitations. In this specific situation, the issues under question are nearly 5 years outside of warranty coverage. Because of this, we will not be able to cover this under warranty. Feel free to contact us directly at [redacted] with any other questions.

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.

Regards,

My issue is with the fiberglass being cracked around the rear door.As long as I own the truck,lifetime warranty on paint and fiberglass.Because of the poor craftsmanship,my truck cap is falling apart.All I want is a new fiberglass shell.A.R.E can take my old glass out and put it in the new shell.