Brown Bear Car Wash

The Area Manager for the location followed up on the phone that was made today He has asked the customer to contact the manager of the site on Tuesday, as he is the one who will process the claim

Complaint: [redacted] I am rejecting this response because:On Tuesday, June 30th I received a phone message from "Omar" in the Tacoma location of Brown Bear He stated that he was aware of the incident and that I should contact that manager of the Des Moines location "Steven" upon receipt of his message I contacted Steven via telephone and explained that I would be bringing the vehicle by on Thursday, as I had a family vacation planned and was not going to allow the negligence of the car wash take that away from my family He was cordial, and said to call prior to coming by Upon returning from our trip on Wednesday, we decided to bring the car to Brown Bear for "Steven" to look at the damage and discuss the claim I got out of my vehicle and Steven walked up to me He looked at the vehicle and told me to come into the office At that point Steven stated that there was "NO WAY THE CAR WASH RIPPED OFF MY BUMPER" that "the machines don't just rip off people's bumpers" and that "the machine just helped it along" I was furious! He then stated that he watched the surveillance video and that the machine barely touched my vehicle Seeing as how my bumper was attached when we entered the car wash and NOT attached when we left the car wash, I would have to say that Steven was trying to cover up the fact that Brown Bear car wash ripped the bumper off a $70,vehicle That said, I advised Steven that Brown Bear WAS going to cover the damage, otherwise we were going to wind up in court where a judge could decide and I would seek fees and costs, and not just the $to repair my bumper After threatening Steven with a lawsuit, he proceeded to fill out the incident form, and advise that he was going to call [redacted] of Burien and advise that the repairs were authorized He stated that it could take up to days to receive the check and that the check would be mailed to [redacted] of Burien under our name I signed the incident form, and left Upon arriving home, we contacted [redacted] at [redacted] Burien, and he stated that he had NOT received any such phone call from Steven and that he could not begin any repairs until he in fact received the check as he "knew how these places operated" Steven failed to call and communicate with [redacted] Burien and my vehicle is still sitting in my parking lot with the bumper hanging off due to Brown Bears negligence I feel as though we are being run around by Steven as well as Brown Bear car wash Machines ARE capable of damage, contrary to Steven's accusation that they are not His rudeness and unprofessionalism are unbecoming of a manager, and I am frankly disgusted by the way he has handled this matter I am not driving a Honda Civil hatchbackI am driving a collectible, GT Shelby Cobra Mustang that WAS in pristine condition prior to this mess Brown Bear IS responsible for the damage and are responsible for repairs I am seeking immediate assistance from the Revdex.com and should it be necessary, I will seek assistance from the courts in order to resolve this matter Sincerely, [redacted]

Complaint: [redacted] I am rejecting this response because: The information is not accurateThe company refused to pay for the replacement of the bumper as they felt there was wear and tear on the bumper they did not owe forIn the end, it was not relevant because I did concede to repair the damageThe arm to the machine scuffed the bumper and caused chipped marks on the left sideThe rental was out of my control because they had to send the bumper out to a specialized place that could handle the repairs to it(Which Brown Bear insisted for it to be repaired) I explained to Brown Bear this was a MOAB edition with customized parts that would require or be more expensiveThese parts are under MOPAR warranty Brown Bear offered to pay for the damages and asked for two estimates after I presented oneHe claimed I was getting "taken" so I secured another oneAt the end of the day, I chose to go through my carrier because Brown Bear began to argue over the repairs and was very rude after I presented the initial estimateThey were becoming confrontational Legally, they can't deny a claim because I went through the insurance carrierLegally they are negligentLegally you can't offer to just pay a deductible and deny the rest of the claimFurthermore, this is inappropriate business practices.Sincerely, [redacted]

The customer contacted our third party vendor, who handles this program We will reach out directly to the customer and get this resolved

Complaint: [redacted] I am rejecting this response because:Sincerely, [redacted]

This is an unfortunate situation for you and we want you to know, that our site manager and area manager were not calling you a liar. In both cases, these individuals were trying to explain their reasoning as to why the car wash did not cause the damage to your vehicle. Both employees,... know how the car wash operates and have washed many vehicles in their 40 plus years of experience. Upon initial inspection, it was first reported there were scratches on the trunk lid and then expanded to scratches and dings in various areas on the car. These marks are not consistent with the configuration and movement of the car wash equipment. Mr. M [redacted] , the area manager would like to offer you an exterior detail service, to have the paint buffed. There are many products on the market to remove scratches, which hides them and would need to be reapplied on occasion. If you are interested in this offer, please reply and we can coordinate getting this set up.

It is unfortunate that this damage occurred and we felt that we had come to terms, at the time the incident report was completed. When the estimates were presented to us, it
included two items which were not previously discussed. When we declined to pay for those
additional items, the customer decided that she would take the claim to her insurance
company. We then agreed to pay the deductible of $250, for the insurance claim.
Then we received phone calls and letters from both the customer and the insurance company, asking for payment for the full claim. Our reason for denying the claim included, a chip
in the bumper, which also had some other rusted spots. In addition, we did not understand why there was a need for a day car rental. So, we again denied the claim with the
insurance company and the customer.
We are currently in negotiation with the insurance company regarding a subrogation amount. We feel this amount would have settled the claim initially, but the customer chose to
file an insurance claim. We acknowledged the initial damage noted, agreed to pay and sent the customer a check for the deductible and are negotiating with the insurance company.
We feel that we have in good faith, tried to settle this claim

Providing quality customer service is important at Brown Bear. The fact that we cannot come to terms regarding this claim makes it difficult to live up to that standard. However, we stand behind the comments previously provided

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ***, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me
Sincerely,
*** ***

The Area Manager for this location has met with the customer. They have come to an understanding and are in the process of resolving the claim

Another representative of Brown Bear Car Wash, George H*** is scheduled to meet with the customer on Friday, May to inspect the vehicle

Revdex.com:I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ***, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to meSincerely, *** *** *** ***

We have contacted the customer and processed the claim, it can now be closed. Thank you

We scheduled a meeting last Friday, 8/18 to discuss this claim and inspect the vehicle in person this coming Wednesday, 8/

Complaint: [redacted]I am rejecting this response because:On Tuesday, June 30th I received a...

phone message from "Omar" in the Tacoma location of Brown Bear.  He stated that he was aware of the incident and that I should contact that manager of the Des Moines location "Steven" upon receipt of his message.  I contacted Steven via telephone and explained that I would be bringing the vehicle by on Thursday, as I had a family vacation planned and was not going to allow the negligence of the car wash take that away from my family.  He was cordial, and said to call prior to coming by.  Upon returning from our trip on Wednesday, we decided to bring the car to Brown Bear for "Steven" to look at the damage and discuss the claim.  I got out of my vehicle and Steven walked up to me.  He looked at the vehicle and told me to come into the office.  At that point Steven stated that there was "NO WAY THE CAR WASH RIPPED OFF MY BUMPER" that "the machines don't just rip off people's bumpers" and that "the machine just helped it along".  I was furious!  He then stated that he watched the surveillance video and that the machine barely touched my vehicle.  Seeing as how my bumper was attached when we entered the car wash and NOT attached when we left the car wash, I would have to say that Steven was trying to cover up the fact that Brown Bear car wash ripped the bumper off a $70,000 vehicle.  That said, I advised Steven that Brown Bear WAS going to cover the damage, otherwise we were going to wind up in court where a judge could decide and I would seek fees and costs, and not just the $1200 to repair my bumper.  After threatening Steven with a lawsuit, he proceeded to fill out the incident form, and advise that he was going to call [redacted] of Burien and advise that the repairs were authorized.  He stated that it could take up to 14 days to receive the check and that the check would be mailed to [redacted] of Burien under our name.  I signed the incident form, and left.  Upon arriving home, we contacted [redacted] at [redacted] Burien, and he stated that he had NOT received any such phone call from Steven and that he could not begin any repairs until he in fact received the check as he "knew how these places operated".  Steven failed to call and communicate with [redacted] Burien and my vehicle is still sitting in my parking lot with the bumper hanging off due to Brown Bears negligence.  I feel as though we are being run around by Steven as well as Brown Bear car wash.  Machines ARE capable of damage, contrary to Steven's accusation that they are not.  His rudeness and unprofessionalism are unbecoming of a manager, and I am frankly disgusted by the way he has handled this matter.  I am not driving a 1991 Honda Civil hatchback.... I am driving a collectible, GT 500 Shelby Cobra Mustang that WAS in pristine condition prior to this mess.  Brown Bear IS responsible for the damage and are responsible for repairs.  I am seeking immediate assistance from the Revdex.com and should it be necessary, I will seek assistance from the courts in order to resolve this matter.  Sincerely,[redacted]

The Area Manager for the location followed up on the phone that was made today.  He has asked the customer to contact the manager of the site on Tuesday, as he is the one who will process the claim.

Complaint: [redacted]I am rejecting this response because: The information is not accurate. The company refused to pay for the replacement of the bumper as they felt there was wear and tear on the bumper they did not owe for. In the end, it was not relevant because I did concede to repair the damage. The arm to the machine scuffed the bumper and caused chipped marks on the left side. The rental was out of my control because they had to send the bumper out to a specialized place that could handle the repairs to it. (Which Brown Bear insisted for it to be repaired) I explained to Brown Bear this was a MOAB edition with customized parts that would require or be more expensive. These parts are under MOPAR warranty.
Brown Bear offered to pay for the damages and asked for two estimates after I presented one. He claimed I was getting "taken" so I secured another one. At the end of the day, I chose to go through my carrier because Brown Bear began to argue over the repairs and was very rude after I presented the initial estimate. They were becoming confrontational.
Legally, they can't deny a claim because I went through the insurance carrier. Legally they are negligent. Legally you can't offer to just pay a deductible and deny the rest of the claim. Furthermore, this is inappropriate business practices.Sincerely,[redacted]

Brown Bear Car Wash has been in business since 1957 and our chain washes over 3 million cars per year.  Given the millions of customer interactions that occur at our sites each year, it is understandable that some customers may occasionally voice a complaint. 
We acknowledge that...

there was a damaged guide rail, however, after reviewing the video recordings from our surveillance systems, we determined that neither this vehicle, nor any other vehicle came in contact with the damaged part.  Furthermore, during the period that the rail was damaged (from Saturday until Monday when it was repaired) our staff did not observe any wheel damage to any other vehicles, and no one else reported any wheel damage other than Mr. [redacted].
Mr. [redacted] claims that when he “pulled up to tracks to get linked up to wash, that [his] car brushed up against a sharp jagged edge roller bar that gouged [his] front left wheel. It made a sharp gouge in wheel.” As you look at the video, you do not see the wheel in the area of the traffic cone, nor is it in the area where the roller bar attaches to the conveyor.  If the vehicle had hit either of those locations, you would see the wheel move or bounce, and it does not.  Had such an impact occurred, the vehicle would likely have suddenly moved from the force of the impact, or the driver would have turned the steering wheel, neither of which are seen to occur. 
Mr. [redacted] states, that the wheel was half an inch from the rail.  Additionally, you can determine the proximity of the wheel to the rail from the video, and it shows that the wheel did not make contact with the rail.
Because of our intense focus on customer service, we have a very liberal damage claim policy and often cover claims where there is even the remotest chance we were responsible, however, there are warranted situations where video or other evidence exists that leads us to deny liability, as we did in this case.  Having said that, as an act of good will, we are willing to pay up to $200 for the repair of the alloy wheel.  There are several shops in the Renton, Kent and Auburn area which do this type of work. 
We value Mr. [redacted] as a customer and hope that he will accept our good faith offer to resolve this claim in a situation where the evidence does not support the perception that the damage occurred at our facility.

This is an unfortunate situation for you and we want you to know, that our site manager and area manager were not calling you a liar.  In both cases, these individuals were trying to explain their reasoning as to why the car wash did not cause the damage to your vehicle.  Both employees,...

know how the car wash operates and have washed many vehicles in their 40 plus years of experience.  Upon initial inspection, it was first reported there were scratches on the trunk lid and then expanded to scratches and dings in various areas on the car.  These marks are not consistent with the configuration and movement of the car wash equipment.   Mr. M[redacted], the area manager would like to offer you an exterior detail service, to have the paint buffed.  There are many products on the market to remove scratches, which hides them and would need to be reapplied on occasion.  If you are interested in this offer, please reply and we can coordinate getting this set up.

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.
Sincerely,
[redacted]