Hans' Boat Works, Inc.

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 8, 2015/10/07) */
Contact Name and Title: *** ***
Contact Phone: XXX-XXX-XXXX
Contact Email: ***@sbcglobal.net
Tires to Go (aka *** & ***) is filing this complaint as yet another in a series of diversionary tactics they have used to avoid
paying their billsThis is not the first time that we have had to get to the point of a lien sale in order to get them to pay their billI will provide some history on this account to clarify each of their claims
Tires to Go makes it sound like this was a recent repair, when, in fact, this boat was first repaired in (over years ago)He waited over months after picking his boat the first time to indicate that he had any problem with these repairsThe problems that he has & continues to have are not due to the repairs that we didRegardless, our written warranty, which is clearly stated on the work order that this company signed is days parts/labor warrantyThe warranty from Mercury on engine is year for defects on parts/workmanship onlyWhile we were not obligated to, we did help him out on more than one occasion with his bill as good willWe want our customers to be satisfied with our work & we go well above what is required of us in order to keep our customers happy
The first date this boat was brought into our shop on 6/19/(1/years ago) for diagnosis of overheat & major oil leakThe motor had salt water intrusion in the cylinders & a knock from being ran low on oilThe customer was given an estimate of repairs for $5348, which included a remanufactured MerCrusier Long Block (which is a block with heads)Tires to Go signed a work order that states: "days parts/labor warranty"The customer waited until 8/17/to bring in the $deposit that we required to order parts & begin repairsThe work was completed 10/11/2012, but they did not pick up and pay for the repairs until 12/5/after we made numerous calls requesting that they do so
Over months later (6/18/2013) *** brought the boat back stating that the engine dies over certain rpm and has a popHe also asked for rear tail lights to be repaired & for us to fix lighter on plugWe ran the boat on our dynoRebuilt carbs again, drained old fuel out & put gals on new fuel in boat due to water in fuel for the 2nd timeThey Picked it up 7/17/
Three Months later (9/3/) the boat came backWork order stated: won't start, acting like it is starving for gasCarb jets were spraying gas and carbs were just worked on hereOur Mechanic's notes indicate that they found the fuel tank was full of water (nearly gals of water in tank)We Flushed fuel tank & fuel pump, replaced fuel filter, R&R top of carb and cleaned out waterThis is now the 3rd time that this boat has been brought in with water in the gas tankCustomer was advised that he needs to figure out how he is getting water in the fuel tankAfter numerous calls to customer requesting they pick up & pay for the repairs, the boat sat here nearly a year before it was picked up on 7/21/by ***We had to threaten a lein sale to get them to pick it upThis was the first time that I dealt with ***, up to this point, it has always been his partner *** that was coming in*** was not happy about having to pay $for the work that was done to remove water from the fuel & he didn't seem to think that he should have to pay storage for the months the boat sat hereI credited him all but $of the storage bill as good will in order to get him to pick up the boatEven though we had no obligation to do so, we cleaned his boat (he left it here without a cover) and we ran & checked it prior to pick up on 7/2/
About weeks later (8/5/2014) the boat was brought in with a broken propeller (from him hitting something)*** wanted us to replace prop with used prop if possibleHe said it had a bogging issueHe asked that we call first for an estimate for all workWe put a new propeller on the boat & did a compression test on itIt had poor compression on cylinders.This was from being run leanThis is most likely due to damage done from water in the fuelWe called *** & advised him of this, and advised that we won't know the extent of the damage until we tore it down to see what it needed*** agreed for us to pull the head to diagnose furtherHe was upset at this point, but he agreed that the heads needed to come offThe heads were pulled off & we called *** to advise him that it would be $to replace the damaged valves & reinstall the heads with new gaskets*** was upset & said he expects us to cover that expense & he won't pay for itI explained that this isn't something that Mercury would have covered under their warranty, even if it was still within the year period (the Mercury warranty expired 10/11/2013) & that this is not something that we are going to pay forIt was explained once again that he needs to get with his partner to figure out why they keep getting water in their fuel tankWe don't know if this is due to them swamping the boat, using contaminated fuel, someone vandalizing their boat, or simply rain water getting in because they store this boat outside, without a coverIn either respect, this is the reason for their continued problems with this boat, and they were made aware of this every time we talked to these people
A day or two before the 4th July 2015, after not hearing from *** for over months, *** called me very demandingHe stated that he wants his boat, fixed at no charge, and he wants it nowIt was a very threatening callI simply stated that I am not paying for these repairs
I called *** again in Late July & advised him that we had about $in charges for tearing down his motor, and having the heads inspected, along with the new propeller he requestedI told him that we had not done any further repairs because he indicated that the was unwilling to pay for themOnce again, he stated that he has no intention of paying this bill
We started a lien sale to recover the service bill(s) outstanding on this boat
There have been many disputes with this customer, with *** claiming one thing, and his partner, *** claiming anotherThere is/was a lack of communication between the two partners in the boatWe have had to get to the point of a lien sale in order to get this boat picked up and paid for more than once
I am very sorry that *** *** (aka Tires to Go) feels that he has not been treated fairly, but we have already gone above & beyond what is required of us to try and help this customer
Mr *** needs to pay his service bill, pick his boat up, and find another shop that wants to deal with his antics