SML Boat Rentals

Revdex.com: I have reviewed the response offer 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 Our request of Mr [redacted] was simple Confirm in writing that he had corrected the problem with the boat that he rented that rendered it unsafe to operate, and issue an apology for his abusive behavior toward myself and my family Unfortunately, rather than doing so, he chose to create an elaborate series of lies to cover his behavior If he spent a fraction of the time that he spent on fabricating his story on addressing the customer service issues in his business, I'm sure he would not have so many on-line complaints about his services At least he does finally admit that the boat he rented was defective, although he still does not address the missing part That is more than he or his mechanic were willing to do at the time First his mechanic said that a missing part did not exist Then he tried to tell us that the boat was probably pulling to the left because too many people were standing on the left At no time did they offer to take a ride in the boat with us to see the problem This would seem to be the appropriate response to a report that a boat they rented was not safe In addition, rather than apologize, he chooses to lie and say myself or someone in my party was verbally abusive I can categorically state that this is a untrue I was the person who spoke to his wife, and his mechanic At no time did I raise my voice, or curse, or treat anyone rudely The closest I came is when I told his mechanic he was wrong when he told me that the trim tab anode did not exist At that [redacted] he got angry, told me he didn't have to listen to this, and hung up I assume his ego was hurt from being told he was wrong Unfortunately, he was wrong I even offered to show him where the missing part goes, and where it was located on the parts diagram on my iPhone HE had no interest in this information I was present during all conversations with SML Boat Rentals, except that of my brother ***, whose rental boat was taken by SML Boat Rentals without notification or approvalThis boat had no issues, yet when Mr [redacted] came to the rental condos where my family was staying, he took this boat, rather than coming to look at the defective boat where I had been waiting for nearly an hour to meet with he and/or his mechanic I was shocked that he would take back a boat rented on another contract, rather than come address the boat that had a problem I assume that he took this approach to try to demonstrate that he was in control Sadly, it only demonstrated incredibly poor customer service It is sad that rather than try to honestly address a problem, he chose to first escalate to abusive behavior, and then to resort to fabricating a story to try to cover his bad behavior I could go through his fabricated story [redacted] by [redacted] to detail each of his lies, but that would be a waste of time Like all good liars, he maintains a grain of truth in his story, but always twists the truth to match his narrative My advice to future boat renters is to stay away from SML Boat Rentals and [redacted] Mr [redacted] has demonstrated himself to be dishonest and unethical A quick look at on-line reviews will confirm this I wish we had taken the time to do this before we ever rented from Mr[redacted] My advice to Revdex.com is to look carefully at his business practices should he ever try to become a member of the Revdex.com I doubt that he will, since I'm sure he does not welcome the light being shone on his business practices Regards, [redacted]

I am writing in response to a letter dated July 19, from a Mr*** *** who makes certain claims against our businessMr*** ***, Mr*** ***, and Mr*** *** did, in fact, rent boats from us for a large family vacation party on 07/13/I
personally checked one of the boats out to both Mr*** *** and Mr*** ***Both men were pleasant, attentive and courteous, and seemed like customersMr*** *** also mentioned that was a licensed Coast Guard Captain, and had been for years
Within minutes of their departure someone in the *** party called, I cannot be certain of the name, but the call came from the *** numberThe caller was upset and borderline abusive to my office secretary, Ms*** ***, the customer claimed that the boat pulled to the left and was unsafe to operate, they demanded that we refund their gas money, and demanded a new boat*** explained that since they were safe at the dock we would call them back
My mechanic, Mr*** *** called the ***'s back within minutes and stated that we would dispatch a service boat to check the boat - whomever Mr*** spoke with on the phone was courteous and said they would wait for us on the dock Within ten minutes another call from the ***'s number, again not sure who was on the phone but my wife, *** ***, spoke to the customer and was subject to a barrage if obscenities and confrontational languageAt that time my wife and I determined that we would terminate our business relationship with the entire *** party which entailed terminating both rental boats, as is our right, and specified on the signed rental contracts.
After my wife was verbally abused by the *** party, Mr*** ***, called and I spoke to him personallyHe accused me of renting unsafe equipment - | told him we would happily provide him with complete refundHe told me the boat was missing a trim tab and that this was the source of the problemMy mechanic and I drove to the rental property and while the boat in question was not present, the other boat was, which we retrieved and returned to our ***
Upon my return Mr*** *** called and asked why his rental was terminatedI explained to him that our policy is to refuse service to anyone who abuses our staff, in this case my wifeMr*** admitted that someone in his party had a verbal altercation with our staff on the phone, he stated that it was a large family gathering and he had "no control" over what other members of his party didMr. *** *** even went so far as fo offer to remove the person who had made the call to my wife from the paperwork and not allow him on the boat As I had met and spoken with both Mr*** *** and Mr*** *** previously,
and knew their demeanor, I surmised that Mr*** *** had made the call to my wife, as he was the only other person specified on both rental agreements
It has been our unfortunate experience in the past to rent a boat to a responsible party who then allows other, younger or less responsible individuals to operate the boatMany times this results in damage to our equipment, and as per the rental agreement is specifically prohibitedIn this case one of the responsible parties Mr. *** ***, advised us that that he had "no control" over the other members of his party, one of whom he openly admitted had recently verbally abused my wife These two factors reaffirmed our resolve to terminate the *** party's rentalI explained to Mr*** that we were firm in our policy and the decision was final He stated that the other boat was at the rental property and I told him we would be over to retrieve it shortly
When we went to rental property to retrieve the boat the *** party was at the dock and collectively refused to give us the keys to the boatOf note is that while both Mr*** *** and Mr*** *** were calm and reasonable at the dock, younger adult members of the party taunted and attempted to physically block myself and Mr*** from getting on the boatlf anyone was abusive and unstable it was the younger adult male members of the *** party who surrounded myself and Mr*** on the dock in a physically threatening mannerI do not believe that Mr. *** *** was genuinely aware that someone in his party had so egregiously abused my wife and staff over the phone, as he did not seem to comprehend why we had terminated their rentalThis belief was further reinforced when one member of the *** party, presumably Mr***, literally dangled the key in my face, daring me to take it from him, and continued to antagonize myself and Mr***Finally Mr. *** left with the boat and I hastily departed the property
As for Mr***'s claim that the boat was unsafe without a trim tabAnytime a customer reports any issue with a boat, especially one related to safety, we immediately take actionUpon driving the boat after its return I did notice a pull to the left in the boatWe have owned, operated and maintained the boat, a SeaRay 220,as a rental for 4-1/yearsIn that time we have never had a complaint about the steeringSince we have owned the boat there has been never been an anode trim tab installed, and therefore the absence of a trim tab was unlikely to be the source of the issueUpon inspection the right retaining bolt on the Power trim ram front bushing kit, which attaches the power trim cylinders to the upper drive unit had become loose While we value input from any customer, especially one with a Current Coast Guard Captain's License, we always rely on our mechanic with over years of experience to troubleshoot and repair our boats
We have been in business for six years and no one has ever spoken to my wife that way on the phone - everOver the past years we have provided over 10,000 boat rentals on Smith Mountain Lake, in that time we have had to invoke our right to terminate a rental less than timesThat equates to approximately .01% of our rentals, unfortunately the conduct of a member, or members, of the *** party led us to terminate their rental
We could have charged them for gas on both boats as specified in the signed rental agreement, instead we gave a full and complete refundA refund in the amount of $was issued to Mr*** *** on 07/13/at 12:PMA refund in the amount of $1,was issued to Mr*** on 07/13/at 12:PMWhile I understand Mr*** ***'s frustration and bear him no ill will, as the responsible party on the rental agreement, he is responsible for the members of his vacation party, one of whom was exceedingly verbally abusive to my wife and another member of my staff - which is completely unacceptable

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response offer 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.
Our request of Mr. [redacted] was simple.  Confirm in writing that he had corrected the problem with the boat that he rented that rendered it unsafe to operate, and issue an apology for his abusive behavior toward myself and my family.  Unfortunately, rather than doing so, he chose to create an elaborate series of lies to cover his behavior.  If he spent a fraction of the time that he spent on fabricating his story on addressing the customer service issues in his business, I'm sure he would not have so many on-line complaints about his services.
 
At least he does finally admit that the boat he rented was defective, although he still does not address the missing part.  That is more than he or his mechanic were willing to do at the time.  First his mechanic said that a missing part did not exist.  Then he tried to tell us that the boat was probably pulling to the left because too many people were standing on the left.  At no time did they offer to take a ride in the boat with us to see the problem.  This would seem to be the appropriate response to a report that a boat they rented was not safe.
 
In addition, rather than apologize, he chooses to lie and say myself or someone in my party was verbally abusive.  I can categorically state that this is a untrue.  I was the person who spoke to his wife, and his mechanic.  At no time did I raise my voice, or curse, or treat anyone rudely.  The closest I came is when I told his mechanic he was wrong when he told me that the trim tab anode did not exist.  At that [redacted] he got angry, told me he didn't have to listen to this, and hung up.  I assume his ego was hurt from being told he was wrong.  Unfortunately, he was wrong.  I even offered to show him where the missing part goes, and where it was located on the parts diagram on my iPhone.  HE had no interest in this information.
 
I was present during all conversations with SML Boat Rentals, except that of my brother [redacted], whose rental boat was taken by SML Boat Rentals without notification or approval. This boat had no issues, yet when Mr. [redacted] came to the rental condos where my family was staying, he took this boat, rather than coming to look at the defective boat where I had been waiting for nearly an hour to meet with he and/or his mechanic.  I was shocked that he would take back a boat rented on another contract, rather than come address the boat that had a problem.  I assume that he took this approach to try to demonstrate that he was in control.  Sadly, it only demonstrated incredibly poor customer service.  It is sad that rather than try to honestly address a problem, he chose to first escalate to abusive behavior, and then to resort to fabricating a story to try to cover his bad behavior.
 
I could go through his fabricated story [redacted] by [redacted] to detail each of his lies, but that would be a waste of time.  Like all good liars, he maintains a grain of truth in his false story, but always twists the truth to match his narrative.  
 
My advice to future boat renters is to stay away from SML Boat Rentals and [redacted].  Mr. [redacted] has demonstrated himself to be dishonest and unethical.  A quick look at on-line reviews will confirm this.  I wish we had taken the time to do this before we ever rented from Mr.[redacted].  
 
My advice to Revdex.com is to look carefully at his business practices should he ever try to become a member of the Revdex.com.  I doubt that he will, since I'm sure he does not welcome the light being shone on his business practices.
 
  
Regards,
[redacted]

Re:  [redacted] ID [redacted]
 
Dear [redacted]:
 
We will address each issue and...

our response to the “Desired Settlement” by #.  
I have consulted with [redacted], who met with the [redacted] family on Jan. 12.  After looking back at the calendar to confirm the dates, I should first note that we had 20 scheduled appointments on that day.  Having observed [redacted] with families, I can attest that if he made any comment about the [redacted]s being early, it was only in passing and perhaps to make them aware they may have to wait a few moments until the scheduled time—we schedule appointments so we can devote the appropriate amount of time to every family.
 
As this arrangement had been made almost 10 years ago, there was no request for either a viewing or service.  We try to honor instructions of a deceased person the best we can.  In this case the family representatives went against the written instructions of the deceased, [redacted].   We told them in the family meeting there is a charge for a memorial service and they were obliged to pay for the use of our facilities.  On the day of the service, our heat was out at 8 AM (when we arrived to our office.)  We immediately called our HVAC specialist, who ultimately did not resolve the issue until AFTER the memorial service.  Again, if any of our staff did not show empathy or emotion, it was because we were focused on getting the heat started.  We did repeatedly apologize for the heat situation, but were assured by the family that it was not an issue.  (3) We will not be issuing a refund for the memorial service charge. 
 
With regards the viewing, again the arrangement was made 10 years ago and there was no instruction to view Mr. [redacted].  In fact the arrangement denotes “direct cremation”, which by nature is void of any services, including a viewing.  Following the example of our colleagues in [redacted], we do have a charge for viewing.  This is because the body begins to deteriorate immediately upon death.  Out of respect for our profession and a deceased’s family, we would not show an unprepared deceased person, as that would be the very last memory.  (1) Hence the charge in our “General Pricelist” for family viewing will remain as is. 
 
Finally, with regard to the delivery of the cremated remains, we do not use cardboard containers, so we are not sure what that comment is about.  We did have Mr. [redacted]’s cremated remains in a burgundy velvet bag.  Upon the family’s bringing it to our attention, we immediately rectified the situation with the appropriate urn, which was reserved on January 12.  In fact it was the very same urn used in the service, albeit empty on the day.  As far as the payment, it was an error in our reporting on the bill that caused the misunderstanding about the payment already being made.  We had not yet received payment from the insurance company.  As a result of this situation, we have instituted a new reporting designation for anticipated insurance monies.    
 
(2) We sent a written apology.  Your agency was copied.
 
Sincerely,
 
 
 
Westville Funerals & Cremations
[redacted], Operations Manager
[redacted], Funeral Director
864-[redacted]

Review: My family has been coming to Smith Mountain Lake to vacation for 10 years. We always rent a boat for the week, a year in advance. This year we changed from our previous rental company to SML Boat Rentals, LLC at [redacted]. My family reserved a boat last summer. When we called a few months before our arrival, they had lost our reservation. They finally resolved this error, and reinstated our reservation. When we arrived, they rented a boat that was missing an important part that rendered the boat unsafe to operate. When we reported this problem to SML Boat Rentals, they first claimed that the part (called a trim tab anode) did not exist. I have had a Coast Guard Masters License for nearly 35 years, so I told them they were wrong, and that the part was essential for the safe operation of the vessel. Without it, the boat pulled dangerously to one side under power. They then claimed the part was not needed. When I told them we wanted them to come see the boat for themselves, they said they would come take the boat back, but did not have any other boats to rent to us. At no time did we raise our voices, or curse, or treat the employees of SML Boat Rentals badly in any way. Unfortunately, the same can not be said of SML Boat Rentals. When the owner, Jeff [redacted], arrived we told him we wanted to show him the missing part. He, pushed past us and began to untie the boat. When we asked him what he planned to do, he was abusive and threatened my family. At no time did he offer to obtain the required part and fix the boat, to make it safe to operate. The cost of this part (verified online) is just under $10. We suspect he re-rented the boat without fixing it.When we read other online reviews, we saw that other people had experienced the same abusive and unprofessional behavior from Jeff [redacted]. We want other potential renters to be aware of the unstable and abusive behavior of the owner of this business, so their vacations will not be ruined by this unscrupulous business.Desired Settlement: Written confirmation that the business will resolve the unsafe issue in the boat they are renting to prevent future injury.Written apology for unethical and unprofessional treatment of my family.

Business

Response:

I am writing in response to a letter dated July 19, 2014 from a Mr. [redacted] who makes certain claims against our business. Mr. [redacted], Mr. [redacted], and Mr. [redacted] did, in fact, rent 2 boats from us for a large family vacation party on 07/13/2014. I personally checked one of the boats out to both Mr. [redacted] and Mr. [redacted]. Both men were pleasant, attentive and courteous, and seemed like normal customers. Mr. [redacted] also mentioned that was a licensed Coast Guard Captain, and had been for 35 years.

Within 15 minutes of their departure someone in the [redacted] party called, I cannot be certain of the name, but the call came from the [redacted] number. The caller was upset and borderline abusive to my office secretary, Ms. [redacted], the customer claimed that the boat pulled to the left and was unsafe to operate, they demanded that we refund their gas money, and demanded a new boat. [redacted] explained that since they were safe at the dock we would call them back.

My mechanic, Mr. [redacted] called the [redacted]'s back within 5 minutes and stated that we would dispatch a service boat to check the boat - whomever Mr. [redacted] spoke with on the phone was courteous and said they would wait for us on the dock. Within ten minutes another call from the [redacted]'s number, again not sure who was on the phone but my wife, [redacted], spoke to the customer and was subject to a barrage if obscenities and confrontational language. At that time my wife and I determined that we would terminate our business relationship with the entire [redacted] party which entailed terminating both rental boats, as is our right, and specified on the signed rental contracts.

After my wife was verbally abused by the [redacted] party, Mr. [redacted], called and I spoke to him personally. He accused me of renting unsafe equipment - | told him we would happily provide him with complete refund. He told me the boat was missing a trim tab and that this was the source of the problem. My mechanic and I drove to the rental property and while the boat in question was not present, the other boat was, which we retrieved and returned to our [redacted].

Upon my return Mr. [redacted] called and asked why his rental was terminated. I explained to him that our policy is to refuse service to anyone who abuses our staff, in this case my wife. Mr. [redacted] admitted that someone in his party had a verbal altercation with our staff on the phone, he stated that it was a large family gathering and he had "no control" over what other members of his party did. Mr. [redacted] even went so far as fo offer to remove the person who had made the call to my wife from the paperwork and not allow him on the boat As I had met and spoken with both Mr. [redacted] and Mr. [redacted] previously,

and knew their demeanor, I surmised that Mr. [redacted] had made the call to my wife, as he was the only other person specified on both rental agreements.

It has been our unfortunate experience in the past to rent a boat to a responsible party who then allows other, younger or less responsible individuals to operate the boat. Many times this results in damage to our equipment, and as per the rental agreement is specifically prohibited. In this case one of the responsible parties Mr. [redacted], advised us that that he had "no control" over the other members of his party, one of whom he openly admitted had recently verbally abused my wife. These two factors reaffirmed our resolve to terminate the [redacted] party's rental. I explained to Mr. [redacted] that we were firm in our policy and the decision was final. He stated that the other boat was at the rental property and I told him we would be over to retrieve it shortly.

When we went to rental property to retrieve the boat the [redacted] party was at the dock and collectively refused to give us the keys to the boat. Of note is that while both Mr. [redacted] and Mr. [redacted] were calm and reasonable at the dock, younger adult members of the party taunted and attempted to physically block myself and Mr. [redacted] from getting on the boat. lf anyone was abusive and unstable it was the younger adult male members of the [redacted] party who surrounded myself and Mr. [redacted] on the dock in a physically threatening manner. I do not believe that Mr. [redacted] was genuinely aware that someone in his party had so egregiously abused my wife and staff over the phone, as he did not seem to comprehend why we had terminated their rental. This belief was further reinforced when one member of the [redacted] party, presumably Mr. [redacted], literally dangled the key in my face, daring me to take it from him, and continued to antagonize myself and Mr. [redacted]. Finally Mr. [redacted] left with the boat and I hastily departed the property.

As for Mr. [redacted]'s claim that the boat was unsafe without a trim tab. Anytime a customer reports any issue with a boat, especially one related to safety, we immediately take action. Upon driving the boat after its return I did notice a pull to the left in the boat. We have owned, operated and maintained the boat, a 1987 SeaRay 220,as a rental for 4-1/2 years. In that time we have never had a complaint about the steering. Since we have owned the boat there has been never been an anode trim tab installed, and therefore the absence of a trim tab was unlikely to be the source of the issue. Upon inspection the right retaining bolt on the Power trim ram front bushing kit, which attaches the power trim cylinders to the upper drive unit had become loose. While we value input from any customer, especially one with a Current Coast Guard Captain's License, we always rely on our mechanic with over 20 years of experience to troubleshoot and repair our boats.

We have been in business for 6 six years and no one has ever spoken to my wife that way on the phone - ever. Over the past 6 years we have provided over 10,000 boat rentals on Smith Mountain Lake, in that time we have had to invoke our right to terminate a rental less than 10 times. That equates to approximately .01% of our rentals, unfortunately the conduct of a member, or members, of the [redacted] party led us to terminate their rental.

We could have charged them for gas on both boats as specified in the signed rental agreement, instead we gave a full and complete refund. A refund in the amount of $765.00 was issued to Mr. [redacted] on 07/13/2014 at 12:29 PM. A refund in the amount of $1,122.00 was issued to Mr. [redacted] on 07/13/2014 at 12:27 PM. While I understand Mr. [redacted]'s frustration and bear him no ill will, as the responsible party on the rental agreement, he is responsible for the members of his vacation party, one of whom was exceedingly verbally abusive to my wife and another member of my staff - which is completely unacceptable.

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the response offer 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.

Our request of Mr. [redacted] was simple. Confirm in writing that he had corrected the problem with the boat that he rented that rendered it unsafe to operate, and issue an apology for his abusive behavior toward myself and my family. Unfortunately, rather than doing so, he chose to create an elaborate series of lies to cover his behavior. If he spent a fraction of the time that he spent on fabricating his story on addressing the customer service issues in his business, I'm sure he would not have so many on-line complaints about his services.

At least he does finally admit that the boat he rented was defective, although he still does not address the missing part. That is more than he or his mechanic were willing to do at the time. First his mechanic said that a missing part did not exist. Then he tried to tell us that the boat was probably pulling to the left because too many people were standing on the left. At no time did they offer to take a ride in the boat with us to see the problem. This would seem to be the appropriate response to a report that a boat they rented was not safe.

In addition, rather than apologize, he chooses to lie and say myself or someone in my party was verbally abusive. I can categorically state that this is a untrue. I was the person who spoke to his wife, and his mechanic. At no time did I raise my voice, or curse, or treat anyone rudely. The closest I came is when I told his mechanic he was wrong when he told me that the trim tab anode did not exist. At that [redacted] he got angry, told me he didn't have to listen to this, and hung up. I assume his ego was hurt from being told he was wrong. Unfortunately, he was wrong. I even offered to show him where the missing part goes, and where it was located on the parts diagram on my iPhone. HE had no interest in this information.

I was present during all conversations with SML Boat Rentals, except that of my brother [redacted], whose rental boat was taken by SML Boat Rentals without notification or approval. This boat had no issues, yet when Mr. [redacted] came to the rental condos where my family was staying, he took this boat, rather than coming to look at the defective boat where I had been waiting for nearly an hour to meet with he and/or his mechanic. I was shocked that he would take back a boat rented on another contract, rather than come address the boat that had a problem. I assume that he took this approach to try to demonstrate that he was in control. Sadly, it only demonstrated incredibly poor customer service. It is sad that rather than try to honestly address a problem, he chose to first escalate to abusive behavior, and then to resort to fabricating a story to try to cover his bad behavior.

I could go through his fabricated story [redacted] by [redacted] to detail each of his lies, but that would be a waste of time. Like all good liars, he maintains a grain of truth in his false story, but always twists the truth to match his narrative.

My advice to future boat renters is to stay away from SML Boat Rentals and [redacted]. Mr. [redacted] has demonstrated himself to be dishonest and unethical. A quick look at on-line reviews will confirm this. I wish we had taken the time to do this before we ever rented from Mr.[redacted].

My advice to Revdex.com is to look carefully at his business practices should he ever try to become a member of the Revdex.com. I doubt that he will, since I'm sure he does not welcome the light being shone on his business practices.

Regards,