Sundowner of California

Tell us why here...I decided to purchase the new trailer I was shopping for from sundowner in Auburn because they had been doing business in the same location for the last yearsIt was my first purchase of a new trailer and was one of my worst experiences everThey hitched up my new trailer to the truck and sent me out on the hi-way without the supposed to be included, ever so important, safety pin in the ball couplerOn the hi-way at 55mph it came offI immediately returned with the damaged remains of my new trailer and eric the salesman said " I really feel bad but I don't know what to tell you but they don't come with pins and they don't need them" [redacted] ***, the manufacturer, requires Eric as their representative to complete a "trailer safety and equipment hodocumentIn this document there are several very important, safety related, check-list type items including one that mentions the safety pinNONE WERE PERFORMEDIn the owners manual that came with the trailer it clearly states "Coupler assembly includes a latch lever and latch lever safety pin or hitch pinBe sure the latch lever is locked and pin properly secured before moving your trailer." these guys should be facing jail time for the hazard they set in motion as the life of myself and others around me on the hi-way that day were at riskLuckily there were no injuries

Customer purchased a new trailer from our business, we assisted and walked him through the steps in hooking up to his new trailer. He stated he went home disconnected the trailer and then reconnected to his trailer a few days later. Upon traveling into Auburn the trailer came disconnected and caused... his new trailer damage. He brought the trailer to us and we offered to test the coupler to see if there was an issue and he stated that he also tested the coupler and that it was fine and that it must have been an error on his part connecting to his trailer. He wanted a quote to repair his trailer, a few days later he called irate and changed his mind and was no longer taking any responsibility for the damage that he caused. Over the course of a week or two we were able to get the manufacturer of the trailer to cover the cost of the parts needed to repair the trailer at no charge. We also offered to cut our labor estimate (16 hours) in half to (8 hours) and lower our labor rate from $85. to $75. Customer has decided to decline our offer and not accept any responsibility for the damage that he caused. We have been more than fair in trying to satisfy the customer and continue a good relationship.

We at Sundowner adamantly disagree with several statements made in regards to statements made by Mr***I personally did the walk thru with the customer, along with my lot managerWe do a walk thru on every trailer sold at Sundowner Trailer salesMr*** pulled this trailer home disconnected it and reconnected it improperly several days later and this is when the trailer came off the ball and caused the said damageEven with his admission of the events occurring in this order we at Sundowner offered to supply all of the parts for this repair at no expense to him and split the reduced hourly labor cost After agreeing to these terms Mr*** decided that it didn’t matter if he hooked the trailer up incorrectly only that he was not going to take any personal responsibility.Thank you,

I am rejecting this response because: none of these statements made by sundowner are truea walk through was never performed , if so why cant they so us a signed copy of itthe first line of the safety walk through addresses that trailer is sold complete with all loose and spare parts, the fourth line addresses the safety pin directlyif they say the walk through was performed why did it leave their yard without the safety pinThe fact remains that they sold me a trailer that was incomplete and as a direct result of this the accident occurredmy trailer left their yard unsafe to be on the hiway leaving my life at risk and everyone else's around meI hitched the trailer exactly as they didI guess they are going to have to explain their actions to call Curtis with channel and then to a judgeas the paperwork for this is filled out and ready to be submittedgood luck defending yourself sundowner of auburn your gonna need it

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

Customer purchased a new trailer from our business, we assisted and walked him through the steps in hooking up to his new trailer. He stated he went home disconnected the trailer and then reconnected to his trailer a few days later. Upon traveling into Auburn the trailer came disconnected and caused...

his new trailer damage. He brought the trailer to us and we offered to test the coupler to see if there was an issue and he stated that he also tested the coupler and that it was fine and that it must have been an error on his part connecting to his trailer. He wanted a quote to repair his trailer, a few days later he called irate and changed his mind and was no longer taking any responsibility for the damage that he caused. Over the course of a week or two we were able to get the manufacturer of the trailer to cover the cost of the parts needed to repair the trailer at no charge. We also offered to cut our labor estimate (16 hours) in half  to (8 hours) and lower our labor rate from $85. to $75. Customer has decided to decline our offer and not accept any responsibility for the damage that he caused. We have been more than fair in trying to satisfy the customer and continue a good relationship.

these guys sold ma a new trailer without doing a trailer safety walk through with me. not only that they did not include a safety pin with it. when I returned with my new damaged trailer eric the salesman told me that they don't come with pins and don't need them. I left their yard with a trailer that was not safe to be on the hi-way. in the owners manual It clearly states that this trailer comes with a safety pin and should always be used. this pin is also addressed in the document that was never filled out. the reason it took me three days to get mad is because they promised me they would take care of it,  but never would call me back. [redacted] the owner told me that in doing business for 19 years has never done a trailer safety walk through with a customer. It is standard practice in this business and is done religiously by every other trailer dealership in California. I feel it is my moral obligation to make sure this does not happen to another unsuspecting buyer as this could have led to major injury not only to myself gut others as well. these guys need to be held responsible for the hazard they set in motion but aren't taking me very seriously. this is far from over,  with your help or not, I will get resolution on this matter.  I would like sundowner trailers to put my trailer back to the way it was when it first left their yard and to give me the safety pin that it should have come with. If pursued in small claims court I will be asking for full replacement value

Tell us why here...I decided to purchase the new trailer I was shopping for from sundowner in Auburn because they had been doing business in the same location for the last 19 years. It was my first purchase of a new trailer and was one of my worst experiences ever. They hitched up my new trailer to the truck and sent me out on the hi-way without the supposed to be included, ever so important, safety pin in the ball coupler. On the hi-way at 55mph it came off. I immediately returned with the damaged remains of my new trailer and eric the salesman said " I really feel bad but I don't know what to tell you but they don't come with pins and they don't need them" [redacted], the manufacturer, requires Eric as their representative to complete a "trailer safety and equipment hook-up document. In this document there are several very important, safety related, check-list type items including one that mentions the safety pin. NONE WERE PERFORMED. In the owners manual that came with the trailer it clearly states  "Coupler assembly includes a latch lever and latch lever safety pin or hitch pin. Be sure the latch lever is locked and pin properly secured before moving your trailer."  these guys should be facing jail time for the hazard they set in motion as the life of myself and others around me on the hi-way that day were at risk. Luckily there were no injuries.

Review: bought a new trailer that did not include all of its safety features, because of this an accident occurred.Desired Settlement: want trailer fixed or replaced

Business

Response:

Customer purchased a new trailer from our business, we assisted and walked him through the steps in hooking up to his new trailer. He stated he went home disconnected the trailer and then reconnected to his trailer a few days later. Upon traveling into Auburn the trailer came disconnected and caused his new trailer damage. He brought the trailer to us and we offered to test the coupler to see if there was an issue and he stated that he also tested the coupler and that it was fine and that it must have been an error on his part connecting to his trailer. He wanted a quote to repair his trailer, a few days later he called irate and changed his mind and was no longer taking any responsibility for the damage that he caused. Over the course of a week or two we were able to get the manufacturer of the trailer to cover the cost of the parts needed to repair the trailer at no charge. We also offered to cut our labor estimate (16 hours) in half to (8 hours) and lower our labor rate from $85. to $75. Customer has decided to decline our offer and not accept any responsibility for the damage that he caused. We have been more than fair in trying to satisfy the customer and continue a good relationship.

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to my concern, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.

Consumer

Response:

these guys sold ma a new trailer without doing a trailer safety walk through with me. not only that they did not include a safety pin with it. when I returned with my new damaged trailer eric the salesman told me that they don't come with pins and don't need them. I left their yard with a trailer that was not safe to be on the hi-way. in the owners manual It clearly states that this trailer comes with a safety pin and should always be used. this pin is also addressed in the document that was never filled out. the reason it took me three days to get mad is because they promised me they would take care of it, but never would call me back. [redacted] the owner told me that in doing business for 19 years has never done a trailer safety walk through with a customer. It is standard practice in this business and is done religiously by every other trailer dealership in California. I feel it is my moral obligation to make sure this does not happen to another unsuspecting buyer as this could have led to major injury not only to myself gut others as well. these guys need to be held responsible for the hazard they set in motion but aren't taking me very seriously. this is far from over, with your help or not, I will get resolution on this matter. I would like sundowner trailers to put my trailer back to the way it was when it first left their yard and to give me the safety pin that it should have come with. If pursued in small claims court I will be asking for full replacement value

Business

Response:

We at Sundowner adamantly disagree with several statements made in regards to statements made by Mr. [redacted]. I personally did the walk thru with the customer, along with my lot manager. We do a walk thru on every trailer sold at Sundowner Trailer sales. Mr. [redacted] pulled this trailer home disconnected it and reconnected it improperly several days later and this is when the trailer came off the ball and caused the said damage. Even with his admission of the events occurring in this order we at Sundowner offered to supply all of the parts for this repair at no expense to him and split the reduced hourly labor cost . After agreeing to these terms Mr. [redacted] decided that it didn’t matter if he hooked the trailer up incorrectly only that he was not going to take any personal responsibility.Thank you,

Consumer

Response:

I am rejecting this response because: none of these statements made by sundowner are true. a walk through was never performed , if so why cant they so us a signed copy of it. the first line of the safety walk through addresses that trailer is sold complete with all loose and spare parts, the fourth line addresses the safety pin directly. if they say the walk through was performed why did it leave their yard without the safety pin. The fact remains that they sold me a trailer that was incomplete and as a direct result of this the accident occurred. my trailer left their yard unsafe to be on the hiway leaving my life at risk and everyone else's around me. I hitched the trailer exactly as they did. I guess they are going to have to explain their actions to call Curtis with channel 13 and then to a judge. as the paperwork for this is filled out and ready to be submitted. good luck defending yourself sundowner of auburn your gonna need it.

Consumer

Response:

Tell us why here...I decided to purchase the new trailer I was shopping for from sundowner in Auburn because they had been doing business in the same location for the last 19 years. It was my first purchase of a new trailer and was one of my worst experiences ever. They hitched up my new trailer to the truck and sent me out on the hi-way without the supposed to be included, ever so important, safety pin in the ball coupler. On the hi-way at 55mph it came off. I immediately returned with the damaged remains of my new trailer and eric the salesman said " I really feel bad but I don't know what to tell you but they don't come with pins and they don't need them" [redacted], the manufacturer, requires Eric as their representative to complete a "trailer safety and equipment hook-up document. In this document there are several very important, safety related, check-list type items including one that mentions the safety pin. NONE WERE PERFORMED. In the owners manual that came with the trailer it clearly states "Coupler assembly includes a latch lever and latch lever safety pin or hitch pin. Be sure the latch lever is locked and pin properly secured before moving your trailer." these guys should be facing jail time for the hazard they set in motion as the life of myself and others around me on the hi-way that day were at risk. Luckily there were no injuries.