Thule, Inc.

Review: On Friday November 21, 2014 I loaded up the Thule [redacted] rack that I bought in Oct/2014 with 2 snowboards and 1 ski, closed it and drove away. On the way to the highway, the rack malfunctioned. Both racks opened and the snowboards fell off to on-coming traffic. We were able to recover one of the boards on the ramp to the highway and the other we did not find. We went to [redacted] Campus police, Denver CO and saw footage of the whole event. The Thule rack came undone on the first turn out of the Campus VIllage and the first snowboard fell. Someone picked it up and walked away onto 5th street. The second snowboard fell on the highway ramp, which is where we stopped, realizing the problem. On Saturday, I went to [redacted] and [redacted] and they told me I had to contact Thule about the malfunction, that the warranty would cover it. I contacted Thule this morning Nov. 26, 2014, and told them what happened requesting a new rack and money back for the snowboard that I lost. The Customer assistant disregarded my story, and without any product analysis rudely told me it was an error committed by the end user, that the lifetime warranty would not cover it. I insisted in filing a complaint and he told me [redacted] would contact me to take my inquiry. An hour later I called them back and they told me it would take 48 hours to receive a call from [redacted]. I'm still waiting to hear from Thule. I would like to add that I did not lock the system with the key, but the sales person I spoke to told me that the key is an extra safety precaution to prevent theft, it has nothing to do with the lock system that malfunctioned. So there was no end user error.Desired Settlement: I would like a replacement for the rack and a refund for the snowboard that I lost due to the malfunction.

Review: July 2009 I purchased two Thule [redacted] bicycle rooftop carriers. No assembly was possible due to no load carriers included in purchase. Aug 2010 getting ready for vacation by assembling the rooftop bike carriers I discovered the missing [redacted]. The parts inventory sheet and instructions shows qty.1 but each carrier requires 2. Thule Service Parts acknowledged the error and sent the part no charge. So we went on vacation without the bikes.August 2013 getting ready for vacation I opened the parts envelope containing the I-clamp received sent by Thule to find only 1 I-clamp, so the 2nd carrier is still missing its second I-clamp. I called Thule on a Monday to order the part with 2-day shipping. On Wed I called Thule to discover the part was back ordered. Thule parts guy confirmed 4 in-stock when he took the order. Thule advised call ###-###-#### to order the part. I did and with $50 overnight shipping the parts did not arrive on Thu and we left for vacation without bikes. June 2014, I discover the [redacted] on Adapter and the tamper proof screw ** are too short to span the top and bottom mounting clamps. June 27, 2014 email to Thule requesting 8 tamper proof ** screws an inch longer than the [redacted] at no charge. No response and we went on our July vacation without the bikes.August 17, 2014 I emailed Thule to send the parts to me at my cost and received no response. Nov 14, 2014 I spoke with [redacted] and was offered a 50% off my next purchase. I advised [redacted] that is not what I need and asked to escalate the matter. A Supervisor or Manager was to contact me but I heard nothing further.Dec 3, 2014 I sent a follow-up email to [redacted] advising I had no further contact from Thule.Desired Settlement: Return the two bike carriers to Thule and replace them with comparable priced Thule products. Im willing to video the carriers and send it to [redacted] or other for them to confirm the new/assembled condition.

Review: I had bought an item for use with an external car roof rack system to mount a kayak (Thule #[redacted]). After having the item for 2 1/2 years, the specialized coating on the fixtures fails and caused a rust issue that required me to shear the bolts off to remove the fixture. After sending in detailed pictures of the problem, and only asking for replacement parts- not a brand new fixture, I was denied the Lifetime Warranty because I did not have the original receipt.Desired Settlement: A replacement of the broken/stripped/de-laminated parts of the fixture.

Business

Response:

Hi:

We have reached out to the customer and settled dispute, should be all set.

thanks,

Review: I own 4 of the [redacted]. I love the product, but the rubber covered steel strap has worn at the ends that slip into the retaining collars. The collars actually cut the rubber cover over time exposing the steel core. I called to get replacement rubber covered steel bands and was told I would have to buy all new feet ($200). This must be a very bad joke. The [redacted] look like they just came out of the box. I just need the new straps. I sent numerous photos to Thule to just to show how well these have been maintained. I contacted Thule Customer Service several times, they asked if the product had been kept inside when not on the car and also requested original proof of purchase and original ownership, which I no longer have, but I indicated that I would be glad to photograph the assortment of racks and Thule roof carriers I own. I have been a very good customer of Thule. Note, the reason for the wear of the rubber around the cylinder is because of a design deficiency in the product. I am a design & process engineer and it is obvious that the steel half moon capture points cause the rubber on the cores to wear and be cut in very little time. I have attached a picture of that portion of the foot for Thule's reference. Please note, I'm not asking for warranty replacement of my four [redacted], I just need to be able to replace the rubber covered steel straps. I'm more than glad to work the issue with the company in Europe if that's what it takes. As a very good Thule customer, I don't feel I have been treated well in this process, and am disappointed by their support. I'm simply trying to buy four replacement straps. Note that these units have a limited life time warranty which Thule will not honor because of the lack of the original proof of purchase & ownership. My support incident number is [redacted].Desired Settlement: I simply need Thule to either allow me to purchase the replacement straps (which have to come from the parent company in Europe) or to honor their warranty for the product

Business

Response:

Thule will contact customer and work it it out, we will replace the product in question to settle dispute.