RE: [VAL] Nightmare at Inland RV

["Ross, Wyn" <WRoss@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

On May 20th, 2004 I arrived at Inland RV with my 1965 Globetrotter. I met
with Andy Rogozinski for about an hour and discussed the work I needed to
have done and when I needed to have the trailer back. Andy gave me a
"top-end" estimate of $2000 for the work (which seemed a little high) but
since I had already invested 2 days and 900 miles of driving to get there
and back, I went ahead and left the trailer. He required a 50% deposit which
I put on my credit card. It didn't appear that Andy was very focused in our
meeting so I told him that I would follow up with an email listing the work
that needed to be completed, the schedule, and the cost estimate so that
there would be no ambiguity about what we discussed. In that email (dated
5/21/2004 @ 11:08 AM), I had the following two lines (cut and pasted
directly from that email):

I need to pick up the trailer on 6/16 (earlier if I need to take the refer
to another shop). 
If we start to deviate significantly from the $2k estimate, please let me
know as soon as possible.

He did not reply, so after about a week I called his office to confirm that
he received the email and for a progress report. I was told Andy was busy
and asked to leave a number where he could call me back. I left my office
number so I could be reached during business hours (the phone also has the
option of leaving a recorded message or speaking with a secretary). Andy did
not return the call so I waited a couple of days and called back. Again, I
was told that Andy was busy (either on another call or meeting with a
customer) and asked to leave a number. This went on for 2 weeks and 15
untaken phone calls. Eventually, as the pick up date approached, I started
taking a late lunch and called from home where I could dedicate the line,
use my dime for the long distance charges, and wait as long as needed. On
three separate occasions, I was told to wait at that number and "If Andy
doesn't call you back in a half hour, I will". Each time, I waited a full 60
minutes without a return call. Each time I called them back only to be told
that Andy was either too busy to take the call, or had left. Finally, on the
night before I was to head down to pick up the trailer (6/15/04), not
knowing if the trailer had been worked on or if we were still under the
$2000 estimate, I started calling Inland every hour, insisting that I get
some information. At 6:00 PM, 10 hours before I was to leave to pick the
trailer up, I get a call from Andy (the first since I dropped the trailer
off). He said "your coach is ready, the bill is $4800". I was stunned. When
asked how we got from $2000 to $4800, all Andy did was quote me the parts
and labor charges. After about 5 minutes, Andy had to go, leaving me to
consider my options. Having signed a mechanic's lien (yes, I know) my
options were limited, and since the only time I could get away from the
office to pick it up was the next few days, I bit the bullet and headed
south. It was late afternoon when I arrived at Inland and had just enough
time to check out the trailer, take care of the bill, express my displeasure
with the way things had transpired, and hit the road back home.   
I was very disappointed with the quality of the work on the trailer. For
example, I had asked him to try and locate the source of the smell in the
radiant heater. He told me the heater was bad so he tossed it (it worked
fine, just had an odor). I asked for a quote on a fan for the ceiling vent.
He went ahead and installed one that protruded so far into the cabin that
the original screen cover would not go back on, so I now have this unsightly
electric motor coming through the ceiling to bang my head on. He installed
an "exact replacement" for my fresh water tank that was sufficiently
different from the original that a new fill hole had to be cut higher in the
wall making the front bed difficult to open, and leaving an ugly patch on
the skin. Later I would find more significant problems. Other work that he
said he would do, he did not (in retrospect, a good thing).
Oh yes, and then there's the bill. $2800 more than the estimate (a factor of
2.4). Even though I had paid the 50% deposit on my credit card ($20k limit)
and there were no problems, Andy said he would only take cash or cashiers
check for the balance. What could I do, I paid the man and headed back home.
In an attempt to pacify me, Andy said that when it was time to replace the
heater, he would give me half off the labor. Big whoop.
A few weeks later I was readying the trailer for its maiden voyage (a trip
to Southern California) and began testing the systems. The first to test was
the new toilet and black water tank (responsible for most of Inland's bill).
I brought in 5 gallons of water and slowly poured it into the toilet. Water
leaked all over the inside of the trailer and through the belly pan onto the
ground. Perfect. Since I was going to pass within a few miles of Inland on
my vacation I figured I would swing by and have Andy make it right, so I got
on the phone to schedule an appointment. Andy was busy and didn't take the
call ("but if you could leave a number where you could be reached....."). He
never did return the call and I spent my vacation with a brand new, but
unusable, toilet.
When I got back home I took the trailer to a nearby (100 miles away) Camping
World to see if they could fix the leak (it costs me about $1000 in fuel and
lost wages alone to  drive to and from Inland). They found the problem (a
flange broken on installation) but told me that they couldn't fix it. All
the local shops I contacted said they might be able to fix it but they
weren't sure, and couldn't give me an estimate of the cost.
It looked like Inland might be the best option. It was under warranty, and
perhaps if I got the heater installed at the same time, the labor savings
might help offset the cost of the long trip. OK, the phone doesn't work so
I'll focus on email. I sent Andy an email in which I explained that neither
the toilet nor tank had been used, and that I was going to have a hard time
taking time off to get the trailer to him before my next vacation in June.
Imagine my surprise when I got a fairly prompt (albeit curt) reply: 

Wyn. 
Our corporate law firm requires us to follow a normal warranty policy, OR
ELSE! 
We cannot keep extending any warranty to you without creating all to many
liabilities, beyond the 90 days. 
We must have your trailer in here before the end of this year, to correct
any problem. 

So, I schedule the work (leak fix and heater installation) for 11/1/04. I
dropped the trailer off at 7:30 AM on the first and returned to pick it up
at 3:00 that afternoon, as arranged. No charge for the toilet (although Andy
did say that somehow it was my fault "Somebody must have sat on
it"......think about that one). There was a problem with the heater bill
though: I was being charge 5.5 hours labor (no half off) for a total of
$1109.36. By this time Andy had disappeared into the back so I requested he
return so we could discuss the bill, in particular the missing half-off on
the labor charge. 
This is where it gets weird. 
The moment I reminded him of his half-off offer he got beet red and started
yelling things like "I never said that" and "You didn't say anything about
this when you dropped it off". The second part IS true. I didn't remind him
of the half-off offer when I dropped it off because I wanted to see the bill
first so I wouldn't get half off 11 hours of labor (kind of like buying a
new car, you make your best deal THEN pull out your discounts). I tried to
explain this to Andy but he just got louder and redder (reminded me of when
I used to tell my three year old son he couldn't have any dessert until he
ate his vegetables). When he got to the point where he was screaming,
pointing in my face, and insinuating I was lying, I'd had  enough. As soon
as it was clear he wasn't going to shout me down, and I raised MY voice, he
started yelling "Call the police, call the police! And don't take his credit
card! If he can't pay cash, lock up the trailer!" And then he ran away, not
to be seen again. Having anticipated something like this, I had the cash in
my pocket and paid in full, anxious to put Inland far in my rear view
mirror. When the officer arrived (a very nice fellow) I asked if he wouldn't
mind hanging around so Andy could explain exactly WHY the police were called
(a questioned to this day I cannot answer). Andy never came out. 
Every encounter I've had with my Airstream, with this one exception, has
been positive (especially participating in discussions on the Vintage
Airstreams list). Now, I know some of you have fond feelings for Andy. That
is partly why I didn't write to the list about my first trip to Inland. But
this time it was too much. In my 52+ years on this planet I have never had a
more frustrating business relationship, and I have never been called a liar.


Hope this was in some way informative (if not, I hope your a fast reader),
Wyn