Horrible experience yesterday
My husband and I are on our honeymoon. Last year we purchased the platinum roadside assistance as we were planning this cross-country honeymoon trip (from California to Tennessee and back). Yesterday (on a Sunday), a tire blew on our 5th wheel tow hauler while we were in an unfamiliar city on the freeway. We were able to nurse the toy hauler to the side of an off-ramp (not a very safe place to be) and called Good Sam.
The customer service rep (CSR) asked a number of questions we felt were inappropriate, like what we had stored in the garage of the tow hauler. We THOUGHT the questions were to determine the weight load on the tire. My husband was honest and told her that we were carrying children's toys and a recliner to take as presents to my son and his daughter in Tennessee. We were then told that the service was being declined because we were using the toy hauler for commercial use; that we weren't allowed to carry anything but ATV's, motorcycles, and such in the back on our toy hauler.
Are you kidding me?
We were on the phone for about 2 hours (in the heat on the shoulder of the off-ramp). We were referred to the brochure online (which I downloaded) which said that vehicles being used for commercial or non-recreational use would be denied service.
We are not a commercial vehicle nor are we using our 5th wheel to generate any money at all. (At the cost of this trip, I wish we COULD somehow make money off of it, BUT WE AREN'T!).
I finally took the phone and talked to a floor supervisor named Richard (no last name). I asked him to direct me to the website or other downloadable document that gave the definition IN WRITING that was binding on the contract of "non-recreational". He couldn't do it. (It appears that the definitions of "commercial" or "non-recreational" are solely up to the CSR who takes the call. TOTALLY ILLEGAL in any state. That's Contract 101 stuff.) Richard realized that GS didn't have a leg to stand on and made arrangements for dispatch help to us.
TOO LATE! By that time, my disabled, senior husband--so frustrated because we still had 3 hours to travel--had changed the tire himself IN THAT UNSAFE AREA.
We paid A LOT of money for Good Sam Roadside Assistance just so we wouldn't have to do the grunt work ourselves. My husband has a painful disability that flares up and changing the tire yesterday could have disabled him to the point that he wouldn't be able to drive for days! Plus, we were being denied service based on something that ISN'T IN WRITING and thus, legally, ISN'T BINDING TO THE CONTRACT. And doing some research on the Internet, this isn't the first time that Good Sam has tried to deny the services that they were obligated to give.
Though we had every intention of renewing our GS contract (which is up this month), we are now actively looking for other alternatives. It is ridiculous that we were denied services by CSR's in a telemarketing room that don't understand basic contract law and obligations. And while Richard, the manager, was WONDERFUL, our situation shouldn't have had to get to that point! (A fact to which he agreed.) I shouldn't have to demand to talk to a supervisor of a supervisor to get someone to understand that a contract is very specific and is binding on both parties according to the wording of the contract.
What does "non-recreational" mean? There is NO definition anywhere that I can find. To be honest, recreation is different things to different people. To me, it's going away and finding quiet away from my job so that I can WORK on projects I couldn't get done during the school year. To ME, that is recreation! How dare some CSR tell me what is and isn't recreation for me. "Commercial", on the other hand, is making money. And I'm certainly NOT making money on this trip.
Good Sam needs to (1) provide clear and concise definitions for their contract language; (2) hire and TRAIN people to understand how to implement those contracts according to the language in the contract; (3) have supervisors who are more readily available that a two hour wait; (4) be more concerned about the safety of their members than trying to figure a way to screw us out of a paid-for service.
I have posted a Yelp complaint and will continue to complain in different venues until someone from GS contacts me directly and is willing to provide some recourse for this horrible situation. Of course, these days, executives of companies thoroughly insulate themselves from their customers. But at some point, somebody needs to hear what I'm saying and respond.
The customer service rep (CSR) asked a number of questions we felt were inappropriate, like what we had stored in the garage of the tow hauler. We THOUGHT the questions were to determine the weight load on the tire. My husband was honest and told her that we were carrying children's toys and a recliner to take as presents to my son and his daughter in Tennessee. We were then told that the service was being declined because we were using the toy hauler for commercial use; that we weren't allowed to carry anything but ATV's, motorcycles, and such in the back on our toy hauler.
Are you kidding me?
We were on the phone for about 2 hours (in the heat on the shoulder of the off-ramp). We were referred to the brochure online (which I downloaded) which said that vehicles being used for commercial or non-recreational use would be denied service.
We are not a commercial vehicle nor are we using our 5th wheel to generate any money at all. (At the cost of this trip, I wish we COULD somehow make money off of it, BUT WE AREN'T!).
I finally took the phone and talked to a floor supervisor named Richard (no last name). I asked him to direct me to the website or other downloadable document that gave the definition IN WRITING that was binding on the contract of "non-recreational". He couldn't do it. (It appears that the definitions of "commercial" or "non-recreational" are solely up to the CSR who takes the call. TOTALLY ILLEGAL in any state. That's Contract 101 stuff.) Richard realized that GS didn't have a leg to stand on and made arrangements for dispatch help to us.
TOO LATE! By that time, my disabled, senior husband--so frustrated because we still had 3 hours to travel--had changed the tire himself IN THAT UNSAFE AREA.
We paid A LOT of money for Good Sam Roadside Assistance just so we wouldn't have to do the grunt work ourselves. My husband has a painful disability that flares up and changing the tire yesterday could have disabled him to the point that he wouldn't be able to drive for days! Plus, we were being denied service based on something that ISN'T IN WRITING and thus, legally, ISN'T BINDING TO THE CONTRACT. And doing some research on the Internet, this isn't the first time that Good Sam has tried to deny the services that they were obligated to give.
Though we had every intention of renewing our GS contract (which is up this month), we are now actively looking for other alternatives. It is ridiculous that we were denied services by CSR's in a telemarketing room that don't understand basic contract law and obligations. And while Richard, the manager, was WONDERFUL, our situation shouldn't have had to get to that point! (A fact to which he agreed.) I shouldn't have to demand to talk to a supervisor of a supervisor to get someone to understand that a contract is very specific and is binding on both parties according to the wording of the contract.
What does "non-recreational" mean? There is NO definition anywhere that I can find. To be honest, recreation is different things to different people. To me, it's going away and finding quiet away from my job so that I can WORK on projects I couldn't get done during the school year. To ME, that is recreation! How dare some CSR tell me what is and isn't recreation for me. "Commercial", on the other hand, is making money. And I'm certainly NOT making money on this trip.
Good Sam needs to (1) provide clear and concise definitions for their contract language; (2) hire and TRAIN people to understand how to implement those contracts according to the language in the contract; (3) have supervisors who are more readily available that a two hour wait; (4) be more concerned about the safety of their members than trying to figure a way to screw us out of a paid-for service.
I have posted a Yelp complaint and will continue to complain in different venues until someone from GS contacts me directly and is willing to provide some recourse for this horrible situation. Of course, these days, executives of companies thoroughly insulate themselves from their customers. But at some point, somebody needs to hear what I'm saying and respond.
