[jsjazz]

I have a 2007 Jamis Dakkar XCR expert in the shop for a warranty frame replacement. (crack in the top tube) The problem is the bike has been there since Sept 18! This is a very reputable shop that has been going for many years. They tell me they talk to Jamis every week and that the frame is on back order. Now they are saying that there is an issue with matching componants (my bike is stock) and we are further delayed. :madman: Is this normal? It seems that if they warranty the frame, (the warranty is not in question) they should be able to match it with the componants alrerady there or supply ones that will work. 5 months seems to be a bit crazy! I'm just thankful it's winter but I really want the bike back. Should I contact Jamis directly? I didn't want to go around the dealer but I need some answers.
thanks
Jeff

 

[CaveGiant]

Never let a bikeshop handle these things,
If you know a telesales person they should be able to give you good tips on how to do this.

But summarised, get a contact at Jamis, get their name, get them to know you, your name, get them to like you. Speak to them most days.
Jamis have to see you as a person and want to help you. Currently you are just a number on a computer, would you go out of your way to help a number, or even know the number needed help?

Last time i made the mistake of letting the bike shop do something I waited a month to get a replacment crank. My bike shop is really good, the weak link was the importer, who is a moron.
I cut out the importer and phoned raceface direct, it turns out that they didn't have a 180mm crank (as they no longer make them) and were custom making me a one off replacement. I couldn't care less whether I have 175 or 180 and told them. I asked them for an upgraded model, with a different colour and they sent it out that day. I could have done that on day 1!!!!!
fking importer was trying to get me the exact model I had, even though I asked him for a different size.

moral of the story is, bike shops are good at fixing bikes, they are not necessarily good at negotiating supply favours.

Ask yourself, see what you can find.

If being nice fails, just phone the same guy EVERY DAY, it'll piss them off so much they will help you out.

Somone in your supply chain is a retard, not nessesarily your bikeshop guy.

 

[mimi1885]

It's not uncommon, it took 3+ months to warranty my Cannondale frame from a very reputable dealer.

 

[Mr.Magura]

Now having heard all these stories about bike companies not honoring warranty claims in a reasonable fashion, made me think it could be nice to actually hear about some that does sort out those issues in a reasonable way.
That would at least in my book be a big factor when choosing new stuff.

So which companies have you been treated well by in general, and have no bad experience with so far?

Magura

 

[zyzbot]

So which companies have you been treated well by in general, and have no bad experience with so far?

Magura

Salsa treated me well. They replaced a cracked Mamasita frame for me in just a week.

 

[Shark]

I had a '03 trek liquid that cracked, Trek and my LBS had me riding again in a couple weeks on a '10 EX9. That is some customer service right there.

It should never take 5 months to get a warranty taken care of with a bicycle.

 

[Straz85]

I had a '03 trek liquid that cracked, Trek and my LBS had me riding again in a couple weeks on a '10 EX9. That is some customer service right there.

It should never take 5 months to get a warranty taken care of with a bicycle.

Yup, Trek does it right. If the direct replacement is out of stock, they will upgrade you to the closest model in stock. I read a thread recently where someone's '08 HiFi was replaced with a brand new Fuel EX 9.9 (carbon!).

I would be calling Jamis myself and *****ing pretty bad, at least demanding a comparable bike to use for the time being, I'm sure they can afford to let you use a demo as long as you take care of it.

 

[jsjazz]

Follow up Great news!

I finally got the bike back. Jamis hooked me up with a 2011 complete frame and everything I needed to make it work (new seatpost, headset etc...) They also covered 1/2 the labor charge so I got everything back and better for $75!
Jeff

 

[frdfandc]

Good to hear on the new replacement bike.

As the person who handles the warranty claims at the LBS I work for, I've never had a bike company take that long. We do deal with several companies. Fuji, Focus, GT, Schwinn, etc.

I get the bikes in, evaluate them, take many pictures and email them to the respective representatives. Pictures speed up the process tremendously.

GT is normally the longest, but turnaround time for warranty stuff is usually about a week, since they are based in Cali, and I'm on the east coast.

Fuji is usually next day. They are in Philly.

 

[Fix the Spade]

@JSJazz, good to hear Jamis came through for you, albeit a llittle slowly.

Never let a bikeshop handle these things

That does depend on the shop and the brand they're dealing with.

Working in a Trek and Derby Cycle dealership most warranty claims were turned around inside 3 weeks. Both brands were always dead easy to deal with, it's nice when a brand trusts the judgement calls you make.

 

[Berkeley Mike]

My call is that someone simply dropped the ball, sorta like a check falling behind a filing cabinet.

 

[neveride]

I worked in 6 bike shops over the course of 15 years. The last shop I worked at was a top seller in the nation for several bigger brands--those companies would bend over backwards for a warranty for me (I was the service manager, and dealt with warranty issues).

They wouldn't even need to see the frame or part in question--if I said it was a warranty, they sent me out the replacement that day. If for some reason they didn't have the frame or part in stock, they would track one down at one of their dealers.

On the other hand, I dealt with some of those same companies when I worked at a store that barely sold the minimum amount to stay a dealer, and I'm pretty sure that warranty frames I sent back were marked "open in 6 months". That shop was definitely NOT a priority.

 

[markf]

i've never had jamis take the long on any issue with my shop. musta been a weird combo of bike/size/something else. worst they've done is not send a fork with a warranty touring frame that cracked. a phone call and a quick discussion got us a fork coming, non-matching, but the customer wasn't picky and the bike was 5-6 years old. went from 1" threaded to 1 1/8". they must not have had anything in stock that was a close match. weird. glad it got sorted out though.

 

[Mr.Magura]

I worked in 6 bike shops over the course of 15 years. The last shop I worked at was a top seller in the nation for several bigger brands--those companies would bend over backwards for a warranty for me (I was the service manager, and dealt with warranty issues).

They wouldn't even need to see the frame or part in question--if I said it was a warranty, they sent me out the replacement that day. If for some reason they didn't have the frame or part in stock, they would track one down at one of their dealers.

On the other hand, I dealt with some of those same companies when I worked at a store that barely sold the minimum amount to stay a dealer, and I'm pretty sure that warranty frames I sent back were marked "open in 6 months". That shop was definitely NOT a priority.

Hmm, that might explain why we get such horrible service sometimes here in the smaller European countries.
I have been wondering how opinions regarding service, could be clashing that hard, if based on the same experience.
Obviously we just got the short end of the stick in this neck of the woods

Magura