REI Warranty



F

Frank Drackman

Guest
Last week I posted a message about breaking an REI frame and wondered if it
was worth repairing. One of the responses was that REI frames had a
lifetime warranty.

On Friday night I went to the local REI retail location and discussed the
situation with a couple of employees. The first told me that REI didn't
make bikes. The second had no idea about warranty and the third told me "We
will take care of you." When I asked what that meant he said that if I
brought the bike in on Saturday the repair shop would give me a new frame
and switch my old parts for free.

I brought the bike in on Saturday and was told that the shop manager would
have to make the decision and would not be in until Monday morning and would
call me so after they opened.

When I didn't hear from them I called. A bike shop employee told me that
the guy who makes decisions isn't. I asked to be transferred to the store
manager. After I told her the story she said that the bicycling manager
would be able to make a decision today.

I just received another call and she said that the correct person will be in
sometime tomorrow and will call me. It seems that there is no clear
warranty policy and it will be interesting to see what they tell me
tomorrow.
 
Frank Drackman wrote:
> Last week I posted a message about breaking an REI frame and wondered if it
> was worth repairing. One of the responses was that REI frames had a
> lifetime warranty.
>
> On Friday night I went to the local REI retail location and discussed the
> situation with a couple of employees. The first told me that REI didn't
> make bikes. The second had no idea about warranty and the third told me "We
> will take care of you." When I asked what that meant he said that if I
> brought the bike in on Saturday the repair shop would give me a new frame
> and switch my old parts for free.
>
> I brought the bike in on Saturday and was told that the shop manager would
> have to make the decision and would not be in until Monday morning and would
> call me so after they opened.
>
> When I didn't hear from them I called. A bike shop employee told me that
> the guy who makes decisions isn't. I asked to be transferred to the store
> manager. After I told her the story she said that the bicycling manager
> would be able to make a decision today.
>
> I just received another call and she said that the correct person will be in
> sometime tomorrow and will call me. It seems that there is no clear
> warranty policy and it will be interesting to see what they tell me
> tomorrow.


You probably have a better chance of getting REI to honor their warranty
than you would of getting a bicycle shop to honor the warranty of Trek,
Specialized, etc., where every excuse is used to get out of replacing
the frame.
 
> Last week I posted a message about breaking an REI frame and wondered if
> it was worth repairing. One of the responses was that REI frames had a
> lifetime warranty.
>
> On Friday night I went to the local REI retail location and discussed the
> situation with a couple of employees. The first told me that REI didn't
> make bikes. The second had no idea about warranty and the third told me
> "We will take care of you." When I asked what that meant he said that if
> I brought the bike in on Saturday the repair shop would give me a new
> frame and switch my old parts for free.
>
> I brought the bike in on Saturday and was told that the shop manager would
> have to make the decision and would not be in until Monday morning and
> would call me so after they opened.
>
> When I didn't hear from them I called. A bike shop employee told me that
> the guy who makes decisions isn't. I asked to be transferred to the store
> manager. After I told her the story she said that the bicycling manager
> would be able to make a decision today.
>
> I just received another call and she said that the correct person will be
> in sometime tomorrow and will call me. It seems that there is no clear
> warranty policy and it will be interesting to see what they tell me
> tomorrow.


So until Saturday nobody at REI had even seen the bike, and yet someone
there told you it would be covered as a warranty? That seems strangest of
all. You can't assume something's a warranty based solely on the description
given by a customer over the phone. Perhaps half the time there's something
left out, if you know what I mean (for example, bikes that we're told never
hit anything, but somehow the rim or downtube became buckled).

The quality of the bike departments at REI varies tremendously. Some are
great, others much less so. I'm not sure where the decision is made
regarding how much focus to place on the individual bike departments, but
obviously there's no company-wide edict that says they want very high
quality bike departments as a rule.

--Mike Jacoubowsky
Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReaction.com
Redwood City & Los Altos, CA USA


"Frank Drackman" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Last week I posted a message about breaking an REI frame and wondered if
> it was worth repairing. One of the responses was that REI frames had a
> lifetime warranty.
>
> On Friday night I went to the local REI retail location and discussed the
> situation with a couple of employees. The first told me that REI didn't
> make bikes. The second had no idea about warranty and the third told me
> "We will take care of you." When I asked what that meant he said that if
> I brought the bike in on Saturday the repair shop would give me a new
> frame and switch my old parts for free.
>
> I brought the bike in on Saturday and was told that the shop manager would
> have to make the decision and would not be in until Monday morning and
> would call me so after they opened.
>
> When I didn't hear from them I called. A bike shop employee told me that
> the guy who makes decisions isn't. I asked to be transferred to the store
> manager. After I told her the story she said that the bicycling manager
> would be able to make a decision today.
>
> I just received another call and she said that the correct person will be
> in sometime tomorrow and will call me. It seems that there is no clear
> warranty policy and it will be interesting to see what they tell me
> tomorrow.
>
 
"SMS" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Frank Drackman wrote:
>> Last week I posted a message about breaking an REI frame and wondered if
>> it was worth repairing. One of the responses was that REI frames had a
>> lifetime warranty.
>>
>> On Friday night I went to the local REI retail location and discussed the
>> situation with a couple of employees. The first told me that REI didn't
>> make bikes. The second had no idea about warranty and the third told me
>> "We will take care of you." When I asked what that meant he said that if
>> I brought the bike in on Saturday the repair shop would give me a new
>> frame and switch my old parts for free.
>>
>> I brought the bike in on Saturday and was told that the shop manager
>> would have to make the decision and would not be in until Monday morning
>> and would call me so after they opened.
>>
>> When I didn't hear from them I called. A bike shop employee told me that
>> the guy who makes decisions isn't. I asked to be transferred to the
>> store manager. After I told her the story she said that the bicycling
>> manager would be able to make a decision today.
>>
>> I just received another call and she said that the correct person will be
>> in sometime tomorrow and will call me. It seems that there is no clear
>> warranty policy and it will be interesting to see what they tell me
>> tomorrow.

>
> You probably have a better chance of getting REI to honor their warranty
> than you would of getting a bicycle shop to honor the warranty of Trek,
> Specialized, etc., where every excuse is used to get out of replacing the
> frame.


At this point I am not sure there really is a lifetime warranty. My
original reason for visiting on Friday was to purchase a new bike.

It was after one employee told me that they would give me a new frame that
it became interesting.

One thing is extremely clear is that REI needs to think about employee
training. One employee didn't know that Novara was the house brand. He
really thought that it was a national brand like Trek or Specialized.

Another employee in the bike department didn't know that the Randonee model
was still offered for sale. He thought that it had been replaced by the
Element.

So far I have spoken six different employees, none could tell me what the
warranty policy is.
 
Frank, really. A rather high percentage of clerk help isn't deeply
involved - in anything.
Don't ask the shop, ask REI.
Google: sue REI, sue REI warranty, warranty bicycle,
tollfree?
 
"Mike Jacoubowsky" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:inaTi.380$%[email protected]...
>> Last week I posted a message about breaking an REI frame and wondered if
>> it was worth repairing. One of the responses was that REI frames had a
>> lifetime warranty.
>>
>> On Friday night I went to the local REI retail location and discussed the
>> situation with a couple of employees. The first told me that REI didn't
>> make bikes. The second had no idea about warranty and the third told me
>> "We will take care of you." When I asked what that meant he said that if
>> I brought the bike in on Saturday the repair shop would give me a new
>> frame and switch my old parts for free.
>>
>> I brought the bike in on Saturday and was told that the shop manager
>> would have to make the decision and would not be in until Monday morning
>> and would call me so after they opened.
>>
>> When I didn't hear from them I called. A bike shop employee told me that
>> the guy who makes decisions isn't. I asked to be transferred to the
>> store manager. After I told her the story she said that the bicycling
>> manager would be able to make a decision today.
>>
>> I just received another call and she said that the correct person will be
>> in sometime tomorrow and will call me. It seems that there is no clear
>> warranty policy and it will be interesting to see what they tell me
>> tomorrow.

>
> So until Saturday nobody at REI had even seen the bike, and yet someone
> there told you it would be covered as a warranty? That seems strangest of
> all. You can't assume something's a warranty based solely on the
> description given by a customer over the phone. Perhaps half the time
> there's something left out, if you know what I mean (for example, bikes
> that we're told never hit anything, but somehow the rim or downtube became
> buckled).
>



I was also surprised by the employee telling me that it was covered by
warranty without seeing it. He kept saying things like, "We will do the
right thing" and "We will take care of you." As I noted above, I had to ask
him to define the terms.

I think that I learned today that the bike department sales floor is a
different profit center than the bike repair shop and that the employees are
not well versed in the policies, products, and procedures of both.
 
not selling Frank Drackman a warranty is as good or better if you buy
another than selling a new bike.
also, the shop floor personnel are probabbly not legally bound or
liable for anything they tell you unless an unimpeachable witness
with video cam is there for you and in that case...
example, I'm a capable pro se lawyer - no one on the other side will
send me emails, presentable evidence. It's always, "give me a call."
other postters said REI had a warranty. if they weren't plling your
leg then go to REI Warranty - if there's warranty


THEN THERE'S A WARRANTY DEPARTMENT!
 
GOOGLE'S NOT POSTING MY POSTS so if there's a double ...

Frank, the shop help isn't liable for telling you the earth is flat
unless you have an unimpeachable witness along with a video camera.

not selling you a warranty is as good or better than selling you a new
bike.

posters suggested there is a bike warranty so unless they're pulling
your wiene, you should find and speak directly with

REI WARRANTY DEPARTMENT
 
datakoll aka gene daniels wrote:
> GOOGLE'S NOT POSTING MY POSTS so if there's a double ...


After an initial glitch where a few news feeds were not being picked up,
I have been happy with news.motzarella.org. The price is right: free.

My newsreader (Mozilla Thunderbird) is also free.

Google Groups is annoying in the way it limits postings, mangles the
user name field in replies, ignores the signature separator, etc.

--
Tom Sherman - Holstein-Friesland Bovinia
Beer - It's not just for breakfast anymore!
 
datakoll aka gene daniels wrote:
> I hear the russian has a human skin lampshade collection
>

No, that was a cheesehead named Ed Gein:
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ed_Gein>.

--
Tom Sherman - Holstein-Friesland Bovinia
Beer - It's not just for breakfast anymore!
 
On Oct 22, 4:02 pm, "Frank Drackman" <[email protected]> wrote:
> Last week I posted a message about breaking an REI frame and wondered if it
> was worth repairing. One of the responses was that REI frames had a
> lifetime warranty.
>
> On Friday night I went to the local REI retail location and discussed the
> situation with a couple of employees. The first told me that REI didn't
> make bikes. The second had no idea about warranty and the third told me "We
> will take care of you." When I asked what that meant he said that if I
> brought the bike in on Saturday the repair shop would give me a new frame
> and switch my old parts for free.
>
> I brought the bike in on Saturday and was told that the shop manager would
> have to make the decision and would not be in until Monday morning and would
> call me so after they opened.
>
> When I didn't hear from them I called. A bike shop employee told me that
> the guy who makes decisions isn't. I asked to be transferred to the store
> manager. After I told her the story she said that the bicycling manager
> would be able to make a decision today.
>
> I just received another call and she said that the correct person will be in
> sometime tomorrow and will call me. It seems that there is no clear
> warranty policy and it will be interesting to see what they tell me
> tomorrow.


Please do some due diligence before going ballistic (just one example
from REI's OWN web site):
http://www.rei.com/rei/gearshop/novara/0304randonee.pdf
"Bargain chrome-moly touring bike with a lifetime guarantee"

As of 2007 the Randonee is still in the REI (Novara) line up. REI
employees might not be up on the latest corporate policies but they're
generally pretty knowledgeable about the nuts and bolts kind of
stuff. It's just too bad they force all such decisions (&
responsibilities) solely on the bike shop manager.

I have no affiliation with REI aside from being a highly satisfied
customer. They've always treated me right when any issues arose. The
same can't be said of most other shops or manufacturers.
 
"damyth" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> On Oct 22, 4:02 pm, "Frank Drackman" <[email protected]> wrote:
>> Last week I posted a message about breaking an REI frame and wondered if
>> it
>> was worth repairing. One of the responses was that REI frames had a
>> lifetime warranty.
>>
>> On Friday night I went to the local REI retail location and discussed the
>> situation with a couple of employees. The first told me that REI didn't
>> make bikes. The second had no idea about warranty and the third told me
>> "We
>> will take care of you." When I asked what that meant he said that if I
>> brought the bike in on Saturday the repair shop would give me a new frame
>> and switch my old parts for free.
>>
>> I brought the bike in on Saturday and was told that the shop manager
>> would
>> have to make the decision and would not be in until Monday morning and
>> would
>> call me so after they opened.
>>
>> When I didn't hear from them I called. A bike shop employee told me that
>> the guy who makes decisions isn't. I asked to be transferred to the
>> store
>> manager. After I told her the story she said that the bicycling manager
>> would be able to make a decision today.
>>
>> I just received another call and she said that the correct person will be
>> in
>> sometime tomorrow and will call me. It seems that there is no clear
>> warranty policy and it will be interesting to see what they tell me
>> tomorrow.

>
> Please do some due diligence before going ballistic (just one example
> from REI's OWN web site):
> http://www.rei.com/rei/gearshop/novara/0304randonee.pdf
> "Bargain chrome-moly touring bike with a lifetime guarantee"
>


I don't know why you think that I was going ballistic.

I am generally happy with REI, and really loved the bike. My frustration
has been with trying to find out if the frame is covered by a lifetime
warranty. Unfortunately the website doesn't list the warranty policy for my
specific model from 1993 or 1994.

REI's general policy is "100% customer satisfaction guarantee" but they
don't outline what that really means.
 
Frank Drackman wrote:

> I think that I learned today that the bike department sales floor is a
> different profit center than the bike repair shop and that the employees are
> not well versed in the policies, products, and procedures of both.


Yeah, I think that they may lease out the ski shop and bicycle shop in
terms of repairs, assembly, etc., but I'm not sure about this.

They've had a lifetime warranty on frames for a long time. They probably
don't even know when it started. They do keep old catalogs though
probably not for 13-14 years.

I once asked them about a jacket I had bought there, the first
generation Gore-Tex that never really worked. It must have been at least
seven years old. They gave me full credit towards a new jacket.

It's problematic about frame warranties, since they obviously can't
replace just the frame on a 14 year old bicycle with a new one that will
work with all the old components, unless they keep a stash of old frames
around.

They probably want to look at how it broke. If they can attribute it to
an accident then they can get out of replacing it.
 
Frank Drackman wrote:
now why you think that I was going ballistic.
>
> I am generally happy with REI, and really loved the bike. My frustration
> has been with trying to find out if the frame is covered by a lifetime
> warranty. Unfortunately the website doesn't list the warranty policy for my
> specific model from 1993 or 1994.


I would not agree to any proposal they put forward for a discount on a
new bicycle. Tell them that you can just leave the bicycle with them,
and that you can pick it up when the replacement frame arrives and when
the components are transferred over. It's common for companies to try to
get out of lifetime warranties by offering to sell you the latest and
greatest product at a significant discount, because they still end up
making money. If REI sells you a new Randonee for 50% off, that's no
bargain. If they agree that the frame failure was not due to abuse or
accident, then insist that they honor the warranty.
 

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