buywake sucks

i liked them up until now. don't expect great customer service!! i bought a helmet as a gift way over 30 days ago, so i can't return it. it was a gift still in box as we speak. all i need is a bigger size. i was told by customer service that i'd have to just "eat it". that's piss poor service in my mind!

I would ask to speak with a supervisor. Then if nothing could be done and it bothered me enough, would not shop there anymore.....

BUT....seems clear enough to me. This is not a Buywake.com sucks so much, as a there are rules and they are sticking to them....

http://www.buywake.com/customerservice/warrantiesandreturns

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quote:

RETURNS AND EXCHANGES

BuyWake.com is committed to you being fully satisfied with your purchase. If for any reason you would like to return the unused product, follow these guidelines.
• Items must be returned within 30 days from date of purchase.
• Call or e-mail us at sales@buywake.com for Return Authorization number or click here to download a return authorization form (NOTE* this form cannot be used to return warranty/defective items).
• No refunds or exchanges without a valid RA#
• Send the unused product back to us insured for the full value.
• FedEx, UPS or USPS traceable only
• Customer is responsible for all return shipping costs.
• Upon inspection of returned product, BuyWake.com, at its discretion, will issue a full or partial refund to the credit card used for the purchase less the original shipping charges. All returned items that were shipped with the free shipping promotion will be credited less the actual shipping costs.
• Customer pays price difference and new shipping costs on exchanged merchandise.
• Sorry, no returns or exchanges on closeout or sale items.

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^^^^^True. Though being told to "eat it" is BS. I've been told something similar by the customer service person at buywake... I have his name written down somewhere. Would be willing to bet you talked to the same person I did when I had an issue.

ej, it's one thing to enforce the rules, but to be told to just "eat it," i'm pretty sure you would've reacted exactly as garold has.

im eating right now, bran cereal

how about when you buy a new vest for 119 and you check your bank account and there is a charge for 119, and another for 180. and you call and ask and they can't seem to find that other transaction to cancel it. so they tell you the only way they can do anything is to send them your bank statement (which is available at the end of the month)... and they'd see what they can do... knowing they can frickin look up all the transactions from that particular day that for that amount and see what it is. .... sorry for the rant.

exactly. that's just bad wording. i can understand it premise, but that's a terrible way to sell your company. especially if you pride yourself in customer service. i did email the supervisor. i'll just look to shop elsewhere and not refer them to friends anymore.

Joe, I don't know about that. If I have a good history with a company, the deal with one asshat answering the phones....I would think there is not a shot in Hell I am starting a "X Company Sucks" thread complaining about my single incident.....

ESPECIALLY when I had not followed up with the supervisor(which I would have ask to be transferred to as soon as I got the name of the individual I was talking with).

AND...when I shirked my personal responsibility to follow their policies...


That is not to say that in a perfect world, they exchange the hat and call it all good.....which is what I believe the supervisor would have done if it was at 30 days and they were not discontinued.

i imagine he said... "sorry bro you're going to have to eat it" and not "Eat it Bro."

sell the thing on ebay for a few bucks less. boo hoo, do you really expect someone to give you a refund from way back when? i mean, how long is way more than 30 days?

btw you have a big head. ;)

I have been to ambush/buywake personally several times and never had a problem.Thats do bad their online service sucks. The guys are all real down to earth. If you are lookin for wake stuff, then you will end up talking to Brandon or Brett Lee, or Rhett Whatley. They are all real down to earth want to help. They are pushin the sport big time in Atlanta

YEAH, thats too bad i had a similar problem now i always shop at riptank.com they have WAY better customer service and will match prices most of the time.http://www.riptank.com

(Message edited by devildog_ra on June 18, 2008)

Totally agree. I stumbled onto Riptank.com through a friend and when I called they were nothing but helpful in helping me find what I was looking for. Check 'em out.

well, buywake came through. they don't suck. the supervisor has set it all up. they part that really sucked was being told i just had to "eat it". i didn't mean for this to be an anti- buywake thread. just customer service complaint. i woulda found away to sell the helmet and take the loss, but to be told that sucks.

I like BuyWake.

I'm opposite of most of this, I had excellent service over the phone, they went out of their way because i wanted to switch sizes, but when I've gone in there the people I talked to def weren't one of those guys.

I've never had a problem with them. They've not only helped me out with switching sizes in a speedy manner, but they also came through when they were nearly completely out of the sunglasses I wanted and had a special order of the pair that I wanted. Not to mention they helped me out big time on a order for a slider helmet where they ran out just before I went to purchase one.

A bunch of good guys, at least from my experience.

If you're buying a gift that won't be given to the receiver until more than 30 days has passed, maybe you better postpone the order a bit.

I have had many orders online and over the phone with buywake and I will continue to get all my stuff from them they know alot about there products also... ive been inside riptank and to a tournament they hold and also like them a lot also

"This is not a Buywake.com sucks so much, as a there are rules and they are sticking to them...."

Yeah, but, that still sucks. My local pro shop would take it back. Rules schmules. If you want customer loyalty, earn it. Otherwise you'll never see a dollar of my money again.

if you don't intend a thread to be anti buywake, then don't title it buywake sucks

That is pretty much what I said J-Rod.


I lead with "I would ask to speak with a supervisor. Then if nothing could be done and it bothered me enough, would not shop there anymore....."


As far as customer loyalty, so should boat companies extend warranties past their end date....say, if you only used your boat 30 hours a year? Or never even used it? Should I snap my 2002 Premier and see if my local shop will give me a new one....I haven't been on it for years? I have a line that I bought as a spare and have never used once, think that even though it is old, I could return it for store credit?

I am not saying the guy he talked to on the phone was not an asshat, but these threads get under my skin. Our society is FULL of people who take no personal responsibility. There is a rule....end of story. If Buywake wants to go above and beyond, great...but it is not their responsibility.

I have had some ultra-slow service from buywake.com as well. I ordered the '07 CWB Faction package (board/bindings) and only the bindings showed up. They did eventually resolve the issues, but it ended up taking ~45 days and about 5 phone calls.

Nothing will get resolved with an e-mail. You have to call them. I haven't ordered from the this year.

(Message edited by erik_a on June 19, 2008)

Hi EJ / Others,
As someone who is on the seller side....I can tell you, that most business' , ours included, will work to resolve issues like this. The advice to speak to someone...aka a supervisor is wise. Simply explain yours case....and usually they will work to resolve it. Most shop owners or managers believe in the "treat people like you'd like to be treated" motto. And why would any business want to walk away from a ongoing customer if you have a receipt and the item is a current model and in "like new" condition? I can't see any shop that cares about its customers not taking care of this.

Two things I can tell you....While buying online is convienent, and you don't have to "deal with sales people".....there is no substitute for face-to-face transactions. Its a lot easier to be 'strict' in your policies when you are not in someones face..that said...why? The goal here is to keep your customers.. I will tell you that if you have a person's name who your corresponded with to order the item...call them personally...and tell the situation. I will almost guarantee you won't get the hardline.

One other thing to consider...in todays world of Walmarts, Costcos, and other large stores who will take anything back for any reason at any time.....specialty retail stores do not have the power to make our vendors "take all problems back". Even though many customers expect us to be able to do the same as these big stores. Again this is not the scenario and much simpler, but we get so many off the wall returns on stuff that is used, damaged, outside the warranty offered by vendors, and that was not even sold by us.....and customers expect us to replace it....many times without a receipt. Sometimes these situations cause us to raise our guard as our vendors only will support us on legit claims. And the people who suffer, and deal with issue like this are the honest ones like yourself. And that "s&cks" because it shouldn't be this way.
EJ, I'm glad they worked to resolve it. Sorry for rambling on but thought it might be good to hear a sellers side...and how to approach it.

Bill @ Performance
www.perfski.com

excellent post bill!

Buywake.com has always been an excellent place to find quality merchandise in my opinion. I live in the Atlanta area and go to the local brick and mortar store as well and there is always friendly customer service.

Not saying your claim is bogus but im sure you can work something out.

Bill, I think you are confusing me with Garold.

Another buywake.com supporter here. I buy almost exclusively from them because we don't have any decent shops around me. I am glad they stepped up to the plate for you. It has been my experience that them stepping up to the plate is more the norm for buywake.com

Hey guys just wanted to give everyone another option. ShopTSR.com is the online store for the Texas Ski Ranch. We are not a big warehouse store like Buywake or Wakeside but our product catalog is growing everyday.

As Bill said, places like Performance and some of the other smaller stores must balance the ability to keep customers satisfied while being reasonable with returns and warranty issues. While an exchange for a bigger size should be no big deal if the item is in stock you must understand the need to have these policies. When every store has the same products for the same price, customer experience and service make the buying experience. By offering you guys what you want and doing it in a friendly and helpful manner your local shops will always be a better place to buy.

Cody @ ShopTSR.com

One bad experience via buywake was enough for me. There are too many competitors out there that will kick buywakes arse.

I bought a vest on buywake, they sent me a completely different vest and size then I ordered. I paid for express mailing because of an upcoming wakeboarding event at the time. So I INSTANTLY got on the phone to get it corrected asap and the service was nothing short of crap. Upon receiving the incorrect WRONG vest, they questioned me...as if I was trying to rip them off. In the end, I bought the vest I wanted on wakeside instead because buywake was so ridiculously slow. TWO incorrect refunds and TWO monthes later, I got a full refund after a string of email and phone call complaints. Pathetic. Have not and will never do business on buywake.com ever again.

ive had trouble with orders from there but got excellent customer service when i called , they ended up eating the cost on a pair of oakleys with me and were happy to do it. Props to buywake and ambush, if you ever have a problem ask to speak with eric he helped me out.