Reluctant Snap-On dealers?

[B17E1943]

I've got some SO tools in need of repair; I bought them legit off the truck back in the '80s when I worked at a Chevrolet dealer.

I emailed SO about repair options and the local dealer called me a few days later. He gave me an 800# to call, and said he preferred not to repair my tools. Does this mean I have to ship them off for repair? I haven't actually called the 800# yet ... I realize I didn't buy them from him, but that really shouldn't matter, IMO. He said, reluctantly, that he would do it if they wouldn't.

Is this SOP for SO dealers these days? Does the money come out of their pockets for repair parts/labor? It should be a no-hassle deal, it seems to me.

Thanks!

 

[MrMark]

What are you wanting to "repair." AFAIK, Snap-on just replaces most things. If we are talking about ratchets, yes the truck dealer is supposed to repair them or give you a kit, but if you send it in, they will just send you a new one. They don't repair anything in Kenosha to my knowledge when you send something in. That's not worth it to them.

The truck dealers put kits in ratchets and new shanks in screwdrivers and maybe a few other little things. That is all the repair that I know about.

Oh, SO will also send you a kit for free if it's a ratchet that you want to fix.

And no, no money comes out of the dealer's pocket for warranty, it gets put in a box and sent in for credit. The only thing that comes out of his pocket is time, if he rebuilds a ratchet. And, honestly, that is something that you probably would be better served doing yourself.

 

[B17E1943]

I have no problem putting kits in my 2 broken ratchets. I'd actually prefer to keep the tools I have a little history with instead of replacing them. Also have a broken screwdriver and extension. I will call them tomorrow and see what they say.

Thanks.

 

[blown94conv]

And no, no money comes out of the dealer's pocket for warranty, it gets put in a box and sent in for credit. The only thing that comes out of his pocket is time, if he rebuilds a ratchet. And, honestly, that is something that you probably would be better served doing yourself.

This statement is false. The dealer has to buy the tool, and then send the warranty in for credit. He will be reimbursed, but it is at least 6 weeks before he gets the money back. It does come out, but goes back in time.

I would call them up, have the model number of the ratchets handy, and they will send you the repair kits if they are still available. You may want to get the tool they have for doing the kits as well, SPP722 IIRC, makes putting the spring and ball in a lot easier, and it is under a dollar.

 

[mrshaun]

you are right blown94
I have to fix it ( no warranty pay like you techs get at the dealership ) bag it up, enter itin the pc, store it, box it up, look for a damn label, have to make10 phone calls to find oout why the labels are missing, get the label, fill it out, insure the hell out of it, then tape the thing like there is a bomb in it and ship it out. then wait up to 6 weeks to get my moneyback. that is not a gripe ( sounds like it though ) but when you guys DEMAND that i warranty something it pisses me off just a little until i tell you about the process. calm down and just call the 800 number the dealer does not want to spend 20-30 minutes fixing a pile of tools when he could be taking care of his customers on the books. if you do not purcahse something from him, he in turn loses money at the end of the day by missing a shop in his route. so if you are told sorry, now you see why.... end of discussion.

 

[moronmountain]

you are right blown94
I have to fix it ( no warranty pay like you techs get at the dealership ) bag it up, enter itin the pc, store it, box it up, look for a damn label, have to make10 phone calls to find oout why the labels are missing, get the label, fill it out, insure the hell out of it, then tape the thing like there is a bomb in it and ship it out. then wait up to 6 weeks to get my moneyback. that is not a gripe ( sounds like it though ) but when you guys DEMAND that i warranty something it pisses me off just a little until i tell you about the process. calm down and just call the 800 number the dealer does not want to spend 20-30 minutes fixing a pile of tools when he could be taking care of his customers on the books. if you do not purcahse something from him, he in turn loses money at the end of the day by missing a shop in his route. so if you are told sorry, now you see why.... end of discussion.

Wow...... That sounds like something you should work out with your company, and not the customer.

 

[johnsdeere850j]

Wow...... That sounds like something you should work out with your company, and not the customer.

No kidding!

By god if I pay 10 times what other stuff costs I want some service from anybody with a snapon shirt on asap. with a smile and a handshake.

 

[tooth]

If my so dealer acted like that he wouldn't be as successful as he is. He's been doing the same route since '86. That's a bs attitude to have. I'd tell him his attitude ***** if I was told that by a dealer.

 

[LIVELY]

you are right blown94
I have to fix it ( no warranty pay like you techs get at the dealership ) bag it up, enter itin the pc, store it, box it up, look for a damn label, have to make10 phone calls to find oout why the labels are missing, get the label, fill it out, insure the hell out of it, then tape the thing like there is a bomb in it and ship it out. then wait up to 6 weeks to get my moneyback. that is not a gripe ( sounds like it though ) but when you guys DEMAND that i warranty something it pisses me off just a little until i tell you about the process. calm down and just call the 800 number the dealer does not want to spend 20-30 minutes fixing a pile of tools when he could be taking care of his customers on the books. if you do not purcahse something from him, he in turn loses money at the end of the day by missing a shop in his route. so if you are told sorry, now you see why.... end of discussion.

I also think that attitude ***** completely---warranties should be handles by the local truck guy if possible--my guy does VERY well with everything we ask about--but- if he can't do it we just send it in instead.
He has sold SNAP ON in my area for over 20 years and is still a great route man . We buy from him as much as possible instead of another driver just 6 miles from me.

Also--in case you wanted to know--I AM NOT A PRO TECH AT A DEALERSHIP--JUST A HOBBY MECHANIC---but to him it is still a buyer he keeps

 

[rsanter]

my SO dealer dosent complain about fixing or warraty anything. the first time I dealt with him was when I asked him to fix and warranty several items, after he did that I pulled out my list of things I wanted

and I do not demand he do anything. I hand him something and ask if he can deal with it. he has yet to say no

bob

 

[johnsdeere850j]

If my so dealer acted like that he wouldn't be as successful as he is. He's been doing the same route since '86. That's a bs attitude to have. I'd tell him his attitude ***** if I was told that by a dealer.

I'd be on him like a swarm of bees, like the mighty fist of god, Armageddon would descend upon his life. ******* inc would get a number of calls and complaints about that slob

 

[Scuderia-F1]

my SO dealer dosent complain about fixing or warraty anything. the first time I dealt with him was when I asked him to fix and warranty several items, after he did that I pulled out my list of things I wanted

and I do not demand he do anything. I hand him something and ask if he can deal with it. he has yet to say no

bob

As I did with my Snap-on man (this was back in-96). Jumped on the truck just when he started as a dealer. He sorted my problems that have accumulated since being without a dealer for some time. He fixed it ASAP, then I purchased new bottom & top box from him along with a long list of tools. Always paid cash, and never on credit. He still deliver top notch service. Now days as I closed the shop & only is wrenching for fun I still don´t do business with someone else, I just call him and make an appointment for coffee or lunch and he sorts everything as smooth as when I was buying every week...

 

[Busted Bolts]

If this was to be handled the same way at say a ford or chevy dealership. how would anybody get the brand they bought serviced. The brand is the brand. It shouldn't be the end users fault the way the snap on system is. He or she purchased a quality product and it is primarily distributed via stores on wheels. This is what set them apart from a four wall location. I would think old customers or people who bought the product from another dealer would or could make a new connection by having service. I would take this as if I didn't by it from you than your out of luck, just call coorporate. What if the individual was making a living with these tools and didn't have a dealer in the area? Is he gonna get snubbed because of the repair process? Although dealers are independant, they represent the brand. You can't go anywhere else do to it isn't found by other brands or stores.

 

[rsieracki]

i can only ASSUME Shawn means that it takes time and some money out of his pocket and unless your a paying customer of his in some form dont demand that he spends all his time waranteeing tools he saw no profit from. use the website, thats what i do. before someone goes back to "10 times the price for service" dealers arnt on salery, if he (dealer) doesnt sell you tools, he makes no money on you. so people like me and a lot of you that buy our snap on second hand know damn well we didnt pay the "truck" price that includes service with a smile... i think the difference is a tech who buys stuff regularly off the truck waranting an occasional second hand tool is ok vs. some guy who buys old **** at garage sales, auctions, etc chasing down a truck and demanding a bucket full of old **** be replaced asap (to most likely be sold on ebay or a forum) with a big thank you from the dealer is not acceptable...

Snap On has one of the best warantees... i use the website customer service as I'm a guy in a home garage that isnt a stop for a dealer. if this is seriously an issue for someone than Snap On is not the brand for them. simple as that

 

[Creditor]

you are right blown94
I have to fix it ( no warranty pay like you techs get at the dealership ) bag it up, enter itin the pc, store it, box it up, look for a damn label, have to make10 phone calls to find oout why the labels are missing, get the label, fill it out, insure the hell out of it, then tape the thing like there is a bomb in it and ship it out. then wait up to 6 weeks to get my moneyback. that is not a gripe ( sounds like it though ) but when you guys DEMAND that i warranty something it pisses me off just a little until i tell you about the process. calm down and just call the 800 number the dealer does not want to spend 20-30 minutes fixing a pile of tools when he could be taking care of his customers on the books. if you do not purcahse something from him, he in turn loses money at the end of the day by missing a shop in his route. so if you are told sorry, now you see why.... end of discussion.

mrshaun,

Don't you know that the people on this forum expect you to go to a guys house 40 miles out of your way on a Friday afternoon and wait 45 minutes while he finds his broken ratchet for you to fix. You are also supposed to have cold drinks for him on your truck for him while he is waiting for you to fix his ratchet. You are also supposed to allow him to spend an hour on your truck looking after his ratchet is fixed. These are things that you are expected to do by people on this forum.

Honestly, I dont know why you spend your time on this forum. You should be out looking for people with broken ratchets to fix. Thats the reason you are in that truck. It has nothing to do with selling tools.

 

[PT Doc]

Some folks understand that customer service goes a long way. And some don't. The money that comes to you from god service to your customers is likely 50 folks in the end when considering the amount of time rusty was didn't providing this good service. I regularly here about poor attitudes n bed side manners in my industry and I am sure the deliverer of the poor service never even knows how people feel. The kicker is that there is another provider to step up and provide the service with a smile. Those are the successful people in my industry.

 

[porphyre]

you are right blown94
I have to fix it ( no warranty pay like you techs get at the dealership ) bag it up, enter itin the pc, store it, box it up, look for a damn label, have to make10 phone calls to find oout why the labels are missing, get the label, fill it out, insure the hell out of it, then tape the thing like there is a bomb in it and ship it out. then wait up to 6 weeks to get my moneyback. that is not a gripe ( sounds like it though ) but when you guys DEMAND that i warranty something it pisses me off just a little until i tell you about the process. calm down and just call the 800 number the dealer does not want to spend 20-30 minutes fixing a pile of tools when he could be taking care of his customers on the books. if you do not purcahse something from him, he in turn loses money at the end of the day by missing a shop in his route. so if you are told sorry, now you see why.... end of discussion.

And this is exactly why guys who say they buy Snap-On "because of great customer service" are full of HORSE ****.

If I'm spending $100 on a ratchet and $150 for a set of 10 sockets, you had damn well better provide service. I don't give a **** if you sold me the tools or not.

People complain that "Craftsman warranty depends on who you talk to at the store". WTF. "SNAP-ON warranty depends on your dealer - at 10x the cost."

 

[scott37300]

I can understand the dealers point of view. I am just a home mechanic and I have had great customer service from snap on through their website. I wouldn't chase down a snap on driver just to get a tool warrantied.

I think one of the biggest things for dealers is lots of guys buying used tools and then expecting them to be fixed while never buying anything. Yes the dealer gets credited down the road but they do not get paid for their time to fix or complete the exchange. It's not like a car warranty where the manufacturer pays for parts and labor, snap on only pays for the tool, no money for the dealer's time.

I see both sides of this and the simple answer is to email or call snap on and give them the part numbers for your tools and they will take care of you. You will have your tools within a week or so. You don't even have to leave your house to chase down a dealer. If they want you to send them in they will give you a return label and you just pack them up and drop it off and they will send new tools. Simple and easy, no reason to chase down a dealer and no reason to complain.

 

[Creditor]

............ and no reason to complain.

But then the number of posts in this forum would drop by about 90%.

 

[I can fix anything]

And this is exactly why guys who say they buy Snap-On "because of great customer service" are full of HORSE ****.

If I'm spending $100 on a ratchet and $150 for a set of 10 sockets, you had damn well better provide service. I don't give a **** if you sold me the tools or not.

People complain that "Craftsman warranty depends on who you talk to at the store". WTF. "SNAP-ON warranty depends on your dealer - at 10x the cost."

You don't like it keep using cheap craftsman junk.

 

[padronanniversary]

Obviously brand imaging and customer service needs corporate direction.

When paying premium, the business model does not seem to accommodate or compensate the dealers to offer the extension of their work. It is unfortunate, as like the previous post stated that we pay 10x for both service and quality. Now maybe the business model had already incorporated the costs associated with this, and it has been since overlooked, or has not kept up with the times.

And this is exactly why guys who say they buy Snap-On "because of great customer service" are full of HORSE ****.

If I'm spending $100 on a ratchet and $150 for a set of 10 sockets, you had damn well better provide service. I don't give a **** if you sold me the tools or not.

People complain that "Craftsman warranty depends on who you talk to at the store". WTF. "SNAP-ON warranty depends on your dealer - at 10x the cost."

 

[route246]

If you think about this it would be very advantageous for SO to provide some sort of incentive program to take care of this. They peddled the tool so it doesn't matter if it was purchased at a flea market, pawn shop, ebay or even stolen. They got paid for the product and they are responsible for it. You make a child and that child does something stupid you're still responsible for that child's actions unless the local Child Protective Services took that child away from you for being a ****.

In order to preserve their pristine brand image, SO needs to unconditionally take care of every tool they ever sold, regardless of how it was acquired by the end user. Their brand can suffer greatly if they start hedging and being dicks about it. The fact of the matter is, at some time in the past they got paid for selling it and the poor truck guy didn't. Even if it's just a few bucks plus shipping it would make a difference. And, it would get all of the broken SO tools out of the gene pool. What is the worst thing that could happen? A bunch of busted SO tools collected and posted on a place like this with the *****-line that SO refused to make good on these broken tools? You could try to explain away and say they were abused and what-not but that doesn't repair the taint to the brand.

Someone sees that and thinks, "Oh sh|t, they're going the way of everyone else now. I'm not going to pay 10x for that!"

Obviously brand imaging and customer service needs corporate direction.

When paying premium, the business model does not seem to accommodate or compensate the dealers to offer the extension of their work. It is unfortunate, as like the previous post stated that we pay 10x for both service and quality. Now maybe the business model had already incorporated the costs associated with this, and it has been since overlooked, or has not kept up with the times.

 

[wafrederick]

My neighbor Ken works at an auto body shop and hates his dealer with a passion.Called SO on this a few times,not coming in at all sometimes.Lazy to take orders too.Have a dealer down the road in my area,good dealer and sometimes forgets to order things.No problems getting anything replaced under warranty.Have an issue with a couple air ratchets which are Snap Ons and not Blue Points,the mechanism for loosen and tighten sticks and have to use a pair of pliers to move it.Greased it and still does it.So far blaming the rebuilder whom rebuilt it.

 

[Creditor]

If you think about this it would be very advantageous for SO to provide some sort of incentive program to take care of this. They peddled the tool so it doesn't matter if it was purchased at a flea market, pawn shop, ebay or even stolen. They got paid for the product and they are responsible for it. You make a child and that child does something stupid you're still responsible for that child's actions unless the local Child Protective Services took that child away from you for being a ****.

In order to preserve their pristine brand image, SO needs to unconditionally take care of every tool they ever sold, regardless of how it was acquired by the end user. Their brand can suffer greatly if they start hedging and being dicks about it. The fact of the matter is, at some time in the past they got paid for selling it and the poor truck guy didn't. Even if it's just a few bucks plus shipping it would make a difference. And, it would get all of the broken SO tools out of the gene pool. What is the worst thing that could happen? A bunch of busted SO tools collected and posted on a place like this with the *****-line that SO refused to make good on these broken tools? You could try to explain away and say they were abused and what-not but that doesn't repair the taint to the brand.

Someone sees that and thinks, "Oh sh|t, they're going the way of everyone else now. I'm not going to pay 10x for that!"

It seems like I have read numerous posts on this forum where people have gotten a pre paid UPS label to return broken tools to Snap-on and gotten new tools in return. I think they even replace ratchets when sent in rather than rebuiling them. That to me seems like they are taking care of the tools that were sold.

 

[mrshaun]

i can only ASSUME Shawn means that it takes time and some money out of his pocket and unless your a paying customer of his in some form dont demand that he spends all his time waranteeing tools he saw no profit from. use the website, thats what i do. before someone goes back to "10 times the price for service" dealers arnt on salery, if he (dealer) doesnt sell you tools, he makes no money on you. so people like me and a lot of you that buy our snap on second hand know damn well we didnt pay the "truck" price that includes service with a smile... i think the difference is a tech who buys stuff regularly off the truck waranting an occasional second hand tool is ok vs. some guy who buys old **** at garage sales, auctions, etc chasing down a truck and demanding a bucket full of old **** be replaced asap (to most likely be sold on ebay or a forum) with a big thank you from the dealer is not acceptable...

Snap On has one of the best warantees... i use the website customer service as I'm a guy in a home garage that isnt a stop for a dealer. if this is seriously an issue for someone than Snap On is not the brand for them. simple as that

man you guys sure didnt read the part where this is not a gripe. i was telling you what the dealer has to go through. if you guys were my customers you would realize exactly what I do for you. this was an explanation af the time and effort involved that you guys sure take for granted. wow you guys need to lighten up.

 

[padronanniversary]

Mr Shuan, we can only wish that you were out dealer !

Got any more tool truck **** to share ?

 

[route246]

Does HQ provide any training and guidelines on handling warranty claims? You guys are the face of the brand and I would think someone at corporate is in charge of your channel that would have a vested interest in making sure the channel doesn't get tainted.

man you guys sure didnt read the part where this is not a gripe. i was telling you what the dealer has to go through. if you guys were my customers you would realize exactly what I do for you. this was an explanation af the time and effort involved that you guys sure take for granted. wow you guys need to lighten up.

 

[Creditor]

Does HQ provide any training and guidelines on handling warranty claims? You guys are the face of the brand and I would think someone at corporate is in charge of your channel that would have a vested interest in making sure the channel doesn't get tainted.

Snap-on justs loans them about $150,000 for inventory and another $100,000 for a truck. They dont provide any training whatsoever.

/end sarcasm

 

[mrshaun]

they do not say much during training, it comes from the manager working with you....
tool **** on the way...

 

[nato]

I can sort of understand this for Shaun (and the other S/O dealer's that are afloat on our board) as far as a money making tool. I can imagine the nightmare stories that you guys [the dealers] may have to go through to go something warrantied that isn't a simple trade-off. I also see there can sometimes be a barrier b/t you an the head company by witnessing the stupid **** that all of my tool dealers' go through when I b.s. with them on the days they come to my shop.
I get it that if you spend too much time at one shop, you can potentially loose out on a possible sale given any day of the week and ESPECIALLY if you have a combined truck stop day where you and another dealer (Matco, Cornwell etc) also have a stop. At my shop, on Wed, we have our occasional Mac dealer and consistent Matco guy stop almost a half hour in between and usually, if I 'need' something, it goes to the Matco guy and then we get to here the Mac dealer *****...
Anyhow, customer service is important to us all especially nowadays when you have a solid investment in something that is quality enough to HAVE to be backed by good custmoer service. I have never had an issue w/ my Snappy dealer about handling warranties other that manybe an annoying wait period. I try to have extra's on certain things in case this happens but not everyone can do that.
As far as the original purchaser idea of tools, I also agree that they need to be universally covered. Regardless of who currently owns it, it most likely 99.999% of the time, was originally purchased in full.
I'm not favoring those certain individuals who go out and purposely purchase broken tools only to warranty every last one of them just to have the newest, most current up-to-date version of the tool to use or in turn, flip it on ebay. I see where the initial headaches of our arguement comes in to play at this time

 

[mrshaun]

this was something easy that evey one likes....
I will see what else I can tempt you boys with

<a href="http://s677.photobucket.com/albums/vv137/shaunnull/?action=view&current=t860mp.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv137/shaunnull/t860mp.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>

 

[Scuderia-F1]

this was something easy that evey one likes....
I will see what else I can tempt you boys with

Keep the tool p0rn coming!

 

[mrshaun]

fn720a
s71
ssdmr24 couldnt fit all 24 inches in the picture. SORRY
tm741
that is about it on the NEW OLD STOCK stuff. i do have a few hard hadle long screwdrivers
<a href="http://s677.photobucket.com/albums/vv137/shaunnull/?action=view&current=ratchets.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv137/shaunnull/ratchets.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>

 

[padronanniversary]

what ratchet is that ? That looks cool. So can you angle that and lock it in place

 

[mrshaun]

the first pic? yes you can move it to many different positions to get around an obstacle. discontinued, but i found a bunch the other day on our snap on dealers website and bought all of them they are cool.....t860mp hard to find on dealers trucks...

 

[Scuderia-F1]

fn720a
s71
ssdmr24 couldnt fit all 24 inches in the picture. SORRY
tm741
that is about it on the NEW OLD STOCK stuff. i do have a few hard hadle long screwdrivers

Oh what I would like to take a tour in your truck and buy some hard to find chrome....

 

[mrshaun]

I do my best to find the tools that my customers need /want.
that is why business is up 30% from last year....

 

[Scuderia-F1]

I do my best to find the tools that my customers need /want.
that is why business is up 30% from last year....

A 30% improvement from previous year is pretty impressive!
Job well done...

 

[stock z/28]

I see both sides of the warranty issue discussed here, atleast I think I do.


I bought a lot of Snap On tools in the 70s to 90s and still use them quite a bit, but the nature of my business moved to machining more than vehicle repair, and I buy very few "high end" tools anymore.

I guess in my mind I paid what I consider a premium amount for tools that I generally thought were a good value, and would be serviced by a local dealer as along as I owned them, regardless of the amount of money I spent at the time. If someone had said that the amount of buisiness I do with a company dictates the amount of service provided on past purchases, you can bet I would have not been so keen to consider the purchase a "value".


That being said, the current dealer is a good friend of mine and takes excellent care of any of my needs, and I do really appreciate it! I totally value his and all of the other "tool truck" guys (what are left) and knowing that I buy so little I ask that they not even stop at my shop anymore and that if I have a need I will just catch up with them at a close by stop. In my opinion its just not fair to to take their time when I know I will not make it profitable for them. I think its just common courtesy.

In my opinion I paid up front for the warranty/repair convenience, and I think if the local dealer suffers, its because Snap On should offer compensation for their effort, but I know it dosent work that way. Its a shame, something apparently so obvious as a persons skill/effort should not be recognized by the company that he represents. That it would even be an issue in a dealer/representatives mind speaks volumes, in my opinion.

Well I guess its been that way for a long time. I have a lot of similar issues so I "feel your pain".

Shawn, it seems to me you do a great job.

Jeff

 

[I can fix anything]

the first pic? yes you can move it to many different positions to get around an obstacle. discontinued, but i found a bunch the other day on our snap on dealers website and bought all of them they are cool.....t860mp hard to find on dealers trucks...

How much are you selling them for?