Customer Service?

Customer Service?

Commitment to quality and customer satisfaction are paramount. These are grand sounding precepts, but are they hollow words? I mentioned on a recent blog that I had renewed my interest in target and tactical shooting. As part of that effort I decided to make the investment and buy a really good spotting scope. My old Tasco scope is good out to about 75 yards and then begins to get fuzzy. Given that it was purchased for under $40 I cannot really badmouth it. Now that I am looking to shoot out to 400 yards I needed something better.

Searching around I decided on a new "in the plastic‘ American Made spotting scope for a mere $245. Now this was a huge jump compared to the Tasco and what I consider a major investment for something used to look at bullet holes is paper. The scope is from a very renowned maker, in the business for over a hundred years. How could I go wrong? When the box arrived (undamaged, no dents, or dings) I tore it open and found inside a very nice hard shell case surrounded by styrofoam. The case was factory sealed in a clear plastic. Once I had removed the plastic and removed the scope I anxiously set it up on the tripod and removed the front lens cover. I unscrewed the rear eyepiece cover and, and, and the damned thing would not come off. It just spun around and round but would not come off. I called the customer service number and asked the man on the other end whether there was some secret to removing the hard plastic cover. I could tell by his response that he figured I was an idiot. No there was no secret. He said to send it back and they would check it out.

Off to the post office I go with the box, styrofoam packing, nice hard shell case, and my new spotting scope. Remember this is only an hour after it had arrived. No shooting today. Instead I pay the postal clerk almost $30 to insure and ship my new scope back to the maker, clear across the continent. A week goes by and I call to see if it had been received. No one had any idea what I was talking about. I had emailed a scanned copy of the postal receipt and requested reimbursement for the shipping. No scope, no one knew who I was, or what my problem was. I waited about four more days and called again. Still no sign of my scope. About two and a half weeks go by and the scope shows back up at my door with the simple notation enclosed, "repaired broken eyepiece." Now this scope was inside a soft cover, packed in the hardshell case, surrounded by closed cell foam, and packed in a cardboard box protected by styrofoam. There were no marks on the plastic protective cover. The eyepiece had to be broken before it was ever placed in the soft case. Also included was a short questionnaire about my satisfaction with the service, which I politely filled out and returned with the still new warranty card. When I sent follow-up emails about the shipping I was contacted by someone who said they had no record of this problem. Once that disconnect was resolved the company representative offered to substitute an item for my shipping expenses. Well there is almost nothing available from this company that fits in the "Under $30" category. So I finally said please just send me the money. No can do! It seems their commitment to customer satisfaction hit a major bump in the road. Cash refunds are not part of their policy. I wish I had known about their aversion to cash when I bought the scope. I might have offered a litter of kittens, several nice sized goldfish, or maybe even a polished rock that I picked up in Scotland in lieu of cash payment. You know, I could get into this barter system.

Well I do have the scope back and if it ever breaks I will probably chuck it in the river and buy a cheap Japanese or Chinese import to replace it. I am sure their customer service would be better. Sure is a nice hard shell case though. I might keep the case and keep my polished rock in there. If you want to know who provided this great service drop me an email, or better yet, offer me a litter of kittens, or a polished rock. I might be in the mood to trade. ghdave2@hotmail.com