[950]
Robt in Randolph, MA Employee
Theft
When I
saw the Randolph, Ma location listed Id thought Id add this
little incident from last year: I like to visit this shop on a
Sunday due to convenience but the day I came the employees (no
manager on duty & no name tags visible) were telling the
customers that the computers were broken & that they could
give disocunted service with no receipts. Obviously, they were
pocketing the money due to manager either being out sick or
out on an errand. The sad thing was, most of the customers
realized what was up but the slick talking street jive
employees thought they were pulling it off. Pathetic, dont you
think?
[949]
Melissa Employee
My husband has managed many Jiffy Lube
stores over the years in two different states. I check this
site off and on when I am bored. I see a lot of stories of
people complaining that their vehicles broke down soon after
having their oil changed. Yes some times people make mistakes
we all do. More often than not though the car would have
broken down anyway. Cars break down everyday. You know your
car will not be perfect forever. If you get your oil changed
every 3 months like it is recommended than if it breaks down
it will most likely be after it had an oil change. Many times
people do not take care of their cars though or get services
done when it is recommended. They cause damage to their own
cars. People get so busy that they forget to get an oil change
until their car is not "acting right" and then are in shock
and angry that their car breaks down. All places deal with
these same issues. Jiffy Lube gets a bad name because it has
so many stores. If you actually just do a search for one city
you will not find that many complaints. When I come on here I
look for complaints made about my husband's stores. There was
5 for the city he is in right now and the city has 9 stores.
The last complaint was back in 2006 !!! These are years and
years worth of stored up complaints about a countries worth of
stores. Of course it looks like a lot.
Then comes the issue of employees and if you can
trust the business. All stores are different. You can not just look at
a video from a bad store and say they are all bad. It is a franchise
and there are far more incredible stores than there are bad ones.
People also think they are told to get services that are not needed.
Many times they say a relative that has been a mechanic for years told
them so. First off old mechanics do not know all the ins and outs of
new cars and mechanics these days specialize in certain areas because
cars are so much more complex these days. Many more say they are
mechanics but they just work on their own cars. If people would read
their own vehicle manuals they would see what is recommended for their
vehicle and that is exactly what Jiffy Lube has right there on their
computers. Would you never drive your car because you saw that one had
a problem? Of course not, so why stop going to Jiffy Lubes because you
saw there was a bad one. Why not check one out in your area first and
see for yourself.
Heartland Automotive has gotten a bad name on
here also. That is the company my husband works for and he has never
worked for a better company. People keep saying how they are just
after money and they hire incompetent people because they do not pay
enough. Every company is trying to make money but Heartland takes care
of its employees. Heartland pays better than any job my husband has
had before. The employees are constantly getting training to keep on
top of all the new cars. Yes, Heartland is trying to make money and
that is exactly why if there was such problems at all these stores
they would get rid of the problems. Why would they want to keep paying
to fix cars? If you really look at some of these postings some of the
stories seem so bizarre, shocking, and do not make sense. This is
usually because the person them self does not really know cars or what
has happened to their car and it is easier to blame someone else.
Especially if that someone else has money to pay for repairs if they
can not. Some of the employee complaints sound a lot like people that
got fired and just want to get even. What do you think happens to the
employees that get fired by Jiffy Lube for causing some of the
legitimate problems? Well apparently they come on here angry and try
to get back at Jiffy Lube.
[948] Dwayne in Murfreesboro, TN
No Idea What To Expect
A new Jiffy Lube has just opened on
South Church St, Murfreesboro, TN just 3 miles from my home.
I was going to give them a try but after reading all the
horror stories on the above web site I will be taking my
business elsewhere.
It's a shame, the franchise owner has no idea
what is in store for him/her. None of my family or friends will be
doing business there either.
[947] Nathan in Beaverton, OR Incorrect
Transmission Plug Loosen
On Saturday, January 19th I
took my 1994 jeep wrangler in for an oil change, a tranny
fluid change, and a rear differential fluid change. After
they were all buttoned up, they gave me the go ahead to get in
the car, start ‘er up and leave. I could not even get the car
out of the bay, because the tranny was stuck in 4th
or 5th gear! The jeep has about 90k miles and the
tranny was in perfect working order. I even had a clutch
repair tech comment on how smooth the tranny was about 5
months ago. The onsite manager apologized immensely and
assured me that they would address any problems that they
caused. I asked the manager where he suggested that I take
the jeep to be inspected and he offered the Jeep dealership up
the street. So they shipped the jeep to the dealership Monday
morning. Monday afternoon the transmission tech at the
dealership suggested that an incorrect plug was loosened
causing a detent ball to drop and release the linkage for one
of the gears; but in order to verify, they needed to get
inside and examine (this news was received by one of the
managers at jiffy lube very poorly and resulted in a loud and
aggressive monologue with the staff at NW Jeep). That is not
what Jiffy Lube wanted to hear. They told me that they were
unwilling to pay the expense of examining the transmission,
even though they feigned concern for my plight the night it
happened apparently because I was stranded at their shop. It
appears that this was just to get me out of their hair,
because they have baulked at any efforts to actually determine
the cause. Their conclusion is that I am stuck with a jeep I
cannot drive at a place I cannot store it with a repair bill I
cannot afford. Plus I’ve got a rental car that I must use to
get to work, and the bill is only stacking up!
I am not yet done fighting this situation as it
only recently happened.
My primary complaint is that they did not produce
any hard evidence that they were not at fault. I believe the burden
of proof lies with their case. I brought in a perfectly functioning
jeep and could not drive it ONE INCH after they changed the
fluid. It defies all logic that a manual transmission would stop
working with no sign of failure.
Please do not take any of your vehicles to any
Jiffy Lube no matter how close it is to your house. You may have
survived without incident, but if and when an incident does occur you
WILL NOT be treated fairly.
[946] John in Augusta, GA $20
Tire Rotation Too Much
I went to Jiffy Lube today in Augusta Ga.
30906. I was charged $20.00 for a tire rotation. My personal
feeling is that's crap. I went back to complain and the manger
offered $5 off the next oil change. So thats like paying $15
for a tire rotation? So we get into the mediocre range of tire
rotation costs. Well lets talk about the oil change price $30.
That is not competitive that is the high end of acceptable. I
have in front of me a coupon at Tire Kingdom for tire rotation
and oil change to include 6 quarts of oil for $10 not
including the oil filter so figure another &10 for that. $20
total for something costs me $50 at Jiffy lube. I can double
tire kingdoms price and still come in under what I paid at
Jiffy Lube. Tire kingdoms example can be found many other
places I just using them to drive a point.
After taking the time to write this I am actually
even more angry and am willing to continue to attempt making life hard
on Jiffy Lube. Unless they do something to show genuine concern. Often
times people hide behind a companies name and place blame on the
company and say things like I am just the manger or just the sales
person, etc. the upper managers off course never physically present,
where real work occurs, hide literally. I am low on the income chain,
thanks for the nose bleed.
[945]
Samantha in Greenville, NC
Misplaced Oil Cap
First I want to thank whomever for
putting this website together and the opportunity to expose
the egregious behavior!!
I took my car into Jiffy Lube in Greenville,
NC for an oil change the day before Thanksgiving. I'm a college
student and headed out of town 2 hours later to go home for the
holidays just to find my self on the side of the road with steam and
radiator fluid spewing all over my engine. It was now about 5 pm on
Thanksgiving eve. I went directly back to Jiffy Lube and expected
them to fix it. I filed a claim. They put a plastic resin on the
crack in my radiator, and said it would "bond" and repair the damage
to my radiator. I was soooooo desparate to get home, that I accepted
their feeble gesture to repair the damage. But, of course, it did not
work and I was stuck on the side of the road again - about 10 miles
down the road. I abandoned the car and was fortunately able to get
hom by about 10:30 Wed. night.
After my brohter inspected the car, it is
obvious that the mechanic at Jiffy Lube did not put the oil cap back
on and left it sitting atop my radiator which then was damaged by the
oil cap sitting on the radiator when the hood was closed. The
demarcations on the radiator, the oil cap and the underside hood of
the car are in a perfect straight line.
After the holidays, I followed up to the claim
and was told that I could've caused the damage, even though their
mechanic had just checked the approved the levels of coolant and all
fluids in my car and the fact that I had driven 2 miles in late
November just prior to their inspection and services of my car. I was
also told that since I don't have a videotape of Jiffy Lube's mechanic
forgetting to put the oil cap back on, which is the reason for my
radiator getting cracked - my claim is being denied.
The only course of action for me to take is to
file in small claims court, which I am doing as this is being written
which is how I found out about this website and want others to beware
of JIFFYLUBE!!!!!
[944] Adam
in Hadley, MA Loose Oil Filter
The Jiffy lube in Hadley, MA didn't put
on my oil filter on tight and a few miles down the street I
had smoke pouring out of the back of my car and oil covering
my motor! I broght it to a REAL auto shop after and
thankfully there was no damage. I will never EVER go there as
long as I live and I will tell everyone I know about it too.
[943] Josh in Wilsonville, OR
Wrong Air Filter
I had an air filter replaced in my 88
toyota pickup truck almost a year ago (yes it was actually
time) by the jiffy lube in Wilsonville. Recently I was
working on my truck and noticed a clasp wasn't closed on the
air filter case. I tried to flose it only to realize that the
air filter wasn't seated properly and a small edge was
sticking out. When I took the case apart I found they had not
improperly seated, but put the entirely wrong air filter in.
It wasn't just a case of the wrong size either. The brillant
employee tried to put a parallelagram shaped air filter into a
rectanular case.
[942]
ILL in Long Island City, NY Idiots
So I went to store 549 for an oil
change and not only were workers anthony and jean were
extremely rude. When I asked them to vacuum my car they told
me to ".... off." And those idiots put in the wrong oil...
what am I paying 35.99 plus tax for??? and these idiots want a
tip????
[941] Mark in
Parkville, MD Theft
On Sunday January 13, 2008, I had my
oil changed at the Jiffy Lube store at 2105 E Joppa Road,
Parkville, MD. I was the last customer for the day and I paid
$66.81 for a synthetic oil change. On Tuesday,
January 15, when the sun came out I reached for my Oakley
sunglasses which were in a case. The sunglasses were not
there. The case was empty.
There has been no one in my vehicle since
Sunday evening. When I left the store the sun was down and it was
nearly dark. It rained all day on Monday. When the sun finally
appeared on Tuesday, I discovered the theft. Do you think Jiffy Lube
cares? How do I prove something I know happened but do not have
actual photographic evidence?
I, like so many others will never return to
Jiffy Lube and of course I will tell others of my plight. The
negative advertising will not replace my sunglasses, nor will it calm
my ire, but waht can I really do?
[940]
PD in Portland, OR Bait & Switch
I recently
brought my car in for an oil change in Portland, OR. It was
about 30K miles and the young man working on car stated that
they could indeed do my 30K check up, as opposed to bringing
it to the dealer. The price was right and so two weeks later I
brought it in to have the work done. I was quoted the price of
$69.00 according to Jiffy Lube for the identical work that the
dealer was going to charge about $450.00. I was surprised and
so I asked again if indeed it covered everything that needed
to be done according to the warranty check list-the price
seemed too good! And I am told that yes it is all done, the
dealers just charge way much more for this and that. I had the
work done, but I still felt the whole thing seemed dubious. I
paid, left, and went home. At home I began to scrutinize my
bill. What I was charged for was a radiator flush-that was the
only work done!!! I checked the 30k check list and it mentions
spark plugs being replaced, other electrical items inspected,
belts tightened and checked and various other items not even
addressed. I called another Jiffy Lube to find out if they
would do for a 30k check up, and he mentions that yes indeed
they do. I ask if it includes everything from the list. Yes,
he states. I then start asking about the specifics that were
not done. He then seems to remember that they do not do
everything after all and I would have to go to various places
to have these other issues attended to.So it seems that all
though they do the 30k check up, they really don't, but will
absolutely lead you to believe that it is done to warranty
satisfaction. I have since found out that my warranty can
indeed be voided by not having all the required elements
inspected, as I was lead to believe was being performed on my
vehicle by Jiffy Lube.In short, I feel I was outright lied to
by a representative of Jiffy Lube and now as I see these other
anecdotes, this seems to be normal operating procedure for
them.
[939] Sandra Against the Law
Jiffy Lube 3198,Virgin Futures inc.22781
three notch rd.,calif.md. I have been to this jiffy lube twice
,but never again when you pay with a charge ,their machine
prints out your complete charge #,it is not right to do this
only the last 4 numbers should print , Iam very upset with
this happening,I have been a victim of idenity theft and this
action does not set well you need to change this matter ,from
what I understand other customers have complained. I did not
even get a call from the manger who was not there Joe
Greenwell, would like to know if you are going to correct this
,if not I will make a complaint to the right place. This is
against the law,passed last year. Date of last service 01 07
o8
[938] SMN in Santa Monica, CA
Refused to Honor Written Quote
I feel I would be doing your company a
great disservice by not writing this letter to you.
Saturday afternoon, I brought my car to a Santa Monica
location for an oil change. The young man explained that my
particular make and model requires synthetic oil and this
service would cost $74.00. He handed my a document with that
price on it, I handed him my keys and I was on my way.
When I returned, another man asks for
$103.00. I explain to him that there must be a mistake and I show him
the document. He says that the person made a mistake and it would
cost $103.00. I told him this was unacceptable. After 10 minutes of
attempted reasoning, he offered $10.00 off. I refused and asked for
the manager.
Now 20 minutes into the checkout process, a
man who identified himself as Isaiah, the manager emerged. I calmly
explained that a mistake had been made and asked him to honor the
quote.
Very rudely and unprofessionally he says
“Sorry dude, it needed 8 quarts, so I need $103.00”. Again I refuse,
explaining I have a written quote. After another 15 minutes of him
more or less holding my car for ransom, I insist that he call his
supervisor. He at first says “I don’t have his number dude” He then
says “Listen dude, and this is a one time offer, I’ll give you 6
dollars off… take it or leave it”. Again, I refuse, stating the kid
before him offered 10 dollars off. Isaiah says “You should’ve taken
it dude, tough luck.
Now I’m outraged and so is the woman friend
who gave me a ride. . I then assertively say “I will not pay one cent
more than I was quoted and will wait as long as necessary”. He then
shouts across the garage in front of the staff and another customer “I
guess that should say something about your career”.
Now, beyond furious, I say, “If you don’t
call your supervisor immediately or give me my car keys, I’m calling
the police”. I ask if we are in L.A. or Santa Monica. He answers “I
can’t remember dude”, and walks away It’s been 45 minutes of ugliness
and I then call the Santa Monica Police to settle the matter. FINALLY
he calls his supervisor who apparently gives him authorization to
honor my quote.
One would think at this point that this
incredibly unpleasant matter would be over.
He gives me the agreed upon price and asks me
to swipe my card. I swipe it and notice the credit card machine says
“Transaction cancelled”, not “Declined”, so he says “Do you have
another card? This one is declined. I try the card 2 more times.
This time noticing that his hand is on the mouse and is intentionally
canceling the transaction.
It took nearly an hour of raising my voice and
getting upset to pick up my car. This is inviolably, the single
worst experience I have ever had at retail. This is also the
worst possible ambassador a brand could ever have.
[937]
Samuel They Really are Thieves
t's a scam shop. They charge for a
premium oil without asking if you want it. And after quoting
me $10 for a windshield wiper, they charged $12. Furthermore,
they wouldn't give a breakdown of bill until ones card is run
through the machine. They really are thieves
[936] Rob in Bellevue, TN
Refused to Clean Up Environmental Spill
On January 9, 2008 I went into a JL
facility in Bellevue, Tennessee (west of Nashville) for a
simple oil change. All went well as I watched them closely and
brought the exact amount of my own oil. I drove the truck home
and parked it. The following day I did not drive it and on the
morning of the the third day my wife noticed a huge puddle of
oil underneath the truck on to our newly paved exposed
aggregate driveway. Simple answer...oil drain plug not
tightened. Manager apologized and took responsibility, but
would not arrange a clean-up with a third party equipped to
deal with a big spill. Got a call from “Customer service” at
corporate...offered to pay $150.00 for the clean up, but no
more than that. Have contracted with ServPro to clean it up
and dispose of the oil and cleaning solutions properly, since
the spill is only about 30 feet from a protected stream
feeding a scenic river that is also under Federal protection.
Will do the clean-up properly and submit bill and photos and
statement from ServPro...if they don’t reimburse me in full,
I’ll haul ‘em into small claims court. Making a mistake
happens...but these folks won’t step up to the problem and
solve it. I won’t be back in any event.
[935] Jaye in Portland, OR
Would Not Fix Bolt They Broke
I took my car
to Jiffy Lube in Portland Oregon on Division Street and the
car was running great, just thought it time for oil
change. While waiting for the job to be completed, they came
out and said they had broken the bolt to hold the Pan and I
would have to have the car towed from the facility to my
repair shop...I DROVE IT IN AND HAD TO HAVE IT TOWED
OUT....$430.00 LATER PLUS TOWING EXPENSE I HAD LEARNED A BIG
LESSON! Corporate would not speak to me, I found many
simular or more severe complaints on Jiffy Lubes website and
no support when I filed with BBB. They stated they had many
complaints against Jiffy Lube and had not been sucessful in
settling them! The Manager of the shop wrote out a statement
that THEY had acidently broke the bolt....but Corperate
ignored it.... JIFFY LUBE IS BAD NEWS! BEWARE!!!
[934] Joni in Olathe, KS Paid for Their Mistake
Okay so normally I take my car to
Walmart to have the oil changed. Well, because they were too
busy and I wanted to get it done before the holiday season, I
called Jiffy Lube.. Surprise they got me right in, and got it
done in less than 20 minutes. Well 3 weeks later, my oil
light came on. I stopped and checked the oil, and it
looked fine. The next day the light came on again. Mind you
I have NEVER had a problem with this before. I have NEVER had
a leak, NEVER had my oil light come on nothing. So... I get
home and my husband checks it, I have NO OIL ON MY
DIPSTICK!!! How does that happen I think. I call Jiffy Lube
and he says oh just come back we'll check it and top it off.
My husband says that the guy tells him "Oh we sucked out
4 quarts and refilled it. BUT how is that possible if there
was NO OIL AGAIN ON THE DIPSTICK. So now they tell us they
have filled it, and my husband made sure this time, that the
oil was full. I paid $25.00 for this, which is $10 more than
I would have paid at Walmart, and almost blew up my engine.
I'm not very happy and I doubt I will be returning to them.
[933] Susan
Put in Wrong Oil
Jiffy put the
wrong motor oil in my truck 2 times. It was supposed to be
w20 not w30. I didn't pick up on this until the first time
unfortunately. I have a 2007 Ford Expedition
[932] Vinesh Question the Integrity of All Work Done
I have gotten so much work done at Jiffy
Lube – and after watching the video now, I question the
integrity of every work I ever paid for. What is Jiffy Lube
going to do regarding this? This is unbelievable!
[931] Dimitri
Promotion or Scam?
Sandy Jiffy
Lube "Buy One Get One Free" Promotion Or Scam???? You get a coupon
that expires before you need an oil change?? The store said they
can do nothing for me and gave me the local rep's number. After 2
messages and no return call I called Texas and was told "I hate to
be the one to tell you this but I can't help you." This is bad
business.
I think I'll
think twice where I want to take my 2 cars and 5 trucks for their
next oil change.
[930]
Victim in San Jose, CA IPOD Theft
I wanted to add my
experience with the Jiffy Lube on Camden Ave in San Jose,
California. On January 3,2008 at about 2 PM my husband took his
Nissan XTERRA truck to Jiffy Lube for an oil change and they also
vacuumed the inside of the car. My husband had just dropped my 9
year old son off at his sports practice. My son had gotten an IPOD
nano for Christmas with money he had gotten from several family
members because they all knew he wanted one so badly. I have never
seen him so excited. When my husband dropped off my son, he asked
him to leave the IPOD in the back seat pocket of the truck. It was
not visible to anyone, you would have to be inside the truck and
reach into the pocket which is deep. Whoever worked on and
or vacuumed my husband's truck at Jiffy Lube "lost" the IPOD (I am
being very gracious in my wording here) because right after the oil
change when I went and picked up my son, he looked for the IPOD and
it was gone. It disappeared at Jiffy Lube, of that I am positive. I
have been to see the manager 3 times and have gotten no results. I
even went into the garage to talk to these guys and let them know
that they "misplaced" an IPOD that belonged to a 9 year old who was
heart broken and we couldn't afford another one. They didn't seem
real sympathetic and I believe they knew what happened to it. I am
now going to file a police report. Whatever happened, it seems
really stupid, since a customer would notice an IPOD missing very
quickly and it was easy to track down where it disappeared and the
employee numbers of who worked on the car is on the invoice along
with date and time etc....... DO NOT GO TO THE JIFFY LUBE AT 3606
CAMDEN AVE IN SAN JOSE CALIFORNIA-----you might end up missing
something out of your car!!!!
[929]
Employee Bad Things @ Heartland Automotive
Not everything that happens at jiffy lube is
bad. Yes, alot of ... things happens. But that goes with anywhere
you shop. A majority of the bad things that happen are from a
franchise called Heartland Automotive. There, being a former
assistant manager, I have seen the worst of the worst. I almost
called the better business bureau on my one boss because I
personally witnessed him selling services and not performing them.
I want all of you who are reading this to also
know one thing, Jiffy Lube is on the verge of eliminating that
franchise because of all of the bad things that they have done to
give the company as a whole a bad name. We are actually changing the
colors slightly and have changed the logo a bit. Kind of like how
AT&T got such a bad reputation so they changed to cingular. Now they
are back to AT&T.... because they are starting to become respected
again. Its sad how a few bad eggs can make the whole compnay look
bad. But trust me not all stores are bad.
I am 23 and general manager of a store. Yes I
have made mistakes. With my mistakes, I do what I can to correct
them and get the customer on the road again we the desire to return.
Shit is going to happen. What shows if it is worth returning is how
the problem is handled if there is one. I know that each and every
one of you have made a mistake at your job and and have burnt a
bridge in the past. Unfortunately for us, some stores have burnt too
many bridges to the point where is affecting all of the rest of the
stores.
I guess the point of the little novel I am
writing is that problems happen anywhere, and I am sorry that
something bad had to happen to all of you. You are all being problem
identifiers. Problem identifiers are a dime a dozen. If each and
every one of you were problem solvers, This web site would not be
here. Im sorry that you have to find something to complain about to
get through another day. I am doing my best to be a problem solver.
Since I have taken over my store, my car counts have increased on a
monthly basis of roughly 14% over the previous years numbers. If you
have questions or would like to argue with me, please do. I know the
company well. I know the why we things the way we do from the
selling to the procedures to the pricings. I have worked with the
worst now, I am a proud member of the management team for the
franchise Virginia Lube.
Sorry I was really scatter brained while
writing this. Too many lube jobs today
[928]
Joseph in Houston, TX Stripped Drain Plug
I have had two bad experiences with the Jiffy
Lube store on Availed Rd, Houston TX. In the last 60 days.
1. My Wife's Ford Wind-Star
"Mysteriously developed" a stripped out drain plug.
I had it repaired for $ out of my
pocket.
2. My Ford P/U truck
strangely developed the same problem. Drain plug Spinning freely in
the housing. On each instance the Jiffy Lube Manager stated that
the problem was caused by Wal-Mart technicians.
Gentlmen, what is wrong with this picture?
Confession: I and My wife do from time to time have the oil changed
at WalMart. But the receipts and dates corrispond with JIFFY LUBE.
Your manager states the painted color code does not corrispond with
Jiffy Lube; But I see two different colors of paint on the drain
plug. MY RECEIPTS COLOR ARE FOR JIFFY LUBE.
What can be
done about this issue???:
If I had not gotten my oil checked for a
change, I would have run dry on oil and then my motor would burn up
------------ replacement.
[927]
Toby in Tukwila, WA Forgot To Replace Oil
I had the oil changed in my Mercury
Mountaineer at the Tukwila, Wa Jiffylube. The only problem is they
forgot to put oil back in the vehicle after they drained it. I was
at work the next day when my wife called me from the side of the
road with the engine light on. My dad discovered the engine had no
oil in it but, it did not freeze. He filled it and I went back to
Jiffy Lube. They denied that it even could have happened because of
their rigorous checks and offered no remedy. I'm just happy the
engine was not damaged from what I can tell.
[926] David in Mt. Penn, PA Chasing Customers Away
I am writing this letter to inform you of the
terrible treatment I received Friday evening,
January 4, 2008 at
your Jiffy Lube store #2936 located at
4760 Perkiomen Ave. in
Mt. Penn,
PA. Let me start off by making it
clear that I am Fleet Manager for my company’s vehicles, and have
used Jiffy Lube many times in the past. Although I know that they
will always try to “up-sell” the job, as a busy manager, I
appreciate the fact that I can get the vehicles in and out quickly.
My young daughter received a gift certificate
from Jiffy Lube for Christmas. She took her vehicle to the above
location and asked for the $31.99 oil change. As is Jiffy Lube’s
standard, they brought her into the bay and told her she needed a
new air filter and needed high mileage oil. At no time did they
tell her that by putting in the high mileage oil, it would bump her
up to the $49.99 category. She was not told or was aware that she
would be paying $18.00 more for this oil ($4.50 more per quart!).
She came to our home very distressed. As a young girl starting out
on her own, that $18.00 difference is a big deal.
My wife and I were going out that night, so I
said I would stop and talk to the manager on duty about this extra
charge. I asked to see the manger and was told that the person on
duty was a manager. I explained to him that my daughter was charged
for high mileage oil, but was never told at the onset of the
additional cost.
What followed is almost a text book case of how
to chase customers away from your business. I have sixteen years in
the customer service business, so I feel I speak with some bit of
expertise.
The manager on duty denied that not informing
her of the additional costs could never have happened (I have had
that same thing happen to me numerous time on my own Jiffy Lube
experiences with our company vehicles. If you don’t ask how much,
they don’t tell). He proceeded to bring in an employee, who had no
knowledge of what was “sold” to the customer. He then had the
audacity to tell me to have my daughter bring her car back in. They
would remove all the oil they just put in, fill the car back up with
dirty old motor oil, find an old air filter from the trash, stick it
back in the car and give my daughter her money back. Needless to
say, I was shocked at that suggestion.
After refusing to refund the $18.00 difference
back to my daughter’s credit card, he told me he needed to fill out
a customer complaint form and we would receive a refund from Jiffy’s
Lube’s corporate office. He then spent about 10 minutes in the
small office filling out this form and having a cell phone
conversation with who I assume was the manager, during which time he
was telling this person what a jerk this customer was (my
paraphrase). When I asked to see a copy of what was being sent, he
let me start to read it, but then jerked it out of my hand and said
“I have had enough of this, I’m done.” When I asked to have a copy
of it or something for a paper trail that I had registered a
complaint and requested a refund, he said he had nothing to give me.
I then explained to him that I had a long
standing relationship with Jiffy Lube and spent a long time in the
Customer Service part of business. I explained that you never argue
with a customer, never get in a customer’s face, and never try to
make the customer feel like an idiot. I had just experienced all
three of these situations. At that point, this Jiffy Lube employee,
whose job it is to have satisfied customers who want to come back
and spend more money at Jiffy lube, told me to get out of the store
or he was going to call the police because I was harassing him.
As a side note, we stopped at a restaurant for
dinner later on that evening. We had a small problem with our bill.
We were charged incorrectly twice for two items. The young waitress
was so nice and professional the way she handled the problem, and in
fact the manager removed the items from our bill because they had
screwed it up so bad. I just had to compliment the waitress on how
she handled it. I then shared with her our pervious customer
service nightmare we had just had at Jiffy Lube, and she said, “I
know. I had the some problem at that store. I went in for a $31.99
oil change and came out with a $114.00 bill. I had no idea what I
was getting or how much it was going to cost. I will never go back
there again.” I think it is interesting that she was also a young
girl, like my daughter, unfamiliar with the workings of a car and
what they need when being serviced. Someone easy to “up-sell”.
We have no wish for any ill harm to come to the
employee involved. I am sure it was at the end of a long day for
him, and a complaining customer was the last thing he needed to deal
with, but I do think that Jiffy Lube needs to strengthen their
training of employees, or at least this store, on how to handle
customer complaints. Had this situation been handled differently,
it would have resulted in a loyal Jiffy Lube customer. I am sure it
is not Jiffy Lube’s company policy to argue with a customer, bring
back cars and have old dirty oil and old parts put back in, or to
threaten to have a customer removed by police.
I think the old business proverb applies here:
“Get good service, you will tell a few but get bad service and you
will tell everyone.” Jiffy Lube #2936 has lost this family’s
business.
