Being screwed by PepBoys?? *update, got the refund, Thanks ATOT*

[Placer14]

Alright...I'm potentially being screwed by Pep Boys and I need some info: (I'l be very to the point to help the ADD members)

Bought vehicle with alternator.
Left on road trip.
Alternator goes bad on road trip.
Stop at PepBoys, test Alternator. Alternator bad.
Purchase new alternator from PepBoys.
Cost: 119.99 (alternator) + 30.00 (core charge) - 30.00 (core charge refund from old alternator and left old alternator with PepBoys - Note: Reciept shows core refund and doesn't indicate that an alternator was returned.). Total: 127.19 (including 6% tax FL)
1 week later, return from trip.
2 weeks later, new alternator goes bad.
We bring new alternat back to PepBoys for refund.
Pepboys refund in the amount of 127.19.
Advise Pepboys that they should include the refund for the core charge.
Pepboys refuses, states that core charge based on store policy. (Core charge must be refunded at the location the alt was purchased at and they would not honor the Core Charge refund. The reciept clearly shows the core for the new alternator purchased on the roadtrip was refunded on the reciept.)
I attempted to explain that this refund was for the return of an old alternator.
They ask for reciept for old alternator.
Explained that this was an old alternator that was with vehicle there is no receipt other than what they already have.
Refused refund.
Requested to speak with manager.
"I am the manager on duty."
Request for higher manager.
Advised to call 800-PEPBOYS.
Got home, called Pepboys Customer Relations. Waiting for callback.


What's my situation here. As I understand it, no matter where you return batteries, alternators, engines, etc, there is a core refund for them to "buy the part back" for them to work on. The charge varies from store to store, but I want the refund for the core on this alternator they charge (in the amount of $30). Am I being unreasonable/stupid/etc? What's the best way to take care of this?

Thanks, guys.

:|

*Update: Called Cust Service, they called the sotre and got in contact with the Ass-Manager (the abbreviation is indended). After much phone tag, I finally spoke to him and explained the situation. "I'll return the $30 core."

Either he's being very literal and gonna give me a defective alt, or will really give me the $30. Either way, I'm driving down there now to find out. He better not give me any BS cause i'm bringing my annoying little brother to use as a buffer if things get loud.

 

[Placer14]

Comon guys!! Feel free to chime in anytime.

 

[XMan]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't you already get the $30 back?

 

[Placer14]

Originally posted by: X-Man
Correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't you already get the $30 back?

30.00 (core charge refund from old alternator.

 

[notfred]

Originally posted by: X-Man
Correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't you already get the $30 back?

Yes he did, but Pep Boys still has his old alternator.

$150 -> pepboys
new alternator -> Placer14

Old alternator -> pepboys
$30 -> placer14

New alternator -> pepboys
$120 -> placer14

End result:
Cash is even
Pepboys has one more alternator than when they started. Placer14 has one less alternator.

 

[XMan]

Originally posted by: Placer14

Originally posted by: X-Man
Correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't you already get the $30 back?

30.00 (core charge refund from old alternator.

I don't think you understand me. You bought a new alternator on your road trip. You gave them the old alternator. They gave you the $30 core charge for the defective alternator.

Now, the new Pep Boy's alternator goes bad. All you should get from them is a replacement alternator, not an additional 30 dollars.

How does he have one less? The one that went bad on the road trip was turned in for a core charge. The new one was put on the car. The new one went bad, so he should have exchanged it rather than getting a refund.

 

[Placer14]

The old alternator was returned for $30 credit on core charge. The new alternator was 120 + 30 core. Final bill = 120. They only refunded 120 and kept the 30 for the core. Now, either a defective alternator is owed to me, or a 30 core refund is owed.

 

[notfred]

Placer 14 gave a total of $150 cash to pep boys.
Pep Boys gave a total of $150 in refunds to Placer14.

When this fiasco began, Placer14 had one broken alternator. And Pep Boys had one new alternator.

At this point in time, pep boys has both the broken alternator, and the new (albeit defective) alternator.

Placer14 has been shorted by 1 broken alternator.

 

[PlatinumGold]

Originally posted by: notfred
Placer 14 gave a total of $150 cash to pep boys.
Pep Boys gave a total of $150 in refunds to Placer14.

When this fiasco began, Placer14 had one broken alternator. And Pep Boys had one new alternator.

At this point in time, pep boys has both the broken alternator, and the new (albeit defective) alternator.

Placer14 has been shorted by 1 broken alternator.

Why didn't placer just replace the New Alternator that was broken at Pepboys avoiding the whole core rebate thing?

i've dealt with pep boys in the past and will not do so any longer, mb placer feels the same way.

bottom line, Placer is out $30.00. How much time are you going to have to waste on this in order to get your $30.00 ??

 

[fumbduck]

Originally posted by: PlatinumGold

Originally posted by: notfred
Placer 14 gave a total of $150 cash to pep boys.
Pep Boys gave a total of $150 in refunds to Placer14.

When this fiasco began, Placer14 had one broken alternator. And Pep Boys had one new alternator.

At this point in time, pep boys has both the broken alternator, and the new (albeit defective) alternator.

Placer14 has been shorted by 1 broken alternator.

Why didn't placer just replace the New Alternator that was broken at Pepboys avoiding the whole core rebate thing?

i've dealt with pep boys in the past and will not do so any longer, mb placer feels the same way.

bottom line, Placer is out $30.00. How much time are you going to have to waste on this in order to get your $30.00 ??

I don't see how he is out 30$ at all.

He is out 1 old broken alternator, thats it.

He gave them 120+30$ core charge. Then they gave him the 30$ core charge back for his dead alternator. So now he is only out 120$, but has a new alternator. He returns the new broken alternator and gets 120$ in refund.

Now he wants them to refund the core charge that they already paid back to him? The only thing i could see him getting is driving to the pepboys that has his alternator and getting it.

 

[AgentBehemoth]

As X-Man said Placer isn't owed anything more than a replacement alt. If he wants to go buy another alt. and then used the new/def. alt. as the core then he would be owed a core refund.

You do not get a core refund for an even exchange. So Sorry.

 

[xxxxxJohnGaltxxxxx]

...so before your 'roadtrip', you and PepBoys were square, correct? You put down a $30 deposit, took a new alternator and placed it on your car, and when you brought back the broken one, they refunded your deposit, correct?

 

[Placer14]

FYI, this is the 3rd defective alternator from PepBoys, i was attempting to simplify the story. Needlesstosay, a core was charged for the new alternator that I purchased, and when it was returned, I didn't get the core back.

Does anyone with experience with buying alternators at car part stores? I don't see why this is hard to understand. I gave my old alt to Pepboys, they gave me $30 for core refund. I bought a new alt at 120, plus a $30 core charge. Now I'm returning a defective alt and only got 120 back. Am I wrong in thinking I should be owed another $30?

 

[Pacfanweb]

You got a refund of the price of the alternator. You also got your 30.00 core charge back....which means you basically sold them your original alternator for 30.00. Or that they took 30 bucks off the price of the new one in exchange for your old one.

Otherwise, without a core, the new alternator would cost 149.00. You basically gave them 119+your old part for their new part. So they refunded the actual cash you paid.
If you didn't turn in a core, just bought a new one, you'd have paid 149+tax, and you'd be due that in refund.

I guess you could say you're owed your old, broken alternator back, or the 30 bucks you paid for it.

Why didn't you just exchange it again? You're bound to get a good one eventually.

 

[Placer14]

Oh, we exchanged it 3 times. This is the last exchange. I only mentioned one exchange cause i wanted ot simplify the issue.

Originally posted by: AgentBehemoth
As X-Man said Placer isn't owed anything more than a replacement alt. If he wants to go buy another alt. and then used the new/def. alt. as the core then he would be owed a core refund.

You do not get a core refund for an even exchange. So Sorry.

I don't see how that exchange was even. I turned in an old/bad alt for $30. They gave me a new one for $150. They refunded $120. I'm out $30 or a bad alt. Clear this up for me please.

 

[Pacfanweb]

Originally posted by: Placer14
Oh, we exchanged it 3 times. This is the last exchange. I only mentioned one exchange cause i wanted ot simplify the issue.

Well, IMO if you're going for a refund, you either need your old alternator back so it can be used as a core somewhere else, or your 30 bucks for it back.
Find the right ear to bend at Pepboys corporate and you should get the situation remedied.

 

[ThisIsMatt]

Originally posted by: Pacfanweb
You got a refund of the price of the alternator. You also got your 30.00 core charge back....which means you basically sold them your original alternator for 30.00. Or that they took 30 bucks off the price of the new one in exchange for your old one.

Otherwise, without a core, the new alternator would cost 149.00. You basically gave them 119+your old part for their new part. So they refunded the actual cash you paid.
If you didn't turn in a core, just bought a new one, you'd have paid 149+tax, and you'd be due that in refund.

I guess you could say you're owed your old, broken alternator back, or the 30 bucks you paid for it.

Why didn't you just exchange it again? You're bound to get a good one eventually.

Maybe he wants to take his business elsewhere after getting crap from PB's, and most places have a core exchange policy, but now he doesn't have one to exchange so he'll be forced to pay extra (PB's fault).

 

[Ronstang]

Originally posted by: notfred
Placer 14 gave a total of $150 cash to pep boys.
Pep Boys gave a total of $150 in refunds to Placer14.

When this fiasco began, Placer14 had one broken alternator. And Pep Boys had one new alternator.

At this point in time, pep boys has both the broken alternator, and the new (albeit defective) alternator.

Placer14 has been shorted by 1 broken alternator.

If you people cannot grasp the above concept then you are all clueless. Pep Boys either needs to give him back a "core" alternator to turn in at a parts store that sells QUALITY parts or they need to pay him the $30 for his core that they have in their possession.

 

[Placer14]

Alright...thanks for the opinion. I KNOW i'm not going crazy here.

I called Cust Relations at the 800 line they gave me and I had to leave a message for them to call me back. No word, but it IS Sunday. I'm going to call and call and call and call tomorrow until this is cleared up. Thanks again.

If anyone is still unclear as far as what the deal is, make sure you let your mechanic handle your car.

 

[Pastfinder]

damn, three guys on one, that has to hurt...

 

[AgentBehemoth]

Originally posted by: Placer14
Oh, we exchanged it 3 times. This is the last exchange. I only mentioned one exchange cause i wanted ot simplify the issue.

Originally posted by: AgentBehemoth
As X-Man said Placer isn't owed anything more than a replacement alt. If he wants to go buy another alt. and then used the new/def. alt. as the core then he would be owed a core refund.

You do not get a core refund for an even exchange. So Sorry.

I don't see how that exchange was even. I turned in an old/bad alt for $30. They gave me a new one for $150. They refunded $120. I'm out $30 or a bad alt. Clear this up for me please.

You have a really hard time explaining what you mean for one thing but I'll see if I can work with the additional that you've given me. Irregardless of how many times you have exchanged it you were given an alternator for $120 after the returned core. That in itself squares you with PepBoys for an alt. Now you don't want an exchange from Pepboys for the last alt. that you got from them(for which you are square) you want them to take it back and refund you your money, right? If this is the case Pepboys isn't required to give you your 'old' alt. as that would be impossible(seeing as how your on your 3rd replacement) to do and you are only owed what you actually spent in cash on that alt. which would be $120.

Deal is, if you take a replacement(I think somethings wrong with the vehicle since getting 3 bad alts. in a row is literally impossible) then you are out nothing and PepBoys stands up to their warranty but if you want a refund you lose out on the core charge. That is how it has always been and for you to get different then you are just a fine fella and they like you.

 

[Placer14]

Well, maybe i do have a hard time getting a point across. I thought I was fairly clear. Either way, I think i'm going in the right direction with this.

And as a side note, we got the 3rd alternator from a place other than pep boys and she's been running beautifully. Maybe it was really bad luck or there is something wrong with the vehicle. Either way, meh. Thanks for your comment.

 

[AgentBehemoth]

NP Glad everythings working for you now.

 

[Ronstang]

Originally posted by: AgentBehemoth

Originally posted by: Placer14
Oh, we exchanged it 3 times. This is the last exchange. I only mentioned one exchange cause i wanted ot simplify the issue.

Originally posted by: AgentBehemoth
As X-Man said Placer isn't owed anything more than a replacement alt. If he wants to go buy another alt. and then used the new/def. alt. as the core then he would be owed a core refund.

You do not get a core refund for an even exchange. So Sorry.

I don't see how that exchange was even. I turned in an old/bad alt for $30. They gave me a new one for $150. They refunded $120. I'm out $30 or a bad alt. Clear this up for me please.

You have a really hard time explaining what you mean for one thing but I'll see if I can work with the additional that you've given me. Irregardless of how many times you have exchanged it you were given an alternator for $120 after the returned core. That in itself squares you with PepBoys for an alt. Now you don't want an exchange from Pepboys for the last alt. that you got from them(for which you are square) you want them to take it back and refund you your money, right? If this is the case Pepboys isn't required to give you your 'old' alt. as that would be impossible(seeing as how your on your 3rd replacement) to do and you are only owed what you actually spent in cash on that alt. which would be $120.

Deal is, if you take a replacement(I think somethings wrong with the vehicle since getting 3 bad alts. in a row is literally impossible) then you are out nothing and PepBoys stands up to their warranty but if you want a refund you lose out on the core charge. That is how it has always been and for you to get different then you are just a fine fella and they like you.

You are wrong.....read above to clear things up. I have done this very thing at O'Reilly's befoer and they always give me back the core charge since they have obviously kept my core. Once again I can't understand how clueless people around here can be sometimes.

 

[Pacfanweb]

Originally posted by: AgentBehemoth

Originally posted by: Placer14
Oh, we exchanged it 3 times. This is the last exchange. I only mentioned one exchange cause i wanted ot simplify the issue.

Originally posted by: AgentBehemoth
You have a really hard time explaining what you mean for one thing but I'll see if I can work with the additional that you've given me. Irregardless of how many times you have exchanged it you were given an alternator for $120 after the returned core. That in itself squares you with PepBoys for an alt. Now you don't want an exchange from Pepboys for the last alt. that you got from them(for which you are square) you want them to take it back and refund you your money, right? If this is the case Pepboys isn't required to give you your 'old' alt. as that would be impossible(seeing as how your on your 3rd replacement) to do and you are only owed what you actually spent in cash on that alt. which would be $120.

Deal is, if you take a replacement(I think somethings wrong with the vehicle since getting 3 bad alts. in a row is literally impossible) then you are out nothing and PepBoys stands up to their warranty but if you want a refund you lose out on the core charge. That is how it has always been and for you to get different then you are just a fine fella and they like you.

Deal is, you are wrong. Here it is, plain and simple: (and yes, he wasn't very clear to start with, but I bothered to read it through several times to understand before posting)

He paid 119.00 +his old alternator for a new one. He wants a refund. A refund would be 119.00+his old alternator back; if they can't provide the old one back, they need to give him the 30.00 they allowed for the core charge.
How much simpler can it be? It's no different than returning a car you just bought. They either need to give you your money back plus your trade-in car back, or the money they allowed you for the trade.

I think the real problem is, if I'm reading correctly, this took place at 2 different stores.