"Please conduct an investigation into what I believe is an on-going problem/scam at Maaco, 11820 Jefferson Davis Hwy, Chester, VA. The owner is Frank Felle, tel. no. 748-9872. For years I had heard bad stories about Maaco but based on local and good references given the Maaco at Chester I decided to have body work done on my Ford pickup (1992, F-150, 4 X 4). There's no telling how many experiences are similar to mine.
The scenario/ scam:
Took my F-150 to Frank for an estimate. Had rusted out problems in the bed above and back of rear wheels. Asked Frank if we should try to find a replacement bed but he recommended fixing problems on existing bed. Estimate makes perfect sense for rust problems: it states that the shop will grind 5-6 inches past rust to ensure removal.
Get work done and pay bill on 5-21-13 for $1, 779.83 for body work to include replacement of headlights.
Paint almost immediately starts popping up in previous rusted areas and Frank tells me to bring it back in February, 2014, a slow time for him and he'll correct problems.
After the work in February, 2014 paint pops up again. Get in touch with Frank and go by to meet with him. He shows pictures of irregular and jagged areas that were sanded and the sanded areas only go back about an inch from rusted areas. In another area besides areas near the rear wheels I show him where staff has painted over rust beneath the rear window. This was revealed after I removed the camper shell. Frank's staff removed and re-installed the camper shell as part of the estimate when it was in his shop. He recognizes his staff did faulty work beneath the window but doesn't offer to redo it at no charge. He states rust is like a cancer but he agrees to again work on the truck for extra money.
Frank throws out an argument about only 90 days for rust but says nothing about it when giving me an estimate. He points to the different options on his boards during the estimate and says I will have a three year warranty.
Get in touch with Maacco Corporate Headquarters and this is a joke. The mediator, named Rezetta, sends my e-mail of problems to Frank. She calls me back and says nothing can be done about rust (that is unless I pay more money to correct a problem that should have been corrected to begin with). Please check comments from customers on the Maaco site and your will see they have experiences like mine.
Frank sent me a long winded e-mail breaking down costs. Either Frank should do the work properly (properly sanding and inserted metal behind areas as necessary, which he has now mentioned) or he should refund most of my money. Money would be better since based on what Frank says about rust problem will recur.
Maybe Maaco should issue a statement that we can do nothing about rust. Maybe something like we can put lipstick on your rig but if there's rust it won't last long. Sometimes we sand and insert fill and we certainly hope there's a 90 day wonder, the end of our rust warranty.
Please see the string of e-mails where I've tried to resolve this issue.
Thank you.
Jim Harris
804-748-3598
5219 Verlinda Drive
N. Chesterfield, VA 23237
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From: "j harris08"
To: frank@richmondmaaco.com
Cc: "Betsy McDonald"
Sent: Monday, September 15, 2014 3:05:18 PM
Subject: Fwd: F-150
Frank - I received a call from Rezetta who is a Maaco mediator. She said she forwarded my below e-mail dated 9-12-14 to you (which I don't quite understand if she is the mediator) detailing concerns. Essentially she resolved nothing as a mediator.
The way I see it I paid you to resolve issues with my truck and you are now hiding behind rust issues that you knew about at the time of the estimate and that are now recurring in same places. We discussed replacing the bed at the time of the estimate and you saw no need to do this. The popped up paint is above both rear wheels and between the right rear wheel and the bumper. These are in the same places noted in your estimate.
Additionally there are rust issues below the rear window that your staff painted over when they removed the camper shell.
You said nothing and gave no documentation about any 90 day rust issues when you gave me the estimate/did the work. What you quoted is stated in the estimate and my concerns extracted from the estimate are in the below e-mail dated 9-12-14. Due to my love of the truck I decided to go with the original two tones and even the 4 x 4 decals on the back. You convinced me that the work would be professional. The glaringly misleading information was a three year warranty.
Unless I receive an e-mail that you will correct the faulty work at no charge I will determine what to do next. Options are On Your Side (Channel 12) the Better Business Bureau, etc.
I saw any number of complaints on the Maaco Corporate site and intend to write that site unless problems are corrected.
The sooner the work is done the better since I intend to put my camper shell back on the truck due to the need to carry hunting, etc. gear. I could spare the truck for a three day period.
The truck is in excellent running condition and it's a shame that there has been such an experience.
Thank you.
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From: "Betsy McDonald"
To: "j harris08"
Cc:Sent: Monday, September 15, 2014 12:06:59 PM
Subject: RE: F-150
Hey Jim,
That number goes to our call center who should have been able to connect you with Rezetta but I’ll get in touch with her to confirm that she will be following up with you. I’m sorry for the delay in getting back to you.
Thanks,
Betsy
From: j_harris08@comcast.net [mailto:j_harris08@comcast.net]
Sent: Monday, September 15, 2014 10:29 AM
To: Betsy McDonald
Subject: Re: F-150
Betsy - Called the no. you gave me and they didn't seem to be aware of Rozetta (who obviously called me from somewhere) or my case. Told Cathy (?) the particulars about my F-150 and she said I would receive a call back in 48 hours.
Hate to keep bothering you but push a button or two if my case has been lost in the bureaucracy. Thanks
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From: "Betsy McDonald"
To: "j harris08"
Sent: Friday, September 12, 2014 8:56:15 AM
Subject: RE: F-150
Hey Jim,
I forwarded your email to Rezetta and asked her to reach back out to you to further discuss your concerns. Our customer service line is 1-800-523-1180. If you call that number you can ask to speak with Rezetta. Let me know if there’s anything else I can do to help you get in touch with her.
Thanks,
Betsy
From: j_harris08@comcast.net [mailto:j_harris08@comcast.net]
Sent: Friday, September 12, 2014 7:24 AM
To: Betsy McDonald
Subject: Re: F-150
Betsy - Appreciate Rosetta's call on 9-8-14. Met with Frank at Maaco on 9-11-14. Below is a summary of what learned/discussed:
Estimate from Frank dated 5-6-13 (correct punctuation inserted by me) where there are still problems said
1) Grind, treat, and fiberglass rust on right wheel opening - grind 5-6 inches past rust to ensure removal, 2) Grind, treat, and fiberglass rust on left rear wheel opening; grind past 6" as well, and 3) Rust bottom right quarter between wheel well and bumper. My findings: Per the pictures on the computer shown me by Frank (available to you from Frank) grinding no where went six inches beyond the irregular deterioration/rust). My tires are Nexan (raised, white letters) so be sure you receive the correct photos; Frank initially showed me work on a F-150 that wasn't my truck (tried to show me he inserted metal but it was on another F-150).
Frank makes the argument that he fixed the problems once at his own expense. Whatever he did was only cosmetic. Problems (popped up paint) and a place where Frank pushed his finger through the present deterioration still exist. Additionally, there is rust below the rear window, exposed when Maaco removed the camper shell to paint it and the rear window area, as part of the estimate. Frank admitted that workers only painted over the rust. He said the back window would have to be removed to correct the problem. I told Frank I could wait until February, a slow time for him and since I now need the truck for hunting, to correct problems.
Please forward the above to Rosetta so she may advise on how it may be mediated. It would be helpful if I had her e-mail and telephone no. Thanks!
Jim Harris
804-748-3598
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From: "Betsy McDonald"
To: "j harris08"
Sent: Monday, September 8, 2014 8:55:26 AM
Subject: RE: F-150
Good Morning Jim,
I’ll follow back up with Customer Service to ensure that someone will be reaching out to you soon. I apologize for the delay.
Thanks for following up!
From: j_harris08@comcast.net [mailto:j_harris08@comcast.net]
Sent: Saturday, September 06, 2014 10:25 AM
To: Betsy McDonald
Subject: Re: F-150
Betsy - Copied you below on my latest e-mail to Frank. When will a specialist be getting in touch with me? Need to to get back with Frank soon.
Re: F-150
Sent By:
Sent By j harris08 On:Sep 09/05/14 4:34 PM
To:
To Frank Felle
Cc:
Cc vernon@richmondmaaco.com;
Bcc:
Bcc Betsy McDonald
"j harris08"
+ Add to Address Book
Message
Frank - Thanks for this reply and the one by telephone. Been busy but will drop by one day to determine how the on-going bubble up issue may be resolved.
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From: "Frank Felle"
To: "j harris08"
Sent: Saturday, August 23, 2014 12:48:19 PM
Subject: RE: F-150
Jim,
I’ll be out of town next week. I will return Monday, Sept 1st. Please give me a call or stop in after I return.
-Frank
From: j_harris08@comcast.net [mailto:j_harris08@comcast.net]
Sent: Wednesday, August 20, 2014 9:54 AM
To: frank@richmondmaaco.com
Cc: vernon@richmondmaaco.com; Subject: F-150
Frank - In addition to talking to you by phone a while back I came by the place and talked to Vernon about my concerns.
As mentioned to you when you estimated the truck you stated that getting another bed might pose the same problems as repainting the existing bed (so we stuck with the existing bed).
You all have already repainted bubble up problems once but they continue. Have popping up problems over both back wheels and beyond the wheel.
We paid $1, 779.83 for what was supposed to be a quality job.
You mentioned that metal needed to be placed at certain spots and there would be a charge to us for this. I'm not so sure that we should be paying any more money considering the amt. already paid. The shop should have assessed any special needs at the time the job was estimated/done.
Please let me know when this situation will be resolved. A number of people have complimented how good the truck looks until they check closely and see the popped up paint.
Look forward to hearing from you.
Jim Harris
748-3598
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From: "Betsy McDonald"
To: "j harris08"
Sent: Friday, August 29, 2014 12:20:49 PM
Subject: RE: F-150
Thank you for contacting us. We apologize for any problems you’ve experienced at Maaco.
If you can provide me with your contact information, I can give your information to our Customer Service team and they will assign a Specialist who will reach out to you to further discuss your concerns.
Thanks and have a great day!
From: j_harris08@comcast.net [mailto:j_harris08@comcast.net]
Sent: Wednesday, August 27, 2014 5:01 PM
To: Consumer Reports
Cc: Harris, Caryl
Subject: Fwd: F-150
I receive regular e-mails from you. Any advice you could give on how to best resolve this situation with Maaco, Hwy 1 near Chester, Va? Franks previously mentioned that he probably would have to insert metal and there would be additional charges. Vernon said my situation was unique (we weren't born yesterday).
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From: "Frank Felle"
To: "j harris08"
Sent: Saturday, August 23, 2014 12:48:19 PM
Subject: RE: F-150
Jim,
I’ll be out of town next week. I will return Monday, Sept 1st. Please give me a call or stop in after I return.
-Frank
From: j_harris08@comcast.net [mailto:j_harris08@comcast.net]
Sent: Wednesday, August 20, 2014 9:54 AM
To: frank@richmondmaaco.com
Cc: vernon@richmondmaaco.com; Harris, Caryl
Subject: F-150
Frank - In addition to talking to you by phone a while back I came by the place and talked to Vernon about my concerns.
As mentioned to you when you estimated the truck you stated that getting another bed might pose the same problems as repainting the existing bed (so we stuck with the existing bed).
You all have already repainted bubble up problems once but they continue. Have popping up problems over both back wheels and beyond the wheel.
We paid $1, 779.83 for what was supposed to be a quality job.
You mentioned that metal needed to be placed at certain spots and there would be a charge to us for this. I'm not so sure that we should be paying any more money considering the amt. already paid. The shop should have assessed any special needs at the time the job was estimated/done.
Please let me know when this situation will be resolved. A number of people have complimented how good the truck looks until they check closely and see the popped up paint.
Look forward to hearing from you.
Jim Harris
748-3598"