Services NOT OFFERED !

[vacuumguy]

I own/operate a vacuum store. we sell and repair vacuums, So obviously idiots bring in such things like lamps, dvd players, radios, game systems, space heaters, and in one instance a log splitter. When I inform them that we don't fix those kinds of things i get questioned on why not, insulted, and told that i won't stay in business long with a attitude like that. Does anyone else ever have these problems or am i just located in a town of insane people?

[barainga]

Im pretty sure thats normal.
A guy a town over has a sewing machine shop, he has been repairing them for a looooong time. Thats all he does and hes really good at it.
My mom had me drop off hers to get serviced, while I was there someone brought in something that was not a sewing machine, I cant remember what it was. And was very upset that he couldnt fix it.

[artcurmudgeon]

Truthfully it is very common...

::fires up the way back machine::

For 3 years, my wife and I ran our own computer repair business out of our home before we moved to St Louis, and it was amazing the things people wanted me to fix. I would tell people that if it was not a computer or printer or a pc accessory, that Caveat emptor was in effect and there were not warranties or guarantees. About 60-70% of the time I fixed the vcr, dvd player or vacuum and people were happy. The rest I would tell them that I couldnt fix it and there was no charge. Since I stuck by my motto of "If we dont fix it, you dont pay", most people were okay with it.

It was always a wild ride....

[Pixilated]

I can sympathize with people who bring other stuff in, in the hopes you can fix it. The 'throw it away and buy a new one' mentality is so prevalent that it's very difficult (if not impossible in many places) to find repair shops anymore.

However, once you've told them you don't repair radios, game systems, lamps, dvd players and so on, they should, at most, ask if you know anywhere that does, and then take their item(s) and leave.

[CoffeeMonkey]

I can sympathize with people who bring other stuff in, in the hopes you can fix it. The 'throw it away and buy a new one' mentality is so prevalent that it's very difficult (if not impossible in many places) to find repair shops anymore.

However, once you've told them you don't repair radios, game systems, lamps, dvd players and so on, they should, at most, ask if you know anywhere that does, and then take their item(s) and leave.

Ditto this. I would not find someone bringing in a similarish item to a shop and asking if the person was capable of fixing it to be rude. Especially if they realized it would be a special thing and offered to pay extra for the trouble.

It's when someone is a jackass about WHY can't you fix my X in your Y repair shop, you plug both into the wall, they are practically the same! rabble rabble. That's the problem.

[Automan Empire]

at most, ask if you know anywhere that does

Yes, working at a one-make-specialist auto repair place, I have to talk people into the fact that we don't work on brand X far too often.

The SCs of the world won't stop till they've exhausted every angle. How about, "Well, how much WOULD you charge me if you DID fix brand X?"

As if asking the same question an arbitrarily large number of times or variants will wear me down and I'd suddenly say, "Okay you're on to me. I can fix that in 30 seconds for $0.25!"

[Argabarga]

About once a year, I get a determined person who broke down at 2 am on Sunday morning, invariably about halfway between their origin and destination locations that were often on two ends of the STATE, and plead with me to fix their car so they could get back on the road.

Couple problems with that

1. I'm not a mechanic, I do not have the skills to diagnose or fix what's wrong with your car

2. I don't have access to spare parts or shop space or tools to do repairs even if I knew how. The Service department, where all the trained mechanics are, locked up and went home at 6. You're out of luck until 8am..... 8am Monday morning.



And without fail, the person on the other end is FLABBERGASTED that a guy who drives a tow truck can't fix cars, I had one guy even say as much. "Wait, you work for a garage and can't fix cars?!" As if this were an affront to society as grave as selling meth to schoolkids.....

One guy kept trying to offer to pay me $200 "under the table" to fix his car, when I told him I wasn't a mechanic, he just upped his offer by $50, when I told him a SECOND time I wasn't a mechanic, he upped it again.......

If I hadn't hung up on him, it's likely I could have talked him into paying me $1,000 to smash his car to pieces..... would've been fun!

[MoonCat]

ArgaBarga, that's when you take it apart, then put it back together and tell the guy, "don't worry about those parts left over. You didn't need them anyway."



OK, not really, as that would be unsafe to drive, but wouldn't it be funny to see the guy's face?

[Argabarga]

I've always thought about throwing some random nuts and bolts into a manila envelope and handing those to a random customer, telling them "Couldn't figure out where these went, but my guess is they're superfluous because the car still started right up!"

[Pixilated]

*snip*
The SCs of the world won't stop till they've exhausted every angle. How about, "Well, how much WOULD you charge me if you DID fix brand X?"
*snip*

Holy crap. What difference does it make how much you'd charge since you DON'T-WORK-ON-THOSE-TAKE-IT-SOMEWHERE-ELSE?!

[Irving Patrick Freleigh]

Let me be the first to say your job sucks.



Thank you! I'll be here all week! Hey! Get that hook thingy away from me!

[TonyDonuts]

Holy crap. What difference does it make how much you'd charge since you DON'T-WORK-ON-THOSE-TAKE-IT-SOMEWHERE-ELSE?!

It's just a tool to get you to admit that you really do fix fill-in-the-blank, and you're just saying you don't in order to be difficult.

When I worked at the battery store I had a guy argue with me -- for almost an hour, off and on -- trying to get me to fix his laptop.

Apparently the fact that we sold batteries meant -- BY LAW!!!!! -- that we must fix them.

He left in a snit after I commented on how wonderful it must be to have so much free time in the middle of a weekday.

[Jay 2K Winger]

Let me be the first to say your job sucks.

Except when it blows.

Ahthankyew... try the veal, don't forget to tip your server-- hey, what's with the tomatoes?

[Mongo Skruddgemire]

While I can not say for all cases, I have a theory for those people who physically walk into the shop.

It's the SC being a stubborn jackass.

You see, these people could not be arsed to actually pick up the phonebook (or go on line) and look up the type of facility they need and then call the ones that seem likely to be able to do what is needed to be done. That way if the first choice on the list is a no go, they have only wasted a minute or so of their time.

Whereas when they physically drive the item to the store, they've wasted time, effort (if the item is heavy or bulky), and gas. So when after they've done all that they're told that this shop is not capable of fixing their "Moss-Covered Three-Handled Family Credenza"...all that was wasted. And being wasteful pisses them off and they get snotty. After all they went through all that trouble to bless you with their patronage, why the fuck aren't you going to fix their Moss-Covered Three-Handled Family Credenza even though you are neither qualified nor stocked with the requisite tools and parts needed to fix said item?

However (and this is the strange part), they are not pissed off enough to do anything to prevent themselves from wasting all that time, effort, and petrol by doing something as silly as grabbing the phone book or looking online for a place that advertises that they sell, service, and repair Moss-Covered Three-Handled Family Credenzas.

It's a mindset that baffles the shit out of me. But then again most SC's do.

[Andara Bledin]

Moss-Covered Three-Handled Family Credenza....

Dr. Seuss for the win.

^-.-^