I visited the Hagerstown, MD store this morning to purchase 4 new tires. The sales manager, I believe his name was Dave, told me that a "free" alignment check was included with the purchase of the tires. Dave printed out an estimate that included $89.99 for the tire alignment and when I questioned it he told me that it was only on the estimate to show what the total cost would be if the alignment was needed. He said that if the alignment wasn't done the charge would be removed. I was the first client of the day and the first car in the shop. After waiting 2 hours, for the quoted 1 hour service, Dave came in and informed me that the alignment was needed and the technician had gone ahead and corrected it. Needless to say I was very upset that I was not given the opportunity to review the results and decide whether I wanted the service. Dave simply replied that the technician thought he was doing me a favor. I expressed my displeasure and told Dave that I would not of had the $89.99 service done to correct such a minor out of alignment condition. I was also quite surprised to learn that a $89.99 alignment was a correction of a specific condition and not an complete re-alignment to bring everything back closer to the center line. Learning this made paying for the service even harder to swallow. Dave offered me 20% off of the alignment which I accepted because I had no other option after signing the estimate which included the alignment. I have no intention of ever visiting their stores again. I also intend to share my experience with my friends and associates. Leaving your clients feeling like they got screwed in a tough economy is just bad business!
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