Nasty interaction with Bartz Moto (Cycle world west) | GTAMotorcycle.com

Nasty interaction with Bartz Moto (Cycle world west)

2

2500Express

Well-known member
Okay, so a friend of mine stored her bike here for the winter, she rode the bike there with half a tank of gas and did the whole storing away deal. Fast forward to today, she called in to arrange for a pickup of her bike and was informed that she had to pay 20 bucks for gas, 2 dollars a litre. She told them she did not authorize any fueling of the bike, and that it had a half tank, tells my friend that the owner will call her back. So he calls her back and rips into her telling her she's cheap, and yelling a few other insults that she can't remember (don't think she's embellishing, she's a meek girl, very honest and straighforward, but who knows I wasn't personally there)

She's very shook up over it, and tried to call them back and they are avoiding her calls. When she called on another phone, he straight up told her he was draining the bike completely for her to pick up. It's really the principle of the whole situation of trying to grab a few extra bucks from a bike. Absolutely unprofessional behaviour from this guy, bought a givi rear case a couple years ago but didn't have any problems. Anyways just wanted to vent and share the situation, I'll be going with her tomorrow help her pick her bike up since she's scared of the guy and doesn't want to go alone, but I'm pretty ****** off and am going to have some choice words with the guy.
 
Two thoughts

- They were right to fill the bike with fuel. Storing it with a half tank can lead to corrosion on the inside of the tank.

- Yelling at your friend was a dick move. That's uncalled for.
 
2500Express said:
Okay, so a friend of mine stored her bike here for the winter, she rode the bike there with half a tank of gas and did the whole storing away deal. Fast forward to today, she called in to arrange for a pickup of her bike and was informed that she had to pay 20 bucks for gas, 2 dollars a litre. She told them she did not authorize any fueling of the bike, and that it had a half tank, tells my friend that the owner will call her back. So he calls her back and rips into her telling her she's cheap, and yelling a few other insults that she can't remember (don't think she's embellishing, she's a meek girl, very honest and straighforward, but who knows I wasn't personally there)

She's very shook up over it, and tried to call them back and they are avoiding her calls. When she called on another phone, he straight up told her he was draining the bike completely for her to pick up. It's really the principle of the whole situation of trying to grab a few extra bucks from a bike. Absolutely unprofessional behaviour from this guy, bought a givi rear case a couple years ago but didn't have any problems. Anyways just wanted to vent and share the situation, I'll be going with her tomorrow help her pick her bike up since she's scared of the guy and doesn't want to go alone, but I'm pretty ****** off and am going to have some choice words with the guy.
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Certainly not excusing the behaviour - but draining the tank before storage is what Ken does as well - granted it's spelled out in the contract, so no surprises & built into the storage cost. Sounds unpleasant - good luck to you/your friend.
 
caboose56 said:
Two thoughts

- They were right to fill the bike with fuel. Storing it with a half tank can lead to corrosion on the inside of the tank.

- Yelling at your friend was a dick move. That's uncalled for.
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She had half a tank last season (I know it because I checked), I told her to fill up before she goes to drop it off, I guess she didn't but that's no excuse to yell at her and then tell her he's going to basically steal whatever gas is left in the bike. No joke he told her he was going to completely drain the bike out of spite, so now I gotta bring a jerry can to put gas into it.
 
It sounds like he did her a favour. From the details given, she didn't deliver the bike in proper condition for storage. Half a tank of gas? Caboose addressed that. But the gas itself could have been a problem. Did it have stabilizer in it? Or was it non-ethanol.

Sounds like he drained the gas for storage, then filled it for pick-up?

I could have details wrong, but if not - pay they guy, apologize for being difficult and thank him for taking care of the bike properly.
 
There's really no excuse for yelling at a customer, but we're talking about 20 bucks. The guy did do her a favour.

Crappy situation. Don't use that guy next winter.
 
DECIMIS said:
It sounds like he did her a favour. From the details given, she didn't deliver the bike in proper condition for storage. Half a tank of gas? Caboose addressed that. But the gas itself could have been a problem. Did it have stabilizer in it? Or was it non-ethanol.

Sounds like he drained the gas for storage, then filled it for pick-up?

I could have details wrong, but if not - pay they guy, apologize for being difficult and thank him for taking care of the bike properly.
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They do not drain the bikes, they just stabilize the gas. There's no way he's getting an apology after trying to tear her a new one, then being vindictive and draining the rest of the gas away.
 
My guess is that the Lord of creation knows best who really wins in the end. And he says "whoever exalts himself will be humbled and whoever humbles himself shall be exalted"
 
He should not have yelled at her or used any obscenities towards her, no excuse for that....

but keep it cool, bring your gas, put in tank, get on bike and go.....and before you leave advise them their services will not be used in the future

if you don't get in a shouting match, and just play it cool, it will piss them off more

the way I look at it, if they take the gas out, it's OK, it was old gas anyways, even if it was stabilized, it's still old...
 
We need pics of said female friend to determine who is right or wrong!
 
2500Express said:
Okay, so a friend of mine stored her bike here for the winter, she rode the bike there with half a tank of gas and did the whole storing away deal. Fast forward to today, she called in to arrange for a pickup of her bike and was informed that she had to pay 20 bucks for gas, 2 dollars a litre. She told them she did not authorize any fueling of the bike, and that it had a half tank, tells my friend that the owner will call her back. So he calls her back and rips into her telling her she's cheap, and yelling a few other insults that she can't remember (don't think she's embellishing, she's a meek girl, very honest and straighforward, but who knows I wasn't personally there)

She's very shook up over it, and tried to call them back and they are avoiding her calls. When she called on another phone, he straight up told her he was draining the bike completely for her to pick up. It's really the principle of the whole situation of trying to grab a few extra bucks from a bike. Absolutely unprofessional behaviour from this guy, bought a givi rear case a couple years ago but didn't have any problems. Anyways just wanted to vent and share the situation, I'll be going with her tomorrow help her pick her bike up since she's scared of the guy and doesn't want to go alone, but I'm pretty ****** off and am going to have some choice words with the guy.
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some people have no decency or ability to talk or explain the situation or whatever. Maybe the first guy passed on the wrong message to the boss? Who knows, but thanks for the heads up. A lot of people dont realise how much business can be gained or lost via word of mouth and the internet.
 
Did she sign some kind of agreement with the shop for storing her bike? If so, read through it and see whether there is anything in there about her leaving it with a full tank of gas or alternatively, them draining the gas and/or filling it up with fresh gas for pick up. Also, set up an appointment with the bike shop on the day you are going to pick it up and be sure to get there on time. When there, examine the bike very carefully, take pictures if you suspect any damage, etc. caused while in storage. Be polite but firm when speaking to the owner, do not under any circumstances lose your temper. This may very well be a simple misunderstanding. I am surprised that the owner, if that is actually the person who called her back, would "rip into her" and yell insults. As a business owner myself, I value my reputation above all else and would soon get a very poor one if I treated my customers in that manner. Furthermore, I know very well how hard it is to gain a customer and how easy it is to lose one and since this guy does not have a monopoly on the motorcycle storage business he can ill afford to treat customers in an abusive manner unless he is purposely trying to close down his business.

Once you have picked up the motorcycle, I would also suggest you post this experience in the "Reviews" sub-forum so others can also benefit from it in case they too are thinking of using this shop's services.

Cheers!




2500Express said:
Okay, so a friend of mine stored her bike here for the winter, she rode the bike there with half a tank of gas and did the whole storing away deal. Fast forward to today, she called in to arrange for a pickup of her bike and was informed that she had to pay 20 bucks for gas, 2 dollars a litre. She told them she did not authorize any fueling of the bike, and that it had a half tank, tells my friend that the owner will call her back. So he calls her back and rips into her telling her she's cheap, and yelling a few other insults that she can't remember (don't think she's embellishing, she's a meek girl, very honest and straighforward, but who knows I wasn't personally there)

She's very shook up over it, and tried to call them back and they are avoiding her calls. When she called on another phone, he straight up told her he was draining the bike completely for her to pick up. It's really the principle of the whole situation of trying to grab a few extra bucks from a bike. Absolutely unprofessional behaviour from this guy, bought a givi rear case a couple years ago but didn't have any problems. Anyways just wanted to vent and share the situation, I'll be going with her tomorrow help her pick her bike up since she's scared of the guy and doesn't want to go alone, but I'm pretty ****** off and am going to have some choice words with the guy.
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Some business owners might see customers as just so many Kijijidiots. Recently I asked a dumb question at a LBS and the unwarranted response assures I will never go there again even tho we smoothed over the misunderstanding. Keep your cool.
 
Does not matter who is right or wrong.
However, it is no way to talk to a customer. What happened to customer service?
Manners do not cost anything. Respect is earnt. Pretty much sounds like Cycle World have not earnt it from you.

#1 for Kneedragger. Best choice for next year.
Ken would never talk down to anybody.
Matter-of-fact most shops would never treat a customer like that.
Business is won and lost on Customer relationships.
To me , there are no second chances.

I hope your Girl Friend gets over this.
Go out and buy her a lottery ticket to change her luck for the better.
 
I've cooled off considerably, and yes I will be level headed when I go talk to him, that is a good idea. I'll document any damages(if any) to the bike, and see first hand what she was told any if she signed off on anything saying that she would be charged for gas. Once I get a good grasp of the situation, I'll write a review in the review section, it will depend on how the owner handles it.

Like Jayv said, there are three sides to the story but I'll have to see for myself. However her being scared to go alone says quite a bit, she hates confrontation :s
 
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2500Express said:
I've cooled off considerably, and yes I will be level headed when I go talk to him, that is a good idea. I'll document any damages(if any) to the bike, and see first hand what she was told any if she signed off on anything saying that she would be charged for gas. Once I get a good grasp of the situation, I'll write a review in the review section, it will depend on how the owner handles it.

Like Jayv said, there are three sides to the story but I'll have to see for myself. However her being scared to go alone says quite a bit, she hates confrontation :s
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Good Luck.
 
caboose56 said:
Two thoughts

- They were right to fill the bike with fuel. Storing it with a half tank can lead to corrosion on the inside of the tank.

- Yelling at your friend was a dick move. That's uncalled for.
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Absolutely. X2

cycling said:
Good Luck.
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I don't think he need's luck. They're going to pick up the bike either way, and the owner will either apologize for being out of line and fill the tank with gas on the house or he will have lost more than 2 customers for sure. Whether or not he knows that at this point while we're all here discussing it is really the only question. You can't treat your customers the way he did. Whether they're right or wrong. His request to pay for the fill up in its entirety @ $2/liter to me- wreaks of broke, greed, ignorance etc. He made a fool of himself. Hopefully for his sake he realizes that already.

2500Express has already mentioned that he will handle this situation carefully, attentively, responsibly to find out more, create the best result possible for all and report back in the review section. Maybe it can be done in this thread, and the thread moved to the review section?

There may not be a second chance for them, however the owner has a chance tomorrow to fix what he has done. The question is like I said; does he realize what he has done?
I look forward to reading what happens. Shame this happened to your friend. Good on you for helping her take care of it.
 
It doesn't matter if they did her a favour or not, that's BS. The onus is on them to treat her like a customer who may be uninformed and try to settle things as politely as possible.

Go there level-headed and be professional. Let them know politely that despite the fact that she may or may not be right she still has the right to question charges as a customer and they have every responsibility to respond professionally. When you act professional they'll own up to their responsibility, if you act like a thug you'll be treated like one. So keep a cool head, g'luck.
 
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