Hello,
I would like to relay a recent experience that I had at a local model train shop in Hightstown, New Jersey. I am curious as to how the members of this group would have handled the situation both had they been in my shoes and also had they been in the shoes of the store owner.
Back in February of this year I went into DK&B Railway Supplies in Hightstown, New Jersey with the intent of purchasing a Lionel train set for my 3 year-old son. The owner, Keith Bergmann steered me away from Lionel and towards an MTH set. While we were looking at the many sets he had on his floor the topic of ebay came up. I had mentioned that with the lower pricing generally available on ebay, why would a consumer pay more to shop in a store like his. He got a bit defensive but went on about the superior service and support one could enjoy from a store should any problem ever crop up. It seemed like a reasonable enough arguement to me. Paying a bit more for additional support seemed to me like taking out an insurance policy of sorts so I figured it would be worth it.
When I found the set that I wanted the owner, prior to ringing it up decided to open it up and just check to make sure everything was in order. Even though the box was shrinkwrapped the set was far from in order. There was no Track! At this point I should have demanded an entirely different set, but he instead went around the store to collect whatever was missing to create a complete set. I assummed that the problems with the set only went as far as the track so it didn't seem like a big deal. Anyway, when I got home, my son and I set it all up but much to our great disappointment, the engine did not work. It was completely dead. It became clear at this point that the problems with the set did not end with the track. I immediately brought the set back to the store figuring that he would either refund my money or at the very least exchange it for a different set. Despite the fact that we both viewed the flawwed set while we were in his store, he claimed that all warranty work was the responsibility of the customer and proceeded to show me a sign by the register that explained as such. "To be nice" to use his words, he said he would send the item out for warranty work himself but there would be no refund or exchange. He also loaned me a diesel engine to use in the meantime. I wasn't thrilled with this option as I had got this for my kid and if we were dealing with a loaner I knew that he would basically have to watch while I used it.
Despite our very careful use of the engine, it died on us after just a few days of use. While extremely disappointed, I wasn't all that surprised as it was being used with this set that had all the problems. I speculated that perhaps the problems went as far as the transformer and that maybe affected this engine. I couldn't think of anything else as you could not have been anymore careful with the engine than I had been.
When I brought it back to the store, the owner was obviously annoyed, yet he still would not consider giving us a refund or exchange. He also indicated that it would be many months before I'd get my train back. What was I suppossed to do in the meantime? Where was this supposed extra service that one was to receive by going to a store like this? I was hoping that at the very least he would loan us another engine but he must have also assumed the set had a problem with the transformer as he was unwilling to do so. After much arm twisting he finally capitulated and gave me an old engine that couldn't have been worth more than $20. No sounds, no smoke, and it barely stayed on the track. This engine provided such little enjoyment that we essentially stopped using the trains altogether. My son, much to my disappointment seems to have lost interest in the hobby altogether.
Am I wrong to have expected that at the very least the store owner should have exchanged the set, not to mention refunded my money? It wasn't as if I had the engine for a few weeks and then it went bad. This was obviously bad while it was still in his store. We opened the box together and saw that there were problems. It has been just about half a year now since I've been without the engine and there is no indication that it will be repaired anytime soon. The reality is that had I taken my $250 and spent it on ebay or at the mall or at any other hobby shop for that matter I would, in all probability, be enjoying the set with my son.
If you are about to pay more at a store in the expectation of receving extra service you might want to check with the owner to see how they would handle a situation such as this. More importantly, if you are considering making any sort of purchase from Keith Bergmann at DK&B Railway Supplies in Hightstown, New Jersey, you might want to think twice.
I did purchase the set on my Visa card. As far as anyone knows, do I have any recourse at this point?