mail order and warranty

[tallgrass]

it is my understanding that there is great friction on the mail order side of sales and that retail establishments are being hurt by the tax and free shipping.
here is the rub.......i have been told that retail establishments are (may) not going to deal with warranty work on tools bought through the mail. that could be a problem.....if move to a different area does this mean that the store owner could tell me that it is my tough luck ....."you did not buy it from me" so go pound sand. i understand the stores problem. a tool like the kapex tax could add several hundred dollars that a store owner has to charge that a mail order place does not have to charge, and with the cost of fuel a saved trip may be a consideration to some.

with that in consideration i am worried that there will be a 2 tiered world in which a tool that has great customer support will become adversarial with its customers. when my drill went on the fritz it was great to be able to drop it off at my local store and that was it. it would be a pain in the ass if i had to ship the tool to the store that i bought it from rather than the nearest festool dealer. ....can you imagine a car dealer telling you that you may have a warranty but not with them but where you bought the car!!!!don't get me wrong i understand the problem  but there might be some shooting of the foot here.
i would love to hear your opinion on this. i would like to concentrate on the warranty and support side of the idea,,,, not the sales side which i understand....just a personal note, i buy tools from my local festool shop even though it costs me more.i feel you have to support your local guys or there will be no local guys.

WEll

 

[Brice Burrell]

It's my understanding that you can deal with Festool directly with service on your tools. So no need to worry where you buy them from, you're covered.

 

[tallgrass]

that is my point, i can walk into my local festool guy and drop off my tool and they take care of it. if in the end i will be sending my tools by mail anyway than why should i support my local dealer if in the end i am going to have to pay my freight?i will support my local dealer but i just think festool is starting a problem by telling dealers that they do not have to take care of customers mail order tools ....... how would feel, you drop 1300 bucks on a tool , you have problems with it and your local guy tells you since you did not buy it from so stuff it and send the tool to festool. i think right or wrong  that policy will lead to some hard feeling. maybe festool should put this new policy in print so people can be forewarned.

 

[Brice Burrell]

I'm not aware of any dealers paying freight to have tools serviced. If you dealer is willing to do this then by all means stick with them.

 

[Bob Marino]

Tallgrass,

On warranty issues Festool pays shipping both ways in the first year, return shipping in the second year and in the third year, the customer is responsible for total shipping costs.
I am not aware of dealers (who have their own tool repair service) ever being required to service Festool tools from their own customers, let alone those that are bought elsewhere. It is a great and convenient service, but again, no one is required to repair Festool tools other than Festool's Service Department.

There are also pluses and minuses for being a brick and mortar as well and plus and minuses for being strictly mail order. My guess is most Festool dealers are a comination of the two.

Bob

Bob

 

[Daviddubya]

I would not expect to take a tool to a retail store where I did not buy it, to have that tool returned to the manufacturer for warranty work.  Whether this tool were a Festool product or any other tool manufacturer, I would either deal directly with the manufacturer or take the tool back to the place where I bought it.  Many stores ask that warranty work be sent to the manufacturer, and not returned to the retailer.  In most cases for me, it is easier and faster to drive the tool to the local UPS shipper than it is to drive it to a tool retailer, and then drive back to pick it up when the repair is completed.

 

[tallgrass]

i understand the warranty guys , shipping and all. at my local festool shop you drop off the tool and they send the tool to festool's service center and then festool sends it back to you. very quickly i might add.i was not emplying that the dealer carried out the service.i understand you can ship it to them and who pays for what in what year. i guess i am just spoiled by the great service i get out of my guys, and how as the tools get more expensive making the tax issue
difficult to compete with and the pressures that it brings.

 

[Dan Baker]

As a Dealer for Festool for about 2 years now I can tell you that warranty and repair work is few and far between. 

On the few occasions that customers have brought in tools we have been able to call David at Festool Repair and he has often guided us through diagnosis and adjustments on the phone while the customer is still in the store.  Their repair department is second to none!!!.

Festool strives to seek out quality retail establishments and as dealers we understand that service and knowledge are just as important as having the product.  We understand that although you may have purchased the product somewhere else that needs warranty or repair work this is an opportunity for us to gain your business.

Thanks

Dan Baker
Woodcrafters Lumber Sales Inc
Portland, Or 97232
1-800-777-3709

 

[Jerry Work]

Hi Tallgrass,

One of the pleasant "shocking" things about visiting the Festool USA headquarters is how neat, orderly and ..... vacant ...... the repair facility is.  No stacks of things waiting for someone to "get around to them", no boxes of broken stuff, just two well organized work stations with all the parts and test equipment well at hand, two relaxed guys and a metrics poster showing how the vast majority of repairs are turned around in the same day they are received.  Dealer support was covered well in Dan's post.  Bottom line, from my experience after the sale support is as good as it gets.  If only all manufacturers had the same record!  So, buy where you want without regard to who, where or how your after sale support will be performed.

Jerry

 

[tallgrass]

i agree with all of the good things you guys are saying. you are talking to a guy who has drunk so much of the cool aid that i have imported festool stuff from Europe, and loved every minute of it ;D. their service is second to none... i agree. i have found all of my experiences to be great and friendly,,,,,my concern was the erosion of that friendly attitude and the possible rise of an adversarial one in its place. ..... it is just a concern.