Very disappointing interaction -- communication went from helpful to hostile
I contacted Al's Appliance Repair about a refrigerator that wasn't getting any airflow into the refrigerator compartment. I sent pictures of the model number and the louvers, explained the issue, and initially had what I thought was a pretty good interaction with the repairman.
He responded with troubleshooting questions and suggested a hard reset. I explained that I had already done that multiple times, including leaving the refrigerator unplugged for 24 hours to make sure any ice had melted. He then suggested that the control board was likely not sending power to the evaporator fan and offered to come out the next morning to diagnose it.
So far, so good.
I then asked a very basic question: "How much do you charge for the trip and diagnosis?"
I didn't hear anything for the rest of the day or the following morning, so I sent a follow-up asking if he had seen my question.
Several hours later, I received this response:
"Sorry, but I don't allow people to waste my time. I asked you for your address not once but twice and nothing so I am out."
Honestly, I was stunned by that response.
There had been a misunderstanding. When we spoke on the phone, he asked generally where I lived. I told him west Bentonville, by the airport, and he said it would typically take him about 30 minutes to get there. When he subsequently asked for my address by text, I wanted to first establish what the service call and diagnostic fee would be before giving out my home address. That seems like a completely reasonable question to me.
I certainly wasn't trying to waste his time. I was trying to become a paying customer and simply wanted to know what I would be paying before scheduling a service call.
What really bothers me isn't that we didn't end up doing business. It's the unnecessary hostility toward a potential customer over what was clearly a simple misunderstanding. There was absolutely no reason for the interaction to go from professional and helpful to "I don't allow people to waste my time" simply because I asked about the price before providing my address.
Ironically, I'm now glad I didn't schedule the appointment. If this is how a potential customer is treated before the technician has even arrived at the house, I don't have much confidence in how problems would be handled if something went wrong with the repair.
I would strongly recommend getting a clear understanding of the service/diagnostic fee and expectations before providing your address or scheduling with this company. For me, this interaction was enough to take my business elsewhere. read more
