Customer ReviewsforHuff-n-Puff Fitness Repair, LLC

August 28, 2023 a technician came to my house to service my elliptical. I gave him a post dated check for September the check cleared for $205 for a quote. In October I called requesting the quote. I was told the parts were on back order. Finally November 15,2023, received a quote that stated I need to pay up front for repair but they dont know when the parts will come in. I requested a refunded. They told me its not there fault that the parts are not available. I dont believe they know how to repair the machine.

Hi ********, thank you for your review!

Yes, 8.28.23 you had us come to your home after you'd agreed to the $205 service call charge to service your two machines. Once your machines were diagnosed and maintenanced and our tech was finished, it was time to collect. You then informed us that your bank account was "overdrawn by more than $90." We then asked you for a credit card to run for the agreed upon $205, unfortunately the transaction we ran with that card was declined. With no other choice, we accepted a post-dated check for 9.7.23. 

We provided your quote as requested, you approved your quote. Due to the issues we had with collecting payment from you previously, we do have your account marked as prepay only, to ensure we are able to cover our operating costs. We do not feel this is unreasonable.

Unfortunately, as you have been informed, your machine is built by a manufacturer that does not routinely stock necessary repair parts. We are aware this sounds ridiculous; however here at the BBB, your manufacturer has a 1.13/5 star rating from 40 customer reviews. Additionally, they have 148 (yes, 148!) complaints against them closed within the last 3 years. Numerous reviews mention monthslong waits for repair parts. Additionally, their response times are incredibly slow, not only with your service case, but all other service cases we have had with them prior to, and since yours. As they are grossly understaffed, they have specifically told us not to call in, and that email is the only way they want to be contacted regarding parts orders.

The most recent correspondence we have received from them is below:

"Hello,
 
Thank you for following up with us. Our parts department has confirmed with us that the Idler Wheel and Idler linkage are out of stock. I do sincerely apologize for the inconvenience this has caused. Please rest assured that we have already ordered the parts, we are just experiencing delays from our factory overseas and therefore cannot give you an exact ETA on the part's arrival. You have been placed on our Urgent Part Request list to ensure that when the parts do arrive, your order will be fulfilled right away.
 
Any additional questions, please let us know.
 
Thank you."

Naturally, we completely understand your frustration regarding your repair case, however as you did not pay for your diagnosis as agreed we are not able to place your parts order prior to your prepayment, which is not unreasonable in any way. Additionally, as your manufacturer does not stock the parts required for your repair, and because they do not have a good handle on their supply chain, we are not able to provide an ETA for your parts, as they are not available elsewhere.

A year ago, my elliptical was flooded and I got all the parts for replacement. I gave them a call and told them about the flood and the parts for replacement. ****, who answered the phone, said they could send a technician to do the replacement. The fee was prepaid.The technician arrived, but said they could not provide any service to a flooded machine. I called them again to ask for a refund. Someone else (other than ****) answered the phone, and told me that they could not issue a refund because I never mentioned the flood in any WRITTEN record (emails). Then I asked to speak to ****, but of course, they did not allow me do that. Finally, I had to hire a second vendor to do the replacement.Avoid at all cost.

Hi Zuodi, thank you for your review, there are a few things I would like to clarify.

First, I'll quote your original submission to ** via our website, in its entirety:

"I came here from [competitor's name redacted]. I paid them a diagnostic fee and was told by their technician that the resistance motor of my elliptical (Schwinn 430) is damaged and needs to be replaced. However, they keep delaying giving a quote on the resistance motor with all kinds of excuses. If you are able to provide a quote on the part (resistance motor) and send a technician to replace it, I will be happy to move forward with you."

Your subsequent emails with us never mentioned anything about a flood or water exposure, and we've found no record of this being mentioned in our recorded call logs either. If you have information to the contrary, please share that with us, as we take this very seriously. So seriously that wed previously written a blog article, "Why Won't You Fix My Flooded Unit?" As we cite in that article,

"By working on a machine that has been flooded at the level of or above the main framework we are putting our stamp of approval on that machine, something we are entirely unwilling to do. Other providers may not have this stance. They may tell you, and believe it themselves, that they can repair your unit. They are wrong, the effects of this oxidation on the main frame cannot be reversed to the point where the machine will be safe to use. Over time, this oxidation will eat away at the framework from the inside out."

We are sympathetic to your situation and do agree it was unfortunate that your prior service company had apparently misled you, you're free to take that up with them. When you'd come to us asking for service without a diagnostic visit beforehand, you'd agreed to the following verbiage:

"Disclaimer: This unit has NOT been diagnosed by Huff-n-Puff Fitness Repair, LLC and we in no way guarantee the replacement of your parts will resolve any or all issues, nor do we guarantee the parts you obtained can be installed on your unit. By paying via the link below, customer agrees to prepay for service as well as all terms listed on this estimate in lieu of a signature. Should further diagnosis be required after the service call, customer is aware additional parts and labor charges will apply to bring the machine to a working condition. No refunds will be issued after the initial service call."

We realize this is not ideal, which is why we suggest extremely strongly that we diagnose each machine we're contracted to repair prior to parts being ordered. Expecting us to be responsible for things that occurred prior to our arrival is entirely unreasonable.

Had we diagnosed your unit and made an error, we would have stood behind our work completely, as we always have in the past. Ultimately, you made the decision to not have us diagnose your machine, and you decided to depend on the diagnosis and word of another company. We cannot be held responsible for another company's diagnosis, nor can we be held responsible for your decision to depend on the diagnosis and word of a company who then disappeared and would not contact you after you paid them for your diagnosis.

I could not disagree more with your accusation that we've been lying and cheating. As you can see from everything above, we have been completely transparent from the start. This is not the outcome any of us had wanted, but unfortunately this is the result of the actions taken by yourself and the other company you'd first hired.