Business ProfileforBenefiel Truck Repair & Towing, Inc.

On October 5th I called Benefiel Truck Repair to have four tires put on my semi Ag trailer. Four did not pass inspection( DOT). I spoke to Emily and asked if they did this. She said sure, not a problem. I could not get there before closing, so our plan was to leave the truck/trailer overnight and it would be there for the next day. I had two new tires and two used tires. Emily and I went over it, and left a detailed note for tire placement. That night after unloading the tires to put on, I realized the used tires were 24.5", but not the same height. Immediately in the morning I called tire shops to find matching tires. A store there in town had two. I then hurried and called Emily to tell her what had happened, and I purchased 2 new tires that were identical to mine. I explained again that I had a day job, and there was no way I could get the tires to them. She assured me that it was not a problem and they were only five minutes away and they could get them. I thanked her, and made sure she had my phone number and email address. I called at 3:30 and Emily was not there so I spoke with Ashley. She didn't seem to know anything about it and I was put on hold. After four or five minutes she came back on and said the truck was not done. I could not believe it!!! I told Ashley this was unacceptable. I went to a lot of planning to get this to them in the middle of harvest. I explained that is was my only truck and trailer and now I can't use it, costing me time and money. I asked why and she said she really didn't know. She stated that the shop foreman/manager was in a bad mood and said he was out on a call, and refused to do it. Ashley assured me over and over that someone would be calling me. Crickets!! No one ever called, texted or emailed. I spent time and fuel to take a semi, trailer and a pickup 33 miles. The ironic part is I was trying to do business there to build a rapport since I would be trucking more, and may need their tow or tire service. Shame on them!!!

This person did call to set up an appointment for Thursday, October 6th to get four new tires. We priced the tires for him, and he stated he didn't want our tires. We assumed this meant he didn't like our prices on the tires he needed and would most likely go elsewhere. He did drop his truck and trailer off, along with two tires, after hours but hadn't confirmed that he would in fact be coming. He called back on the 6th to state that he only had two of the tires he needed, and demanded that we go to a competitor's shop to pick up two more tires. This demand that we pick up tires at another shop made little sense to us, considering we let him know we had on hand enough tires in the size needed to replace every one of the eighteen tires on his truck and trailer. The other shop called during that day to see when we were coming to pick up the tires that the individual had purchased from them, and stated that he told them that since we were replacing the rear end on his truck, he would just have us do the tires while we were working on it. This raised a red flag with our shop foreman, since we had not discussed anything about the rear differential in his truck at any point, and there was evident confusion and a lack of clear communication coming from the individual. We tried to call him several times, but he didn't answer. At some point later in the day, he called back to see if his truck was done and we suggested that he take his truck to the shop where he purchased the tires. We explained this would be the most efficient way to get the tires he had purchased installed. We always strive to offer not only top-notch mechanical service but also good customer service. Ashley and Emily are both very good at what they do, and we feel that the remarks attributed to them were not in fact a fair representation of what was said, especially in Ashley's case. She told this person that the shop foreman said we wouldn't be going to another shop to pick up tires when we had the same tires in stock here, and that it would be easier to just take his vehicle to them to do the whole job. As for the shop foreman being in a bad mood, we confess that sometimes that does happen, mostly from dealing with situations like this one. To be very clear, we did not render any services to this person. He did not pay us ANY money at all, and we dispute his libelous statement that we cost him money.

I have no idea who wrote the reply from Benefiel, but was not Emily who I spoke to every time, and with Ashley once. This reply is not only misconstrued, in some cases it is a downright lie. I called to see if they installed tires. Emily said yes. I asked her what kind and a price. They did NOT have the same brand as the two I had purchased earlier in the year and were almost twice the price. They certainly could have been a better tire, but not the tires I wanted. At this point we never discussed buying tires, just installing the two new ones and two used ones I thought would work. NEVER did she say "they had enough to replace all eighteen on my truck". I did in fact confirm with Emily several times about how I would leave the truck the next night and how I would call during business hours to pay with a credit card because they would be closed by the time I got there to get the truck and trailer. I also asked about a key drop off. She told me just just leave it in the lot as they have not had any problems. Emily also said they had security cameras if something did happen. Having a day job and getting a tractor, combine, or semi and trailer to places, getting a ride home, and taking the semi/trailer out of service takes planning. If I didn't go to all this trouble to make sure everything and everyone is on the same page, it would be a waste of time, energy and money. Emily and I planned it all out. I did NOT EVER demand that they go get tires from another shop. I explained my problem to Emily and even apologized for my issue of not being able to use the two used tires as planned. She said it was no problem, no need to apologize. She was the one who offered to get the tires because I could not get there due to a day job. I have no idea about working on my truck. I do not know about lack of communication on my part, but clearly theirs. My truck was and is fine. I do not need anything repaired. If there was something wrong mechanically why did I not talk to anyone in service or make an appointment for that? On top of that how did I get there and home (33 miles). It should have raised a flag because there was never a conversation about fixing my truck, ONLY INSTALLATION of tires. NEVER EVER did I receive any call, text, or email from Benefiel, not one. Please show me yor phone record that you called once. NEVER EVER did anyone including Ashley suggest I take the truck back to where I purchased the tires as this would be most efficient. Guess what, I could have a day earlier when Benefiel was to booked and had to make the appointment for the following day. As I said earlier, I was trying to build a rapport with a local shop since I planned on doing more trucking in the area and who knows when an emergency might happen. THE ONLY conversation I had with Ashley was how upset I was not having truck ready, and she telling me several times "someone will call you, someone will call you!" Maybe it would have been better to not use names. Maybe I should have just used the word employee, not names? I apologize for that. I am sure Ashley and Emily are nice folks and they didn't plan this to happen. I just wanted to be thorough in me review. This did happen exactly as I have stated, it is in first person, and not hearsay. It did cost me time, effort and money to do this. It is 33 miles round trip for a semi and trailer and a diesel pickup to come get me and haul the tires there. Would Benefiel not charge someone for time and mileage if they drove 33 miles to deliver tires for a job in one of their trucks? My trucks did not run on fairy dust to get to Nebraska City and and back, and I don't do work for free. If I have a blowout on the side of the road and have a spare or two, would Benefiel come change it for free, or if at all. I think it depends on the mood of the foreman, and to what extent are they willing to lie to save face? I had all four tires put on the next day at Boldt Tire and Supply who gave excellent service, and excellent price, and were only four miles away. So I went to all this time, trouble and expense for what, oh yes be libelous.

It appears we are in a "he said/she said" situation, and clearly no supporting facts offered by us will affect this person's decision to be upset and contemptuous of our employees. We reiterate, we DID NOT perform any work for this person nor did any money change hands. Our internal notes show that the person didn't want our tires, and that was the end of the quote as far as we were concerned. We do acknowledge the truck and trailer were dropped off after hours, but other than being parked at our shop location for a time, they were untouched by us. I think anyone reviewing this complaint should recognize that while this person feels quite entitled to their feelings of frustration and anger, maligning a business and its employees that didn't perform any work for them isn't productive. Perhaps reaching out directly to the business to vent his concerns might have been more productive than involving a complaint to the BBB. The definition of "business" is buying or selling goods or services. We did neither with this individual.