I apologize in advance for this being so long. But it is a good read nonetheless.
My story begins on Thursday, August the 4th. It was a normal summer day.. Hotter than all HADES which explains in part why I was too darn lazy to change my own oil.. I go to my local Wal Mart and tell them I would like the 19.95 oil change. They tell me fine, write down my info and take my keys. I asked "About a 1/2 hour?" The girl behind the counter says "No, it will be about 2 hours, there are 3 cars in front of you" Typical Wal Mart... I took my key back and said thanks but no thanks. I then drove across town to the brand new Wal Mart Super Center. They take my keys. write down my info, and tell me it will be about 1/2 hour. All is well.
Until the following Monday. That morning my wife calls me at 7:30 AM and tells me that I need to come pick her up. Me, being of the curious nature, ask why. She tells me that the engine started knocking, the oil light came on and the engine died. I get to the car and push it out of the road. When doing this I notice that there is a large puddle of oil under the car. I call a tow truck and have them tow it to my local Dodge Dealer (BTW the car is a 2004 Dodge Stratus with 38,000 miles) They look at it and tell me that I have lost all of the oil from around the oil filter and that it was either put on
1: Too Loose.
2: Too Tight.
3: It was the wrong filter.
They then proceed to tell me that they put oil back in the engine, started it, and have determined that the engine is damaged beyond repair. The kicker, repairs will total appx $5100.00. At this point I tell him to sit tight while I call Wal Mart. I am informed that the service manager is out but that they will take my info and have him call me first thing in the morning. This is Tuesday Night. I am totally terrified at this point as I know that WM is going to tell me that it is not their problem and I am going to be stuck with a $5100 repair bill.
Wednesday Morning:
I am at a training class and call the wife to see if Wal Mart has called.. They have not. I break for lunch and call my wife again.. They still have not called!! At this point I call Wal Mart, tell the girl who I am, and ask to speak to the service manager. She tells me that he, as well as the store manager, is at the Dodge dealer looking at my car and that they should be back within the hour..
Good News, Wal Mart actually calls the wife back 15 minutes later and claims full responsibility (They put on the wrong filter) and tell her that they are going to pay for the repairs. They take all the information and turn it into their insurance. He told her that the insurance company will get back with us within 24-48 hours. I called him back and asked about a rental and he said that the decision would have to come from the insurance.
Thursday: Neither I nor the shop hear anything? (At this point I take it upon myself to get a rental.) (Really sweet PT Cruiser BTW).
Friday: More of the same (I am getting nervous now) ?
Saturday and Sunday: You guessed it.. More of the same.
Monday: I get a letter from the insurance company asking me to call them with details.. I call the guy and ask why he did not call me.. He stated that he tried but could not get past my privacy manager blocking his call. (I found out he did try once, but only once) He gets more details from me (Not really, just the same details that Wal Mart already had) and tells me he will get back with me. I did tell him that I already had a rental and what I was paying. He stated that that SHOULD be covered under their guidelines and that he would check. (BTW. The shop is still in a holding pattern until they get approval to order the engine).
Tuesday: I hear Nothing, I am not overly concerned.
Wednesday: I hear nothing ( I am getting a little concerned now), I try to call the guy at the insurance and get his VM, I try multiple times and never reach him and he never returns my call. (I am getting really concerned now). He finally calls me back at 5PM and states that he has sent it on to the adjustors and is waiting on them to get back with him.
Thursday Morning: My shop calls me and tells me that they just received a fax from the adjustor stating that instead of paying $5100 for the new engine(Jasper remanufactured With a 3 year 36K mile warranty) they would pay $3800 for a salvaged engine that has no warranty. (Keep in mind that my original engine still had over 30K miles of warranty). I tell my buddy at the shop (At this point we have become really good friends) not to do anything yet. I then call and talk to Kevin at the insurance company and tell him that this is NOT acceptable. He agrees and resubmits it to the adjustor.
Thursday late Afternoon: I finally get a call from the shop and they have finally gotten approval to order the engine.
Friday: The engine gets ordered but at this time they will not be able to start until Monday. The shop tells that they should be able to have my car ready by Thursday at the latest, but possibly sooner. I call the insurance guy and he tells me to call the rental company and get a price on the car thru Thursday so he can go ahead and cut me a check. (They paid for the repair, two weeks worth of rental and towing fees.)
Monday: I get the check.
Wednesday: I get my car back.. As good as new.
I can honestly say that overall I was treated OK and that my problem was resolved, but I still can't help but have a bad feeling towards WM for blowing up my car in the first place.
My story begins on Thursday, August the 4th. It was a normal summer day.. Hotter than all HADES which explains in part why I was too darn lazy to change my own oil.. I go to my local Wal Mart and tell them I would like the 19.95 oil change. They tell me fine, write down my info and take my keys. I asked "About a 1/2 hour?" The girl behind the counter says "No, it will be about 2 hours, there are 3 cars in front of you" Typical Wal Mart... I took my key back and said thanks but no thanks. I then drove across town to the brand new Wal Mart Super Center. They take my keys. write down my info, and tell me it will be about 1/2 hour. All is well.
Until the following Monday. That morning my wife calls me at 7:30 AM and tells me that I need to come pick her up. Me, being of the curious nature, ask why. She tells me that the engine started knocking, the oil light came on and the engine died. I get to the car and push it out of the road. When doing this I notice that there is a large puddle of oil under the car. I call a tow truck and have them tow it to my local Dodge Dealer (BTW the car is a 2004 Dodge Stratus with 38,000 miles) They look at it and tell me that I have lost all of the oil from around the oil filter and that it was either put on
1: Too Loose.
2: Too Tight.
3: It was the wrong filter.
They then proceed to tell me that they put oil back in the engine, started it, and have determined that the engine is damaged beyond repair. The kicker, repairs will total appx $5100.00. At this point I tell him to sit tight while I call Wal Mart. I am informed that the service manager is out but that they will take my info and have him call me first thing in the morning. This is Tuesday Night. I am totally terrified at this point as I know that WM is going to tell me that it is not their problem and I am going to be stuck with a $5100 repair bill.
Wednesday Morning:
I am at a training class and call the wife to see if Wal Mart has called.. They have not. I break for lunch and call my wife again.. They still have not called!! At this point I call Wal Mart, tell the girl who I am, and ask to speak to the service manager. She tells me that he, as well as the store manager, is at the Dodge dealer looking at my car and that they should be back within the hour..
Good News, Wal Mart actually calls the wife back 15 minutes later and claims full responsibility (They put on the wrong filter) and tell her that they are going to pay for the repairs. They take all the information and turn it into their insurance. He told her that the insurance company will get back with us within 24-48 hours. I called him back and asked about a rental and he said that the decision would have to come from the insurance.
Thursday: Neither I nor the shop hear anything? (At this point I take it upon myself to get a rental.) (Really sweet PT Cruiser BTW).
Friday: More of the same (I am getting nervous now) ?
Saturday and Sunday: You guessed it.. More of the same.
Monday: I get a letter from the insurance company asking me to call them with details.. I call the guy and ask why he did not call me.. He stated that he tried but could not get past my privacy manager blocking his call. (I found out he did try once, but only once) He gets more details from me (Not really, just the same details that Wal Mart already had) and tells me he will get back with me. I did tell him that I already had a rental and what I was paying. He stated that that SHOULD be covered under their guidelines and that he would check. (BTW. The shop is still in a holding pattern until they get approval to order the engine).
Tuesday: I hear Nothing, I am not overly concerned.
Wednesday: I hear nothing ( I am getting a little concerned now), I try to call the guy at the insurance and get his VM, I try multiple times and never reach him and he never returns my call. (I am getting really concerned now). He finally calls me back at 5PM and states that he has sent it on to the adjustors and is waiting on them to get back with him.
Thursday Morning: My shop calls me and tells me that they just received a fax from the adjustor stating that instead of paying $5100 for the new engine(Jasper remanufactured With a 3 year 36K mile warranty) they would pay $3800 for a salvaged engine that has no warranty. (Keep in mind that my original engine still had over 30K miles of warranty). I tell my buddy at the shop (At this point we have become really good friends) not to do anything yet. I then call and talk to Kevin at the insurance company and tell him that this is NOT acceptable. He agrees and resubmits it to the adjustor.
Thursday late Afternoon: I finally get a call from the shop and they have finally gotten approval to order the engine.
Friday: The engine gets ordered but at this time they will not be able to start until Monday. The shop tells that they should be able to have my car ready by Thursday at the latest, but possibly sooner. I call the insurance guy and he tells me to call the rental company and get a price on the car thru Thursday so he can go ahead and cut me a check. (They paid for the repair, two weeks worth of rental and towing fees.)
Monday: I get the check.
Wednesday: I get my car back.. As good as new.
I can honestly say that overall I was treated OK and that my problem was resolved, but I still can't help but have a bad feeling towards WM for blowing up my car in the first place.
