View Full Version : What happened to balfa's customer serivce
FYI.
balfa has seemed to be pretty helpful up untill now. Originally they told me that the 2step frame that I had purchased was being recalled. Then they told me I had to ship them my fork, the reciept for it and the headset, if they were going to warrantee their mistake.. After much comunication they agreed to alow me to take it into my lbs have them asess that I was indeed running a dc fork and just ship them my frame. I was told the turn around time was 3 days and then 5 for shipping. It's now been almost 2 months and I cant seem to get any answers from anybody. My lbs just gives me a look and says sorry it's outta their hands, and Balfa wont return any phone calls or emails. They seemed originally ready to deal with me over email when all I needed was a few questions answered, but now nothing. How long do I wait befor I start trying to figure out if I need to replace my frame. They wont even confirm that they got my frame. HELP!!!!!!
Reggaeman
04-08-2003, 05:20 PM
Companies are BUSY this time of year. Give them a call during regular buisiness hours and try and get the extension for the person you are trying to contact.
Get your shop to do something. BULLSHIT it's outa there hands. Go down there and ask politely for them to phone balfa in front of you on a business day/hours and get an answer.
gimped
04-08-2003, 05:39 PM
Originally posted by m33p
Get your shop to do something. BULLSHIT it's outa there hands. Go down there and ask politely for them to phone balfa in front of you on a business day/hours and get an answer.
Real good answer. :rolleyes:
Actaully, it's not the bike shop's responsibility, it's Balfa's. And, Balfa does this every year. They are a very small company and are very busy. I went through that same thing for 3 years, but they do eventually get back to you. 2 months does seem long though. You're going to have to wait it out dude.
rrt maybe try giving Crazy canuck a PM... he might be able to shed some light or get a strait answer for you...
certainly sounds weird...
bobnug
04-08-2003, 06:24 PM
similar thing happed to a guy i know when he broke his bb7 , it took them months to get it back
rider
04-08-2003, 06:36 PM
yea i know how u feel. last year when i didnt get my 250 for 4 months, everyone i called said they didnt know and it wasnt their problem. the LBS gave me crap for answers, and whenever i called Norco, the rep i wanted to talk to was never there, and when he was i got other crap answers. Corperate companies need to shape up in their customer department, after all its customers that allow them to stay in business. but its the companies that allow the customers todo what they want todo.
Customer service can make or break a company. Hopefully Balfa will take note of a few their competitors and make it all right. I try to support the little guy... as long as he's worth supporting./
scott@nsmb.com
04-08-2003, 11:16 PM
rrt; Balfa's service is usually 100%, no problems and lots of help. If your having a problem give Steve Caulker an email, he's the Balfa Rep for Western Canada. Pm me if you want his email. He's a good guy and can probably help you out.
:cool:
I've heard from a couple of bike stores that Balfa has lost a bit of their original customer service..so in return this unnamed store no longer carries Balfa.
But from my PERSONAL experience, I have nothing but GOOD things to say about Balfa's customer service. I dealt with Stephen and he was an ace guy. He was prompt to answer questions and provide me with the product I needed.
gimped
04-09-2003, 09:28 AM
There are many factors as to why that store stopped carrying Balfas, and let me tell you it's not only one-sidd. Just so you know.
Dom@nsmb.com
04-09-2003, 10:24 AM
Originally posted by gimped
There are many factors as to why that store stopped carrying Balfas, and let me tell you it's not only one-sidd. Just so you know.
Ha Ha Ha! Oooh sooo true Wayne:lol:
gimped
04-09-2003, 10:32 AM
Originally posted by Dom@nsmb.com
Ha Ha Ha! Oooh sooo true Wayne:lol:
...and let me also say that my buddy Dom was a good guy to deal with when he worked at Balfa. You da man!
Dom@nsmb.com
04-09-2003, 10:40 AM
Originally posted by gimped
...and let me also say that my buddy Dom was a good guy to deal with when he worked at Balfa. You da man!
Aaaah, those were the days;) and damn I sooo don't miss them:o
over 10 weeks and still no frame. The people working for Balfa are very friendly, I have to say that for sure. And for the most part seem to be helpful... But this should have taken 13 days and now it'll be closer to three months, and still I seem to get conflicting info depending on who I talk to. Caution anyone buying one of these frames. It rides great when i have it, but not so good when it's lost in a warehouse some where. Just a heads up to anyone looking at purchase a 2step.
sirbikealot
04-27-2003, 08:35 PM
I'm sorry to hear about your luck
I know for a fact that balfa 2step's were only built about 6 weeks ago so i'm wondering who told you to send the bike, your store or balfa. because simply put the bikes weren't ready
and yes as everyone has stated so far, this is THEE busiest time of the year for anyone in the bike biz
i have seen crazy lengths of time for all bike manufacturers to return warranteed stuff
my advice would be to ask your bike store to call them while you are present int he shop and get an eta, and ask them what the reasons are for it being late, are they not built, not painted, etc etc
good luck i know balfa will take care of you and when you see your new 2step with the crazy beefy front end you will be happy
Well lets see. Stephan the tech/sales rep convinced me to ship it to him. I had contacted him re. another matter and this was how I found out about it. It was he that told me what time to expect. The bc/alta. rep and Stephane himself seem to be helpful. But still they tell me when to expect it and when that time comes and goes I get told another date. I wish these people were either more accurately informed or more honest( no slight against you Steve if your reading this, I appreciated you looking into it for me).I have had no luck dealing with my lbs. I kept going in once every week or two and asking if they had heard anything. All the owner does now is say " quit coming in here I dont have your bike, I told you I shipped it to Balfa, its in there hands". "I'll call you when it comes back". ( find this hard to believe because he let it sit on the floor of his shop for two weeks with out shipping it or calling me about it). I guess Balfa will ship it back when they can. I'm just getting pissed, I would like a straight answer. If it'll take 3months I'm ok with that, I just need someone to say so.
HERE ENDETH MY RANT....i promise.
243_ht
04-28-2003, 09:00 PM
uh its kinda been like that with my fork. Its been 3 months and i've only heard "waiting for parts" this may very well be true. But from what i've heard from others and my experience with my fork...you wont get told when you'll get it.
gimped
04-29-2003, 09:43 AM
Here's a hint: When a bike company tells you that you should have your bike within a couple of weeks, expect it in May. Make the appropriate provisions (ie: keep your old bike, get a XC/road/BMX bike) until it actually shows up.
It happens with most companies, except Santa Cruz, so don't be surprised. My buddy was told by Brodie that he would have a bike the same day back in January when he ordered it. It's almost May and he doesn't have it yet.
polytics
04-29-2003, 10:07 AM
except Santa Cruz???? you were damn lucky...
I heard that Balfa is having problems because lots of people are trying to get warruntee frames but they are only warrunteeing for people with dual-crown forks... so they are trying to get people to prove they have dual-crowns, which is of course nearly impossible...
I've dealt with the Balfa guys before and they are really awesome (my friend got a new hanger welded onto his two-step)... just give them a bit of time this is one of the busy times for high-end bike makers
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