[bouwie2]

You can believe it or not: I took my 2007 Toyota SOLARA, 15,000 miles, in for service air conditioning stop cold air. They had it for 2 hours, told me 3 different things needed replacement and with cost & labor, $1,157.55! I drove to Wildwood, tire & transmission place on 301...they had it in & out in 45 min., bill $35.89..running as cool as new 1year later. Colony Tire Choice should not be anyone's Choice

[OhioBuckeye]

Originally Posted by villagetinker

First sorry for your trouble. Second, if you paid with a credit card, call credit card company immediately and dispute the charge. I had contacted Seniors vs crime once before to check out 3 contractors before hiring, so I do not have experience after the fact. File a complaint with the BBB.
Hope this helps.

BINGO, you gave the right advice!

[OhioBuckeye]

Originally Posted by BobsBurgers

They drained the transmission fluid instead of the oil. Then they added oil to the still full oil pan. My son then took the car and drove it all the way to Pennsylvania. You can probably guess where I’m going with this story.

I'm not saying that you didn't tell the whole story but like someone else said, you mean they drove the car all the way to Penn. with no Tran. fluid. I'm not saying that Tire Choice didn't do that but it is a little hard to believe that they did this without knowing. With no transmission fluid it would be hard to swallow to believe he could even make it to the state line. Thanks for sharing!

[Chatbrat]

After looking @ all the complaints about Tire Choice throughout the State of Fl, our Ag, should start a criminal investigation and she should refer the results to the Feds under the RICO statute-their practices appear to be corp. driven

[justjim]

Originally Posted by jtdraig

I don't go to Tire Choice. It seemed every time (of the two I went) the car needed more and more repairs, all around $700.. I declined and took it to my garage where it turned out that none of the work they recommended was immediately necessary. All of these places pay their people commissions on this kind of work. You are better off finding a good, private garage that comes recommended. I did and I have been happy for years.

This is politely called “Up charging” and this unfortunately is a common practice that has been well documented by other Threads on this website.

OP, sorry for your troubles. Seniors vs crime and BBB does work with many situations. State of Florida is very business minded but these type of business operations should be pursued by the Florida attorney general. If the Attorney General refuses to take your case, the other option would be a private attorney. Good luck.

[pgc4340]

Originally Posted by BobsBurgers

Has anyone had real results from Seniors vs Crimes? Not sure where to start, but we’ve got big trouble with Colony Tire Choice. What should have been a simple oil change has turned in to a nightmare. I honestly didn’t think to read up on that place prior to this “basic” request. BIG MISTAKE!

Help.

We reported a business to Seniors vs Crimes. All they did was write a letter to the business. Total waste of time.

[Sandtrap328]

Originally Posted by pgc4340

We reported a business to Seniors vs Crimes. All they did was write a letter to the business. Total waste of time.

Actually it was not a waste of time. The writing of a letter by Seniors vs Crime created a file. Whenever a person interested in contractual dealing with that company - and if they contacted Seniors vs Crime to see if any complaints has been made against that company, it would show complaints - and that person would go with a different company.

Before going into any contractual situation, always check with Seniors vs Crime.

[perrjojo]

Seniors has no authority to do anything to a business but they do report the complaint and keep records on all complaints. It is wise to ask for the specific business record. Then you must decide for yourself if the complaints are warranted. They are also there to guide you as how to proceed with a claim. It is a valuable service.

[Chi33]

Seniors vs. Crimes did nothing for me when a landscaping company top rated here took my money. Be careful.

[kappy]

We had a similar experience with Tire Choice. They wanted over $550.00 for brake work. We went to Sumter Tire in Wildwood. They checked out our car for more than 20 minutes and told us we did not need that work done at all. When we asked how much we owed, they said, “No charge”. They were very friendly. Since then, we have told many friends about Sumter Tire and it seems that many of them where aware of the fair and friendly service.

[RayAmb]

Yes. I had a nail in the tire on my Cadillac XTS. The mechanic told me I needed a new $200 + dollar tire and showed me an article out of a magazine to support his position. I told him of several approaches repairing the tire. He was belligerent and pushed for a replacement tire.Very unprofessional and obviously was use to intimidation of people. I finally told him to take my car off the lift and I left. Goodyear repaired the tire for $10. It lasted for two years with long trips and local driving. Not a single issue. Obvious to me that Tire Choice will never be my choice ! OH DID I MENTION I WAS CERTIFIED A A MECHANIC IN THE UNITED STATES ARMY !

The Tire Choice needs to get a different business model, in my opinion.. I caution all my friends to be knowledgeable when they think about Tire Choice. For me --- no way I'll do any business with them.

[PennBF]

What is interesting is that when you go to Seniors vs Crimes and file a complaint you may or are talking to a retired very experienced attorney and getting free advise and help which you could not get other places without some charges or limited feedback. After you file your complaint it is not unusual for the staff in that office to discuss your case and the best way to proceed. Saying you received no help is ultimate of needing to complaint about anything! You got free advise, a team to try to get your money back, with some very experienced people and than you complain. Maybe if you called SVC before you signed up with a contractor or purchased a product you would have been protected from a loss etc. Think about it.

[redwitch]

Originally Posted by PennBF

What is interesting is that when you go to Seniors vs Crimes and file a complaint you may or are talking to a retired very experienced attorney and getting free advise and help which you could not get other places without some charges or limited feedback. After you file your complaint it is not unusual for the staff in that office to discuss your case and the best way to proceed. Saying you received no help is ultimate of needing to complaint about anything! You got free advise, a team to try to get your money back, with some very experienced people and than you complain. Maybe if you called SVC before you signed up with a contractor or purchased a product you would have been protected from a loss etc. Think about it.

I think the problem is people believe Seniors v. Crimes has enforcement power, which it does not. They can talk to the company involved and try to get them to resolve the issue but can do no more than that. As you said, they can advise what steps to take next but that is the limit of their powers.

One caveat, sometimes a contractor is unfairly blamed. I know of one instance where a gutter got damaged by a falling branch. Because a tree had been trimmed a few days before, it HAD to be the landscaper’s fault. No one saw the branch fall. No one saw the landscaper trimming that particular tree, yet a complaint was filed and is now a black mark against that landscaper because he refused to pay for repairing a gutter he did not damage. So, do factor in that if only one or two complaints for a company that has been around for several years, it might not be a bad company but an unreasonable complainant or unfair complaint.

[Taltarzac725]

Originally Posted by redwitch

I think the problem is people believe Seniors v. Crimes has enforcement power, which it does not. They can talk to the company involved and try to get them to resolve the issue but can do no more than that. As you said, they can advise what steps to take next but that is the limit of their powers.

One caveat, sometimes a contractor is unfairly blamed. I know of one instance where a gutter got damaged by a falling branch. Because a tree had been trimmed a few days before, it HAD to be the landscaper’s fault. No one saw the branch fall. No one saw the landscaper trimming that particular tree, yet a complaint was filed and is now a black mark against that landscaper because he refused to pay for repairing a gutter he did not damage. So, do factor in that if only one or two complaints for a company that has been around for several years, it might not be a bad company but an unreasonable complainant or unfair complaint.

Nice advice redwitch as usual. They are people who have been accused falsely for what ever reason so try multiple sources of information if available like the Better Business Bureau, customer rating sites, etc.

[PennBF]

Unfortunately so many only give "half the story" which is seriously misleading. In one it is mentioned that "As you said, they can advise what steps to take next but that is the limit of their powers." This is misleading and unfair to the many hours the volunteers spend trying to assist the person(s) that may have been wronged in some way. There are thousands of hours spent in each office working with the person(s) are complaining and this includes contacting the alleged business or person that is in question. Probably approximately 10% is spent advising the harmed person and 90% talking to the business and and hands on trying to help them.
It may pay to stop by a SVC Office and inquire how they operate when a complaint is brought in.