Is Vermont Castings abandoning their customers? No warranties on units in the field?

[humpin iron]

This will end up falling on the dealers, as it always has. And in most cases the dealers are the ones that made the reputation for VC.

Example: I had an 80 year old guy, gas insert pukes out , one yr old. This saga starts in Sept. Unit needs a valve. They want sensors changed, we do,still broke.

VC "loses" the warrenty file 3 times. Then questions the solution, demands for tests, before they will approve warrenty. After jumping through those hoops, we refile. Get the valve unit runs two days, another valve two more days. It's now Nov.

More delays I demand a whole burner. VC is all over it, gets the part to me at the end of Feb...........it's the wrong part. Another part is 6 weeks away, after all it's not their fault we got the wrong burner.

First week of march, at my expense we replace the entire unit. It works, it's also the end of winter.

Next Sept.........same thing happens. VC says I'm not a good dealer, so they sent someone else. That hack does everything we did , unit still broke. In Dec they replace the whole unit. (that makes three)

Unit fails, (thats three) Customer come to us and says "at one time I thought it was you guys, it can't be. Can you help me" We replaced the VC with a Quad product, at our cost. Customer has not been back, did call once to say how happy he was.

Cust had lawyer send letter to VC, they eventually gave back his money.

Once again dealer took it on the chin to protect the good name of VC

old VC unit went in the dumpster, VC wanted it back, I told them to come get it And this is the short version

 

[Hogwildz]

Exactly Bro Brat. Not many folks hang out at stove sites.

How often do you buy a stove? What was a good name last time you did (or the "expert" in your family did)?

Ask BB how often he has to remove and install stoves?
Sorry BB, I just could not help myself.

 

[BrotherBart]

Ask BB how often he has to remove and install stoves?
Sorry BB, I just could not help myself.

At least I burned in both of them after I lugged them in and out of the house. How is that 30-NC plant stand you bought doing? :cheese:

Go order some more baffle gaskets and leave me alone or I will send that drunk from Maine that keeps sending me PMs wanting to get his ass whipped down to see ya. :lol:

 

[Hogwildz]

Ask BB how often he has to remove and install stoves?
Sorry BB, I just could not help myself.

At least I burned in both of them after I lugged them in and out of the house. How is that 30-NC plant stand you bought doing? :cheese:

Go order some more baffle gaskets and leave me alone or I will send that drunk from Maine that keeps sending me PMs wanting to get his ass whipped down to see ya. :lol:

HAHAHA, Its not a plant stand man, its a dust collector! I think the dust is preserving it though. Should be like new when I get her installed.
I have gaskets somehwere, just forget where I out them, ALL Ah I'll just order 3 more

Man I get along with both you guys, If I can, you 2 should be able too, sheesh.
Cmon guys, shake and call it a beer. Life is too short.

 

[webbie]

personally , i'd like to see this thread go away , or at least have a less alarming title. bear in mind i also do not have a dog in this fight, but i want to see the VC product back out there with its image intact. its been a great product line for longer than ive built woodstoves and its an american product. even more importantly in the time we are living in , the hearth industry needs VC, it fills a niche that is important in the industry. lets take a deep breath , and see what happens, so far after a few bumps in the road Harman seems to be rebounding , i see no reason why VC cannot do the same, given the chance to do so.

just my 2 cents

As a manufacturer, there are certain things you don't want your customer to know....that is typical. So I understand your opinion, but at the same time it is from a different perspective. If your company was rumored to be going out of business, and you had the job of moving 30,000 stoves beforehand, you would not want to see a thread like this - understandable!
:smirk:

BUT, from a customer viewpoint - this is what NEEDS to be done.....to inform customers about the current and past situation so they can make an informed decision. If Hogwildz Roof Company came to do a family members roof...and you knew the company was a new "birth" of a company which failed to take care of thousands of customers....would you hold that information from your family member? Of course not (hopefully, I came up with the right answer for you).....

In fact, I think it would be immoral for me NOT to tell folks about rumors (and now truths) like this. There are sins of omission and sins of commission. Heck, one old member here championed VC for years.....and now all those stoves are not covered by warranty. That would make me feel like a criminal.

So, to each his own, but I think if anyone looks at it from the customer side, they would ask for full disclosure. Corporations have no right to secrecy when it comes to their warranty policies.

To summarize before I close this thread - it appears the rumors are true. Most existing VC's are not officially covered by warranty. This is a calculated decision by the new company...not to do so.

I do not agree with this decision from either a business or customer service viewpoint, and I would in general tell a friend or family member or dealer to consider this when shopping for a new stove or stove line. Sure, a new stove will be covered, but the company obviously does not think highly enough of the product already in the field to assure the existing customers that it is trouble free.

As always, buyer beware........with any purchase of any brand!