Local Harman Dealer in Southern NH

[Jester]

Without mentioning any names, has anyone else had negative experiences trying to deal with thier local Harman dealer in the Southern NH/Seacoast area?
Mine wont install/service or help me transfer the warrenty of the used stove I bought because they didnt sell it. Same with pellet sales, reserved for "Thier Customers Only"
Guess they dont want me as one of "thier customers" because they didnt make the sale on the stove. Good foreword thinking pushing away someone who could be a customer for years to come, not to mention I would never recommend buying anything from thier rude staff.
Guess you can get away with it and not care about your reputation when business is this good.

 

[kinsmanstoves]

Bad service by a service related company/business sucks.

Please remember a company or business does not have to do business with you unless it is a discrimination issue.

You do not have to give them your business, take your hard earned money else where.

Eric

 

[cac4]

I just bought a half-ton of pellets from the only Harman dealer on the NH Seacoast of which I am aware....

I never bought anything from them, before this. They aren't taking orders for delivery....had to pick them up myself. (hence, the half ton. Thats as much as I can carry safely in my half ton truck).

generally speaking, I've only heard "good things" about them.

I did get to chatting with one of the guys there...don't know if he was the owner or staff...about my "out of town" stove purchase, and the whole Harman debacle, etc. He was surprised that a dealer would ship from so far, and wondered how they'd support it. I said that if I get into trouble, I'll just have to throw myself on their mercy, to which he responded that they'd have to charge me for parts, because the factory wouldn't reimburse them for parts; they'll only reimburse the selling dealer. (This is a problem w/ the Harman company; not the dealers. the dealer's hands are tied). He did not say that they wouldn't service my stove, if I asked.

 

[itworks]

I've had a Harman P 68 running 24/7 for the past 4 heating seasons without any problems. Knowing what I now know about Harman's lack of customer service, and how they treat their dealers, I will stay away from Harman in the future. I find them despicable, and even though they build a great stove, they don't deserve our business.

 

[Jester]

Bad service by a service related company/business sucks.

Please remember a company or business does not have to do business with you unless it is a discrimination issue.

You do not have to give them your business, take your hard earned money else where.

Eric

Love to. Propriatary dealerships. I know they dont have to do business with me, but you'd think that thier parent company for which they are "representatives" for would be the least bit interested in how they were representing them. The next dealer is 50 miles or something like that away from me in Pelham NH. Hard to swallow when these guys are 5 miles up the road.

They wouldnt even sell me pellets for pickup, it was just a flat, if you didnt buy your stove here, there's nothing we can do for you. Workin on transferring my warrenty, Harman said to have the local dealer fill out the paperwork, and they refused. Go figure.

 

[FireJumper]

Just an FYI - from what understand any Harman dealer can perform service on your stove and Harman WILL pay that dealership for the warranty work if it falls under warranty. They don't care who services the unit under warranty as long as it's an authorized Harman dealer. As for a dealer servicing a stove that was purchased from someone other then them......I believe Harman tells them that if they sell the stove then they MUST service that stove. You need to remember - most dealers don't make a lot of money on warranty work (and that goes for just about any product that's fixed under warranty), they make their money selling it. I don't blame them for not wanting to service a stove if they didn't sell it. Someone else is reaping the benefits of selling it and letting the local dealer handle all the issues if any. Put yourself in those dealers’ shoes, especially this season. They got everybody and their brothers yelling at them because they want a stove and they can't get one. whether it’s Harman or some other brand.

Here's one for ya from my own memory shed - My stove has worked wonderfully for about 15 years (Pellet Pro II) about a year or 2 a go my feed motor finally went dead. I went to my local dealer and asked them if I could order one. they asked me the infamous question. "Did you purchase your stove from us" I said no, the dealer I purchased the unit from has since gone out of business. I went through 2 other dealers until I could find one that would order the part for me.. Keep in mind that my stove is obviously out of warranty BUT the first 2 dealers still wouldn't get me my part just because I didn't purchase the stove from them.. Now, even though I couldn't get my part through the first dealer doesn't mean I'm going to blame Harman for it.. it's not Harman denying me the part I needed it was the dealership that I went to. So Harman isn't the blame for everything.. just because the product has the Harman name on it doesn't mean they are always at fault. do your homework and find out what's really going on. Is it truly Harman or the dealerships, that's the question!

I’ll get off my soapbox now..

 

[Jester]

If I am Harman, and I am selling ONLY though "official dealers" then these official dealers are an extension of my company. By them limiting public acess to Harman parts through these shops, and refusing to allow two in an area to compete against each other, then for all intents and purposes the poor service that these "official dealers" are providing is a reflection of my company, especially if I am aware that this is going on. If Harman is allowing limited dealerships, and allowing them to deny parts and or service than thas not right. Have you ever bought a used car? If so could only the dealer provide you with parts for it? Have you ever had a dealer or garage tell you, Yup, thats a GMC truck but because I didnt sell it to you Im not gonna fix it or sell you parts for it? Also, I would think that with the backorder of stoves, that sales would obviously be slow, so what better way to make money than on the after sale support?
Its fine to be on a soapbox, but I hold Harman equally responsable for being aware of it and being ok with it. It tells you they are more worried about taking care of thier dealers than thier customers.

 

[FireJumper]

jester - not that I'm disagreeing with anything you're saying, BUT i would think that Harman would disagree with the way SOME dealers are treating us.. This is the business degree coming out of me now... Without us, the end user, there would be no Harman or Harman dealerships for that matter. you would think if harman knew who these dealers were they would try to rectify the situation. I would agree that most dealers are losing money NOT selling parts to the end user, that's future business just walking away. If that's the case then so be it, give your business to a dealer that wants it, but don't blame harman for that. That's not right, i'm sure they have hunreds of dealers across the country, i'm sure they don't have time to babysit someone who's supposed to have enought wits about themselves to own their own busniess. if they let business walk away then that's their fault, right??

All I gotta say is if I owned a stove business in NE I wouldn't be turning anyone down... I would just have a VERY busy calander, haha!!

 

[slls]

Just an FYI - from what understand any Harman dealer can perform service on your stove and Harman WILL pay that dealership for the warranty work if it falls under warranty. They don't care who services the unit under warranty as long as it's an authorized Harman dealer. As for a dealer servicing a stove that was purchased from someone other then them......I believe Harman tells them that if they sell the stove then they MUST service that stove. You need to remember - most dealers don't make a lot of money on warranty work (and that goes for just about any product that's fixed under warranty), they make their money selling it. I don't blame them for not wanting to service a stove if they didn't sell it. Someone else is reaping the benefits of selling it and letting the local dealer handle all the issues if any. Put yourself in those dealers’ shoes, especially this season. They got everybody and their brothers yelling at them because they want a stove and they can't get one. whether it’s Harman or some other brand.

Here's one for ya from my own memory shed - My stove has worked wonderfully for about 15 years (Pellet Pro II) about a year or 2 a go my feed motor finally went dead. I went to my local dealer and asked them if I could order one. they asked me the infamous question. "Did you purchase your stove from us" I said no, the dealer I purchased the unit from has since gone out of business. I went through 2 other dealers until I could find one that would order the part for me.. Keep in mind that my stove is obviously out of warranty BUT the first 2 dealers still wouldn't get me my part just because I didn't purchase the stove from them.. Now, even though I couldn't get my part through the first dealer doesn't mean I'm going to blame Harman for it.. it's not Harman denying me the part I needed it was the dealership that I went to. So Harman isn't the blame for everything.. just because the product has the Harman name on it doesn't mean they are always at fault. do your homework and find out what's really going on. Is it truly Harman or the dealerships, that's the question!

I’ll get off my soapbox now..

I don't know about Pellet Pro, Lots of Quadra parts for sale on line.

 

[cyclone]

Very easy for me to speak since my order was complete. On the other hand freinds of ours order was not complete. The dealer kind of bent over backwards trying to locate a stove for them. They located one and it was in Deleware, five hours from their home in PA. Needless to say they drove and got the stove with a round trip of 10 hours. The dealer that located the stove for them is honoring all waranties and is doing the installation with a delivery of pellets. I cannot complain about my dealer in PA. They also told me the could have sold 400 more stoves..

 

[webbie]

It's a bit strange hearing about customer service in the day and age of big box stores. I have found out the hard way that most products...even big name brands....purchased at these stores have a one week warranty - that is, you can take it back and they will give you your $$. But if you need a part or service - even with the part # (a glass globe for an expensive light, for instance), you cannot get it - no way - ever!

We (as customers) have demanded more and more stuff at lower and lower prices - the result is everything made and sold with the least possible profit AND service.

Harman is/was trying to do the right thing...in terms of fixing their stoves and making certain dealers were happy. If you were dealer#1, you would not like it if your customer traveled to dealer#2 and go the stove for $50 less, then demanded that you fix it.

We have to back up a bit here and say that service on pellet stoves is usually NOT a profitable business, especially under warranty. For many dealers it represents a LOSS of money and time.

That all said, I think the new management will eventually come around to some better policies and more availability of parts and instructions for the DIY'er and independent mechanic/sweep to fix their stoves. But this policy will never, IMHO, force a local dealer to service your stoves. The hearth industry is made up of VERY independent dealers, many of who would tell manufacturers to go pound sand if they feel forced into doing something against their interests.

So for now, it might be best for folks to talk to their local dealers before buying a used stove or trucking one in from far away.

 

[FireJumper]

"So for now, it might be best for folks to talk to their local dealers before buying a used stove or trucking one in from far away." --- best way to put it.

 

[GVA]

Without mentioning any names, has anyone else had negative experiences trying to deal with thier local Harman dealer in the Southern NH/Seacoast area?
Mine wont install/service or help me transfer the warrenty of the used stove I bought because they didnt sell it. Same with pellet sales, reserved for "Thier Customers Only"
Guess they dont want me as one of "thier customers" because they didnt make the sale on the stove. Good foreword thinking pushing away someone who could be a customer for years to come, not to mention I would never recommend buying anything from thier rude staff.
Guess you can get away with it and not care about your reputation when business is this good.

not defending them here.... but they and others got slammed with servicing a bunch of stoves they didn't sell when other dealers in the area folded several years ago.
They have quite a bit of work to do and were required to assume the selling dealers warrantee......and the traveling expense to the former dealers area.
I would cut them a little slack, they have quite a region to cover.
as far as them selling or not selling pellets to people that didn't buy a stove from them.... It is gonna be a common thing this year....like 2005..... imagine if you bought a stove from them and then couldn't get pellets because the NE is in panic and everyone is buying up the stock....
Then you would be truely pi$$ed off........."you mean I spent 3k for a stove from you and you don't have any pellets." They are actually protecting "thier" customers and hence thier business...
Sorry it is a tough market in the pellet world........ Glad I don't have to deal with it any more :long:

 

[mkmh]

Without mentioning any names, has anyone else had negative experiences trying to deal with thier local Harman dealer in the Southern NH/Seacoast area?
Mine wont install/service or help me transfer the warrenty of the used stove I bought because they didnt sell it. Same with pellet sales, reserved for "Thier Customers Only"
Guess they dont want me as one of "thier customers" because they didnt make the sale on the stove. Good foreword thinking pushing away someone who could be a customer for years to come, not to mention I would never recommend buying anything from thier rude staff.
Guess you can get away with it and not care about your reputation when business is this good.

I've worked with that dealer before, buying parts for my stove and having pellets delivered and I think they're one of the good ones. They were aroudn way before the craze got started, and they'll be one of the ones left standing when the craze is over. The reality is that they are a family business can only handle so much business, and they can only sell so many pellets. So given that it makes perfect sense to take care of the folks who bought their stoves with them first. In past years when pellet supply was abundant they sold to non-customers, but this year things are different. I think they're doing the right thing ensuring that they have enough pellets to sell to teh people who spent 4000 on a stove.

I can't comment on the rude staff. I've always had good experiences there, but i'm sure they are all under duress trying to meet the insane demand. I wouldn't really want to be a stove dealer right now, even though the demand is there. It is a challenging business environment for sure.

 

[Dougsey]

Without mentioning any names, has anyone else had negative experiences trying to deal with thier local Harman dealer in the Southern NH/Seacoast area?
Mine wont install/service or help me transfer the warrenty of the used stove I bought because they didnt sell it. Same with pellet sales, reserved for "Thier Customers Only"
Guess they dont want me as one of "thier customers" because they didnt make the sale on the stove. Good foreword thinking pushing away someone who could be a customer for years to come, not to mention I would never recommend buying anything from thier rude staff.
Guess you can get away with it and not care about your reputation when business is this good.

I bought my stove there and they have delivered the pellets I ordered during pre-buy in May, at the price promised which is below the current market price. They have always been straight shooters in my book.

 

[camdids]

I have my stove ordered with them. They were very helpful and have been upfront with all my enquiries. Maybe it helped I know someone there, but neighbors who have done business with them , have had nothing but good to say about them.