Original > Hot Tub Forum

Does distance to dealer matter?

(1/3) > >>

Debbie1011:
We are looking to buy our first hot tub and need some advice. We have one local dealer that sells HotSpring and Dynasty. They have a good reputation and seem happy to answer questions.

About 50 miles away are more dealers that sell Jacuzzi, Bullfrog, Clearwater and Caldera. Is 50 miles too far to expect reasonable service or should we stay local?

Holgmi585281:
I would travel any distance to get great service and a Knowledgable dealer. Here in the UK there are heaps of the usual cheap fly by night hot tub cowboy shops. Unfortunately most people are attracted by cheap prices (too good to be true prices). We have Artesian about 35miles away ,jacuzzi around 20miles away . I didnt visit Artesian but i did Jacuzzi although the assistant there didnt instill much confidence for me. In the end i went for dealer reputation . They are superb , i had spoken to people who bought from them and they have a great aftersales service . I travelled 2hrs 25mins by car (139miles) to the showroom and am currently waiting for delivery and installation on Saturday 8th June. Find a reputable dealer that will look after you . The distance is nothing if you dont get great service when you need it .  ;D

BullFrogSpasMN:
It's all relative the size of town/metropolitan area you live in...in my case 50 miles isn't considered much at all, our techs regularly travel 20-40 miles one way due to the large market we cover, with that said 1 question I would ask would be what are the trip charges associated with them coming out to service the spa.  Trip charges are common (even under warranty, it's the business covering it's costs) but just make sure they aren't 'overcharging' for that 50 mile distance, I've seen some dealers trying to charge $200+ for that distance which is overcharging imo, $75-$100 would be reasonable...just my opinion of course

Holgmi585281:
Hmmm  that suprises me even under warranty? I have seen lots of comments on various forums and ratings sites regarding charging to come and take a look . That's not something that generally happens here if at all. Is this just the hot tub industry or do other  industries do the same ? Vehicles etc or self employed people.

BullFrogSpasMN:

--- Quote from: Holgmi585281 on May 10, 2019, 04:00:52 pm ---Hmmm  that suprises me even under warranty? I have seen lots of comments on various forums and ratings sites regarding charging to come and take a look . That's not something that generally happens here if at all. Is this just the hot tub industry or do other  industries do the same ? Vehicles etc or self employed people.

--- End quote ---

trip charges are VERY common in the hot tub industry, not like I communicate with every dealer across the country but we do check up on 'market rates' for service costs, etc and do speak with other companies to compare and I don't really know of any dealers NOT charging one, I do know I have 5 competitors within a 8 mile radius of my store and they all have 'trip charges' as well.  The manufacturer covers labor (onsite) + parts so these charges are needed to maintain the business. If I'm paying a technician $20 an hour and he's driving a service van 75 miles in a day doing 5 warranty calls you can bet any business isn't absorbing all those costs (gas, tech wages, insurance, etc) it's simply not sustainable.

Navigation

[0] Message Index

[#] Next page