Wednesday, February 27, 2013

We received this comment from someone who says they operate a Re-Bath franchise!

He says his name is Jack Gallagher and we decided the fairest most honest way to respond was openly, and also to give him the appropriate attention. 
Here is his letter:

“Helpful Hal. I take offense to your trashing of all Re-Bath dealers as being a rip=off or a scam. I've operated my franchise, Re-Bath of Central California for 5 years by delivering top notch customer service with many reviews to validate the quality end product we deliver. Be careful to lump all dealers in with a few bad ones. The same can be done in any industry. I paid good money to join this franchise and do not appreciate your trashing of all dealers. Time to get over your spilled milk and move on. Sorry that you had such a bad experience but your experience most likely caused the dealer whom performed your work to be removed from the network. “


Here is our response:

Well Jack,
To be quite honest, we took offense to all of the Re-Bath dealers/franchises we dealt with, and the corporate staff treating us so badly. 
We did not trash “all Re-Bath dealers”.  We only called out the ones we dealt with or were operated (at least claimed to be) by those we had dealings with that caused great damage to our home and were prosecuted for breaking the law.  
(We still stand by our opinion and firsthand observations that they really are a Rip-Off and a scam.)
Plus, we allowed other complaints made by other highly dissatisfied (ripped-off) customers of Re-Bath throughout the nation to be shared on our blog if they wished to do so.  It was pointed out clearly who were the "guests".  (Maybe you should reread what was written and take it in context before jumping to any conclusions?  You’re not the first Re-Bath dealer to misunderstand what was written and get upset.)
If you want to take offense with us, fine, it is your right, as shortsighted as that logic is (for what it is worth we never badmouthed your franchise, weren't even aware of it). 

But maybe you should look at the reality of the situation and simply how bad the reputation of Re-Bath as a whole is before you complain to or about any victims for TELLING THE TRUTH of what happened to them and before complaining about something you say you are not involved with. 
(Ever heard of guilt by association?  Might be something to consider since there is so much bad press online about the company you chose to buy into.  Point being, don’t blame us for pointing out what other members of your "network" did.)

The franchises we dealt with also claimed the same thing to us that you do in your letter:
“delivering top notch customer service with many reviews to validate the quality end product we deliver”.  
But the real question is, how many complaints have you had?  Sadly there were far more dissatisfied customers than satisfied ones with the franchises we dealt with.  We found that out after the damage had begun.  They hand picked the few good comments that they either pulled the wool over their customers eyes, or got lucky and didn’t screw the job up. 
(Or if you are as cynical as we are now..., we'd suspect some of the testimonials we fabricated.  You know, lies?)
If you want to draw a correlation to that, go for it.  We know most people who have dealt with Re-Bath (as we have) will do so.

Since you brought it up, should we start asking around your neck of the woods to see if there any of your customers that regret dealing with Re-Bath… or your franchise?  Purely in the interest of honesty, integrity and full disclosure.  What could be wrong with that...?

You also wrote :
” Be careful to lump all dealers in with a few bad ones.” 
In the case of Re-Bath, we have to agree, but which side of the argument are you on now?  Freudian slip?  (Another reason we included the verbatim letter you wrote to us.)

We’re sorry you paid good money to get a Re-Bath franchise.  Maybe you should have done your homework first (as we should done before contracting with Re-Bath) before dumping that good money into a company with such a bad reputation.  Sounds like a little bit of sour grapes. Or whine… (Hey, you had your spilled milk jab at us...)

The first dealer we dealt with was ultimately removed/rejected/ejected from Re-Bath, but not for all the stuff he did as an agent of Re-Bath (as you say you are) to our home and to us personally, and as reprehensible as that behavior was, it was ultimately condoned and protected by corporate Re-Bath.  
(It was his claims of stalking us and the vile personal threats (that we had to provide proof of) that subsequently and ultimately led to his “dismissal” from the RE-Bath “network”.)

The second dealer, the one that caused our downstairs ceiling to cave in and flooded our attic, is still operating as far as we know.

So you'll have to forgive us if we don’t buy your viewpoint that substandard Re-Bath franchise operators are weeded out of the network. 
We are not saying you are to be automatically lumped into the group of those bad franchises, (even though you wrote that we should do that...), just that your comment holds no water (much like our "Re-Bath" flooded ceiling...) with us due to our firsthand experience.   We saw how badly and unethically operated franchises were protected by the corporation, not the consumers.

As always, we recommend you do your homework before working with any contractor. 
We learned our lesson and will NEVER deal with any Re-Bath franchise no matter how much they claim they are not like the others.  Even if it were true (as unlikely as that could even be in our perspective and experience) we know that if there were a problem that was not resolved with the franchise, there is nowhere to turn but legal action as the Re-Bath corporation would not help the customer. 
(Then again what are the odds the franchise wouldn't initiate legal action before trying to resolve the issue?  From our firsthand experince, presumably quite high...)
Remember, we dealt with the corporate side too, that showed us the problems are not just franchise deep, but ingrained in the “network”.