R & D Marine Predatory boat mechanic, never gave estimate, ran up charges without notice, refused to give back our boat even when we offered to pay ridiculous bill Cambridge Maryland

We took our boat for "dewinterizing" on 3/14. The day we dropped it off Ken Daniel, owner, was not in. His rep was told to provide an oil change & "dewinterize"&check the lights. We asked for an estimate, but were told he couldn't provide.

Having used R&D several months prior for "winterizing", we relied on the ballpark provided then for an avg "dewinterizing": approx. $400. My husband repeatedly contacted R&D for an estimated completion date and/or estimate, but was never given an answer.

Finally, around the first of April, owner called my husband to say our prop needed attention and explained that not having it filed could cause add'l damage. Again, a quote was requested. He was unable to commit to a price, but guessed about $160. My husband authorized the work.

On April 15 received a call that the boat was done-except for the prop. Again asked a price & anticipated a bill around $560-$700. He said he'd call back on the 16th with price. He did not.

We visited R&D in person on 4/18. The boat was not ready and the price for completed work we were finally given was for $1200. Admittedly, I was upset. Mr. Daniel remained ambivolent and cavalier. He indicated that he spent several hours trying to fix our lights (@ $65 per hour). When I questioned why he did not call to give us notice that they were having difficulty, thus permitting us to opt out of paying them to experiment, he said, "You told me to fix 'em. I did."

I questioned why he delayed in telling us the charges and he said that he didn't know how long each job was going to take and he won't give estimates. He started indignantly asking how many hours I thought he should charge to grease a lower shaft and change oil. He also threw around names of parts and indicated that he had $40,000 worth of work he was doing right now, so our job-even though it was an exorbitant amount of $ to me-was insignificant to him. He advised that people pay these amounts all the time and that somehow I should know this and I, therefore, was wrong to expect him to justify the cost.

He flat out said that if we couldn't afford him, we should sell our boat and use a friend's. He indicated that we were mishandling our finances by not paying the amount he charged. While I was trying to say that it is customary in the service industry to provide an estimate so the consumer has the option of NOT incurring unwanted charges, he spoke over me and told me I wasn't listening because I couldn't repeat the names of the parts he'd previously tossed around.

I feel that if a business owner does not have time to fully serve all his customers in a reasonable manner, that owner should sell to someone qualified to handle legitimate inquiries and better manage their time. This is an example of a predatory mechanic taking advantage of the trust placed in him by consumers. He failed to provide an estimate, ran up exorbitant charges and was insulted that we questioned him. He took advantage of us and even refused to give us our boat when we asked to pay the ridiculous bill and leave.

Regardless of the egregious mistreatment I experienced, an hour later I made the decision to contact Mr. Daniel and apologize for my part in our disagreement. I was left on hold for 20 minutes! No one returned to the line to take a message and Mr. Daniel never came to the phone. That 20 minutes provided me with enough time to realize this is just a poorly managed business on many levels from deplorable customer svc to questionable business practices and unconscionable morals.

My husband called Mr. Daniel 4/20 and told him that we, again, simply wished to sever our relationship and pick up our boat. Although he accepts credit cards, he was argumentative and told us that he wouldn't take ours. He said cash was the only way we could pay and, even so, we could not have our boat today. He, as of the time of this complaint, is stalwartly refusing to give us our property or accept a valid form of payment.

Jennifer
Madison, Maryland
U.S.A.