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Report: #1104148

Complaint Review: strutmasters.com - Foxboro North Carolina

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  • Reported By: Gr8Dane — Houston Texas
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  • strutmasters.com PO Box 3010 Foxboro, North Carolina USA

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While looking for replacement struts for a Lexus, I found this company clearly and concisely advertising Monroe Sensa-Trac struts for my vehicle.  After paying a premium price for the Monroe Sensa-Trac struts which they advertised, and paying for expedited shipping to meet the shops scheduling.  I got neither! 

First off they did not expedite the shipping (of which they did offer a slight refund for) so they arrived late.  Then they sent the struts in boxes marked deceitfully as "Sensa-Trac" struts only to find out they were a much cheaper version (OEMSpectrum) of the struts I paid for. 

When I called them they offered to reduce the cost by a few dollars rather then the cost I could have purchased the same exact struts for which was about $300 cheaper.  When asked why they sent the wrong struts, they said it was what I ordered.  I sent them a copy of the order which clearly states and says Monroe Sensa-Trac - and they didn't respond.

Bottom line here is they are a company that willfully deceives people with false advertising (as of this writing their site still advertises the Sensa-Trac struts which they do not sell or carry). 

If you want to deal with integrity, my suggestion is to consider what I have been through with this outfit.  Save yourself undue aggravation by considering my unfortunate and expensive experience when you are shopping for a reputable parts supplier.

This report was posted on Ripoff Report on 12/03/2013 09:13 PM and is a permanent record located here: https://www.ripoffreport.com/reports/strutmasterscom/foxboro-north-carolina-27573/strutmasterscom-strutmasters-caveat-emptor-do-not-expect-to-get-what-you-purchase-fo-1104148. The posting time indicated is Arizona local time. Arizona does not observe daylight savings so the post time may be Mountain or Pacific depending on the time of year. Ripoff Report has an exclusive license to this report. It may not be copied without the written permission of Ripoff Report. READ: Foreign websites steal our content

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REBUTTALS & REPLIES:
1Author
2Consumer
0Employee/Owner

#3 Consumer Comment

Strut Masters is the best let me tell you my story

AUTHOR: Auto dealer fraud Investigator - (USA)

POSTED: Tuesday, June 13, 2017

Strut Masters is the best let me tell you my story.  We have a hummer H2 at 2006.  The airbags had to be replaced because they had slow leaks because they dry rot and they start cracking and they do a longer hold air.    So we replace them we went to a local Cadillac dealership  and just under $450 we bought a set to install in my wife's hammer. 

Let me First say that a hummer H2 can weight a minimum of 8500 pounds  depending on the way it is equipped  it can weigh much more.  It took me a couple of hours to install a new set of airbags within two months it started losing air again.   This was driving me crazy spending that kind of money not knowing what next to do.   So I did some research on converting the Hummer  to coil springs.  

It was the best decision I could've made thanks to strut Masters.  They obviously know what they're doing and they do their research before they build their products.  I ordered a set of coil springs and a new set of shocks for the rear on a Thursday.  They shipped the coil springs and the shocks that late afternoon and I got them Saturday morning.   I watched their video talking about how they believe in what they do and it built enough confidence for me to know that I'm happy with the decision that I made to order what I needed from strut Masters.

I really appreciate the passion of all of the employees doing whatever they can to help their customers and thank God for the gentleman that started the company because he wanted to illuminate problems with new suspension vehicles.  Strut Masters believes in illuminating problems that you may be having with your suspension pretty much no matter what vehicle you own.   After I installed the springs and the struts and put the vehicle back on the ground I knew with great confidence I have made the right decision and after a short test drive it only sent my feelings in concrete about my decision of doing business with strut Masters .  

Most of the time when people complain about something it's because they did not read the contract or they did not read the instructions  no matter what type of products or services that they pay for.  Strut Masters even gives you instructions on how to remove any special codes or warning messages on your instrumentation of your vehicle.   They do their homework and they test their products before they put them on the market for you to buy.  

The only suggestion that I have I wish they put their company logo on their shocks.  The manufacturing facility for their products is a unbelievable experience for anyone to see.  I can say that because I do my homework before I park with my money.  I don't care what type of vehicle you have and you're having suspension problems check with strut Masters before you do business with anyone else when it comes to suspension problems with your vehicle.  

When I called them to ask them a couple of questions about the instructions regarding installation of the coil springs they were extremely helpful to make sure I knew that I was on their same page when it comes to product installation.   When you go to YouTube and you watch any videos that have been produced by Scott Masters you will be impressed if you listen to what they're telling you.   Watch the video below I'm hoping I posted the correct URL.  

If you don't know what you're doing when you take on a big task like this spend the money to pay someone to install only strut Masters products for your suspension. Signed S Bogart.  Strut Masters is the best.  Don't be another company's SUCKER........

 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dLW1Xrx8oY8&sns=em

 

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#2 Author of original report

Shall we explore the real facts?

AUTHOR: Gr8Dane - ()

POSTED: Monday, December 09, 2013

 Lets explore this “Summary” of the complaint as written and expose the facts.

 

 Summary

 

In September, Strutmasters processed over 1800 orders with only a handful of complaints.  This particular customer was extremely unhappy when he ordered Monroe Sensa-Trac, but received a Monroe OESpectrum strut instead in a Monroe Sensa-Trac box.

 

Lets explore their definition of “honest” here!

 

Strutmasters made an honest effort to make this customer happy.  We refunded the difference on the expedited shipping (more on that later) and refunded 25% of the purchase price on the struts which he refused to send back even though we offered him a full refund if he returned the product.

 

It is true Strutmasters did refund part of the expedited fee – as I clearly stated. 

 

However, what they are not stating here is the fact that I clearly and concisely explained to them that the struts they sent were already installed in the vehicle due to shop scheduling and my job scheduling. 

 

Since we are dealing with automotive parts here – it is not as simple putting them back into a box and sending them back. 

 

What I told them (and am still willing to do) is that since this is their mistake and no one else’s, if they pay for the removal of the struts (since I paid for their installation) I am more than willing to send them back for a complete refund. 

 

It is moronic to state they offered to give me a refund on parts already installed when the cost of the removal/installation would have to be borne twice by the purchaser for their falsely advertising the parts they sell in the first place.

 

This labeling issue lands sqarely on Monroe.  Some time back (I am not sure of the exact date), Monroe decided to combine the Sensa-Trac and OESpectrum lines.  All Monroe product with a 5 digit part number starting with 7 are either Sensa-Trac or OESpectrum.  Allegedly, the difference between them is Sensa-Trac struts are for domestic vehicles and OESpectrum are for foreign cars.  I have also found a few exceptions where OESpectrum was used for domestic vehicles when the Sensa-Trac product was discontinued, but for the most part, the foreign vs. domestic rule applies.

 

If this is or was the case, then why is it not clearly defined or explained on their website?  Why is it not stated up front to avoid any confusion?  Sorry, but this does not ring true since they have made no effort to forewarn their customers of this explanation.  What they show is attached and directly off of their website for the vehicle in question.  What does Strutmasters advertise?  And WHY have they not changed the ad to reflect their response as of 12/4/13?

 

Here is an example which you can verify on Monroe's e-Catalog website:

 

Small problem here - I didn’t order them from the Monroe catalog now did I? – I ordered them from strutmasters based on the advertised information found on their website which I have included.

 

72201 and 72202 are Sensa-Trac struts and fit Pontiac GTO

 

72205 and 72206 are OESpectrum struts and fit Lexus ES330 (exactly what our customer ordered)

 

Since many Monroe products are drop shipped directly from Monroe, Strutmasters does not have the opportunity to open a sampling of these product for quality assurance like we do with items in our own warehouse.  There are numerous accounts of Monroe OESpectrum products being shipped in Sensa-Trac boxes from many different vendors.  Again, Strutmasters has no control over this.  Other vendors (such as vendors on Amazon) are facing this same issue.

 

Strutmasters has over 10,000 Monroe products in our catalog.  Typographical errors are bound to happen, but we strive to fix any errors we find as soon as possible.  We also state in our footer that we are not responsible for typographical errors.

 

How laughable – “typographical errors” – you be the judge here – look at their ad for a 2004 Lexus and see if it says they are advertising and selling OEMSpectrum or Sensa-trac struts.  Since this is right off of their website (as clearly indicated) I guess this is a “typographical error”?   Since I chose the Sensa-Trac Struts and paid for them – what part of what I ordered based on their published information is incorrect?  Again why isn’t their explanation stated anywhere on their site and especially on those listed as “foreign” cars?  More succinctly,  why haven’t they “fixed” this obvious “error” since it was brought to their attention?

 

Shipping

 

The customer placed his order on our website at 9:31 p.m. on 9-18.  Our shipping policy on our website clearly states all orders placed after 4 p.m. will be shipped the next day.

 

Our purchase order to Monroe went out the morning of 9-19.  It was process that same day at Monroe.

 

UPS Tracking

 

Here is the actual UPS tracking information for this order:

 

Location

Date

Local Time

Activity

Phoenix, AZ, United States

09/24/2013

1:25 P.M.

Delivered

 

09/24/2013

4:00 A.M.

Out For Delivery

Phoenix, AZ, United States

09/23/2013

6:45 P.M.

Destination Scan

 

09/23/2013

11:46 A.M.

Arrival Scan

Mesquite, TX, United States

09/20/2013

9:19 P.M.

Departure Scan

 

09/20/2013

11:45 A.M.

Arrival Scan

Texarkana, AR, United States

09/20/2013

8:01 A.M.

Departure Scan

 

09/20/2013

6:26 A.M.

Arrival Scan

Little Rock, AR, United States

09/20/2013

3:51 A.M.

Departure Scan

 

09/20/2013

12:31 A.M.

Arrival Scan

Jonesboro, AR, United States

09/19/2013

10:06 P.M.

Departure Scan

 

09/19/2013

7:00 P.M.

Origin Scan

United States

09/19/2013

4:03 P.M.

Order Processed: Ready for UPS

 

The order arrive 3 days later than it should have for 2nd Day Air.

 

As you can see, the item took longer than expected to get to the customer.  Strutmasters has no control over how fast UPS delivers an order other than telling them we want a particular level of service which we and the customer both paid for.  In this case, UPS did not live up to our expectations.  For this reason, Strutmasters refunded part of the shipping cost to the customer even though UPS failed to deliver on time.

 

How convenient to blame UPS when the real source of the error was that it was NOT shipped for 2nd day delivery from strutmasters  but 3-5 day delivery– but I guess since it falls in line with their stance it is always someone else’s fault.  The UPS tracking number clearly states the manner in which it was shipped, and in which was delivered - as shipped, it arrived perfectly on time.

 

How Strutmasters Responded To The Complaint

 

Even after Strutmasters refunded the extra shipping cost, the customer continued to call and complain. 

 

Yes, as I have repeatedly stated strutmasters did refund me a total of $69.78 for shipping charges that exceeded the manner in which they had shipped the product.  That is not even in question – never has been. 

 

What person who is misled would not continue to call and complain or seek restitution?  Especially when what you were led to believe you were purchasing was not even close to what was delivered.

 

Strutmasters offered the customer a full refund if he would simply return the product.  The customer refused to return the product.  That was his choice and Strutmasters respects the customer's freedom to decide. 

 

As previously stated, if strutmasters wants to cover the cost of the removal of these struts, I will be more than happy to send them back their struts without reservation.  But that is not likely to happen, since they would rather place the financial burden on the customer to resolve a situation created on their part.

 

In spite of this, the customer continued to demand money back while insisting on keeping the product. 

 

What I had requested from them was a reduction in the charges for the premium price paid  - for a lesser amount than what was charged - but more than what I could buy them for in my attempt to be more than fair – but they surely do not explain that here.  I offered to agree to pay $95 each for the struts – but strutmasters declined my offer to them. 

 

If I had been shopping price and wanted OEMSpectrum struts in the first place, I could have purchased them for around $80 each from other sources on line, or locally on sale.

 

Our Tech and Customer Service representatives spent many hours trying to resolve this matter for the customer. 

 

Hours?  Guess they type really, really slow.  Emails of a couple of paragraphs do not take hours to type as far as I know.

 

In the end, Strutmasters gave a 25% refund of the purchase price in addition to the shipping refund. 

 

Really?  You state in this rebuttal in black and white that you have given me a 25% refund for the purchase price?  

 

I have never seen a 25% refund on our credit card statement.  In fact, the only refunds received from your company were made on 9/26 for $69.78 to cover the mistake made for shipping the items 3-5 day delivery instead of 2nd day air as requested and paid for. 

 

The next refund was posted on 10/2 for a total of $60.00 (which equates to .0813%) which in simple math terms is far short of the alleged 25% refund you claim to have given. 

 

I do have (and am willing to publish) an email from your company stating you were offering an additional (8%)  $60 refund which as clearly stated, has appeared on our credit card statement on 10/2 - and doing the math you claim, the 25% refund you allege you have given would have been for $184.36 – not $60.00. 

 

 In spite of our cooperation, the customer filed this erroneous and libelous complaint on this website for all to see.  Three months later, we are still wasting manpower to respond to this complaint.  Clearly the customer is over reacting.

 

Nothing libelous about the facts – they speak for themselves – any time wasted is in trying to make it look like they are responsive and not responsible.

 

As a customer (of which I will never be again) I am forewarning people of the facts of the matter – not wasting time – merely preventing others from experiencing the same situation I have.

 

Strutmasters does not condone or participate in false advertising as our customer alleges. 

 

Again, you be the judge – as their ad clearly states and shows they STILL list and show the struts as being Sensa-Trac when they just explained they are now OEMSpectrum.  So which is it?

 

We made every effort to make this right. 

 

I do believe this clearly shows just the opposite.

 

As for the customer's assertion that he "could purchase the same exact struts for about $300 cheaper", why not return our product for a full refund and simply order from someone else for $300 less. 

 

The answer is, this is a distortion of fact and he knows it.  If anyone could get this product somewhere else that much cheaper, they would.

 

As the attached ad and website clearly shows – I could have gotten them for much less and with free shipping too.  You will also note that the product they sell is clearly marked as a Monroe OEMSpectrum shock - NOT a Sensa-Trac as advertised by you!

 

There is NO distortion of any fact here!  And my offer to you still stands – as long as strutmasters is willing cover the cost for their removal, I will gladly remove them and send them back to you without reservation.

 

Thank you for reading our rebuttal.

 

And thank you for reviewing the facts of the matter 

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#1 UPDATE Employee ..inside information

Unhappy Customer, We Really Tried To Make You Happy

AUTHOR: Jay@Strutmasters - ()

POSTED: Wednesday, December 04, 2013

Summary

In September, Strutmasters processed over 1800 orders with only a handful of complaints.  This particular customer was extremely unhappy when he ordered Monroe Sensa-Trac, but received a Monroe OESpectrum strut instead in a Monroe Sensa-Trac box.

Strutmasters made an honest effort to make this customer happy.  We refunded the difference on the expedited shipping (more on that later) and refunded 25% of the purchase price on the struts which he refused to send back even though we offered him a full refund if he returned the product.

This labeling issue lands sqarely on Monroe.  Some time back (I am not sure of the exact date), Monroe decided to combine the Sensa-Trac and OESpectrum lines.  All Monroe product with a 5 digit part number starting with 7 are either Sensa-Trac or OESpectrum.  Allegedly, the difference between them is Sensa-Trac struts are for domestic vehicles and OESpectrum are for foreign cars.  I have also found a few exceptions where OESpectrum was used for domestic vehicles when the Sensa-Trac product was discontinued, but for the most part, the foreign vs. domestic rule applies.

Here is an example which you can verify on Monroe's e-Catalog website:

72201 and 72202 are Sensa-Trac struts and fit Pontiac GTO

72205 and 72206 are OESpectrum struts and fit Lexus ES330 (exactly what our customer ordered)

Since many Monroe products are drop shipped directly from Monroe, Strutmasters does not have the opportunity to open a sampling of these product for quality assurance like we do with items in our own warehouse.  There are numerous accounts of Monroe OESpectrum products being shipped in Sensa-Trac boxes from many different vendors.  Again, Strutmasters has no control over this.  Other vendors (such as vendors on Amazon) are facing this same issue.

Strutmasters has over 10,000 Monroe products in our catalog.  Typographical errors are bound to happen, but we strive to fix any errors we find as soon as possible.  We also state in our footer that we are not responsible for typographical errors.

Shipping

The customer placed his order on our website at 9:31 p.m. on 9-18.  Our shipping policy on our website clearly states all orders placed after 4 p.m. will be shipped the next day.

Our purchase order to Monroe went out the morning of 9-19.  It was process that same day at Monroe.

UPS Tracking

Here is the actual UPS tracking information for this order:

LocationDateLocal TimeActivity
Phoenix, AZ, United States 09/24/2013 1:25 P.M. Delivered
  09/24/2013 4:00 A.M. Out For Delivery
Phoenix, AZ, United States 09/23/2013 6:45 P.M. Destination Scan
  09/23/2013 11:46 A.M. Arrival Scan
Mesquite, TX, United States 09/20/2013 9:19 P.M. Departure Scan
  09/20/2013 11:45 A.M. Arrival Scan
Texarkana, AR, United States 09/20/2013 8:01 A.M. Departure Scan
  09/20/2013 6:26 A.M. Arrival Scan
Little Rock, AR, United States 09/20/2013 3:51 A.M. Departure Scan
  09/20/2013 12:31 A.M. Arrival Scan
Jonesboro, AR, United States 09/19/2013 10:06 P.M. Departure Scan
  09/19/2013 7:00 P.M. Origin Scan
United States 09/19/2013 4:03 P.M. Order Processed: Ready for UPS

The order arrive 3 days later than it should have for 2nd Day Air.

As you can see, the item took longer than expected to get to the customer.  Strutmasters has no control over how fast UPS delivers an order other than telling them we want a particular level of service which we and the customer both paid for.  In this case, UPS did not live up to our expectations.  For this reason, Strutmasters refunded part of the shipping cost to the customer even though UPS failed to deliver on time.

How Strutmasters Responded To The Complaint

Even after Strutmasters refunded the extra shipping cost, the customer continued to call and complain.  Strutmasters offered the customer a full refund if he would simply return the product.  The customer refused to return the product.  That was his choice and Strutmasters respects the customer's freedom to decide.  In spite of this, the customer continued to demand money back while insisting on keeping the product.  Our Tech and Customer Service representatives spent many hours trying to resolve this matter for the customer.  In the end, Strutmasters gave a 25% refund of the purchase price in addition to the shipping refund.  In spite of our cooperation, the customer filed this erroneous and libelous complaint on this website for all to see.  Three months later, we are still wasting manpower to respond to this complaint.  Clearly the customer is over reacting.

Strutmasters does not condone or participate in false advertising as our customer alleges.  We made every effort to make this right.  As for the customer's assertion that he "could purchase the same exact struts for about $300 cheaper", why not return our product for a full refund and simply order from someone else for $300 less.  The answer is, this is a distortion of fact and he knows it.  If anyone could get this product somewhere else that much cheaper, they would.

Thank you for reading our rebuttal.

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