Thank You Keystone

[Kdjshep]

We had an issue with our new 5th wheel at a campground. We called a mobile service company and they repaired it. We sent a copy of the bill to Keystone and received a check in the mail. Thank you. (tx)

[billb800si]

Just wondering, did you get authorization from Keystone prior to having the mobile repair done?
If not did Keystone willingly reimburse you?
Glad to see Keystone did the right thing.
Happy trails,

[Kdjshep]

Bill, We did not get authorization first. It was a hot Saturday afternoon near our home in Florida and the AC would not turn on. My hubby sent them a letter with a copy of the bill and to our surprise a check arrived in the mail.

We are very happy about that. Our vacation took place as planned and we didn't have to make a road trip "again" to the dealer.

[SAD]

Very good to hear!

[GaryWT]

That is great, always good to keep the vacation going with limited issues. Glad they came through for you.

[fla-gypsy]

That is great service. So, why do others seemingly have to go to war with a dealer and Keystone to get things done? I think I know the answer but I am interested in what others think.

[Brantlaker]

I think what happens when you communicate to someone at Keystone either on the phone or a letter that person has to want to help you. So me times they are having a bad day or are swamped with calls and unable to followup on it in a timely manor. Another thing is poor training at the job. the cost of Warranty repair is built into the wholesale cost. When I worked at Ford they had 2% added on for Warranty. At least at Keystone You are talking to some one at one of the factories not a call center far away. When I call I always start off with "HI my name is --- and I have a problem and I hope that you can help me with it".

[Bob Landry]

Glad to see Keystone did the right thing.


Even a blind hog occasionally finds an acorn.

Congrats on getting service from Keystone..

[ktmracer]

That is great service. So, why do others seemingly have to go to war with a dealer and Keystone to get things done? I think I know the answer but I am interested in what others think.

IMHO a big part is the dealer. Does the dealer want to make you a satisfied customer or not?? If yes, they will do battle with Keystone instead of you needing to. Luckily we have a great dealer that supports customers before and after warranty.

For example, a story I've posted before. Just as my one year warranty was up, I noticed the alloy wheels on our outback had white specs on them. So I took it to the dealer and asked them if it was warranty or normal wear and tear. They looked, saw it on all 4 wheels took pictures, said we will see what we can get keystone to do. A week later they called, 4 brand new wheels are ready, drop by we will install them, and remount your tires and have them balanced under warranty.

On another occasion, now that the trailer is 3 years old, 20K miles, 300 camping days coming up, I noticed that the slides weren't perfectly aligned when in. Might have been that way since new, don't know. Went to the dealer, they set up an appointment to align the slides, said it would be 2-3 hrs labor for the two of them. When I brought it in, first thing they did was go out to the trailer and do a careful inspection with them closed, carefully opened them, examined them. Response was. well, we can tweek them slightly, but it isn't needed and you'd be out 2 hrs labor with no benefit. Wait another year and see if anything moves.

Now, they easily could have had me drop it off, play with it a little, charge me 2 hrs labor and made a quick buck, but instead IMHO they did me right and also gave me peace of mind that the slides were working properly.

But I've also noticed that there are other dealers nearby, and at least one does NOT have a good reputation, poor work, denying warranty stuff etc.

[JRTJH]

KTMRacer, there are lots of stories similar to yours. Something I've learned recently about Keystone, their relationship with dealers and warranty is this:

There are Keystone product representatives in various places around the country. They call them dealer reps, or service reps or sales reps, take your pick of what to call them..... :cool:

They are there to help the dealerships resolve issues and help smooth the production and shipping times.... You know, they are a closer link for the dealer to talk to without having to call a "voice" on the phone in Goshen.

Now, when you take your RV in for warranty, the dealership reports the problem to Keystone, gives them a recommended fix and an estimated cost. Over the years, Keystone has asked the Rep to go take a look at various warranty proposals at most of the dealerships. Through that process, Keystone has a pretty good idea of which dealers are "padding" the repairs to boost profit and which ones are being "square shooters" doing both the customer and Keystone a good job.

Imagine, if you would, you take your RV in for warranty work because the tail light on the right side is loose. Suppose the dealer requests warranty authorization to remove, clean, reseal and reinstall the tail light for $60. Probably this is a fair deal both for you and Keystone and the dealer gets paid for his time appropriately.

Now, lets suppose you take it in for that same problem, the dealer requests a warranty claim to remove and replace the rear skin panel because of leaking tail lights. He proposes a cost of $2100 for the work "Provided Keystone ships the materials". So, Keystone says to put the request on hold pending the Rep's apprasial. The rep shows up, sees that the repair suggested in the first scenario would work. So that's what they approve. You're none the wiser in either situation and you're happy, your tail light is fixed and not leaking or wiggling around.

Now, the Rep gets back to the factory for a meeting, discusses your dealership's proposal with management and says he thinks this isn't the first time he's seen this dealer do the same thing. So, Keystone puts all their warranty requests above a set figure (say $200) on a rep apprasial only.

You take your RV back for an issue with the microwave (it costs $225 to install a new one). A month later, your RV is still sitting on the lot, You are angry, call the dealership wanting to know why..... Their response to you,"Keystone hasn't approved the repair and we don't know when they will get to it." So, you're now angry at Keystone, right???? But, it's not Keystone that caused the issue.

How do you sort this out? Beats heck out of me, but in talking with the dealership I bought from (we're hunting and fishing buddies) I'm getting more than an earfull about how Keystone is getting screwed by dealerships that don't care about either Keystone or the customer.

I don't know how you can tell which dealership is a "good one" and which dealership is going to be "reviewed on every item" and which dealership will "work for you" and which dealership is "honest and above board"

I hate to think it's a "crap shoot" on where you buy, but I'd think talking to other customers, seeing how long their rigs sit for repairs, listening to what they say are their frustrations or praises about the dealer are probably the only way to make "better choices"

Keystone won't tell you about their internal issues with any dealer, and I don't blame them. But, if you get caught up in the middle of one of them, you're definitely going to be frustrated before you get happy again......

Hope this maybe sheds some light on a part of the service department few of us even consider.....