I think you just got to put it down to a bad experience bud, get um back, move on and don't use him again.
The guy sounds like a grade A pillock. Unless he’s done them, and then forgotten to send them out, even so, there’s still no excuse. I regard customer service extremely highly in my line of work. Without it, I wouldn’t have a business. People like this chump don’t deserve to be in business.
So they arrived back today. Predicatably they were in exactly the same state as when I sent them to him. The greatest irony is that the most communication in a year and a half I've had off the bloke was sorting out their return. But they're back now, so I've lined up a fabricator I know to take a look at them and go from there.
shit experience and can't believe how patient you have been. luckily i live within an hour of him so when i needed some new baffles for the SFV4S akra system i just went round and he did them there and then. obviously you literally need to be in his face
Such a shame, he is definitely one of the best welders and has plenty of knowledge about exhausts. Either way, that behaviour is below any expectations, you have been very a patient man.
This is the impression I've got from everyone who has dealt with him. I'll never dispute his talent, but you literally have to be standing over him with a stick to get anything done. If I was in a position to, I'd be sticking my head in every week asking are we there yet, but for me he's nearly a seven hour round trip. Ultimately he's got so much work he actually doesn't care, and judging by the speed of response regarding getting them back I know he just didn't want the work. I think it's what he was wanting all along. I'm used to dealing with people who's core business is formula 1 and aerospace - serious people who charge serious money but really know their stuff and get things done. He was my first foray outside of that environment, and now I appreciate what I'm paying for. He's been doing it since forever, and he's good, but after this experience if it's a toss up between him and a formula1 or aerospace fabby at 70 - 100 quid an hour, I'll pay the 70 quid all day long.
I wish I'd have known, I could have got you to go round there and pester him on my behalf every week - I'd have happily paid you for the effort.
I’ve had a couple of bits done by MHP. Baffles for my 959 being the last bit. I get the impression he started in a small workshop with a to-do list on the back of a cigarette packet. Top quality workmanship, but completely unreliable in terms of dates etc. one time he thought I’d changed my mind about a job because he hadn’t heard from me, and denied receiving an email I’d sent (which was definitely sent). This annoyed me as it becomes insulting at this stage. But his work is good…
I was around race paddocks when he started off on his own. He made loads of exhausts for early DD guys, still does I saw one posted yesterday on FB at his workshop, and is very much a victim of success. One of the things you need to learn, and many can’t, is how to say no. The second thing is yes but I’ll see you in 6 months. The downfall of many reputations
He just needs to be honest with people . If you ring up with an issue then just be honest , say you would happily do it but you just dont know when you can get around to it. Honestly it might be a XX of months. We can put up with things taking time as long as we know the situation so we then have a choice of to use them or not.
I don't think your email was remotely out of line, much more patient than I would have been. I really dislike dealing with almost all people in the automotive aftermarket industry in this country, people may be talented at what they do but are almost always any combination of incapable of communication, believe timescales are optional and think that they're the one helping you out and you should be grateful. how hard is it to take on someone to run the admin side of things.. picking and packing, scheduling jobs so they get worked on in order and leave on time and communicating with customers A friend of mine had a car fall into 'specialist purgatory' for over two years once.. every call/email that actually got responded to was another tall story about how X, Y or Z had gone wrong but it'll definitely be done 'soon', he ended up picking up his unfinished car that had been left outside, four flat tyres, covered in moss and a mouldy interior.
