Complaint Review: Pool & Spa Outlet Inc.

I guess I will start at the beginning. My wife and I looked at several brands of Spa before we decided on the Cal Spa Brand. The Pool & Spa Outlet in Riverside and Moreno Valley were two of the dealers closest to our new house. We purchased the spa on May 27, 2006 from Terri Pauff (Manager) at the Moreno Valley store. The Spa was new and sold for $7,350 (+tax, accessories, etc). At the time of purchase we also added a Gap Insurance policy to the Spa. The additional insurance was $150 and extends the manufacturers warranty to 10 Years. It also covers some items that are not covered by the manufacturer's warranty.

The spa was delivered on June 6, 2006. The installation crew apparently did not have the parts necessary to install the spa. The previous owner of this home had a Spa and there was a 220v line and a breaker box within 10 feet of the spa location. In order to get the spa installed and running I personally went down to the hardware store and picked up waterproof wire caps, connectors and something else I don't recall. I did have a minor problem with the main breaker on the home, but that was unrelated to the spa.

In the middle of July 2008 I notice that the main motor on the spa appeared to make more noise than normal. My wife and I were on a short vacation and when we returned the main spa breaker was tripped. I reset the breaker and notice that the spa was much louder than normal. I called the Pool & Spa Outlet during the last week of July 2008 to setup an inspection and repair.

Here is an outline of the service provided by Pool & Spa Outlet.

August 1, 2008 The Service Technicians arrive and diagnose the problem as a bad motor. The main 6 HP Motor will need to be replaced.

Aug 4 Sept 5 I called the service department at least 3 or 4 times between these dates. I did not anticipate this kind of problem, so I did not keep detailed records. The service department told me that there was a problem with the part order. The part was in stock, but some other invoice was unpaid and the supplier would not release the motor.

September 8, 2008 At this point I started to call everyone I could track down at the company.

Mike Service Manager 951-256-3500 x 5
Frank Store Manager (Moreno Valley) 951-222-2111
Randy Torrez Customer Service Manager (CEO?) 951-256-3500 x 1109

Mike did not return my last call.

Frank gave me the contact number for Randy Torrez and the phone number for Cal Spa (800-Cal-Spas). There is apparently no one at Pool & Spa Outlet above Randy Torrez that I can talk to about this problem.

Randy Torrez did not appear very interested in my problem. He told me that service would need to work out the problem with the part. I told him this was not a Service problem, but a Company Problem. He agreed to check into it and get back to me.

I spoke with Amy at Cal Spa and gave her my Serial Number. She looked up the part number for the motor (PUM22000941) and verified that the motor was in stock. She did locate another service provider for Cal Spa in my area. But I paid for the Gap Insurance with Pool & Spa Outlet. Another Service Center would most likely charge me a fee for the service call.

I fully expected this series of phone call to get the repair done. I gave them the rest of the week to get the part ordered and the repair scheduled.

September 9-15 I waited for someone to call me with the appointment date.

September 16, 2008 No call back from Pool & Spa Outlet the prior week.
I left another message for Service

September 17, 2008 No call back from Service or anyone else
I left a message for Randy Torrez

September 18, 2008 I left another message for Service

September 19, 2008 I left another message for Randy Torrez

I called Frank again at the Moreno Valley Store. I explained my extreme frustration with Service and the entire company. Frank called and left a message for Mike in service while I was on the phone. He agreed to follow up on the part.

Frank called back later in the day and told me that the part was shipped on Wednesday (Sept 17) and would arrive on Friday or Monday.

September 22 or 23 I receive a call back from Randy Torrez. He tells me there was a death in the family and that is the reason he did not return my call. Service and Scheduling will call me in the next day or two to setup the repair

September 23-26 No Call from anyone else that week

September 29, 2008 I receive a call from Scheduling. The Service Department will repair the Spa on Tuesday (September 30). They need me to be available from 7:00 am until 4:00 pm for the Service Technician. Service will call me in the morning to give me a more specific time for the repair.

The person on the phone (Melinda) did call me by another first name. I did confirm that my name is Keith.

September 30, 2008 No call from anyone
No one from Service came to repair the Spa

October 1, 2008 The Scheduling Department is only open Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 11:00 am until 4:00 pm.

I left a message for the Scheduling Department at 10:45 am. I want to know what happened with my appointment.

I left a message for Randy Torrez at 12:00 pm.

I received a call back from Scheduling at 3:26 pm. Note that they close at 4:00 pm. I was not at home and I did not get the message until after 4:00 pm. They have an appointment time available for Friday (Oct 3). Melinda explains that she has another customer with my last name that also needs a 6 HP Motor. She mixed up the two names and appointments.

October 2, 2008 I left a message for Scheduling. I am available again on Friday, but I need to know when they will arrive (within 1 hour, not a 9 hour window).

I left a message Service. I told them the same thing about the appointment Friday.

I am so frustrated with Pool & Spa Outlet Inc. that I don't know what to do with myself. I have NEVER received this kind of poor service on a product that cost over $8,000. It has been over 2 months since the service department came out and identified the problem. I can't use the spa because the main motor runs any time the spa is in operation. This product is designed to last 10+ years. I paid extra to get an Extended Warranty on the product. I will NOT go through this much time and effort again on this Cal Spa. If I could return the Spa to Pool & Spa Outlet for a refund I would do it without a second of hesitation.

I filed a Complaint with the Better Business Bureau for the Pool & Spa Outlet Inc in Moreno Valley. This is the location where I purchased the Spa. Frank did try to help me and he was not the manager at the time of my purchase, but I am not sure who else to name in the complaint.

No one at Pool & Spa Outlet has offered any kind of compensation for my trouble. With over two months of broken promises I doubt that they will show up tomorrow for the repairs. I simply can't wait any longer. I am considering additional action against Pool & Spa Outlet Inc, including a Small Claims Action.

In addition to the BBB Complaint I sent a copy of this letter to Cal Spa Corporate (ccsupervisor@calspas.com). I will also post this on www.ripoffreport.com and any other Consumer Advocate Web Site I can find.

In addition to the motor problem, the spa has 7 Spinner jets that have started to rust. Five of the jets are unusable; I assume the other two will fail soon. Pool & Spa Outlet will not replace the jets. The replacement jets are about $20 each. I can understand that the warranty can't cover everything, but why would you use metal in a part that is exposed to water 100% of the time.

Keith
Riverside, California
U.S.A.